Seafarer fix

Charles Beddingfield strips his 50 year old Seafarer Mk2 echo sounder to replace a failing neon flasher bulb

- Charles Beddingfield

Like many readers, I was delighted when the editor decided to have her old Sailor VHF repaired for use. Compared to modern electronics the old Sailor just looks the business.

For similar reasons the Tudor Rose still has her original Seafarer echo sounder. It's the Mk2, the one with a rounded, grey, 1950's style case. We thought it quite an extravagance at £25 in 1971. After 50 years it was still working except that its rotating flasher had grown rather dim. When it got bad enough I decided to have a go at fixing it myself. Nothing ventured, after all...

One of the beauties of old fashioned kit like this is that it is built with nuts, bolts and screws so that it can be dismantled. I deplore the modern tendency to fit things together with wretched plastic barbs so that they cannot be taken apart without damage. No doubt this makes them cheaper to manufacture but it inevitably means that stuff goes to the tip with very minor faults. This is no longer just an old man's gripe. Sustainability is the modern buzz word and I hope I'm doing my bit by repairing and continuing to use my period kit, thereby avoiding the pollution inherent in the manufacture of its replacement. Besides, the Tudor Rose is unashamedly old fashioned, so a period piece like the Seafarer just seems right for her.

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