110 Cookson Lane | Whitefield, ME 04353 | 207-232-7600 | tim@lackeysailing.com
Summer Song | Thursday, January 2, 2014
For accuracy and to confirm the final configuration, I wanted to wait on further engine foundation construction till I had the engine itself on hand, along with the actual engine mounts; I expected these within a week or so. Meanwhile, I was waiting to free up my shop staging from another project before I got going on the toerail replacement.
Finding myself in something of a holding pattern on the two largest jobs on the docket, I spent the day working on various smaller jobs, related and otherwise. To begin, I decided to replace the Cutless bearing. The existing one was well worn and had been loose around the shaft.
The old bearing was installed with its aft end flush with the end of the stern tube, making removal more difficult. I inserted a pipe just smaller than the inside diameter of the stern tube from the inside of the boat, and tried to use this to hammer the bearing out (after removing the setscrews, which I'd completed during an earlier work session). This did not work, so I ended up cutting the bearing lengthwise from the aft end, using a reciprocating saw in a couple places. then, I could pry up the sections of the bearing, eventually releasing the bearing for removal.
I cleaned out the inside of the stern tube as needed to allow me to insert the new bearing with a nice friction fit. Before permanently installing it, I drilled and tapped two new holes for setscrews, located at 9:00 and 3:00 on the outside of the tube. Then, I pressed in the bearing by hand, leaving 1/4" or so protruding from the stern tube to allow for easier future servicing. I installed the setscrews to hold the bearing in place, and applied an external bead of sealant to cover and secure the screws and bearing.
The owner requested that I paint the head compartment, now that the toilet was out and the space relatively clear. The existing finish was in generally good condition in terms of adhesion and structural condition, but needed sprucing up. To begin, I removed what I could from the bulkheads, and also removed a cabinet door, various hoses where possible, and the main door into the compartment. Then I got set up for the surface preparations with cords, sanding and breathing equipment, and a fan outside the port to help exhaust the sanding debris.
Afterwards, I sanded all surfaces as needed to prepare them for new paint, using mainly 80 grit paper to scuff the surface. On the sole and exposed hull, I scraped and sanded a bit more aggressively to remove loose and flaking paint, but most of the paint was well adhered and didn't require significant removal efforts. With sanding complete, I vacuumed and wiped down the surfaces.
There was a short section of tabbing on the main bulkhead, near the mast step, that the owner had pointed out as possibly being loose. The issue wasn't major, but the tabbing had definitely separated over a few-inch length, so while I had the sanding equipment I removed the paint from the area in question to prepare it for reinforcement and repair.
With the engine room surfaces as clean as they were going to get, I went ahead and sanded the area with coarse paper to further clean up and prepare the surfaces for new bonding and, eventually, new paint, and also cleaned up some sharp and rough edges from the previous installation.
Finally, I wire-brushed the original bronze stuffing box assembly, which was in good condition other than a heavy deposit of verdigris. Cleaning out the threads with a wire brush and applying waterproof grease allowed the locking and packing nuts to operate normally. With the cleanup complete, I installed new high-tech packing to replace the old, and prepared a new length of hose to secure the stuffing box to the stern tube when the time came.
Total Time Billed on This Job Today: 7
Hours
