It has been brought to our attention that companies such as stay-lock recommend using silicone sealant as you assemble their end fittings. Other people recommend sealing regular swages with the same sealant to prevent ingress of salt water which can promote electrolysis and corrosion. Unfortunately, many brands of silicon sealant are not only incompatable with stainless steel but actually promote corrosion. They also promote corrosion of aluminum. Warning: do not use any silicon sealant on stainless steel or aluminum, use polyurethane based sealants instead.

Some technicians will say that you can use silicon sealants that do not have a vinegary smell safely - but why take the chance. Recommended sealants include: boat caulk, M 4200 or 3M 5200.

I had no idea who would be on board when we sailed Taleisin free of the boatshow. I just knew that our friends from Seraffyn had not had time to re-stock and would probably be cold and hungry after the buzz of setting sail into a fresh wind and blustery cold night. So I dug out an old cruisers special and in less than 20 minutes had a big pot of soup for 10 ready on board Taleisin. The secret? Instant cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup, you know, the packets you pour in a cup then cover with boiling water.

Recipe:
In a big soup pot saute
2 diced onions
3 big cloves of elephant garlic or lots of regular garlic
as many sliced mushrooms as you have
a tsp sweet basil

Add chopped pieces of chicken breast or any chicken you may have plus small pieces of chopped garlic sausage and saute to taste. Add one packet of soup mix per person. Bring a kettle of water to the boil and add slowly stirring until soup is good and thick. Boil for about a minute and add salt and pepper to taste.

I heated lots of rolls in the oven, put out a spread of the cheeses Wayne and Norma brought from Seraffyn and we all warmed up and reminisced about the fun of sharing the previous week with so many keen sailors.