Hatches, I've Got Your Hatches Right Here

The installation of the newly refurnished and revitalized hatches has begun in earnest. Boy oh boy does having shiny hatches make a difference. The refurbishment project was undertaken in an attempt to protect the frames from deterioration but is it okay to just be a bit shallow and admit that the fact they look beautiful makes me happy?

The fact that they are being installed on a freshly painted cabin top helps with the aesthetic appeal. The down side to this is that there is still painting to be done on the deck and bow so what we have now is a shiny cabin top which makes the rest of the decks look really, really tired. This means more taping (which takes a lot longer than you would think), more painting (again with the time sink) and yet more polishing and waxing of said paint. 

It is my secret fear that all of this obsessive spit and polish will result in a deck so slippery that we end up shooting crew members off the side of the boat like penguins on an iceberg,

 Oxidized paint is ugly but its also grippy. I do think we will be revisiting the nonskid sooner rather than later as with the rest of the deck so pristine and slick, I want the nonskid areas to REALLY be nonskid. 

The good news is that either way, the cabin top is just about ready to have the turtle shell and deck hardware installed and that is another milestone to tick off our list.

Meanwhile, Kitty likes to check up on the progress and tell us what she thinks of the work thus far. She also likes to provide commentary on her dad. She will proudly tell you that her daddy "is a worker". She holds workers in high esteem whether they be her family, or boat yard workers, road construction crews basically anyone who uses a tool in their daily work is a "worker" and she holds them in very high regard. Anytime she has a toy or household item which is damaged, she brushes it off and says it's okay because "Daddy can fix it, He is a good fixer. he can fix anything." Now to help her see that SHE can be a worker who fixes things too.

In High Cotton

We fired up the engine. This might seem like a non-momentous occasion until you realize that it has been over a year since it was last started. The fuel lines have been disconnected for a year as Mark began working on the big project marked "plumbing". The plumbing punch list includes not only replacing all of what you would normally consider plumbing- i.e. water lines, toilet lines, etc. but also the fuel lines which feed the engine and generator. It has been an enormous job. You don't realize how big a 42 foot boat is until you decide to totally redo the plumbing lines...or the electrical wiring.

As Mark finished hooking up the fuel lines after his massive over haul of the fuel filtration system, having just finished the seawater lines to the engine and generator, our fingers were crossed. The generator seawater impeller was replaced (more on this later), the engine flushed and the engine was primed using the new fuel pump. It was now or never.

Mark went up to the cockpit, turned the key and...it fired up the very first time. Only sailors who have previously dealt with a cantankerous old diesel engine (are there any other kind of engines?) will understand, but it turned over the first time. The exhaust was not overly smoky, the engine was not belchy, the vibration was noticeably lessened and the exhaust water was sputtering out of the stern as we had hoped. WINNING!!!

Marine diesel repair sounds so simple in the abstract but in reality, every tiny repair or modification is a giant pain in the butt. The simple sounding task of replacing the generator seawater impeller was made incredibly time consuming by just trying to find the right impeller. Our first attempt at ordering one online ended up in us having the absolute wrong one. Turns out we need an Oberdorfer impeller which as far as I can tell is made by one person who lives alone somewhere in the Alps and the parts are delivered to the post only once a month when the snows clear enough to allow the pack goats through. Also, Karl the impeller maker is getting pretty sick of making these so his production is dependent on whether he feels like it or not. So we ordered the right make and the right size, it was the bore diameter which was wrong. We managed to score one on our second attempt and you can bet that we are having Karl whip up another to carry as a spare.

Our dock neighbor Hugh stopped by. Hugh is sort of the Dock Daddy genius, experienced sailor and talented engineer of our dock. His boat, which he designed and had  custom built by Tashing is hands down the most perfect and beautiful vehicle for cruising I have ever seen. To say his boat is well thought out and absolutely beautiful would be a gross understatement. I do not covet many things, but his boat is the one thing I would give a kidney for. I say this so you understand how over the moon and chuffed Mark was when Hugh exclaimed that the fuel filtration Mark designed was the most functional, elegant, tidy and practical installation he had ever seen. What took 3 separate filters to do on Hugh's boat, Mark managed to do with only 2 and to retain every bit as much functionality as the 3 filter system Good on ya Mark. I told ya it was something to be proud of.

So now its time to take a moment to sit back and toast the work done on the engine. I say a moment because well, the generator is generating some consternation and difficulties of its own. Of course. Enough so that its going to get a post of its very own. Like I have said before- boats are really stupid.

