Good luck and bad luck

[Deleted member 4366]

I was out in my sailboat last weekend - the first trip after winter lay-up due to the bad weather. I was thinking of going to the Isle of Man TT week, but the motor was becoming difficult to start, which made me a bit wary. In the end, we just stayed out over the weekend, and the motor didn't seem quite right. There was nothing specific, butI just had an uneasy feeling from it,so we decided to head back to Caernarfon. There wasn't much wind, so I had to use the motor a lot. On the final approach to the harbour, the motor started rattling, but was still running OK, so I carried on until we tied up alongside another boat on the harbour wall, and I then stopped the motor to find the cause of the rattling. It wouldn't turn over by hand, and I could feel it coming to a physical stop in each direction. Bad news!

I removed one of the rocker box covers to find that one valve and spring was missing. The spring was broken into about four bits, and the valve had dropped and was jamming the motor. I thought that it was a real stroke of luck that it dropped while we were in the harbour when tied up, and not at sea. Unfortunately I was preventing the boat inside me from moving, and mine couldn't move. My mooring is about 50ft away.

I removed the head to get the valve out, which appeared to be the only damage and took it home to refurbish. So after a 250 mile round trip with a new valve in the head, I reassembled and tried the motor. It fired up again, but soon appeared to seize again. When I checked it out water was coming out the inlet. Guess what? The valve had punched a nice round hole in the cavity above, which I hadn't noticed before. So, another 250 mile round trip with a very early morning start, and I was able to install the new head and get the motor running just in time to let the boat inside me get away for the weekend. Mine is sitting happily back on its mooring again and I can now relax after a week of panic and stress.

I was very lucky to get a complete spare motor in good condition off Ebay several years ago, which I'm using for spares.

I forgot to mention that my lovely Casio watch is now sitting in the bottom of the harbour after it got hooked off my wrist under freak circumstances. I've had that watch for more than 10 years, and have never found a better one, and they don't make them anymore.

 

[grldtnr]

Thats a 'Westerly' is it not? seems to be a 'Berwick ? whats wrong with the flappy things it came with,come to think of it two of them are missing, which would be mighty hard to work to the ilse of man, been out in my Drascombe today.

 

[jazper53]

Thats a 'Westerly' is it not? seems to be a 'Berwick ? whats wrong with the flappy things it came with,come to think of it two of them are missing, which would be mighty hard to work to the ilse of man, been out in my Drascombe today.

Looks like a nice little Ketch/Yawl with headsail furled and ready to go, I assume you have the Main sail and Mizzem sails, should be a powerfull little sailer without the engine.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Thats a 'Westerly' is it not? seems to be a 'Berwick ? whats wrong with the flappy things it came with,come to think of it two of them are missing, which would be mighty hard to work to the ilse of man, been out in my Drascombe today.

Good guess, but no cigar this time. It's a Westerly Pentland. The centre cockpit is the difference. It has in-mast furling, which is where the main and mizzen sails are hiding. With that, it's really easy to sail on my own.

 

[mountainsport]

d8veh, I had mentioned earlier today on another post about borrowing your brain when you get back, but having second thoughts, i'll borrow the boat instead on a long term basis. Make sure that everything is up and running before the handover OK. NICE ONE!!!

MS.

 

[103Alex1]

Heck - not quite the weekend on the water you had in mind I'm sure ! There's a saying that the best days of owning a boat are the day you buy them and the day you sell them .... but I'm sure that was made up by someone who'd had a similarly stressful episode !

Sorry about the watch ... I get very attached to mine too and tend to keep them for years - it's gutting when you find a good one, lose/irretrievably damage it and can't get a replacement. I've pretty much decided that velcro / fabric straps are the way to go for anything active - sooner or later ones with a clip 'unclip' and make a bid for freedom !

 

[OldBob1]

Hi d8veh it like entering a flight of locks on the canal and having the transmission fail, yep got the tee shirt!!!

Bob

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Hi d8veh it like entering a flight of locks on the canal and having the transmission fail, yep got the tee shirt!!!

