Re: What tools/spares do you carry on board?
I tend to go overboard (no pun intended) when I stock my tool box. The reason is simple. I am on my twenty-ninth boat now. If something can go wrong, it usually will. Fortunately there is not much to fix on a boat of this size, thus your tool box will be smaller that one who owns a sport fisher or the like.
Here is my take on what you should carry.
Tools
? 3/8 inch drive socket set with appropriate extensions and knuckles joints for those hard to get places. Do an inventory of bolts on your boat and your engine to see what you need. Get the new style ratchet drive - one that has the old style ratchet where you can swing the handle, but also can be used by turning the handle like a screw driver. This is great for tight places where you can?t swing the handle or you have minimal throw (Home Depot).
? Spark plug wrench
? Spark plug gauge
? Prop wrench
? Regular pliers
? Needle nose pliers
? Small vise grips
? Channel lock pliers (slip joint)
? Diagonal cutters (wire cutters)
? Phillips screw driver
? Regular screw driver
? 12 Volt tester (multi-meter if you are so inclined)
Spare Parts/equipment
? Propeller (if you spin a hub or take a blade off, you are out of business)
? Spark plugs
? Tie wraps with the stainless steel catch. You can?t break them, even if you use a pair of pliers to tighten them. My Yamaha throttle linkage broke while on a trip to Flamingo Florida. I used two tie wraps to clamp the linkage connector to the throttle arm. It would have been good for years, but I replaced it when I go home.
? 3M electrical tape. I have used this one item more than any other item over the coarse of my fifty some years as a boater. It is way better than duct tape because it stretches, thus allowing extreme pressure to be put on whatever you need to support or hold. Plus, it?s water proof. It?s also better than putting on a band aid for a cut. It will stay on for days or weeks for that matter. It will keep you wound dry and when you take it off, you will think you had no cut at all. As an aside, I was in Key West on a two week trip off-shore. The wide black rubber band that held my stylus on my depth recorder broke. You know - the ones that marked the heat sensitive paper. I know this dates me, but so what. We were out of business because I had no spare. I used 3M tape to wind around the broken band one time with about a three inch overlap. I sold the boat three years later and it was still holding strong. On another occasion my gaff broke while fighting a fairly large (for me) tuna. I grabbed a shark hook and taped it to one of my short kite rods. The tape held a sixty + pound tuna. Your mind is the limiting factor with 3M tape.
? One spool of 14 AGW wire. If you need thicker wire, just splice it in parallel.
? Assortment of wire connectors
? Razor knife
? SS hose clamps appropriate for your thru hull fittings
As a caveat, if you only go on day trips, you can moderate this somewhat. However, if you take your boat on vacation or to remote locations, get it all. Everything but the prop will fit into a medium sized water proof ammo box, which you can find in any marine store. Size your tools according to your boat. Also, if you are ever out of cell phone or radio phone contact, carry a satellite phone or, at a minimum, an EPIRB. It gets mighty lonely offshore in the middle of the night.
Good luck,
Drew
