Progress has been made steadily and we have tidied up some jobs that will allow me to proceed when Bill is not here. We added the wood trim and the ply headliner in the walkway, so I can finish all the outstanding painting forward of the engine room bulkhead. We also sprayed the head counter top and the companionway shelf and that came up well.
I fitted the Chatfield Marine Blue Water Shaft Seal, the picture shows the old prop shaft sitting in place through the Vesconite cutless bearing. The Vesconite bearings were very simple to fit, I just put them in the freezer overnight and they just tapped into place.
The engine is sitting down on the modified beds again, it looks like it will line up well this time. I have now removed the rusty old RSJ from the boat and it looks a little less industrial.
The additional scuppers have been cut and I have sealed them in preparation for the PVC pipes that will be epoxied in. As we have come to expect, there were large voids in the hull/deck join, I have poured in quantities of thin epoxy glue so I hope it will all stick together. I am less surprised as time goes on, with regards to the amount of movement in the boat prior to refitting. Hopefully we will not hear any large cracking sounds when we float! The stanchion bases are all fitted now and we are ready to glue the rubbing strake on when the time is right.
The shower is getting closer to completion, we have nearly finished fairing the coachroof. We decided to simply use epoxy fairing compound as there will be no possibility of any rot in this wet area.
Lisa and I have finally woken up and smelled the coffee regarding our cruising plans,
making the decision last week to postpone our cruising until our son Will has left the nest. He starts secondary school next year and is heavily involved in team sports, playing cricket in summer and soccer in winter. He has achieved rep status in both sports and still maintains his dream of being a professional sportsman, so who are we to argue! Making the decision now means we can spend a bit of time fixing our house up so it is livable, and we will have the boat finished by Christmas in readiness for a summer cruise. Then I'll have to find something to do...
So, Bill has started on the gas locker and very exciting that is too. We will build the surround from foam and glass, the lid will be 12mm ply, glassed over for strength and hopefully stability. I have not had any experience with building with foam but it seems quite good, at least Bill makes it look easy!
Otherwise, when not in bed recovering from the early winter round of flu, I have been punishing myself with plumbing in the generator and main engine. I took this photo a few days ago, every day I try and get something added, although by the time I have a) worked out what I need to do, b) shopped for the parts and c) taken them all back at least once and got the right size, progress can be a little uneven.
The scuppers are all in and glassed, not a major job but interrupted by Christmas so it is great to have them all finished off. They look excellent and will look perfect when painted. Bill also tidied up the 2 original ones as they had not been done that well - who would have thought!
Well, finally got my act together and put the engine in. It was delayed a bit by the need to line bore the shaft log. I had long been suspicious that the cutless bearing at the aft end was not aligned with the shaft, judging by the various damage marks on various bits. I was also disappointed by the fact that the forward end was not round. The supplier of my new cutless bearings suggested I line bore the shaft log to ensure a proper fit and I think it was good advice. I was at school camp with my son Will when the guy turned up to do the job, but he sent me some photos - along with the bill! The aft OD for the bearing is 2", the forward one is 1.75". He also lined up the hole in the aft engine bulkhead and that will help us in aligning the engine.
Putting the engine in place was pretty straightforward, although I had to cut a hole in the roof of the shed/tent, as the hiab that I had to put the engine in was much bigger than the one we used to take the old Perkins out. I have had the exhaust riser modified to fit, however I need to cut the modified engine beds down a bit as I managed to make them too high... hem hem! We will be able to use a chain block to lift the engine out of the way, I have a 3.5m length of RSJ that will fit across the cockpit. Hopefully more soon, maybe not much this week as Will has 3 games of cricket for his school and we will be going along on Thursday to see New Zealand play Australia.
