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Thursday

I started the day with the next steps on the engine foundation:  water wash and lightly sand by hand the new tabbing, removing sharp edges and any material that extended above the top of the foundation.

Getting the engine room painted out was fast becoming a priority so I could advance the engine installation, but there was more I could do before essentially making the space off limits for the day.    The owner provided a blower to install in order to evacuate excess heat from the space, and now I worked to find a place to install it.  To begin, I installed a new pull switch in the engine panel, finding an open space next to the stop switch that could accommodate the blower switch.  Then, because I found that the blower required larger wire than I’d run earlier, I led in a new, larger wire pair to the switch and made up the connections.

At the other end of the wire harness, I installed a 15A fuse near the terminal block from which the blower was powered, and, having chosen the blower location in the engine room, led the power and negative wires to the appropriate spot at the aft starboard corner.  There were various specifics and complications and space restrictions in the blower configuration and applicable spaces in the boat that eventually led me to this location; during the process I considered, and rejected, several other possibilities and even other blower types, eventually settling on a workable plan that fit the needs of the situation.  Because occasional removal might be handy for increasing access to the after part of the engine room, I chose to make the wiring connections to the blower motor with removable spade connectors.

To secure the blower, I cut a plywood bracket to fit as needed; this had the added benefit of spanning a cutout in the original bulkhead where I’d removed some hoses earlier.  I bolted the bracket to the bulkhead (temporarily for now), then secured the blower with additional bolts, testing the fit for now.  During the selection of this space, I’d reviewed photos of the engine room with the transmission in place to ensure that there was ample clearance for the blower to hang down in this way.  With the basic part of the installation complete, I removed the bracket and blower so I could secure a mounting flange for the outlet hose to the aft side of the bracket; I’d ordered this piece and expected its arrival presently.

With work in the engine room complete for now, I masked off the foundation as necessary for the new paint in the engine room, then applied a light coat of epoxy-based primer to the new fiberglass to prepare it for the final paint next time.

Total time billed on this job today:  6 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
37°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sun to clouds, 60.

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Wednesday

Now that the foundation was locked in place, I removed the temporary glue blocks and cleaned up the area, then cut several layers of fiberglass tabbing to fit the various areas.  Afterwards,  I installed an epoxy fillet all the way around the foundation.  This would add strength and ease the transition of tabbing all around the molded piece.

A little later, when the fillets had partially cured, I installed three layers of heavy tabbing set in epoxy resin.

At the leg opening in the bottom of the hull, I smoothed out the transition at the hull with additional thickened epoxy, preparing ahead for installing the final fiberglass, which I”d do once the leg was installed since I didn’t want to risk making the opening smaller till I’d rotated the drive leg for installation.

Total time billed on this job today:  5.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
55°, light rain.  Forecast for the day:  Becoming sunny, mid 70s

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Tuesday

One more light sanding brought the cockpit gauge patch to its final contours.  A little later, I’d prepare the nearby area and prime and paint the patch to match.

The owner was on hand to help out, and I set him to work on the pedestal control cables.  During the course of the morning and early afternoon, he (and I, to some extent) worked to secure the cables in the new internal clamp  and then, with difficulty, get the clamp down into position within the pedestal.  This required substantial slackening of the steering cables and removal of the cables from the sheaves beneath the pedestal in order to pull the chain off the sprocket and make room within.  Afterwards, it took some adjustments to return the quadrant and helm to the proper relationship with the rudder and ensure that straight was straight.  Sorry, few photos of this process.

Eventually, the cable clamp was secure, the helm was straight, and we could begin to reassemble the top of the pedestal.  For the moment, we left the cables detached, and installed only the control module and drink holder (along with the pedestal guard bracket).  For better access to the tops of the cables later, since they still needed to be secured to the control arms, we chose to leave off the compass and binnacle bracket.  It was a relief to have the cables’ replacement in the record books.

