Recommended List of Spare Parts

[sck5]

"large, well-stocked chandleries everywhere that can provide most parts immediately and almost every imaginable part within 1 or 2 days."

true of St. Martin. True of Martinique. Not so true in quite a few of the other islands. We spent quite a bit of time waiting for parts in St. Lucia. That was after completely striking out in St. Vincent. And our boat has a Yanmar so we were hardly looking for nonstandard or rare parts. Better to be safe than sorry.

[mbianka]

When I converted to electric propulsion five years ago I was surprised at all the spare parts I was able to take off the boat. From a spare injector, head gasket, to things like antifreeze and oil. Then there was all the normal maintenance parts like filters, zincs and belts that I no longer needed. I've found the electric propulsion system to require so much less maintenance than my old diesel that my time is now spent on modifications. I'm currently working on a instrumentation display to monitor each battery voltage and battery current draw. Anyway something to think about if your diesel finally dies. EP has certainly simplified things for me including the amount of spares I need to carry.

[colemj]

Originally Posted by sck5

"large, well-stocked chandleries everywhere that can provide most parts immediately and almost every imaginable part within 1 or 2 days."

true of St. Martin. True of Martinique. Not so true in quite a few of the other islands. We spent quite a bit of time waiting for parts in St. Lucia. That was after completely striking out in St. Vincent. And our boat has a Yanmar so we were hardly looking for nonstandard or rare parts. Better to be safe than sorry.

Also true of Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, Guadeloupe, Grenada and Trinidad. Between Puerto Rico and Trinidad, one is never more than a daysail away from a major supply point.

Definitely carry common engine spares because there are so many makes and models of engines that chandleries will not be fully stocked for them (neither is West Marine or Defender for that matter), although NAPA stores exist on all these islands and are well-stocked with filters, belts, etc, so make a cross-reference list for non-OEM engine maintenance parts. Other non-engine parts are readily available everywhere. No need for spare regulators, solar controllers, inverters and many other such things. And stuff like starters and alternators and electrical motors can be rebuilt on almost any street in any country for very little money. It is truly surprising how much of this type of work is done throughout Latin America - the cities seem chock full of autoelectric and motor repair places.

I do agree that a spare water pump and toilet pump assembly (unless you have two heads) are worthwhile to have on board, as well as a spare reefer control unit, because these are systems one does not want down for very long while sourcing replacements.

Mark

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by SmartMove

As we start this new adventure our philosophy has been preventive maintenance is the best practice. To that end we are currently assessing every system on the boat and taking corrective action if we feel it is required. As part of this we are creating a list of what we believe we need to carry as spares or consumables (like filters, etc.) onboard.

We are currently replacing all of the standing rigging. It was ten years old and still was looking OK, we probably could have gone for another 2-4 years. We are hoping to be able to cruise for 5-8 years, since the rigging would need to be replaced during this period we decided to do it now. We have just replaced the sails as well, even though they had some life left as well.

We are adding four 130 watt solar panels. We believe they will keep up with our power needs, but if they do not we are considering adding a wind generator. My husband wanted to get a small Honda generator as well, but I thought that sounded like overkill, maybe not.

Thanks,
Robyn

Preventive maintenance is great , actually essential, but don't think that it will prevent things from breaking. Things will break constantly -- it's the nature of the beast. It's a good idea to keep a decent spares inventory on board -- not just consumables, but parts and components likely to fail.

I have a large diesel generator on board, but I keep a small Honda portable just in case. I think your husband's idea is a good one. Struggling with a power deficit is unpleasant. Solar is great, but it doesn't work at night, and sometimes it's cloudy.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by SmartMove

Redundancy is a good thing and we prefer this when it is a viable option. As an example, we are putting on a windvane that in our view is for a backup for the rudder and autopilot. But we think we still need another option for the rudder.

Thanks,
Robyn

Great plan!

But the wind vane should be entirely adequate as a spare rudder, if it has means to turn it manually.

Rudder failure horrendous if it happens, but is not all that likely if you've had the rudder dropped out and are sure about the shaft and bearings.

Make sure and have all the steering gear gone over carefully, and make sure your emergency tiller works.

And even though you will have the wind vane as backup self-steering (or primary -- you might prefer it), you will want to have some spares for your autopilot. I had an only 10 year old autopilot hydraulic pump lock up on me. On the first day of last year's month long summer cruise. I was extraordinarily lucky that I happened to be in Cowes, and someone had that exact pump -- in 24v! -- in stock.

[cfarrar]

All the spare fuel filters in the world won't help if you have crap in the bottom of your fuel tank and stir it up during the first rough passage. With a clean fuel tank, new seals on your fuel cap, and consistent use of a baja filter you can feel comfortable carrying just a couple of spare fuel filters.

[Stu Jackson]

Engine Spares for a Long Cruise

and Nigel Calder's Cruiser's Handbook has a great list, too.