Friday 17th May 2013 - Two Sails On! Winter Work Update

Living in the UK at anchor with a dog and a toddler - what can possibly go wrong?!
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Jeff
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Friday 17th May 2013 - Two Sails On! Winter Work Update

Post by Jeff »

As I said in the conversation under the previous thread, I have now bent on the mizzen and the jib. Went without mishap on the whole except for losing the lazyjacks line up the mast, necessitating a solo mizzen mast ascension. It was surprisingly exciting. I noted that when the wind blew a little while I was installing the jib, we were hoofing around the anchorage nicely... do I'm starting to believe we might actually be able to sail this thing!

Since following Rob's advice in a previous thread the engine seems OK again. But my engine noise paranoia is running on high. Wish I could just chill out about the engine. If it fails, it fails, and we'll deal with it. It's a waste of energy fretting about it constantly, and cutting into my enjoyment time. But the more it runs without a problem, the more I'll relax. Fingers crossed.

So I promised some pictures and some info on the work I've managed to get done over the winter. Here goes...

Installed replacement battery charger (last one blew up).
Installed the Racor Duplex Fuel Filter system.
Installed a bilge sock (soaks up all oil from bilge, but not water, so we can pump out bilges without polluting environment in case of a bit of oil down there).
Installed new alternator belt, and a spare ready to go on. Awkward to do one as it required removal of a few hoses, emptying the engine coolant in the process - so put another one in there held back with cable ties.
Mended log (the paddlewheel that tells us our water speed, which never worked this year, and leaked). Happy to say it is now working fine.
Checked both engine anode states.

Sanded back and applied more anti-rust to the top of the mast post as little rust bubbles have appeared.
All seacocks removed and replaced + 2 skin fittings.
Engine fuel hose replaced (had chafed).

Installed headlining material in the saloon! (this took HOURS in total to sort. So glad it's done now)
Installed multi-fuel stove in saloon (against good advice not to. We installed a Faversham. It's a PITA but I do rather love it TBH)
Serviced a couple of winches that were a bit stiff.
Re-wired solar panels so no wires run across the deck any more (new cable gland installed).
Worked out how to fix aft nav light. Fixed aft nav light.
Covered the mast post in the saloon with rope.

Installed substantial bolts with large penny washers to firmly clamp the deck to the aft bulkhead where the main mast backstays are connected.

Poured on the deck treatment from a watering can (patio magic. worked like a charm)
Wood-treated Mizzen Mast Deck Mount Wooden Block.
Wood-treated Sun-roof (leaks after a period of dry followed by rain).
Wood-treated main mast deck block.
Water trap fittings de-zincified - replaced them.
Replaced the portable generator.
Repaired more deck leaks - 8 new ones found. Think that's over 30 in total since purchase now.
10 x 10 micron filter elements present and correct for the Racor.
Bought 12 litres of diesel ready for topping up on filter change.
Ordered a new fog horn.
Got rid of the CQR (donated it to Sailability).
General cleaning up.

Applied Antifoul (pink!) with a little help from a friend.
Paid someone to re-pack the rudder tube stuffing box (which seeped a little).
Re-wired some wires to the domestic 12V board which were far too thin for the amount of current. More volts now at batteries from charger.
Installed the new fog horn.

Standard pre-launch checks...
Ran engine up on the hard for an hour.
Check gearbox oil.
Check engine oil.
Check coolant level.

Launch.


Quite a list - I'm sure I've missed some stuff off also. And some of those one-liners took HOURS. Specially the seacocks which were a nightmare to identify etc.

In the process of the above I also bought a new power tool called an Oscillating Multitool. If you haven't got one, get one - they're brilliant! This one was reduced to £100 when I bought it:

Bosch PMF 250 CES Set

Some pictures...

The Racor Duplex switchover fuel filter - with suction gauge.
Difficult to install as it's quite big and heavy. I bought some stainless steel from ebay, and some marine ply, and made up a 'frame' for it which I then glued to the top and side of the port side fuel tank, using CT1. It's solid as a rock. Note the splodge on the tank to the right - that's CT1. The clear option. Which is literally as clear as glass. I love CT1 and use it now in preference to Sikaflex. It's less messy, sets better, seems to last better, is much cheaper AND, unlike Sikaflex, it doesn't go off in the tube! A large tube will last AGES.
Image

The Faversham, by Colin Frake
I've installed this in such a way that we can very easily uninstall it and replace it with something else (if the Faverhsham doesn't work out), or return the boat to its former state - which we'll likely do before we sell up, if we sell up. This is it running on max, keeping me warm while working on the boat in sub-zero conditions over the winter.
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The Chimney
Bought an angled bit of teak for this. Angle wasn't anywhere near enough so made it more by eye, with a sander. Got it to fit quite nicely in the end. We're burning 'HomeFire' on it and when it's cold out, it does drip black sticky stuff on deck. But surprisingly it's completely water soluble so the rain, or a quick bucket of water, removes it no problem.
Image

Nina enjoying the cosy new playroom.
We used to have a large table here which could drop down to seat level and then become a large double berth. I've put said table into storage now, and we've put some ethnic rugs down from Totnes - the downstairs saloon is now more like a Moroccan Souk! Warm, dry, comfortable and dry - and did I mention how dry it is? Everywhere aboard is BONE dry because the stove is always ticking away.
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Guess which are Nina's shoes
Sorry, couldn't resist putting this picture of my work boots next to Nina's shoes. Makes me smile.
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Guess where we were for the first night afloat...
(Note Towser afloat in the background)
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Discus
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Post by Discus »

Now I feel like a failure! :oops: :D
Jeff
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Post by Jeff »

Ha. Don't be daft!

I feel like a failure because that list is considerably shorter than my todo list.

But thank you!

Is it a western modern man thing to always feel inadequate in some way I wonder. Perhaps that's the driving force behind entrepreneurialism. When actually we should make happiness our target, and not "success" or fame or recognition or acceptance.... I have had a beer. It's Friday night. I should ban myself from philosophy at the weekend.
To join our mailing list and receive notification of blog updates, please send an email to watchblog@yacht-forum.co.uk and we'll keep you posted. You do not need to sign up to the forum to do this, and we absolutely WILL NOT share your contact details, or send you anything but notifications of new blog entries.
Jeff
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Post by Jeff »

PS. bent the mainsail on earlier. It reached neither the top nor the end of the boom by some way. Either we have the wrong sail, or someone has chopped off the bottom of it due to wear and tear. It's like having put in the first reef on a sail with 3 reef points on it.

Perhaps, unexpectedly, our first major expense on this boat will be a new mainsail.

I knew we'd find problems when we put the sails on!!!
To join our mailing list and receive notification of blog updates, please send an email to watchblog@yacht-forum.co.uk and we'll keep you posted. You do not need to sign up to the forum to do this, and we absolutely WILL NOT share your contact details, or send you anything but notifications of new blog entries.
Discus
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Posts: 416
Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2010 4:46 pm
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Post by Discus »

Hey, don't underestimate the progress on your boat. It looks like a proper boaty home, I like your ethnic rugs! The only thing I have ever bought from Totnes was a pasty to die for and a bowl of veggie chilli from the food market that nearly blew my head off. Soft furnishings are now on my Totnes radar! Your mainsail sounds a bit like our old one. I was sure some sailmaker was taking the piss somewhere!!! Raise a glass to 'sucess' may it long be substituted by happiness! 8)
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