Boating USA — January 2018

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BOAT DOCTOR ///Q&A

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BOATINGMAG.COM | JANUARY 2018| 23

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BOATDOCTOR///Q&A

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W E

TEST

STUFF

PHOTOS: (FROM TOP) COURTESY FORTRESS MARINE ANCHORS, COURTESY MEGAWARE KEELGUARD

MIXED UP

Q: Hi Boat Doc! At a recent

boat show, I noticed a Rinker

model boat that had a built-in

blender that f lipped open and

was ready to use. Where can I

purchase one of these?

John Reichert

Lindenhurst, New York

A: Rinker installs a

good-quality 12-volt blender,

mounting it upside down

to a f lip-open platform it

constructs in-house. Buy a

blender ( Waring Tailgater,

$99, amazon.com) and then

get to cobbling — or hire a

carpenter. Of course, you can

use it without the built-in

flip-up features. Good luck.

ASK THE DOCTOR

Send questions to Mick with

your name and address to:

[email protected] or

The Boat Doctor, Boating, 460

N. Orlando Ave., Suite 200,

Winter Park, FL 32789.

Mike, I’d love to detail the finer points of building and installing a custom-

built DIY bracket on which you could secure your storm anchor. Instead, I’m

going to recommend you look at a large fisherman-style anchor or a large

Fortress anchor. Both can be broken down into component parts for easier stowage and

reassembled when needed.

FIDDLE FADDLE

Q: Doc, I’d like to add a

rail around the perime-

ter of my boat’s faux-

stone galley counter. At

anchor, if a boat wake

rocks us (grrrr), items

sometimes slide off. How

should we go about this?

Mary and Jim O’Keefe

Bethesda, Maryland

A: First, contact your

boat’s builder and ask

what specifically the

counter is made from.

Then approach a coun-

tertop contractor and ask

them to make and install

your fiddles (aka keeper

rails). It will likely prove

cost-prohibitive to make

the rails yourself given

the cost of full sheets

of faux stone. Be sure

to leave a few scuppers

(spaces) in the rails to

make spill cleanup easier.

BEACH NOT?

Q: Dear Doc, please

settle this bet. My buddy

says I am wrong to run

the bow of my boat up

on the sand at the beach

because it will abrade the

gelcoat and could lead to

problems with the fiber-

glass. I do it all the time,

as do plenty of others. He

anchors off and wades

in. A case of outboard oil

rides on your answer.

Todd Statler

Albany, Georgia

A:Many boaters beach

their boats with no

apparent damage.

That said, thousands

of pounds resting on

an abrasive surface

may have some effects,

depending upon the

boat and who is doing

the beaching. Therefore,

I cannot advise it as

universally OK to do. I

have to call this one a tie.

Maybe you can split the

oil? Thanks for writing

in, Todd.

ANCHORS AWEIGH!

Dear Doc, I’d like to keep an oversize

storm anchor aboard my cruiser, but

I don’t know how I should secure it.

Do you have any tips?

Mike Haller

St. Paul, Minnesota

MEGAWARE

PONTOONGUARD

We found Megaware’s PontoonGuards easy to apply, off ering

protection against dents and scrapes, with the bonus of 3M

refl ective strips to increase visibility. The tools required to

install them are basic: a utility knife, measuring and masking

tape, pencil, metal straightedge, clean rags and isopropyl

alcohol. We chose gray of the four colors available to blend in

with the natural aluminum of our project boat’s logs.

We washed the pontoons and measured to find the

mounting height, marking the mounting area with taped

lines. We then wiped the area with alcohol to ensure good

adhesion. A partner was helpful in applying the guards, as

was starting at the bow. At the aft end of the tube, we used

the knife to trim the PontoonGuards f lush.

Following installation aboard our project pontoon, and

weathering a Midwest boating season at the dock and un-

derway, we have found them to offer the protection — and

the ease of application — as advertised.

The quarter-inch-thick polymer composite is super-

tough and comes in four colors for pontoons from 16 to

21 feet ($369.95) and 22 to 25 feet ($439.95, keelguard.com).

— Dan Armitage