80 YEAR OLD COAST GUARD LADY

"Ok guys, in Jersey when putt

"Ok guys, in Jersey when putting boat in water Ms.. lady coast guard walks up to me and saids ok "safety vessel inpection " I said ok, she checked for flares,extinguisher,blower,horn,bilge,ect., when it came to the flame arrestor which i believe is the round cover yellow looking thing on top of the carburator with a wing nut...Anyway she saids very embarrysing loud nagging nasty outburst
'you cant go out like this
i've seen explosions because of this ,YOU only got half of the carb. there "S O N". I said?whats missing? she saids DONT GET SMART WITH MEEEE THIS IS MY 30TH YEAR IN THE COAST GUARD...I SAID OK, (OVER HER SHOULDER I SEE THE BIRDS WORKING THE SHORE WITH NICE OILY PEANUT BUNKER BEING CHASE BY BLUES AND STRIPERS ,YOU GUYS KNOW THE FEELING)



OK , she makes me walk like an 8th of a mile towards some guys boat to show me the part i was missing, to my surprise she was refering to, was that cover that saids mercruiser mpi inj. "I DONT KNOW its a square black piece of molded plastic",NOW guys do i need that over my flame arrestor ,YES OR NOOOOO Angel almost had a heart attack seing the boiling water frenzy"

"No, you do not. In fact, I&#

"No, you do not. In fact, I'm surprised she knows what one it, they weren't required on steam engines. Even though the CG still required is, the flame arrestor is nearly useless on an MPI engine. There is no fuel in the intake manifold and there is no carb. The thing in there is air. The only purpose it serves is during a backfire condition.

Get a copy of the CG requirements, I'm sure you can find them here on the net. Keep it with you in case Eva Braun stops you again."

"I assume you are talking abou

"I assume you are talking about a person that is in the Coast Guard Auxiliary. Auxiliarists are civilian volunteers and are authorized to wear a uniform that is similiar but different from their regular Coast Guard counterparts.

Auxiliarists have no law enforcement authority and, when assisting regular Coast guard personnel, must stand away from the action when the regular Coast Guard conducts law enforcement activities.

Auxiliarists are trained to be polite to the public and the great majority take pride in serving their community and country. There are always those that take themselves too seriously, though, and read a lot more into their service than is there in the way of authority. The lady needs to get a life."

"As a former Auxiliarist (

"As a former Auxiliarist (who did VSCs), I echo Ed's comments 'cept for the "get a life" part. I would imagine that is her life; it was to many of the, shall I say "veteran", members that I served with. I'm sure she meant well, and I always believe in giving seniors the benefit of the doubt when they speak (ie, the "Son" business).

Anyway, the "real" CG does require the flame arrestor

...and I quote (http://www.safetyseal.net/what_is_vsc.asp)
Item 7 - Backfire Flame Control:

All gasoline powered inboard/outboard or inboard motor boats must be equipped with an approved backfire flame control device.

If you follow the above link and your installation looks as pictured you should be OK. If you have that, the next thing they will check is if it is clean. (recommended it is cleaned every 50 hours of use)

Whether or not it is needed on an MPI I am not here to debate; just citing the rule.


Ed is correct in that the CG Aux have no legal authority, however, what they "recommend" during inspections are things you may be cited for by local authorities (Coast Guard or Sheriff) if you do not have. It is important to note that they DO NOT report their findings to any authority. Just a service they provide.

So, maybe she got you a little worked up, but the point is you now know if you are compliance legally and, more importantly, as a responsible boater.

If you truly have an issue with her demeanor, you should find out the Flotilla she is part of. It should be noted on the inspection form. YOu should be able to find the contact information for the Flotilla on the CG Aux website.

Also, do keep in mind that you do not have to let the Auxiliarist perform the VSC. However, if there's two boats on the water and the real Coast Guard is patrolling, I would imagine they are more likely to visit the one without the sticker."

"BTW - looking at the VSC form

"BTW - looking at the VSC form, the left column is "required" (you can get cited if you do not have) while the right column is recommended (no tickets, but if your smart you'll have 'em)

Cheers! and safe boating!"

"Bill,

No one was questioni

"Bill,

No one was questioning the requirement for having the flame arrestor. If my post sounded that way, it was not intentional, I am familiar with the regulations. The issue at hand is the plastic shroud that covers the flame arrestor, and a good portion of the motor.

This part is 90% cosmetic and 10% functional (it helps protect the electrical components from water).

Rick"

"Thanks for clarifying, Rick.

"Thanks for clarifying, Rick. Oddly, I'm not familiar with that part. I don't have one, and I don't remember seeing any covered flame arrestors on any of the boats I did. Seems like that would be hard to miss! What type of boat\engine are these typically on?"

"Mercruiser puts them on top o

"Mercruiser puts them on top of the engines. Mine was (before it cracked) held in place by the same nut that holds the flame arrestor in place.

Nice things is the cover has all the serial numbers for the engine, the transom plat, and the outdrive. I hung it up on the wall over my workbench so I have the numbers handy without having to climb in the boat!"

"Troy, I remember a few years

"Troy, I remember a few years ago that you were preparing to leave the Navy. Are you a civilian now?"

"I am retired. I'm at Fle

"I am retired. I'm at Fleet Maintenance Support Branch at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, working towards my second government pension.
I still get to interact with the Sailors, and don't have to carry a cell phone or pager any more.
"

"Troy, cool. Double dipping. T

"Troy, cool. Double dipping. There is only one thing better. Drawing 2 pension checks and doing whatever you want, whenever you want!!!! I'm doing it on one and got spiritual. Obviously, I died and went to Heaven."

"Rick that was funny man , my

"Rick that was funny man , my whole family still laughing (they weren't required on steam engines)"