Engine Work

 I took time to learn more about the Yanmar GM20FV engine in my boat. Other than performing the usual routine maintenance each year, I attended at diesel workshop that helped increase my knowledge, mechanical skills, and confidence to inspect and work on the engine more deeply. The workshop was three days; one day lecture followed by two days of hands on with an engine of the same type on a workbench. The students who attended were from all over the country and the skills and knowledge they possessed were at different levels among them.

One can easily notice the head of the engine sitting on a bench in the pictues. The engine head was cleaned by a machine shop - I had the head and heat exchanged cleaned by Kevin Ender of Enders Racing Engines. Kevin is a real pro, and gives his word about getting a job done at a specific time.

The carbon built up in the ports and valves were not extensive, and having the head off the engine gave me the opportunity to grind the valves a bit. I rented a tool from Advanced Auto that made removing the valves from the head very easy. 

The picture to the right shows the valves back in the head. The long  bolts (studs) connect to the fresh water heat exchanger. The fresh water circulating pump is also attached to the head.



While the head was off the engine it received new paint.  Some scale were found to be in the ports. The bundle in the heat exchanger was 25-35 percent blocked with scale; the tubes now clear of any debris.

The engine now has new hoses, and gaskets, and is completely cleaned and painted. Cleaning anything in the engine room takes time because of the small size of the engine room. Good thing tooth brushes do not come in large sizes.

The best part of working on one's own boat engine is getting to really know the engine and having the ability to repair it if needed when out on a voyage.

Pulpit Finished

It has been some time since my last post and for good reason; I have been extremely busy, but more on that later.

For those who have been following this blog I thought you may be interested in having a view of the pulpit. The story about the pulpit began and is dated October 19, 2013. Please feel free to review the information in the past blog.

The pulpit wood was separated from the support bars and sanded clean. The bars were partially pitted from salt water getting in between the wood and the bars -- the previous owner had sail the Gulf often. Sanding the bars was easy when using a proper tool: a grinder with a wire brush.

The Sampson post and windlass were placed back on the pulpit once it was secure. I did make a large .25 inch thick backing plate for the windlass instead of using the same aluminum washers that were originally used.

Having a bow pulpit that is refreshed adds to the overall look of any boat.

Cat Ketch Sister Ship # 5 in Super Condition

S/V Dream Weaver at anchor in picture at left.

My friend, Jim, who lives in Florida showed me his Herreshoff Cat Ketch, S/V Dream Weaver. His yacht was the last of the line of these custom made by Cat Ketch Yacht (CKY) company. Hull#2 is located in Maryland, hull#3 is in New York, hull#4 and hull#5 are in Florida.  Jim has many nautical miles under his sails, and has sailed Dream Weaver to the Bahamas more than 100 times. He has also made many improvements and/or changes to the boat to accommodate his preference for cruising adventures.

The most notable change S/V Dream Weaver has are the masts. The masts are not elliptical as the original design. They are circular in shape, which makes them flex less. The stiffness means that the boat does not spill air as the original masts, and they provide power to move Dream Weaver faster on the water. As Jim wrote me "..We've been in some 10-15' quartering seas surfing at 14-18 kts in 25-40 kt winds.."  The masts have platforms for winches, and they are taller than the original masts. Both mast look new and show plenty of care.

Some  additional features of Dream Weaver are redundancy in many of its systems; water, electrical, charging, auto pilot, navigation, and safety. Moreover the interior includes some of following:  hatch hood to redirect air to forward birth, special designed latch so the deck hatch can be opened fore or aft, water maker, added foam for higher level of positive floatation, drawers in cabinets that extend to within an inch of hull -- makes use of all space, storage for 40 bottles of wine, -- Who needs drinking water eh? --    and much more. Jim has a technical spec document of all the additional features and functions that Dream Weaver contains, which can be forwarded upon request.

One can easily note that Dream Weaver has been given much attention. Although Jim, will always stay a sailor in some regard, he has recently told me that his boat is available for purchase. Any future owner of Dream Weaver will quickly realize that it is a unique boat.