 I have been anxiously awaiting 2 things to happen. One for late summer to get here so I could grab a photo of the local cotton crop ( I love cotton ) and 2. For something to go so well that I could use the phrase "In high cotton". I was worried these 2 requirements would not align, but this week they did.

And the head goes bye bye

Words can not adequately express my excitement at the interior destruction going on aboard Ceol Mor these days. Things might currently look to be in an absolute state of upheaval but its all for a very good cause.

 I love our boat. She is a great sailing boat, large enough for our family to cruise in relative comfort and has a beautiful teak interior. Since ANY boat has trade offs and no boat can ever be perfect, there are a few things that really annoy me. One of the biggest annoyances is the front cabin. Since the rear cabin is too small for Mark and I, we have opted to commandeer the v berth. The plus side has been awesome ventilation. The down side has definitely been the lack of floor space.

When Bob Perry designed the Nassau (Tatoosh, same boat. Really.) He designed it for the typical American sailing family who will typically feel that 2 heads are absolutely necessary. I guess we are not typical because we found the squeezing in of a forward head to be completely unnecessary and to make the front cabin feel cramped, stuffy and uncomfortable. So we are ripping that sucker out!

Mark has finally found a boatwright who can put up with his perfectionist tendencies and whose level of craftsmanship is on a level he is comfortable with- Rick. Rick is an artist and has a tendency to perhaps over embellish on the fit and finish but Mark has found a way to get on the same page with Rick. You guessed it- really, really detailed drawings of what he wants. Drawings that look a lot like this: 

You didn't really think Mark would be able to just do some rough sketches on a napkin did you? So with Mark's detailed instructions and plans and Rick's excellent craftsmanship, we should soon have a truly spectacular Master Cabin. WHOOPIE!! I can not tell you how very happy this makes me.

As to the naysayers who say "but what will you do when your only head breaks?!?!" The answer is- fix it.Quickly. And use a porta potty until such time as the repairs are affected. We are keeping the forward holding tank as the rear one is on the puny side and will have a secondary pump installed so that we have the one head plumbed to both holding tanks. I plan on being completely OCD on the head maintenance and preventative use so if you come visit us, be prepared. A small price to pay for a comfortable master cabin with additional usable storage.

I am so excited about this portion of the refit that the current state of the boat doesn't even phase me. Even though right now it looks a lot like this:

Its gonna be messy for a bit but oh it will be worth it!

Let There Be Light

There are times when my desire to just get going conflicts with Mark's desire to get going when the boat is just as he would like it.  Some times he comes up with improvements he would like to do that I argue are just a time sink. Then there are times when he finishes these project and I have to admit that the functionality we gain was well worth the extra time he spent. Never the less, there is a self imposed time limit so we have to pick and choose which projects will give the most functionality knowing we can not do all of them.

Wiring in engine compartment lights might seem like not a big deal unless you are having to sort out Old Perky in a space that previously would have made an excellent mushroom farm. Now instead of fumbling around with a flashlight or trying to find an out of the way area to hang a utility lamp we can  flip a switch and VOILA! Let there be light! This will make a huge difference in making engine trouble shooting and maintenance a bit less of a pain in the rump. Well it will still be a pain but it will be a well illuminated pain.

In other news, Salty Gene came aboard to inspect Mark's wiring. A former marine electrician, he has specific ideas of what constitutes proper wiring. He declared the new wiring on Ceol Mor as "first class". Mark was absolutely chuffed with this pronouncement. Its nice every once in a while to get a little validation.

So work continues. The autopilot computer is being relocated so that all the electrical components are in one area. We are finishing up the new plumbing plan and I'm coming up with my galley wish list. Best of all, we are just days away from taking the boat out to check all of our work thus far and to actually shake out the sails I am so excited to leave the dock, if even for a few hours. That means we are back to an unfinished item on the list- learn how to sail the boat.

Meanwhile, back on the boat

While we thoroughly enjoyed our vacation, there has been no rest for the weary- or wicked. Or something. The day after we returned from the UK it was back to business.

Mark started to sort out the wiring from the mast. Either the builder or a previous owner thought it would be a good idea to run all the wires from the mast under the sole of the boat. Good in theory but perhaps lacking a bit in execution. What do you do with a drunken sailor? Let him route wiring apparently. Instead of running the wiring through conduit neatly in as direct a manner as possible, the unnamed person responsible for wiring just put them any old place. This meant our bilge and under sole area looked like this:

Not only did this mean tracking down any problems would take three times as long as it should but it meant that we could not use the area for storage and with 4 peeps aboard we need every inch of storage we can squeak out. The chaos and disorder also caused Capt. Perfecto's left eye to twtich funny.

