Repowering ORCA...David's progress report...

[Spin_Drift]

Starting 6:00am Tuesday morning Nov. 26. Rushing around packing for the trip, getting some tools gathered up, getting heating oil for the house and servicing the truck for the trip.

11:00 am. Finally on the road. 250 miles later and snow and ice all the way. In 6 hours I was in Anchorage. Just enough time to have some dinner and change out of the layers of clothing I'd been wearing. And it's off to catch the red eye flight to Seattle. Four pots of coffee and 4 hours later, I was on the flight to San Francisco. Arriving at 2 in the afternoon. Baggage claim and car rental went smoothly. Now off to ORCA.

About 3:30 pm arrived on board ORCA. All things considered she was looking really good. Really damp, a few leaks around the hatch and around some of the port holes. The bilge pump in the engine compartment had failed. Not a big deal, the other two bilge pumps and the 110v sump pump remained operational. Very little water in the bilge.

Built a fire in the stove, plugged in the electric heater, opened up the hatches and port holes in the cabin, and cockpit hatch covers to get the air flowing. Spent the rest of the evening stowing my gear and just getting settled in.

Little did I know that this was just the beginning of the long days to come.

Friday Nov. 28. Off to an early start. First thing on the list is to take care of the malfunctioning bilge pump, replacing fire extinguishers, installing smoke alarms and locating the marine hardware stores, grocery's stores etc., in the area. Contacted Ethan Hirchfeld just to ensure we were on schedule for Monday morning.

Spent the weekend wiping down the cabin, oiling the bright work on the inside of the cabin. Airing out the bedding and salon cushions etc. Cleaning. Cleaning. Cleaning. Admiring the quality of craftsmanship of her builders all the while.

Monday morning 7:00 am, sitting in front of Hirchfeld contractors shop anticipating the day to come. Ethan and I sat down to a cup of coffee and discussed the work to be done. Toured the shop and their dock, met Ben (Ethan's brother), Shane and Brent. These are the men that ORCA'S mechanical readiness has been entrusted to. As time progressed, I found these guys posses a high level of knowledge of marine engines and just boats in general.

Time to move on with the day. Ethan and Shane came to Pelican Harbour to retrieve ORCA. 8:30 am. She's in tow to Hirchfeld's dock. I think she must have been a little reluctant to come out of her slumber. Ethan yells out “Shes heavy!” I replied “9 tons”.

At Hirchfeld's dock, I started disassembling the engine cover. For the first time I got a good look at the job that needed to be done. It was a bit more than I expected but nothing I couldn't handle. After a little examination it was determined that we would have to have her hauled that day. The hose that attaches the packing gland to the stern tube had rotted completely in half. I thought it to be a bit risky to try and pull the rusty old coupler off with her still in the water. Ethan made one call to Anderson's Boat Yard, and they said bring her on over.

11:30 am. She's on the hard and off to get here bottom pressure washed. The job just became bigger. After looking at her bottom paint it was decided that she needed a lot of sanding and a fresh coat of bottom paint. After lunch she was all blocked up and waiting for the work to begin. I began stripping her of her old fuel filters, shift linkages, cables, wiring, gauges, muffler, and the left over bilge pumps and float switches.

I could hear Shane on the outside, setting up to pull the prop. All the time listening for that ring of the old prop hitting the ground, but instead it sounded like an empty milk carton when it broke free. It appears that electrolysis had been running rampant, -with her prop and shaft paying the price. Due to the tear drop zinc not bonding. Upon the removal of the zinc it was clear as to why it did not bond. It was mounted over top of bottom paint!!!!

Shane pulled the shaft, measured it and sent the new prop, coupling and dimensions to the prop shop to have a new shaft made, and the prop and coupling fitted and faced. One of the high points of the day was that the cutlass bearing and the stern tube were in surprisingly good condition. Parts should be back in our hands Thursday afternoon.

I called Capt. Alan Ross Hugenot (marine surveyor) to make an appointment, as ORCA was hauled 4 day ahead of schedule. We had agreed that Alan would come visit ORCA on Tuesday afternoon.

