The 3 Best Decisions I Made While Building My Own Sailboat
February 28, 2025 by Acorn To Arabella | Language: EN Play Time: 00:23:18 | SAILING YOUTUBERS
Throughout the process of building my own wooden sailboat, I had to make several important decisions. Some of these decisions were met with massive support, others…not so much. One important consideration was marine diesel engine maintenance—I wanted it to be as easy as possible! In this week’s episode, we’ll be exploring the 3 best decisions I made while building my sailboat, Arabella.
First, the Emmert Pattern Makers’ Vise and workbench, which has been a huge help for rigging projects! This week, the vise came in handy while splicing, seizing, and setting up a beefy anchor pennant line. My sewing skills also came in handy in creating the eye for the line. Ultimately, I’m really happy with how the anchor pennant came out. And I only had to get a little wet (and slightly concussed) to install it…
Installing the Pattern Makers’ Vise was one of the more controversial additions to my DIY sailboat, but I’m so glad I have it.
The next decision I’m so glad I made was installing a Dual Fuel Filter from Keenan Filters. This system has some great features. It uses twin Racor filters, so there are no expensive, proprietary filters to buy, which I really appreciate. This week, I do a filter swap, and I also show you one of the coolest tricks up this system’s sleeve: it clears any airlocks from the fuel system.
The third decision I’m so glad I made was being able to change the oil on our boat with the flick of a switch. Simply turning on the oil change filter and flipping a switch allows us to drain our oil quickly. Then, we just have to flip that switch the other way to fill back up with fresh oil.
Many a sailor turns green with envy when we show off these convenient marine engine maintenance systems!
After the engine maintenance was done, it was time for some fun! We met up with our friends, Kourtney and Pete, for a day of beaches and BBQ. Captains BBQ in Palm Coast, FL served up some flawless southern BBQ, I made friends with a lizard, and Matanza beach was pink with coquina sand (and plovers, much to Robin’s delight). We wrapped up the day with a visit to Princess Place, which gave us a peek into the high life—without any shortage of Spanish moss!
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Episode 336 – Acorn to Arabella: Journey of a Wooden Boat
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Sign up for our email newsletter: http://eepurl.com/hn3Qyv
Acorn to Arabella started as a wooden boat building project in Granby, Massachusetts. Steve began the journey as an amateur wooden boat builder crafting a 38′ wooden sailboat in his backyard: designer William Atkin’s Ingrid with a Stormy Petrel’s gaff rig. These videos follow the journey from tree felling, to lumber milling, to lofting, to the lead keel pour and now sailing the boat—sharing details of the woodworking, carpentry, metal smithing, tool building, and tool maintenance that traditional wooden boats command. This ultimate DIY project continues beyond the boat shop, as Steve and crew travel and learn to cruise aboard the handmade wooden boat that they’ve built. Just kidding about all that, this channel is about a Siberian Laika named Akiva.
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If you are interested in supporting/helping here are a few ways:
https://www.acorntoarabella.com/how-to-help
Acorn to Arabella’s wishlist:
https://www.acorntoarabella.com/wishlistpriority
TotalBoat supports A2A! Please consider using our Total Boat referral code. Click here, then shop: https://www.totalboat.com/acorntoarabella They’ll kick 10% our way!
To offer recurring support via Patreon, CLICK BELOW. Just $5 a month gets you an invite to our monthly patron-only livestream Q&A sessions!
https://www.patreon.com/acorntoarabella
Original Soundtrack available at benfundis.bandcamp.com
FOLLOW US:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/acorntoarabella
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acorntoarabella/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/acorntoarabella
Website: http://www.acorntoarabella.com
Throughout the process of building my own wooden sailboat, I had to make several important decisions. Some of these decisions were met with massive support, others…not so much. One important consideration was marine diesel engine maintenance—I wanted it to be as easy as possible! In this week’s episode, we’ll be exploring the 3 best decisions I made while building my sailboat, Arabella.
First, the Emmert Pattern Makers’ Vise and workbench, which has been a huge help for rigging projects! This week, the vise came in handy while splicing, seizing, and setting up a beefy anchor pennant line. My sewing skills also came in handy in creating the eye for the line. Ultimately, I’m really happy with how the anchor pennant came out. And I only had to get a little wet (and slightly concussed) to install it…
Installing the Pattern Makers’ Vise was one of the more controversial additions to my DIY sailboat, but I’m so glad I have it.
The next decision I’m so glad I made was installing a Dual Fuel Filter from Keenan Filters. This system has some great features. It uses twin Racor filters, so there are no expensive, proprietary filters to buy, which I really appreciate. This week, I do a filter swap, and I also show you one of the coolest tricks up this system’s sleeve: it clears any airlocks from the fuel system.
The third decision I’m so glad I made was being able to change the oil on our boat with the flick of a switch. Simply turning on the oil change filter and flipping a switch allows us to drain our oil quickly. Then, we just have to flip that switch the other way to fill back up with fresh oil.
Many a sailor turns green with envy when we show off these convenient marine engine maintenance systems!
After the engine maintenance was done, it was time for some fun! We met up with our friends, Kourtney and Pete, for a day of beaches and BBQ. Captains BBQ in Palm Coast, FL served up some flawless southern BBQ, I made friends with a lizard, and Matanza beach was pink with coquina sand (and plovers, much to Robin’s delight). We wrapped up the day with a visit to Princess Place, which gave us a peek into the high life—without any shortage of Spanish moss!
--------------------------
Episode 336 - Acorn to Arabella: Journey of a Wooden Boat
--------------------------
Sign up for our email newsletter: http://eepurl.com/hn3Qyv
Acorn to Arabella started as a wooden boat building project in Granby, Massachusetts. Steve began the journey as an amateur wooden boat builder crafting a 38' wooden sailboat in his backyard: designer William Atkin's Ingrid with a Stormy Petrel's gaff rig. These videos follow the journey from tree felling, to lumber milling, to lofting, to the lead keel pour and now sailing the boat—sharing details of the woodworking, carpentry, metal smithing, tool building, and tool maintenance that traditional wooden boats command. This ultimate DIY project continues beyond the boat shop, as Steve and crew travel and learn to cruise aboard the handmade wooden boat that they've built. Just kidding about all that, this channel is about a Siberian Laika named Akiva.
--------------------------
If you are interested in supporting/helping here are a few ways:
https://www.acorntoarabella.com/how-to-help
Acorn to Arabella's wishlist:
https://www.acorntoarabella.com/wishlistpriority
TotalBoat supports A2A! Please consider using our Total Boat referral code. Click here, then shop: https://www.totalboat.com/acorntoarabella They'll kick 10% our way!
To offer recurring support via Patreon, CLICK BELOW. Just $5 a month gets you an invite to our monthly patron-only livestream Q&A sessions!
https://www.patreon.com/acorntoarabella
Original Soundtrack available at benfundis.bandcamp.com
FOLLOW US:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/acorntoarabella
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acorntoarabella/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/acorntoarabella
Website: http://www.acorntoarabella.com
The 3 Best Decisions I Made While Building My Own Sailboat Locations
Acorn To Arabella
We are building a 38’ sailboat from stump to ship, once complete she will take us around the world. We hope to inspire and educate as many people as possible along the way. Join us on our journey and let us show you that with a bit of dedication, good company and some old school smarts even the wildest of dreams can be made to come true! For inquiries about collaborating or integrations, please email acorntoarabella@lighthouseagents.com.
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