Makeup Table Light, Yamaha Carburetor, etc.

 I wasn't able to find a satisfactory replacement light for above the stateroom's makeup table, so I made one. 

  Don't laugh, it's made of three, Dollar Tree, battery powered, LED lights.  However, rather than being powered by individual AAA batteries, I connected them to the boat's 12V system.  Plugging a 4.5V device into a 12V supply is a sure way to let the magic smoke out.  The connection was made possible by the use of a 12V to 5V buck converter.  A buck converter is what's inside those ubiquitious, 12V, USB, phone chargers.

They're available everywhere, including at, drum roll please, Dollar Tree.  I removed the buck from it's cigarette lighter enclosure and soldered it into the light's switch.  Then I soldered the buck's 5V power to each of the three lights.  I used Dollar Tree doubled-sided tape to hold the lights firmly and closely together.  Then 1" round magnets, also from Dollar Tree, were affixed, using doubled-sided tape, to the back of each light and to corresponding points on the ceiling.  Yup, got the magnets at Dollar Tree too. Total material cost $6.36.  Total labor cost... hey, not everything is about money!

The dink has been running rough for several years.  Today I took the carb apart and found lots of sticky stuff inside it.  The low speed jet, which has very small holes, was badly blocked.  After a thorough cleaning the engine started and ran much better.  

Re-painted the windshield wiper arms black.  Also, sanded and and Cetoled the wiper wells where they finish was damaged during the new wiper installation.

Sanded and polyurethaned the leading edge on the nav station insert above the stateroom steps.