Anderson's boat yard started the installation of the new transducer. Ben and I started measuring and manufacturing the new engine mounts. Spent the rest of the evening looking over the thru- hulls, ball valves and all things below the water line. Thru- hulls appeared to all be in a good shape. Ball valves were in need of replacement. They were all leaking around the stems. -Shuffling engine compartment pieces, and just a general clean up to secure a comfortable sleeping quarters for the night. I must add a "very well done" to the Anderson boat yard guys. For understanding the needs of a wooden boat, -placing her out of the sun to prevent drying and shrinking. Needless to say, it was a very chilly night on board ORCA. With such care taken to prevent drying and shrinking, I did not want to run the heaters.

One last thing before I call it a night. I would like to raise my glass high, to “ORCA”, to Gary Bergman (for she is the fine sailing vessel that you said she would be.) To Hirchfeld Yacht Contractors and Anderson Boat Yard, for their prompt attentiveness to our needs. And last, but by far not the least, my loving wife and partner in life, Aulikki (SpinnDrift) and to Cass, because she thinks we are out of our minds.

05:30 Tuesday, up and at it, bright and early. Started the day out by making coffee and shuffling the engine compartment pieces back around so there is space to work. Anderson Boat Yard completed the installation of the transducer this morning. Ben continued working on the manufacturing the new engine mounts, putting them in, then taking them out, shaving them off a little here and a little there. I could see right now that the Beta 38 was going to be a real tight fit.

We made a jig to center the shaft in the stern tube. We brought another jig on board (that was) set up with engine mounts and the coupling. This little "set up" really made the engine alignment easy. One more time pulling the engine mounting bracket back out, -to drill, glue, and thru-bolt the bracket to the stringers, -it's final resting place.

I mounted the new Racor filters in place and started running the new fuel lines. Had to replace and re-route the bilge pump discharge hose running through the engine compartment, so that the new engine mounting bracket would fit properly. Lunch..... Another beef and bean burrito from 7-11. Now back to work! After lunch Capt. Alan Hugenot arrived just as agreed. Spent the rest of the afternoon going over ORCA with him. Pulling fasteners, opening up compartments, and going over the safety equipment that needs to be on board. My feelings were that the survey went well, but I would have to wait till Thursday evening to have it in writing.

After Alan left, I went over to Hirchfeld's office to discuss the plans for the next day. Ben and I pulled the Beta 38 out of the shipping carton and started reviewing the installation instruction. Time to call it a night. Back to ORCA, once again shuffling engine compartment pieces and a general clean up to secure a comfortable sleeping quarters.

Sometime Wednesday morning. (Starting to lose track of time. Days are starting to run all together.) Coffee's brewing, doing the shuffling of the engine compartment pieces again. Vacuumed the engine compartment, bilges, and all voids that are not accessible when she's all put back together. Continued removing old hardware.

Today is the day. -The new Beta 38 is on its way. Ben arrives with the engine in the back of his truck. We got it all hooked up to the crane on the travel lift. We slowly guide the engine through the companion way and on to it's mounts. With just fractions of an inch to spare going through the companion way.

We had to cut away some of the new mounting bracket with a saws-all and a die grinder, to get it's bell housing to slip down into place. It's really close to it's permanent location. We will have to wait till tomorrow to get the shaft, prop and coupling back from the prop shop, before we can continue on. I replaced all the ball valves that were leaking around the stems. Then knocked off work for the day. Andersons Boat Yard kept on working, sanding, replacing bungs that I had knocked out to remove fasteners for the surveyor, and prepping her bottom for new bottom paint. By evening her bottom was all faired, wiped down and painted.

I spent the rest of the evening with a long time friend of Aulikki's touring Sausalito. Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge and on to the Presidio. Stopping at the national cemetery, Telegraph Hill, China Town, the Italian part of town, Broadway street, and Cafe Treieste for a cup of coffee and a little Jazz music. Then back to ORCA. Same thing shuffling, and a general clean up. Time to turn in for the night.



Being towed...




through fog...




















TO BE CONTINUED...

[Spin_Drift]

[Spin_Drift]

sorry...all pictures not in focus, but thought you like to see them anyway.