Mark has been painstakingly repairing crappy splicing (if you find your wires are too short, just take a stab at splicing with an exacto knife and duct tape. Still too short? Do it again! Measuring cable is for girlie men!) and routing the wiring neatly under the sole. Thanks to a combo of expandable braid and cable conduit it now looks like this:

All the cabling now is decently spliced, labeled and running through conduit which is neatly tucked away. Now we have a place for storage (we are designing a sliding tray system to hold canned goods) once we move on to the plumbing which has been routed in a similar haphazard manner. Oh and now that I can actually SEE the bilges I think I will be painting them in the very near future. Fantastic! Another project. Whee.

And now that the wiring is nearly done and the plans for the plumbing refit are being finalized we are getting to the fun part. I'm figuring out exactly what I want to do with the galley while Mark and Kitty continue to research our options for electronics. ELECTRONICS! Once we start installing them it means we are really on the down hill side and getting to the bottom of the refit list and I for one will be really, really glad to take that list with every little box ticked and set it on FIYAH! I may or may not dance nekkid around the burning refit list. If I do, I sure as heck won't be posting photos of that on the blog. Somethings are better left to the imagination.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

 In 2 short weeks Texas went from its winter state of dead and brown to full on, sprouting, blooming springtime madness. Weeds have been reproducing with wild abandon in the garden, the grass spouted well past ankle height to the dismay of our HOA and the roses have utterly taken over. I spent 3 days just trying to tidy up the grass, weed the beds, trim the crepe myrtles that have arisen from their slumber with a jolt and cut back the roses which have formed a hedge worthy of Maleficient. I did have some pretty cute helpers, although Kitty prefers to pluck roses and throw the petals like confetti at a parade more than anything else. Maura is an ace weeder though- with a bit of prodding that is. Our reward at the end of the gardening marathons were beautiful, big as saucer blooms through out the house. Nice.

Whatcha Been Doin'? Refit Progress Report

So where are we in the progress of the refit? What has been done, what is almost done? That would be a lot. A lot has been done in the past 2 years. While we did have the yard do our blister repair and bottom job, pretty much everything else has been done by Mark. Not just done, but done beautifully. The man might not be quick but his level of craftsmanship is truly impressive.

So here is the list so far. Keep in mind that we've done all this (and by we I mean largely Mark. I handle aesthetics, research and keeping the kids busy. Plus I am not allowed near power tools. Don't ask) while working, planning, having a baby and trying to have a little bit of fun here and there.

• Boat renamed and registered with Coast Guard
• Blistered bottom repaired- mystery coating removed, hull dried, etc.
• Bottom painted
• Replaced shaft mechanical seal
• Cutlass bearing replaced
• Exhaust elbow made and replaced- We couldn't find the part we needed so Mark and his friend Christian built one out of stainless
• Transmission removed, disassembled, cleaned reinstalled
• Key way in transmission repaired
• Engine realigned
• Motor mounts repaired
• Engine cooling sysytem refurbished
• Fuel lift pump replaced
• Galley sea and fresh water pumps refurbished
• Sea cocks removed, grease nipples replaced, refurbished, inspected reinstalled
• Small surface cracks in deck fiberglass groud down, epoxyed, repainted
• Traveler blocks replaced and upgraded
• Fuel tank flushed
• Fore and aft heads comissioned- these will eventually be replumbed but we are good for now
• Bulkheads repaired- rot removed, new ply scarphed in, epoxyed, reglassed and repainted
• Chainplate deck insertion points raised via epoxy islands, painted
• Chainplates inspected, polished rebedded
• Port lights removed- rot removed, scarphed in new ply, epoxyed, reglassed, repainted
• Cracked glass in 2 port lights replaced
• Head liner removed
• Recored decks at deck hardware insertion points- still on going but on the downhill side.
• Rebdding deck hardware- see above for progress report
• Main sail repaired
• 150 Genoa repaired
• Rigging tensioned
• Bilge pump upgraded- not 100% happy with this and more work is coming
• Interior cushions recovered- just waiting for the upholsterer to finish them up and send them out
• Berth enclosure sewn

I am so very happy that we did not purchase a project boat. I am not so much a fan of surprises any more. The good news is we really, really know the systems on our boat and by know I do mean in the Biblical sense.

The girls are becoming accustomed to playing nicely while power tools are buzzing around them. Mark is getting better at taking a break from time to time for important things, like ice cream breaks and learning that sometimes you just have to embrace Murphy. I'm getting better at learning patience. We are all growing...