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West Marine 4th of July sale

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OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4382 Posts

Initially Posted - 06/22/2016 : 08:57:39

Picked up sale flyer from local WM store yesterday - but not finding anything online - at least not yet.

Large variety of products.

Some items running from 23-26Jun only,

other items from 23Jun-4Jul.

1989 C25 TR/WK, #5822
1973 McVay Minuet 19
1975 Jester 12
1981 C25 SR/SK, #2428
1981 C22 SR/SK,
Tanzer 16
Sunfish

"There is nothing, absolutely nothing half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats." Kenneth Grahame

Edited by - OJ on 06/22/2016 08:59:45

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9013 Posts

Response Posted - 06/22/2016 : 09:27:39

quote:
Originally posted by OJ

...Some items running from 23-26Jun only, other items from 23Jun-4Jul.

Yup--watch those inserted pages in WM flyers--they often are for different days than other pages, so you show up at the store on a sale date and find your thing is not on sale (yet or any more). Don't bother asking how I know...

Dave Bristle
Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT
PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired),
Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4382 Posts

Response Posted - 06/23/2016 : 13:45:56

http://www.westmarine.com/?cm_mmc=PS-_-Google-_-Brand-_-west+marine&adpos=1t1&creative=110533562404&device=c&matchtype=e&network=g&gclid=CNa7opOCv80CFUpahgodAzoFgg

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
5231 Posts

Response Posted - 06/25/2016 : 08:50:11

I did see that they offered the Nicro Vents for $99 each.
Not a bad price if you have to replace your currently non-working vent

The cleaning supplies and the Marine Tex are also on sale. I usually stock up when prices are lowered.

Bruce Ross
Passage ~ SR-FK ~ C25 #5032

Port Captain � Milford, CT

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3367 Posts

Response Posted - 06/25/2016 : 12:22:31

I bought a NicroVent for $99. Since these seem to last about 2 years, I bought the extended warranty for about $10.50 for addl year past the 2 yr std warranty. I also had a $10. WM certificate, so it paid for the ext'd warranty.

I had replaced the motor on my old one but the motor puts out a bit too much flow and it's amps does not let the battery get fully charged. I may try another motor on my old Nicro as an experiment, however, I noticed that the new Nicro, the instruction manual mentions a repair kit they now sell. Not sure how much it is but it includes a new motor, rotors and 1-2 addl parts.

Larry
'89 Robin's Nest#5820, Potomac River/Quantico, Va
http://catalina25.homestead.com/olarryr.html

islander
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3992 Posts

Response Posted - 06/25/2016 : 13:34:56

Boy, Isn't that brilliant. Instead of actually improving those POS vents, They see an opportunity to sell you a repair kit.

Scott-"IMPULSE"87'C25/SR/WK/Din.#5688
Sailing out of Glen Cove,L.I Sound

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3367 Posts

Response Posted - 06/26/2016 : 06:12:21

It may turn out that the repair kit is very expensive but I don,t fault Nicro for offering a repair kit vs not offering one. As far as why don't they improve their design - I share the frustration of having to replace these costly vents every 2 years or so. I believe there is one competitor that offers something similar but on Amazon, it does not have great reviews.So, Nicro is pretty much the only one that offers this type of vent. The issue is the motor in that the brushes get worn out from running 24 hrs a day, every day. A brushless motor would solve that but I have not found one small enough and reasonable enough to use as a substitute inside the Nicro fixture. So, the least costly remedy is to offer a repair kit or to find an exact replacement for the motor. Similar sized motors, at most cost $10 each. Some cost only $3 but then you have to pay for shipping. Brushless motors can cost considerable, maybe $30 or more and then it is a question if you can get it in such a small size/configuration. Another way to look at this is buying the Nicro on sale at West Marine for $99 and buying the extra year warranty for $10.50 means You will at least get 3 years use out of the initial purchase or if it breaks down in less than 3 years, WestMarine will give you a new one off the shelf.

Larry
'89 Robin's Nest#5820, Potomac River/Quantico, Va
http://catalina25.homestead.com/olarryr.html

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9013 Posts

Response Posted - 06/26/2016 : 08:38:51

They sent me a repair kit for free and didn't tell me not to tell anyone, so I just did. The repair is a little tricky, involving some pin-point soldering. (I picked up a $99 unit from WM, for next time. I hope they didn't change the design of the deck sleeve again.)

Dave Bristle
Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT
PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired),
Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge

Edited by - Stinkpotter on 06/26/2016 08:40:58

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
5231 Posts

Response Posted - 06/26/2016 : 17:24:44

The situation IMHO is that the power budget for the solar panel, the battery and the motor is so "tight" that it's right on the hairy edge.

In my experience, it was not the brushes that went bad, since I still have the original motor. The flexible copper "finger" contacts are still fine.