During this time, as possible, I worked on some of the final electrical installations in the engine room and nearby.  I led the wiring for the new engine room blower through the cockpit room and into the engine room, where I’d make final connections later, and cleaned up the other remaining wiring in the engine room, releading some of the existing wiring that I’d pulled aside early in the project and making up and securing final connections to the battery switch and batteries.  I added a negative distribution buss and positive terminal block to accept some of the excess wires that had originally connected directly to the batteries or switch.  I was glad to clean up the final wiring through the space, as this was the final preliminary step required before I could continue work on the engine foundation and actual engine installation.

To that end, at the end of the afternoon I made final preparations to tack the foundation in place.  After a final dry fit to ensure that everything still looked good, I cleaned the bonding surfaces as needed and prepared a small batch of thickened epoxy adhesive, which I spread around in a few areas where the foundation would contact the hull.  To avoid interfering with the wooden alignment blocks, I only used a little adhesive at this point:  enough to hold the foundation securely, once cured, so that I could press on with final fillets and glassing.  I cleaned up any excess that squeezed out and left the foundation alone while the epoxy cured overnight.

Total time billed on this job today:  6.75 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
50°, clouds.  Forecast for the day:  clouds, drizzle.

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Thursday

After some quick and easy sanding, the old instrument patch was fairly smooth and ready for a minor second coat to take care of a couple low spots.

Though I’d await final installation till the engine foundation was in place, now that the platform was painted, I installed the after screws to hold the waterlift muffler in place, and dry-fit the forward pair of screws.  This would make final installation a cinch as the space became tighter to access.

Meanwhile, I went ahead and installed the suction side of the raw water intake hose.  Once the engine was in place, I’d complete the run from the filter to the water pump.

After collecting some materials from stock, and ordering various other things I’d need in the near future to complete some final installations (blower hose, exhaust fittings, etc.), I prepared the new fuel gauge for installation in the now-empty engine ignition panel inside the lazarette.  After drilling the required hole, I led in new wiring and made the connections before securing the gauge in place.  Afterwards, I made up the new wiring at the fuel tank sender, replacing the original wires to the source, and attached the power/ignition wire to the appropriate terminal on the engine key switch; this would energize and light the gauge whenever the engine was running.

Total time billed on this job today:  5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
52°, cloudy.  Forecast for the day:  clouds, fog, drizzle, rain showers late.

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Wednesday

The fiberglass patch over the old instrument gauge holes was ready for sanding, which was my next step before applying a coat of fairing compound over the new laminate on the exterior, and adding a layer of fiberglass over the inside section of the old holes.  (I forgot to take a picture of the freshly sanded exterior..)

Earlier, I’d removed a hose barb from the integral raw water intake valve on the drive leg.  The leg featured a built-in cooling intake system, much like that of an outboard engine, but anecdotal evidence suggested that the little intake ports on the leg could become clogged with debris or marine growth, and would be difficult to clear should this happen.  Consultation with Beta Marine indicated that there was no  requirement to use the built-in intake versus using a separate intake (already fitted on this boat), and the owner and I decided on this course.  I elected to leave the pre-installed shutoff valve in place, but added a bronze plug in place of the old hose barb as a more secure means of keeping this inlet shut off.

Continuing work on my diminishing list of pre-engine installation tasks,  I worked on the fuel system.  With the proper adapter for the original flare nut on the annealed copper fuel line now on hand, I connected an elbow and hose barb to direct the fuel supply line forward to the fuel filter inlet.  I kept the original copper fuel line intact because it was in good condition, was carefully plumbed into a nice flush shutoff valve in the quarterberth, and there was no reason to make more work than necessary.

Next, I ran 5/16″ fuel hose from the new barb to the fuel filter, securing it along the way.  I also ran a length from the filter outlet back towards where it would eventually connect to the engine, leaving some excess awaiting the final connection once the engine was installed.  I also led aft an additional hose for the fuel return line, which I led into the after compartment through an existing hole lined with chafe guard.

In the locker aft of the engine room, I secured the new return line (the old Volvo didn’t have a return fuel line leading to the tank) with rubber-lined clamps up the bulkhead, then alongside the copper supply line to the top of the tank.  I replaced a blank plug on the tank with a 5/16″ elbow and hose barb to accept the new hose connection.

