LABOR OF LOVE...CHEAP BOAT !!!

We are attempting to help the Newport Beach Nautical Museum find a home for this nice looking 40 foot cutter. I took these pictures yesterday. I remembered this boat from years past, raced against it and noted that it sailed well and was extremely fast. What surprised me was that it hadn't been stripped of all its gear. The Universal diesel engine was reported to run, the batteries looked clean and in good condition. The teak decks need re-conditioning, and the hull looked as if it might need re-fastening in places. The boat is sitting at a dock at the Balboa Fun Zone and may be seen by contacting Glenn Baaten at Explore Ocean. Phone number 949-675-8915 ex-108 or 949-675-8864 or e-mail him @ gbaaten@nhnm.org This boat has been donated to the Nautical Museum, they have no use for it, they need the dock space and and set the price extremely low for a QUICK SALE! $5000.00

Heavy Metal.....

Through the years as boat building in Southern California ceased, we went to the plant closings and purchased a large amount of stainless steel custom fittings. Chain plates, bow plates, tangs, mast heads, chain plate finish plates, hawse pipes, and dozens of other strange items that only the maker knows what they were supposed to do. Many of the items we priced ten and fifteen years ago (the word turn-over is not in our vocabulary) and they still have the same prices. Through the years I've found that these items really come in handy. I mounted a chain plate to a bulkhead in my chain locker and shackled the dead end of my anchor chain to it. When I mounted my new Lofrans windlass instead of using fender washers on the four large bolts under the deck I drilled holes at the proper locations on two chain plates, polished them up and used them instead of big washers to really spread the windlass load around a large area. Yes, our "heavy metal" can be a godsend for certain applications aboard your boat...

SHIP'S BELLS & LOTS OF BLOCKS.......

It took awhile but we finally got our friends in China to come up with a bell that has a separate mounting bracket. Pictured is a nice little bell with the mounting bracket attached to it. It has a nice ring with about a 5" diameter at the widest point. These are great Christmas gifts that are priced at $42.95. I'm sure you all know that the USCG requires a bell to be aboard ALL boats. If they board you and one is not on board they will give you a citation. Why must you have a bell? No, not to call your crew at mealtime. When you are at anchor in thick fog you ring your bell to warn other boaters of your location.

Lots of blocks. Pictured is one of about ten bins full of various types and sizes of blocks. Many are new. Merriman, Ronstan, Harken, Lewmar, Nico Fico, Mariner, all the popular brands pass through our little store....

Engine Pumps & Sailboat Hardware.. Great Values!!!

One picture is several raw water pumps for various marine engines. Most boaters carry extra impellers and a lot of yachtsman carry complete spare pumps. We've noticed that when a boat owner is getting ready to sell his boat he pulls a lot of his engine spares off and sells them to us. He knows he won't be getting any extra money for his spares.

Also pictured is one showcase full of sailboat hardware. We have a great selection. Spinnaker pole mast fittings, genoa cars, fair leads with cars, main sheet cars, turning blocks etc. Quite a bit of gear off Kialoa, Whitbread race boats, Alaska Eagle and other local ocean racers. We know our prices are fair and reasonable.... Come check it out. We've one very special customer named Dave. He's a 747 pilot for Cathay Pacific airlines. Three or four times a year he parks his plane in L.A., rents a car (usually has a gorgeous Philippine airline stewardess with him) and bee-lines it to Minneys. He's purchased Ken De Muese's 70' Bill Tripp designed aluminum race boat "Blackfin" on the beach after a hurricane and is restoring her in the Philippines. He's always good for $1000.00 in big boat gear. I think his "air freight" shipping bill is quite reasonable too.... Free left over "Trick or Treat" candy at Minney's today.....

NEW SAIL LIST NOW ON-LINE!! SAVE $$$'S

It's taken a lot of work. Check it out, our sail list has been up-dated and approximately 400 sails have been added to the list. Great spinnakers, some with socks. A great group of head sails, quite a few storm jibs, many like new. Good selection of mainsails, some storm tri'sails, even a few tan bark in colored sails. Lots of our NO RETURN sails priced under $200.00. These sails have bad stains, worn leeches, sun burned covers, and other defects. With some repairs or re-cutting you can probably end up with a suitable sail on the cheap. Pictured is some of the work we go through as we process your used sails. Many of the sails come in damp and must be dried before we measure and assign a bin to store them in. And of course, no sail is priced over $1500.00 and may be returned for any reason. Happy Halloween....... Ernie and crew...

