Busy day in the boat yard
As expected, with the sun shining and temperatures near 20C our boat yard was alive with activity yesterday. People have finally started showing up to remove their winter covers and do what we have been doing for weeks, prep their boat for launch. Our day was no exception and we got a lot accomplished. Here is a list:
- Finished attaching props by installing cotter pins
- Changed lower unit gear oil in starboard engine
- Greased engine hold-down locks (we think)
- Greased throttle cables (we think)
- Lubricated steering cables
- Swapped starboard and port battery banks
- Topped up batteries with distilled water
- Made final plans for windlass wire run – ordered wire
- Drilled hole for windlass wire run into Starboard Bow Locker
- Replaced gasket on main sliding hatch
- Replaced gasket on refrigerator
- Re-bedded snaps where Dodger attaches at the front
- Fabricated Windlass breaker stand-offs
- Removed Starboard Berth Cabin Roof to recon Winch install
- Installed new shorter Navigation table
- Attached and clamped head vent hose
- Drank beer in the sunshine!
Today we will be picking up the windlass wire and attempting to wrestle it into position. We still can’t mount the windlass until we get the base pad sorted out but at least the wire will be ready when we do.
Down the hatch to lubricate the rear of the steering cables.
Disconnecting cables in preparation of swapping port and starboard battery banks.
They are Freakin’ heavy!!!
The boat had some tears in this gasket when we purchased her. The previous owner was kind enough to leave us some gasket material to replace the old stuff.
Our Nav table went on a bit of a diet and lost some weight.
We are all about esthetics. How do you think this winch looks here? 🙂
I like the table! I didn’t have the nerve to take the saw to mine, not knowing what it would look like and having the easy alternative of making another. Now I know I did the right thing and will have to chop mine in the future…. but I might as well let the current one collect some dents first.
And I hate lubing steering cables. Cozy. But, on the bright side, it forces you to clean out the locker! I always find something lost.
Thanks.
We got most of the greasy / dirty jobs out of the way early in the day.
I was actually in that locker a week ago so it was reasonably tidy. When we removed the old Garmin plotter we also took off the external GPS antenna which was mounted on the stern rail. Thinking that I might want to have some wire back there in the future I fed a bright pink tracer line back from that locker to the electrical area in the Starboard berth when I took out the antenna cable.
I’m sure you read my bit about tearing a PO installed winch out of the deck:
“We did pull a winch out of the deck, trimming the genoa under full load. We didn’t lose the winch—she just lifted a bit and made crunching noises. I quickly transferred the sheet to a matching winch next to it. Later discovery, weeks later, confirmed my suspicion; this one winch had been owner-added on a cored deck without adequate backing. I was surprised, though, when I saw that not even simple washers had been placed under the nuts! The nuts simply punched into the foam under what must have been the greatest strain the winch had seen. The factory installed winches were installed with big fender washers into a solid glass area of the deck, reinforced for winch mounting. I reinstalled the winch with and over-sized FRP backing plate.”
The plate was about 2″ dia. larger than the winch base, which calculations show to be over kill. The FRP was a scrap piece from a large tank, but the boat yard may have scrap. I would avoid aluminum, I think, because there is a lot of bronze in the winches.
I used butyl rubber for sealant and was happy with that. Much better than the silicone that was used (and was leaking) yet still easy to remove if needed. This is the perfect application for butyl; all of the load is carried by substantial bolts, and the equipment would be awful to remove if an adhesive was used.
I tested it well yesterday; I absolutely could not muscle the winch any tighter.
I did read that post. It looks to me like the backing plates on our current winches (Harken 32 STs) are aluminum (I only checked one but I would hope the other is installed the same way). We actually purchased a second Harken 16ST (used) this morning. Now we have 2 winches to install. 🙂 I brought both the 16s home with me and I will strip them down and service them to make sure they’re both OK.
By the way, I hard to look up FRP. Where would one acquire that?
FRP = Fiber Reinforced Plastic. Just a generic for fiberglass and similar composites. I’m lucky – I get chunks from scrapped chemical processing equipment. Boatyards may have scraps. It can be laminated by you (easy – just lay-up layers of cloth and mat on a sheet of wax paper), or it can be purchased from McMaster/Carr and others.
Some have suggested cutting board material. Don’t – the stuff creeps over time and gives little lasting support.
1/8″ aluminum is common, and I think those are aluminum winches, so no big deal (I could be wrong about that). Again, I live off construction scraps, so I don’t know a cheap source.
I found this excellent tutorial on bedding hardware with Butyl Tape:
http://www.sailnet.com/forums/gear-maintenance/63554-bedding-deck-hardware-butyl-tape.html
Wow, ya’ll did get a lot done! We especially like the last job on the list – drinking beer in the sunshine. Nothing like kicking back after a hard day’s work with a beer while looking over everything you’ve accomplished.
It would have been better had we been on the water drinking beer, but sitting on the tramp in the boat yard sure beat being in our small apartment.
Nice list! All the items are optional except the last one.
I like that you left a messenger in place when you pulled the wire!
bob
Yes, we were thinking ahead! We now have bright pink cord running from the electrical cabinet to the bow and from the same cabinet to the stern.