I believe it's the motor's armature bearings that are at fault. The bearings consist of the steel armature shaft, a graphite washer plus a Teflon washer on each end that rides inside the cylindrical holes drilled or cast into the plastic end caps. These bearings tend to build up stickiness or friction, so the motor needs to develop more torque over time to overcome the "stick-tion".

Since the power budget is so low, the motor's starting torque is correspondingly minuscule, so the battery and solar panel have to "wear themselves out" just trying to overcome the stickiness. At that point the whole power budget goes to heck-in-a-handbasket. At least that's what happened to mine.

I tried spraying the bearings with Silicone lubricant, then I tried WD-30, It worked for about 2 days.

Really the only cure is a new motor. As Dave says, the soldering job is tricky. The wires are #24AWG or maybe #26, very thin and they won't take ANY manhandling or they'll snap off in a NY minute.

Best bet - before you remove anything, make a sketch a of the wiring diagram. There's the solar panel, the battery, the on/off switch, a resistor and the motor. If any wires fall off you might want to use a thicker type of stranded wire like #22 or #20 (like light speaker cable).

Good luck on whatever you do.

Bruce Ross
Passage ~ SR-FK ~ C25 #5032

Port Captain � Milford, CT

offshoreaccount
1st Mate

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USA
71 Posts

Response Posted - 06/26/2016 : 18:16:11

Back on track, nothing too exciting in my mind. You can get just about anything on sale from online sources for less, and after having a WM manager (who I later found out was the general manager of the store) trigger on me - I think he confused me with someone else - I'm more than hesitant to spend any money there. I'd hate to reinforce that poor behavior.

Only thing that interested me was the non-skid PTEF cleaner, but you can get it for that price on amazon.

Offshore Account, 1977 Hull #243. SR, SK

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
5231 Posts

Response Posted - 06/26/2016 : 18:31:03

While I don't always like to say this, believe it or not Wal*Mart in my area offers several cleaners like PTFE deck wash, black spot remover, TSP, cleaning brushes, dock lines, anchor rodes, fenders, lighting and electrical (crimps, dikes, cigarette receptacles and USBs) and even fiberglass cloth and two-part epoxy. The RV dept is a good stop off place for 12VDC appliances.

Bruce Ross
Passage ~ SR-FK ~ C25 #5032

Port Captain � Milford, CT

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9013 Posts

Response Posted - 06/26/2016 : 19:23:29

quote:
Originally posted by Voyager

While I don't always like to say this, believe it or not Wal*Mart in my area offers...

Good grief... The Evil Empire up against the Galactic Empire! Based on observations from my business career and separately around rural America, I'll support just about any enterprise up against the Bentonville town-wreckers.

Dave Bristle
Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT
PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired),
Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3367 Posts

Response Posted - 06/27/2016 : 03:33:48

I was also going to buy another bottle of non-skid cleaner since they had on sale at a 20%/30% discount but it was for the West Marine Non-skid cleaner and not the Starbrite product. I was not sure if they were the same product and I have been using the Starbrite product. Since I still have a bottle or two, I held off buying it. I also wanted to buy a small cam cleat but they were not on sale and the least expensive one they had was about $23. The safety line I have attached to my ladder, the line is held with a wedge cleat which if you go overboard, you can grab the line and pull it to release it out of the wedge cleat to lower the ladder if you are in the water. It's extremely low duty use for a cam cleat - Basically keeps the ladder snug up against the stern rail but with the wedge cleat, it is not as secure and sometimes the ladder and stern rail make some chatter noise. Some tape wrapped around the ladder rung probably would help as well. Anyway, my use of a cam cleat would make it a bit more secure/keep it from loosening up. I happen to be ordering some stuff from Amazon and they had a small cam cleat made by Raceline selling for about $13 so I went with that. Interesting (these days) that the cam cleat is made in the USA.

Larry
'89 Robin's Nest#5820, Potomac River/Quantico, Va
http://catalina25.homestead.com/olarryr.html

bigelowp
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1736 Posts

Response Posted - 06/27/2016 : 17:40:18

Lets see -- some comments: West Marine in my area is power-centric so sailing gear in stock is minimal and never the size I want. My guess is there are some stores that are more sail centric. Luckily because of where I work I can get to the Portsmouth NH store and find most items and all with no sales tax: Yes, some Walmart's have really good boating/camping/rv departments and I have been pleasantly surprised by the nice stuff, cheap, they often have -- but some, like my local Walmart is regrettably a dump that is out of stock on almost everything. I tend to order via mail-order from sailing supply companies when they have sales for large ticket gear. Boat maintenance stuff seems to be just as efficient to buy when you need it from the local chandlery.

and then their is Defender . . . . . . .