Bob

It's funny you say that because it just reminded me of another bit of good and bad luck I had. I had to transfer the same boat from Bristol to Western-Super-Mare one November about 12 years ago. Its new home was that berth in the photo above. I came out of the River Avon into the Bristol channel and the whether was horrendous. With the wind against the tide, the sea was very dangerous, so I had to circle in Portishead bay waiting for the tide to turn. Each time I had the stern to the wind, the horizontal rain came right in to soak the front bulkhead. Anyway, it was a very arduous and stressful passage, even though relatively short. Finally I got into Uphill Creek, and worked my way up to the berth. I turned in nice and slowly, but when I put it into reverse to stop, no transmission, so I coasted gently into the bank. When I later looked at the motor, a nut had come undone that held the gear-change quadrant. It would have been a lifeboat job, if it had happened outside the creek. Where the tide around Western bay meets the main tide off the Breen Penisular, it's like a field of fire hoses pointing in the air in those conditions. I'm sure someone up there's looking after me.

 

[shemozzle999]

A few ideas for speed modifications d8veh

Hydrofoil : world speed sailing record for Hydroptere at 51.36 knots - YouTube

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Thanks for that link. It led me to the Vesta Sailrocket that averaged 75mph over 500m to claim the reckord. I think I'd rather go on the Hydroptere though. The fastest I ever achieved on my boat was 8.5 knots (9.8mph). That was fun - and a bit scary!
Blow Away | Vestas Sailrocket

 

[wurly]

That a very nice boat Dave. It looks very spaceous as well.
If i could just buy one... pick it up and transplant into the mediterrean sea, i'd pack up my job and live on it.
What are the running costs per year?

 

[Deleted member 4366]

That a very nice boat Dave. It looks very spaceous as well.
If i could just buy one... pick it up and transplant into the mediterrean sea, i'd pack up my job and live on it.
What are the running costs per year?

Best not to ask!
I've cut down my mooring cost now to about £1100 pa, and craning in/out is another couple of hundred. Insurance about £150. Then there's servicing and replacement - probably about £200 averaged over the long term, provided you don't need a new engine, which costs about £5000. Mine will need one in a couple of years I reckon.
Then there's the cost of using it. Depending how much you use it, diesel maybe £100. Marina costs are now £25+ a night. I usually anchor up somewhere quiet, but the anchorages are gradually being taken over by pay-for visitor moorings. You still need to go into a Marina every few days when you're travelling for fuel, water and to get cleaned up.

 

[wurly]

I've heard that sailing is like standing under a cold shower while ripping up ten pound notes...

Marina charges seems very high, mooring is what i would expect, but probably much higher here in the South West. Don't understand why a diesel engine would require replacing, i thought they would 'chug on' forever. Is it corrosion issues when cooling with sea water? i did read the bit about the valves in yours. Some engines are prone to dropping valves into the bores (ask any volkwagen owners).
I'm ok with engines and not scared of ripping them down and rebuilding. I know my cranks from my gudgeon pins but not too well informed on sailing. Keen to learn though.

I still fancy living onboard, and sailing in the Med one day............before i am too old. Another mid-life crisis to add to the others :0)

 

[Scimitar]

Don't understand why a diesel engine would require replacing, i thought they would 'chug on' forever. Is it corrosion issues when cooling with sea water?

Not half. As soon as you start sea-water cooling, you're killing the engine from the inside out, no matter whether it's used or not.
Many people prefer to use automotive diesels, ensuring a reliable and cheap supply of replacements, as the marinised versions of the same engines will rook you silly.

 

[D8ve]

The engines go on and on until little things happen like.
A bath in salt water when cooling hose splits. Corrosion associated with this. Blockages in fuel and water pipes. (Diesel bug) nuts vibrate lose. Cack handed maintenance. But my 26 year old Yanmar still starts with minimum heat on first crank after winter layup.
Put running costs at 5 to 20percent of boat value depending on your skill level and how flash you want to keep her.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I've been very lucky with this engine. It's the original Volvo twin cyclinder from 1975, It's a proper marine engine made of cast iron (no aluminium) with a massive flywheel. In the 13 years I've had it, I've had a leaking water pump (new seals), rusted through head gasket, one stuck valve, one dropped valve, a screw came of the gear-change, and the manifold was a bit rusty, so I replaced it with a spare. I also replaced both cylinder heads because the spare ones I had were better, but now I've had to put one back. Only the rusted head gasket stopped me at sea. I love this engine, and it'd break my heart to have to replace it, but some of the outside is getting a bit rusty now, and spares are becoming harder to find.
It is indeed salt water cooled, but it's protected by an anode when in the sea, but it's mooring dries twice a day. I should really use an anode on a cable to reach the water a few feet away, when the tide's out.