Progress report will be continued...
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[sailcapt]

David,
I am repowering my boat and I was looking at your pictures. I noticed that it looks like you extended the shaft with couplings. Is this working all right for you?
Steve

[Spin_Drift]

Originally Posted by sailcapt

David,
I am repowering my boat and I was looking at your pictures. I noticed that it looks like you extended the shaft with couplings. Is this working all right for you?
Steve

The shaft is all one piece. It may be that you are looking at the picture of the jig with the engine mounts and the proper height for the coupling. The jig will be removed before the engine is set in. The coupling that you see attached to the shaft running forward will actually be the coupling half on the transmission. I hope this clears thing up.

If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask...

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[Spin_Drift]

Brand new transducer where there was none
























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[Spin_Drift]

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[Amgine]

Sweet! Nice report.

Question: doesn't look like there's room for a zinc on the prop nut. Is that the case? And it looks like the rudder cutout has a metal edging/half-round or something. Can you tell me if that's the case?

Mmmm... She's just a work of art. I want to poke through her bilges and check out everything. Your pictures are great! Thanks for letting us look over your shoulder!

[Celestialsailor]

Excellent job. Does that universal joint work ok?

[Spin_Drift]

Originally Posted by Amgine

Sweet! Nice report.

Question: doesn't look like there's room for a zinc on the prop nut. Is that the case? And it looks like the rudder cutout has a metal edging/half-round or something. Can you tell me if that's the case?

Mmmm... She's just a work of art. I want to poke through her bilges and check out everything. Your pictures are great! Thanks for letting us look over your shoulder!

Hi there...

You are correct. There is no room for a prop nut zinc or a collar zinc. To fix this problem, I had to install isolated mounting studs and install a shaft brush. Then I was able to bond the engine, shaft, and prop to a zinc mounted on the studs. The new prop hub was over an inch longer. I could have had the hub turned down at the machine shop to fit a collar zinc on the shaft, but I would still have had to modify the zinc and every one to replace it. What a pain that would be.

That is metal in the rudder cut-out. I would assume that it is bronze, or copper-nickle pipe, but I cant say for sure. All of her fittings and hardware are bronze with the exception of the stainless steel standing rigging. She's fastened with copper rivets and silicone bronze screws.


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[JHJensen]

Love your boat and the story was wonderful! Enjoy her.

John

[Spin_Drift]

Originally Posted by Celestialsailor

Excellent job. Does that universal joint work ok?

The universal joint has been removed.This is the first time I have ever seen a universal joint used like that. There must have been an issue with the alignment of the original engine. The universal would allow up to about 7 degrees deflection. With the new installation we raised the engine mounting bracket about 3 inches to get the alignment just right.


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[Spin_Drift]

Originally Posted by Gamekeeper

Love your boat and the story was wonderful! Enjoy her.

John

Thank you very much . We love her also.

David will continue the progress report as soon as he gets the time to sit down and write. There will also be more pictures coming...

The day after he got home he had to start a big job on a Bering Sea crab boat. He is replacing the whole hydraulic system, and the captain wants to be en route to the Bering Sea the day after Christmas...



-Spinner

[Spin_Drift]

Spinner posted the pictures faster than I got the text written. However, more pictures will be posted as I catch up with the writing.


It's Thursday morning. Still the same old shuffle. Ben arrives and we start by setting the engine in place and then removing it. Cut a little more away on the engine bracket, re-routed some hoses. Trying to make it fit without modifying the engine cover. Worked most of the morning on this.

After awhile it got to be so there was only enough room for one around the engine. So I started working on the raw-water system. First off, I had to change the thru-hull from a scoop style to a mushroom head. Along with the new thru-hull came a new ball valve.

I had noticed, with all the twisting, turning, and prying that the bottom paint had started cracking along the seams around the thru-hull. After installing the new thru-hull I went back with some under water seam sealer and fixed the seams, and re-painted the area.

While I'm fighting with this, Ben takes off for lunch and comes back with the prop, shaft, and coupling. The rest of the afternoon and into the evening was spent fitting the shaft, aligning the shaft coupling and the engine coupling, and safety wiring the coupling locking bolts.