DUMB THINGS !!!

Having made it my life's work playing with boats, I've come across some pretty dumb and sometimes dangerous things. The picture above was during the filming of Walt Disney's popular boating movie, "The Boatniks". While filming on a windy day inside Newport Harbor the director wanted the boat pictured, to be heeled over more. A couple of the actors climbed up the mast and started rocking the boat. On one final big rock, the boat rolled over, filled up with water and sank. Filming had to stop while the boat was raised, pumped out and made ready to sail again. Having big boats and little money I depended upon high school kids and "work-a-ways", (you work on my boat and I'll take you sailing) for cheap labor. One day I was forward varnishing the cap rails of Shearwater when the engine started in reverse and at full throttle. As I ran aft, cleats were being torn from the dock, the shore power cord ripped out from the outlet box on the cabin side and by the time I got to the cockpit and slowed the boat down, we were in the center of the Newport bay. No one got hurt, the damage was minimum and as I investigated this unusual departure, this is what I found. I had instructed my latest high school kid to varnish the wheel box which was already sanded. The big gear shift lever which is usually in the neutral position was in his way so he shoved it aft. The little racheting throttle lever he had varnished around and had shoved it forward into the full speed position. He then decided to do a little exploring? He lifted the big teak lid to the wheel box and deciding to do a little varnishing around the back side of the starter switch. When the metal band on the varnish brush hit the + and - terminals on the starter switch the engine started and we were UNDERWAY !!!!! Speaking of starter switches. While anchored in a small bay north of the Cape Of Good Hope one of my $10.00 dollar a day (they pay me for food) crew members did a little varnishing the day before our second attempt to get around the Cape. I asked my first mate to start the engine and warm it it. He had done it before and knew how to do it. He started the engine but it had a VERY UNUSUAL sound. Soon heavy black smoke was pouring out from the engine compartment. I ran aft, jammed the throttle to the kill position and still it wouldn't stop. My god I thought, the boat's on fire. Then, I looked at the started button. The crew member the day before had varnished it and it was STUCK in the start position. I was quickly able to un-jamb it and stop the engine. An inspection of the starter showed that it was TOTALLY FRIED!! Luckily, I had a spare starter aboard and we only had to delay our departure for Cape Town by a few hours. While racing an 83 foot schooner in the Newport to Ensenada race back in the late 70's. A bit of damage ocurred. I was at the helm as we were setting up to jibe. The owner of the boat came on deck and saw a sheet chafing on his freshly varnished cap rails. He got all upset and insisted that we re-lead the offending sheet. I told him that we were going to jibe in a minute or two and that after the jibe the line would no longer cause a problem. "Just the same", he said, "I'm going below and get some carpet and tape it on the cap rail". While the owner of Serena was below we jibed. A crew member somehow led a sheet or after-guy under instead of over the aft life lines. As the huge main boom came across the center of the cockpit there was a loud crash as about 35 feet of beautiful teak cap rail complete with stanchions and life lines was ripped from the top of the bulwarks and laid out on deck. A few seconds later Serena's owner came on deck with his carpet and duct tape and looked in shock at the carnage we had made of his beautifully varnished cap rails. I guess I was a bit of a wise ass, but I then said to him, "see, I told you there would not be a chafing problem after we jibed to the other tack".....

TONS OF TURNBUCKLES-STAY LOCKS & RIGGING...

Yes! I estimate that we have a ton or more of bronze and stainless steel turnbuckles. For years boaters have brought in their old rigging. We cut the turnbuckles off the wire, scrapped the wire and saved the turnbuckles. We also have hundreds of "brand new" turnbuckles that we have purchased from bankrupt boat companies etc. There is also a pretty good collection of "Stay Locks" and other mechanical fittings. Having a large schooner with questionable rigging I totally lucked out and purchased all the used rigging from the famous race boat "Windward Passage" for $500.00. I recut the S.S. wire to the proper lengths, purchased new cones for the used Norseman mechanical fittings and had a trouble free trip to New Zealand. We've probably got the best selection of rigging fittings in the West. Toggles, rigging pins, chain plates, etc. It takes a lot of digging to locate the items you are looking for, things are modestly priced, so please drop by and check out our selection........

