Yesterday was our last weekend day to work on the boat for the next couple of weeks. Next week we are having the big 'not dead yet' estate sale and the week after that we are visiting Florida to see my dad. So, here's an update on our ongoing projects. Some pictures follow this entry.
Thru-hulls and seacocks (if I can even say that!) I've learned so much about this little corner of the boating world since I started this project. Seacocks and ball valves are NOT the same thing. Fooled you I bet. NO! A seacock is designed to screw onto the thru-hull (which, yes, is the part the goes through the hull). These are straight threades (NPT or NPS...can't keep it straight). They are straight so that the nut that screws this thing down will press down against the pad of plywood that you install there for that purpose. The seacock is the very next thing and that has the handle to turn water flow off and on. On the top of the seacock it has regular pipe threads to accept elbows, barbs etc. A ball valve only has pipe threads. It looks like a seacock but it is not. So, having learned all that I happily prance about the internet looking for a 1/2" diameter seacock. There are NONE but the pipes in my boat ARE 1/2". So one solution is to drill a 3/4 inch hole over the 1/2" hole. In the case of the thru-hull for the head this is perhaps a good solution as that hole was not perpendicular to the outside of the boat anyway. In preparation for this solution, yesterday, I ground down the fiberglass around the 1/2" hole to make a flat area around it that was also parallel to the outside hull. Then, I epoxied a 3" disk of 1/2" plywood over this hole. I had put a long machine screw through the center of this disk which went through the hole to the outside. Out there Sue passed this screw through another piece of wood and tightened the two together with nut and washer. This then holds the inside pad in place while the epoxy sets up. The idea now is to drill through the hull AND this pad witha 1" hole saw which will then accept the 3/4" thru-hull . (note, pipe sizes are given by their inside diameter hence the 3/4" thru-hull needs a 1" hole.)
Upon inspecting the engine thru-hull I find that it is in fact a good thru-hull. It doesn't have to be replaced but the old gate valve on it does. Here we go again. Now I need a 1/2" thru-hull and as far as I can tell their aren't any. I really don't want to tear apart a perfectly good thru-hull just to get to the size I want. This will remain a puzzle until I can get some suppliers on the phone.
Galley Whoopee! We finish a job! The new pots and pans cabinet/stove holder looks great! See pictures below. The old alcohol stove was dangerous (plus I couldn't keep Sue out of the alcohol supply). This coupled with the fact that we rarely used the oven made us look into this new two burner non-pressurised stove top. It uses alcohol but it burns like a big warming tray. Works great and simple to operate. I've lost the ability to gimble the thing but we rarely are at sea, heeled over for long periods of time AND looking for a hot meal. We normally cook at anchor and mild rolling can be handled with some pot holders...yet to be invented by me.
Spreaders: Flag halyard blocks and deck lights were put onto the new spreaders. We then threaded the upper shrouds through the keepers at the end of the spreaders and left them on the mast. It's up to the yard to put the spreaders back on the mast when they step the mast.
Turnbuckles: We had purchased new turnbuckles for all the stays. Two problems: first I ordered 1/4" instead of 5/16" for the lower stays so those have to go back. Secondly, the threads seem pretty gunked up on all the stays. I can get some old turnbuckles off but not others. Seems like when I get near the end of the thread they hang up. These old turnbuckles seem to be in ok shape but they are the closed type and I like to see what's going on. Plus these closed ones require some sort of tool to pass through the hole in the middle for adjustment. A tool that I do not currently own. The regular open type turnbuckle can be operated with a large screwdriver. So, here's another "little project" that opens up an entire locker of worms!
Rudder The new rudder is on it's way from Florida in another week or so. At that point the tricky part will be drilling two holes in the rudder shaft at the proper places and at the proper angle. This shaft is 1/4" stainless pipe so drilling is not trivial. This will have to be done accurately on a drill press. Hmmmm....ok, another project that is in the works. I did patch the small gap between the fiber tube that holds the rudder post and the hull.
OK, I think there is time for everything to still be done but there can't be any more BIG problems or questions and the thru-hull puzzle needs a solution soon.
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