Peter Bigelow
C-25 TR/FK #2092 Limerick
Rowayton, Ct
Port Captain: Rowayton/Norwalk/Darien CT

offshoreaccount
1st Mate

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USA
71 Posts

Response Posted - 06/27/2016 : 18:31:56

I have used the walmart marine section before. They didn't have nonskid cleaner at mine unfortunately. I just bought an out board fuel line after my bracket crimped my last one as I went to lower my sails.

Offshore Account, 1977 Hull #243. SR, SK

GaryB
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4275 Posts

Response Posted - 06/28/2016 : 13:39:26

quote:
Originally posted by islander

Boy, Isn't that brilliant. Instead of actually improving those POS vents, They see an opportunity to sell you a repair kit.

Exactly why I've never bought one of these. Over-priced, don't last long, and they just keep on selling them with no effort to fix the problem.

We have some engineers on here, how about you guys design and produce something that actually works and lasts more than 2 years?

I'd pay $250 if I had to just to have something that works.

Association Member

GaryB
Andiamo
'89 SR/WK #5862
Kemah,TX

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4382 Posts

Response Posted - 06/29/2016 : 18:35:39

I was so turned off at the replacement price of the Nicro vent that I went with one of these:

http://www.defender.com/category.jsp?path=-1%7C6880%7C2290139&id=2290143

I did have to enlarge the hole a little, but using a hole saw made quick work of it.

Edited by - OJ on 06/29/2016 18:37:30

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9013 Posts

Response Posted - 06/29/2016 : 19:51:49

quote:
Originally posted by OJ

I was so turned off at the replacement price of the Nicro vent that I went with one of these...

Those are some interesting hole diameters! What are you doing to cause some exchange of air?

Dave Bristle
Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT
PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired),
Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
5231 Posts

Response Posted - 06/29/2016 : 20:13:20

Instead of trying to push a rope uphill both ways against the tide I went with a relatively simple fix. I changed out the fan!
West Marine sells a nominally 4" O2 fan that takes USB power that will precisely fit into my old NicroVent. I recall it was about $10! O2 fan
Buy a few! They'll likely last a lot longer than that old finicky vent motor.

Bruce Ross
Passage ~ SR-FK ~ C25 #5032

Port Captain � Milford, CT

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9013 Posts

Response Posted - 06/29/2016 : 21:40:15

quote:
Originally posted by Voyager

...West Marine sells a nominally 4" O2 fan that takes USB power that will precisely fit into my old NicroVent...

So this is drawing from your battery 24/7? What's the draw?

Dave Bristle
Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT
PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired),
Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
5231 Posts

Response Posted - 06/30/2016 : 23:53:38

The fan runs at about 1000-2000 rpms when connected to a USB lighter plug adapter. The adapter puts out 5.0VDC @ 1A. I disconnected the USB plug and tried it on the NicroVent solar panel output (~2.5V @ 100 mA). This made the fan run very feebly. So I tested it using a few resistor values. 470 Ohms let the fan run at approx 200 RPMs. This draws about 25 mA. This is insignificant for a 90 AH Group 27 battery.

Bruce Ross
Passage ~ SR-FK ~ C25 #5032

Port Captain � Milford, CT

TakeFive
Master Marine Consultant

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2269 Posts

Response Posted - 07/05/2016 : 19:02:05

quote:
Originally posted by OLarryR

I was also going to buy another bottle of non-skid cleaner since they had on sale at a 20%/30% discount but it was for the West Marine Non-skid cleaner and not the Starbrite product. I was not sure if they were the same product and I have been using the Starbrite product...

I've always wondered also. I asked the guy at WestMarine yesterday, and he said it's the same stuff, just relabeled. That does not mean it's true, but I bought it anyway on sale to test and see. My new marina is in Rock Hall, MD and there's not much else around besides the WestMarine store, so someday I might need to know if it's the same.

(Actually, Rock Hall has another very salty, old marine store, and I really should get to know those guys to help keep them in business.)

Rick S., Swarthmore, PA
PO of Take Five, 1998 Catalina 250WK #348 (relocated to Baltimore's Inner Harbor)
New owner of 2001 Catalina 34MkII #1535 Breakin' Away (at Rock Hall Landing Marina)

Edited by - TakeFive on 07/05/2016 19:02:52

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9013 Posts

Response Posted - 07/06/2016 : 19:52:24

quote:
Originally posted by TakeFive

(Actually, Rock Hall has another very salty, old marine store, and I really should get to know those guys to help keep them in business.)

Better work on the dialect of the watermen...

Dave Bristle
Association "Port Captain" for Mystic/Stonington CT
PO of 1985 C-25 SR/FK #5032 Passage, USCG "sixpack" (expired),
Now on Eastern 27 $+!nkp*+ Sarge

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