Things are getting really exciting now! It's time to install the prop. OH SHYT!! There's no room for the prop nut zinc. We try sliding the shaft aft to fit a collar zinc on the shaft. Still no luck. With the prop so far aft, one would never be able to pull the prop, and the collar zinc would have to be turned down to fit. What a pain that would be when it came time to replace it.



Well, I've got some idea of a solution, but I think I'll sleep on it. It's getting late. Still have the shuffling to do and a little clean up.


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[Kalevala]

Friday morning: Trying to get back in the water before noon.

I decided upon a shaft brush to fix the zinc problem. It involved putting two insulated studs through the hull and attaching a zinc. On the inside of the hull a shaft brush was installed (it's kind of like the brushes you would find in an electric motor or starter). The brush is attached to a steel strap that acts like a spring. That keeps about two to three pounds of pressure on the shaft to insure good bonding. A wire on the brush is attached to the insulated studs going through the hull. I also also attached a wire to the engine to bond it to the zink.

Drilling the holes for the studs. The cedar plank had a wonderful aroma. Rushing around trying to get everything secured for going back in the water.

Ben is in the engine compartment bolting the engine down in it's permanent resting place. Just making sure nothing moves out of alignment. We will finish the installation at Hirchfeld Contractors dock.

The travel lift comes and they wrap the slings around ORCA. They lift her off the stands and finish the bottom paint. Now we are sitting over the water slowly inching our way down to it. She's floating on her own, slings slacked not removed. On board we start checking all compartment, seams, thru-hulls, ball valves etc......

Transducer looked good, no leaks. Back in behind the engine we can hear water running. Wasn't hard to find. It was gushing pretty good. It was easy to see this one was going to need some help.

ORCA was not out of the water that long so she didn't dry up much. This seam was not going to take-up. We lifted her out again, reefed and caulked the seam about a foot forward and a foot aft of the leak. Painted her and set her back down. She's holding tight now. Just a few weeping seams, but they will take-up.

It's about 4 pm now. Shane and Brent bring the skiff over to give us a tow back to Hirchfeld's dock. After tying up, it's time to crack a few beers and settle in for the night.

Visited with Ethan, Ben, Shane, Brent, and Ethan's and Ben's Father until about 9:00 pm.

These guys remind me a bit of the Orange County Choppers TV show. Their father has been working on yachts since the boys were very young, and the boys worked right along with him. They are really into boats of all kinds.

All Ben wants to do is go from 0 to 60 in about 2 seconds. You could really see the pride and excitement in his eyes as he showed off his little water rocket.

Well it's off to ORCA. Back on board now. Trying to get things back together so there's not so much shuffling around at bedtime. As I'm putting the settee back together in the salon I'm startled by what sounds like somebody pissing in the bilge. I started pulling up the cabin sole.

The seam had started leaking in the area of the thru-hull that I had just replaced. It started out pretty slow but within a few moments it was really gushing. I called Ben and he came down to give me a hand. We made a temporary patch and shored it up.

The leak slowed considerably but there was still lots of water coming in. Bilge pump was running about 20 minutes on and shutting off for 5. Kept cycling like this the rest of the weekend.

The bilge pump in the engine compartment was cycling on and off, but not quite so often. We put another 110v sump pump on board just for safety's sake. The 20 to 30 minutes it took to get the leak temporarily patched and shored up felt like a lifetime.

Talked to Aulikki on the phone and advised her as to what was going on. She called me every two hours after that (thanks Honey) to tell me to check the bilge pumps, shore power cord and other compartments to make sure we weren't leaking anywhere else.

It was a tense sleepless night. I learned a lot of important lessons that evening.

#1 Never go back in the water late Friday afternoon.

#2 Always have a damage control kit handy.

#3 Never use excessive force on fittings below the water line. (Apparently I really disturbed the seam around the thru-hull.)

#4 Make sure your bilge pumps and related plumbing are in good condition. -As ORCA's pumps were pumping, they were pumping half the water overboard and the other half back to the bilge. Found out that ORCA's old bilge pump had a lack of hose clamps on the discharge hose. I found bunch of 1” hoses slipped over 3/4” hoses used to adapt to the check valves.

Morning seemed to take forever to arrive....


Insulated studs








Lowering back into the water the first time




Water gushing in



Remodeling the bilge pump system












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