We did a major refit on our sailboat, and one of the key jobs was replacing the cutlass bearings — the parts that support the propeller shafts and keep vibrations low when the props spin. To do this, we hauled the boat out of the water, dropped the rudders, pulled the shafts, and used a heat gun to loosen the glue holding the old bearings in place. Once they slid out, we pressed in brand-new bearings, reinstalled everything, and got ready to launch again! It’s one of those behind-the-scenes jobs that makes a huge difference in how smooth and reliable the boat feels underway. Follow along for more sailboat refit projects, cruising life, and ocean adventures!

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Watching mantas clean is something regularly seen by snorkels. Many of the cleaning stations in Asia are quite shallow and because you are floating just above them they won't even notice you are there, so you can be sure the behavior will continue uninterrupted. A cleaning station is basically just a large coral head where you're likely to find mantas congregating around. Living within that unique mound of coral will be hundreds of smaller fish like cleaner wrasses and butterfly fish who swim out to meet the mantas and pick off the parasites. Because mantas have to continuously keep moving or else they will sink they will make slow circles around the cleaning station. Other mantas will join in as well and each take their turn getting a little scrub down from the hungry little fish.You'll notice over that that mantas will actually have preferences for cleaning stations, the same way people have preferences over their favorite spas!

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How do you know if NOW is the right time to become a sailing cruiser? Watch our latest full-length video offering 10 signs indicating that NOW is the time to start living the sailing life. Remember to link and subscribe if you're interested in living the sailing dream! Watch the full video here: https://youtu.be/tQhJ-_b84BY #shorts #sailing #sailingblog #sailinglife

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SLACKTIDE broad reaching in good weather.

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We've recently introduced a new branch to our business, the West Coast Sailing Rig Shop. Rig Shop: https://westcoastsailing.net/parts/line/one-design-rigging Custom and pre-speced items, hand built rigging products for many one design sailboats now made in house. Spliced halyards, sheets and control lines for dinghies and keelboats now available.

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