Back a bit, forwards a bit . . .

[Nick]

Woke up at 4am in a cold sweat worrying about aligning the new engine . . . decided to get Donald Smith to do it. Donald is (as always) very busy, so that will be another two weeks before it's bolted in. In the meantime I've managed to strip one of the threads in the old bearers that the new bearer plates (and one end of the engine) are bolted to.

On the plus side I must have nearly finished spending money on hoses (over £100) and things that look like plastic watering cans (£59) and incomprehensible things you might find in crackers (£60) at the Ardfern Swindlery . . .

Have cut strange shaped hole and successfully installed the new Morse control (still to connect the cables though) and have installed the exhaust house from the transom to the waterlock (plastic watering can thingy).

Kathy has now scraped maybe a third of the old antifoul off . . .

Tomorrow I will install the new control panel, the morse cables and maybe look at the fuel hose runs. At least nearly everything should be ready to plumb in once DOnald has lined the Beta up and bolted it down.

3 months from now we should be setting off to cross Biscay from S. Ireland if we want to do it before mid-August, which the sages say is the cutoff point for a reasonable expectation of a smooth crossing.

What I would like to be thinking about is buying a few pairs of shorts and maybe installing a fridge to keep the beer cool . . .

[Silkie]

You should be blogging this (if only you had the time sez you!) rather than just giving us the occasional teaser on here. It would be a helluva reference for anyone thinking of doing the same. Of course there's a chance that no-one would ever attempt such a thing again. On the other hand, forewarned is forearmed.

I'll be up next weekend if you need some unskilled labour.

[claymore]

I assume that digital images of all this work are being taken?
Have you fitted a seacock on the transom and got a nice big loop - also is one of the plastic jobbies an anti-syphon device?

[Nick]

What's that all about then? A tap on the transom? Seacocks at both ends of the infernal contraption? Shurely shome mishtake . . .

I've made a big loop taking the exhaust the recommended 16" above the waterline, but I've used a loop of hose rather than a Vetus gooseneckas £20 for an extra metre of hose is cheaper than £60 for another plastic watering can. It's not as sharp a loop as a gooseneck, more the sort of loop people keep a spare metre or so of scottish excrement in in their heads. However, I believe that gravity is the major discouragment to backflow here, unless there is something about the properties of sharply radiused bends I am unaware of.

There is also a waterlock, which I believe does a similar job in stopping water that circumvents ones' gooseneck from entering the engine.

Then there is the syphon break on the water injection elbow.

It appears that all the oceans of the world are just looking for an excuse to crawl up my transom, retro-navigate my exhaust and wreck my new engine. Only the great god Vetus can keep me safe.

[Nick]

I'll be up next weekend if you need some unskilled labour.

Bring a decent scraper . . .

[ash]

You should be blogging this. It would be a helluva reference for anyone thinking of doing the same. Of course there's a chance that no-one would ever attempt such a thing again. On the other hand, forewarned is forearmed.

I would hope to copy Nick in a years time, the engine that is, not the NARC. Would agree that blog and photos would be great.

Nick - despite all the water traps and loops, I would fit a seacock on the exhaust if I were sailing the Atlantic. You don't always need to close it, only when you're being pusued by hefty seas. Once the trap has been filled by one big wave, and the engine hasn't been run, the next big wave is going to try to push water back into the engine.

Keep at it.

Ash

[Nick]

Hardly time to teach, webdevelop and refit - blogging as well is just too much at the moment.

However - today's installment . . .

Fitted the new control panel. Hassle enlarging the hole but left it a bit messy as no-one will ever see it. Decided to use bolts instead of self-tappers. Instant hassle . . . top bolts come through a curvy reinforcing bit of GRP so cannot get nuts on. Modify holes and fiddle for half an hour . . . sucess, but did I use enough Sikaflex? (not oozing out messily as per usual). Job done, looks very smart, installed off-centre so I can put the Albin Marin plate back up.