Cabo Yacht Engine Hatch Lift Pumps..........

Being the "junk man" for Cabo Yachts the past few years has landed some pretty exotic equipment in our little store. Pictured are what was explained to me as hydraulic pumps to operate the big hydraulic rams that lift the engine hatches on the larger Cabo sport-fishers. As you can see, they have a large 24 volt motor that drives the pump and on the other end is a heavy plastic reservoir tank which holds the fluid. Pretty cool, huh? Push a button and your hatches pop up. We only have three or four of the these pumps and they appear brand new. They possibly might have some defect? I've learned dealing with boat companies the past forty years that when a boat is ready to go out the door and something is not working properly, they don't trouble shoot the problem they just replace the malfunctioning part. As you can see, we've lowered the price to $95.00 each. In my mind, they have a $1000.00 look? If I had a large Cabo I'd grab one of these for a spare. The motors alone probably cost $500.00

BACKSTAY LEVERS......

If you have a large boat perhaps a pair of the large backstay levers we have might be of use to you? The ones pictured are suitable for boats from 50' to about 80'. Twenty five years ago I purchased a set from Paul Luke for about $1000.00. There's a similar pair (the greenish bronze ones) priced at under $500.00. For thirty years we used a block and tackle arrangement on "Kelpie". I never knew how handy the levers were till I purchased the 68' schooner "Shearwater." Wow! Tacking up and down Newport Harbor was a cinch. Release one, set up the other. They always maintained the same amount of tension. No lines to coil or calling for more "beef" if you are late on the tack cinching up the tackles. There's one thing I want to caution you about when using them. The time to release one is when the boat is "head to wind" on the tack. If you are early, they are under a lot of tension. You MUST ALWAYS stand to one side of them. Once the lever passes the center point it will jump up at you. Serious injuries have resulted from using levers of this type by novice crew members. Being late on the tack can also cause you big trouble because the full force of the mainsail and boom will be on the lee backstay. Note also- we have several "quick release" levers for stay sail stays, baby stays etc.

TUBE-HOSE-AND PIPE FITTINGS-SAVE BIG BUCKS!!

Being a "junk man" gets me into all kinds of places in my endless search to bring our customers great values in boat gear and equipment. Probably the "mother lode" for 2011 was the Cabo Yacht boat auction. Cabo Yachts moved to North Carolina and there was 100's of tons of stuff they didn't want to take with them. In addition to an 18 wheeler truck load full of pre-fab'd teak interior cabinets and band-saws we purchased, there were thousands of small items. Pictured is part of the quarter ton of small S.S. flare fittings, hose barbs, nipples, caps, bell reducers, etc. that we bid for you guys, lot by lot. And how did we price it to keep things simple for everyone? Same way the guys do it in the produce stores. BY THE POUND! Yes, for years we've priced all our brass, bronze, stainless pipe fittings at $5.00 a pound. Going to Home Depot the other day I took a pound of misc. fittings and priced each one from their posted prices. The pound from the store equaled 7 fittings. The average Home Depot price was $5.00 to $7.00 each. Thus at an average of $6.00 per fitting you guys are getting $42.00 worth of fittings for just $5.00. Mind you, that was at Home Depot. Had I done the same thing at a store that had "MARINE" in its name, that would have been a WHOLE different story???

MINNEY'S ENGINE ROOM. UTOPIA FOR OLD BOATS!!!

Our store is actually a large restaurant that we purchased fifteen years ago. One of the most interesting areas of the building is the kitchen and walk-in icebox. That's the area where screams of excitement and joy are heard from time to time when a local boater finds the perfect raw water pump for his Chrysler Crown gas engine priced at only $20.00 or a Borg Warner 72-C gear box for a modest price of $300.00. Yes, that's Minney's engine room. It's all there but you gotta dig. Please don't call looking for pigtails for your Westerbeke diesel engine, or impellers for the salt water pump on your 4-53 Detroit. It's probably there but we don't have the time or knowledge to locate the proper part for you. Raw water strainers, stuffing boxes, alternators, generators, Morse control and Hynautic shifters and parts, impellers, zincs, hundreds of outboard and out drive propellers, heat exchangers and on and on? If it lives "below the floorboards" we probably have it and it will be priced RIGHT!

