What are some cool projects you’ve done, seen, or heard about being done on those lonnngggggggg, tedious days underway with nothing to do but watch the horizon pass by? Sometimes sweeping and mopping or chipping and painting can seem all-consuming, other times it’s not nearly enough. You can only watch so many movies and eat so many chips before you lose your mind!
Wood working projects are popular. Not a lot of storage design in supply boats that really makes any sense to me anyway. Always seems like something you can add to organize things. It irks me that so many of these boats don’t have workshops on board.
A guy built a kayak on the ship I was on during his off duty time.
The Chief got a powder coat set on the ship I sailed on for a few years. We would take small stuff from outside/inside-sand blast, clean and powder coat…for preventive maintenance of course.
[QUOTE=PaddyWest2012;148479]What are some cool projects you’ve done, seen, or heard about being done on those lonnngggggggg, tedious days underway with nothing to do but watch the horizon pass by? Sometimes sweeping and mopping or chipping and painting can seem all-consuming, other times it’s not nearly enough. You can only watch so many movies and eat so many chips before you lose your mind![/QUOTE]
I tried shaping a surfboard. It was supposed to be 7’6", it ended up being 6’3" it was unintentionally asymmetric. And the fins hummed. After that, I just worked more OT.
I was on a supply boat in 1998 when my wife was pregnant. I built a changing table onboard while tied to the rig weeks on end. It’s a beautiful well constructed piece of furniture that I had taken off with a crane and put on the crewboat for the ride in to whatever port it was. It’ll be used by my daughters for their children when that time comes.
I love woodworking. Unfortunately I don’t get much time nor do I have all the proper tools at work to build. I’ve recently found sketchup and I use it to satisfy my creativity itch while at work. When I get home I use my sketchup drawings to build whatever I have already thought through while at work.
Once on an old breakbulk ship we had so much great dunnage just to be thrown overboard that I tried to build me a 14’ fishing skiff out of it. By the time we were about back to the homeport, it wasn’t finished and ended up going over the side. Probably still floating out there in the great Pacific garbage patch. I recall lack of proper woodworking tools to be a major problem.
Of course, if I had completed it, I had no way to get it home with me so likely would have been given away.
You such a master at the universe,I’m 100% sure your skiff is still floating out there. Heard Carolina skiff wanted to hire you after that trip.
What’s this “Offtime” you speak of…?
[QUOTE=seadonkey;148541]You such a master at the universe,I’m 100% sure your skiff is still floating out there. Heard Carolina skiff wanted to hire you after that trip.[/QUOTE]
Of course it is! I build a very seaworthy vessel and I am sure it has weathered many a hideous Gulf of Alaska winter storm. Pity I wasn’t able to charter it to Shell to tow the KULLUK…probably would have done a much better job that the mighty AIVIQ
btw, thanks for recognizing my esteemed position…NOW KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!
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[QUOTE=captjamied;148544]What’s this “Offtime” you speak of…?[/QUOTE]
Lots of time off watch when you stand 4 on 8 off like they do on real civilized “ships”…this 12 on 12 off CRAP is BULLSHIT only fit for you pickup truck driving unwashed heathens!
I get 12 hours straight off watch time. I’m from Alabama and my cipherin ain’t to good but I think 12 is more than 8. Which is more than enough time to do whatever and stil get 8 straight hours of sleep. If you’re really tired what’s better than about 10-11 hours straight of sleepy time. I worked 4-8 and it’s just as bad 6-6 as far as I’m concerned. Now if I was deep sea 8-16 would be sweet.
Making trolling lures out of things that would otherwise be trash. Synthetic lines, shinny side of chip bags, scrap pieces of pipe and wood ect.
I make paracord duck call lanyards and monkey fist keychains. I sell them for beer money when I get back to land. Just turned down a 1000 piece go pro lanyard order.
I sailed with this poor bastard who was always being picked on by the rest of the crew. Granted the guy was a completely incompetent fool, so he brought it on himself. I found him in the crew’s lounge doing cross stitching. I felt so bad for the idiot that I ordered him to take that to his room and NEVER let the other guys see him doing it.
Way back when, I had a double cassette deck. I used to copy tapes for other guys. I wound up with quite an eclectic music collection from all over the world.