In a fit of enthusiasm now decided to fit the cables to the newly installed Inspector Morse control. The instructions seemed to say something about fitting the cables before pulling the unit through the cutout and screwing it down, but surely not necessary?

Necessary.

Hour and a half in locker with fuel tank. Instructions incomprehensible diagrams unfathomable. Surely that can't go through there, it doesn't fit. File down new bits to make them fit. Impossible to get split pins in. Partially dismantle mechanism from inside locker. Throttle cable finally connected. Gear cable looks easy. Whoops, no it isn't, not with unit bolted in place. Lever tail away from bulkhead with big screwdriver - just room to get the cable through the grippy bit.

Eureka - it works. Oh, no it doesn't. No reverse. SWMBO tries several times, reverse not engaging. Incomprehensible, then I ask (from inside the locker) 'you're not pressing the red button are you?' 'Oh, I thought you had to' she replies. All now apparently working - assuming forward is forward gear on the gearbox and not some horrible Italian 180 degrees arse about face design feature.

Home to no water . . . another mains burst at Clachan Seil.

OHS tomorrow, but not for much longer.

Appreciate the advice re. exhaust Ash, but have never come across seacocks on exhaust before and have never had any probs in spite of big following seas. Is there any reason why a fresh water cooled system should be more susceptible to an anal intake? An exhaust seacock would be an almighty hassle because of its location if you put it on the through-hull - inaccessible due to fenders and similar nautical detritus, so would probably never get closed . . . I would have thought that if they were a good idea then Vetus would include one in either their gooseneck or their water trap.

[Nick]

Friday was meant to be getting the stem head fitting back on, but instead I discovered that the running lights were knackered so messed around rewiring them instead, drank beer and had a barbecue with Silkie and Jerry.

Yesterday I took off the old anode and cleaned up the bolts . . . and did some web design and set up someone's new PC and went to the pub to see some friends who had sailed up the Sound. Too much to do, too little time. I will be so glad once the engine is bolted in.

Down to the yard early today (Sunday) as it was windless and not raining yet and put the two new blades and tail fin on the aerogen as it was calm. (Not really progress, as it had been fine until a couple of weeks ago when it mysteriously self-destructed in a moderate gale - one blade snapped off at the root and the tail fin ripped right along the line of its mounting pole).

Kathy started scraping the port side while I wire brushed the seacocks and tried to decide if they were pinkish or not. Removed all the earth wires. (Have decided I will only earth the engine seacock). Will get Donald's expert opinion on their condition when he puts the engine in.

Good grief - is that really all I got done? Oh no, fixed the switch for the anchor windlass (never worked, utterly corroded) in place in case I ever do get time to fix it. Also worked out the routing for the siphon break in the water injection bend . . . and of course I should have ordered two metres of hose from Beta, not one.

Tomorrow the long arms of the Pope should ensure the stemhead fitting is finally back where it should be - unless it chucks it down of course. Must also remember to try to see Joe about modifying the Navik arms to fit it on the rear deck . . . hope it will go on round the aerogen tower. Will also ask Joe for a couple of bigger backing plates for the stern cleats. Which reminds me - must get on with making up the series drogue . . .

Aaaaaarrrrrgggghhhh . . . . .

A woman is coing to see about renting the house on Wednesday. I can see us living aboard over Winter in Dunstaffnage . . . . or maybe Ardfern, they've got WiFi now.

[Silkie]

Thanks for the barbeque and sorry we weren't back early enough today to lend an arm with the stemhead fitting. The forecast SE veering SW F4/5 only got above a 2 for about 15 minutes and I really don't like listening to the trusty 2-stroke more than is strictly unavoidable.

Make sure you get a full shift out of me in a fortnight's time. Witholding the beer until after the job's finished might help.

[ash]

Hardly time to teach, webdevelop and refit - blogging as well is just too much at the moment.

Glad to see that you are finding time to Blog.

http://www.yotblog.com/fairwinds/archive/2006/5/

Ash