Kerry

Somebody needs to do something with these way oversize blown out images (ads) appearing in the guts of posts, Willy totally unworkable!

Still doesn't change the fact that cell phones are a liability in this regard

As far as rivited alloy boats are concerned most boat builders (over here anyway) have moved on many many years ago, yet there are still some 40 year old rivited alloy boats still going today that were made by DeHavilland all those years ago. DeHavilland being an aircraft manufacturer knew very well about alloy stress and fatigue hence one reason why aircraft are still full of rivits today. With small light weight alloy boats rivits still have a place for the very reason of stess and fatigue with thin weled light gauge alloy. Different scenario when 6mm plate is being used but there can still be an issue with stress, fatigue and failure and when an all welded alloy plate boat fails it fails big time.

So you are saying Crestliner stinks? No, what I said was that any welded alloy boat can/could leak, split, take on water etc there is no guarantee that just because it's an all-welded aluminium boat that it will/should never leak. Regardless of being a Crestliner or not.

Considering Oz builders have been building big, small and in between alloy plate and pressed fully welded boats for probably a lot longer and in greater qualties than the US then trust me that they can/will & do split at times, You should never say never on this one as there are quite a few variables in this that no one can simply make a blanket statement like that.

So lets talk about some of the "less important" stuff, you know stuff like alloy grade, bottom/side thickness etc

If it floats be it a bath tub, a PWC or a gin palace and is beyond 2nm from shore barring minor regional exemptions then it should be equiped with and EPIRB, which is not to be confused with a PLB. The future is near

Of course he sounds Australian even more there are lots of us you know we are the ones that invented the "real" modern day catamaran and you lot are the ones 15 years behind still catching up We are from oz and we are here to help you

Hey you've got to admit it is real clever

Nah this is more than a router/IP issue. It would appear a bit more than that as having access to multiple and different dial-up, wireless broadband, ADSL etc systems they all behave the same and even where some of the systems have never ever even connected to THT .

That's fine and when you have all the other gear in place (VHF, Epirb etc) then a cell phone does not become a liability.

Cell phones should be banned in any water as far as navigation and especially as far as any type of safety tag is concerned.

Reason for edit: Not standard

Where did you hear this crock of s,,t? Have you tried it? It's only true for an 8' dink. After 15 minutes bailing you wanna die rather than pick up that bucket again. The bilge pump is still going.. Yep electric bilge pumps work wonders when the battery is under water Way too many people have way too much faith into all things electric. When you have the "choice" you will pick up that bucket, regardless.

Look Alloy isn't everything to everybody, never has and never ever will be. Is it the way to go? Well now that depends on many many variables that nobody here has all the answers too. As for this so called fluff or looks or ugly or whatever turns your fancy the good old mudguard principle (shining on top, sh!t underneath) applies to any boat building material. Simply so many variables and some are trying to put everything in the one basket, not possible people.

Alloy is not the be all and end all with regard material but it does have a purpose and people need to realize this as it's not a material for everybody or any purpose. Like the age old discussion re building material, throw a piece of steel, alloy, FG, wood/timber, ferro cement, poly etc into the ocean and first 1) see which one floats then 2) check again in 30 years and see what's left of each .

You don't need to be on the water in a boat to get seasick. Seen a person get seasick sitting on the back of a dingy with their feet on the beach, forty feet short of the water.

First - there isn't anyone dragging water from the bilge up to the gunnel in a bucket doing better that a bilge pump. Though frankly I would hope that both would be happening! Secondly - I would hope most off-shore vessels have more than one bilge pump. A frightened man with a bucket won't run flat either like those relying on battery power. Thirdly - I would expect ALL off-shore vessels are self draining and if there is more water in the bilge than on the outside then you have a problem no pump will handle.

3500GPH Rule ???? A one armed man with a 2 gallon bucket could give a 3500GPH rule 3/4's of an hour head start and still beat it.

Some of the legislation in countries like Oz is a legacy from the old days when prices were much higher than today. If some of the boundaries were properly reviewed today there probably would be a tightening up of the requirements and reduction in excemption areas?

So are Jet Ski's and paddling Kayakers but length makes no difference with Epirb requirements and when you are in the water the vessel you might have come from makes absolutely no difference.

Holey crap! Seriously? That seems a little excessive. Seriously and as time goes by and boaties attitudes don't change with the times it could get worse. However withinn these 2nm mandated legislated distances there are excempted areas (quite big areas, bays etc) but really this is more about political BS and really not looking at the scenario that could occur. This type of legislation is focused on those that look only at the very minimum basic requirements and would take the easy way out every time if given the opportunity. Serious offshore people do have their own plans which go well beyond what would normally be expected but more and more boaties are wanting to go further and further. Around there there a 5 to 6 metre (16-19 feet) travelling 80 miles offshore and they think they are smart doing that but one day they will get caught and they will be the first looking for someone else to blame for their stupidity. It is not a case of if but when and we have already seen idiots stuff up. Idiots needs protection for their own good, they don't know any better but they believe technology will help/save them, not always.

So "coastal waters" then is a stretch of "water" with no width Some are obviously a little lost on this one as generally the distinction between coastal and offshore waters (ignoring weather forecast boundaries) is the affects casued by coastal or continential attributes and there simply ain't no way that 5 feet "off the shore" is affected by continential conditions in any way shape or form.

Also for those comparing EPIRB requirements and distance, just about all of the real world (that is excluding the US at this point ) generally require (that is mandate) EPIRB's beyond 2nm for anything that floats.

Not sure that's true re boating distance. I always believed that if you were within sight of land it was inshore, out of sight of land, offshore. Then what's your definition of "coastal" waters?