Chris Craft & Riva Speed Boat Models.......

Christmas is coming. We've reduced the price to $149.00 each on these stunning two foot long speed boat models. Regular price in most high end stores $595.00. Purchase early and save BIG. P.S. The solid teak folding coffee tables the models are sitting on are only $99.00 each!!!

YOUR AUTO PILOT CAN KILL YOU !!!

I recently made note about a woman delivering a fifty foot sailboat from Tahiti to Southern California. While motor sailing near the equator she came on deck one morning and found the watch stander missing. The boat was on auto pilot and traveling at eight knots. She had told Jim at midnight to rouse her at 0330. It was now 0630. The pelican hook was open and the starboard stanchion gate was down. Jim was probably taking a leak, leaned against the gate, it opened and he fell overboard. He was now treading water somewhere along a fifty two mile course line. Her radio was in operative so she couldn't call for an air search. She searched for three days and then headed for Hawaii dreading the heart wrenching phone call she must make to Jim's parents.

Every year auto pilots get boaters into trouble. Most skippers are lucky and only damage or lose their boats. Bill Kitchens, a good friend of mine departed the Dana Point harbor yacht club one evening at sunset. He cleared the red bell bouy marking the reefs off Dana Point. He put his Hans Christian 36 cutter on course for the Newport Beach break water and engaged the auto pilot. It was a chilly evening and spray was coming aboard. He ducked under the dodger and relaxed a bit. Two hours later he was startled awake as his forty foot mast, boom and rigging came crashing down and landed next to him. His navigation had been spot on. He missed colliding with the Newport jetty by about fifty yards, his boat continued on and went under the Balboa pier about a mile north west of the breakwater.

Captain Ron as the locals called him had raced his boat "Naughty Gal" in a series of races off Long Beach. Ron and his crew had done well in the two day series and partied a bit at the Long Beach Yacht Club before the trophy awards. After picking up his trophy and bidding his crew farewell he headed "Naughty Gal" out of the Long Beach marina, and put his finely tuned thirty six foot race boat on course for Newport and set the auto pilot. It had been an exciting and exhausting weekend. "Naughty Gal" was motoring nicely in the westerly swell and Ron perhaps dozed a bit as his boat ticked off the miles. A horrendous crash brought Ron to reality as his entire rig came crashing down on deck. It was pitch black. There was a strong order of diesel fuel and the sound of powerful diesel engines. "Naughty Gal" was trapped under what seemed like a monster out of a horror movie and was crashing and slamming into some type of pilings and steel beams. Then it dawned on our good captain. He was under oil platform Eva which was about a mile north west of the Huntington Beach pier.

Think these stories over. I've got dozens more and I'm sure you do to. The solutions and preventions are simple and basic but the accidents keep happening. I think often of Jim on his first and last ocean passage treading water in the warm equatorial currents as he watched the bright stern light of the yacht get dimmer and dimmer and finally disappear.

Pictured is a lovely boat we recently purchased salvage from. While a bit south of Bahia de Los Angeles in the Sea of Cortez off the Baja coast the skipper had his boat on auto pilot, thought he was further off shore and took a little nap. The eighty year old skipper was not injured, his boat was a total loss. I've got the mainsail and jib and some nice self tailing winches off it at the store....

Nautical Belts

As you all know, the mark of a man isn't the car he's driving or the watch he's wearing. You guessed it, it's the belt he's wearing! Old Spice cologne doesn't cut it with with the ladies anymore. But, a nautical belt from Minney's does. Pictured is our great selection of salty belts that are priced within the budget of the most frugal sailor. Leather belts embossed with schooners, colorful signal flag belts, and other nautical themes. Prices start at $19.95. If your "pick up"lines at your local pub are as stale as last night beer, say nothing to the lass at the end of the bar and let the belt you are wearing from Minney's do the talking. Yes, with a new belt from Minney's, your "single handing" days are over...........