Earlier, while removing some obsolete wiring, I’d removed sundry failed wire tie mounts securing a wiring harness through the cockpit locker, leaving a mess behind.  Now, I installed new wire tie mounts here and elsewhere in the immediate vicinity to  allow me to resecure these wires, along with the new engine panel’s wiring harness (which I led aft to the panel and then forward into the engine room pending final connection).    Getting them out of the way, I also led the new engine control cables forward beneath the fuel tank, securing them for hte mom ent to leave the hull space clear for imminent painting.

 

I also took the opportunity to separate an old taped-up wiring harness so I could pull free the wires leading to the fuel tank sender, which the owner reported had not been working.  I had a new fuel gauge on hand, and hoped that new wires and the new gauge would take care of the problem.  I wasn’t sure if removing the sending unit was possible with the tank in place, but I’d only go there if other efforts failed to succeed.

To round out the day, after final preparations I painted the section of the engine room beneath the fuel tank with a 50/50 blend of Bilgekote white and gray, stopping at the new muffler platform.  Later, I’d paint the rest of the engine room, but not until the new foundation was tabbed in place.

Total time billed on this job today:  7 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
Mostly clear, 40°.   Forecast for the day:  sunny, 60s

 

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Tuesday

Next on the agenda was to deal with the holes left over from the old engine gauges, located at the forward end of the cockpit.  I prepared the area for patching by grinding away the paint and gelcoat from around the old openings, creating an area of raw laminate ready to accept new fiberglass.   After cleaning up the area, I masked over the holes from inside.

I filled the holes with a thickened epoxy mixture, keeping it flush with the adjacent fiberglass, and later, when the fill was setting up, I applied two layers of fiberglass over the whole area.

The owner wanted the new gauge panel mounted to starboard of the helm, at the aft end of the cockpit, where there already existed an opening leftover from an autopilot installation.  Starting with this hole, I laid out the opening for the new panel, using a template I made years before, and cut out  the new opening.  This cutout was complicated somewhat by a glassed-in stiffener inside the cockpit coaming, which I had to remove as best as possible to allow clearance for the gauge package.  Eventually I had enough clearance, and dry-fit the panel so I could drill and tap for the fasteners.  I’d wait on final installation for the moment.

Total time billed on this job today:  3.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
32°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny, low 60s

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Monday

After spending the morning on another project and other commitments, I turned back to the pedestal control cables’ removal.   Hanging down into the lazarette from above, I was able to loosen the nuts securing the tensioning eyes on the steering quadrant, which slackened the steering cables enough to allow me to (still with difficulty) move the chain in the pedestal and, finally, pull out the engine cable clamp through the tight opening.  Before pulling the cables, I secured messenger lines to their lower ends so I could feed the new cables in later.

Pleased with this success, I proceeded to pull the cables through–it was far more difficult to pull then than I’d expected, with a lot of friction–, and then both cables just hung up and wouldn’t move at all, causing momentary vexation, but the reason eventually became apparent:  there was a secret second control cable clamp located near the bottom of the pedestal.  This prevented me from pulling out the cables, and was not something I’d found any mention of in any of the Edson documentation covering control cable replacement.  There was another nut securing this second clamp, and though the nut was reluctant to release from the aluminum pedestal, eventually I removed it, releasing the second clamp, at which  time I could completely remove the two control cables.

The original cable clamps were aluminum, with stainless screws holding them together, and inevitably after 37 years, the screws were well corroded into place in the aluminum housings, and removal of the old clamps in a usable way seemed unlikely, though I’d soak them in penetrating solvent in an attempt to allow removal.  I ordered a replacement clamp to have on hand either way–I saw no need for the second, lower, cable clamp, which seemed like it’d be virtually impossible to secure with the pedestal in place anyway.

Meanwhile, I could at least start the new installation by feeding the pair of new cables I’d ordered earlier into the pedestal from above.  With the messengers well-taped to the ends of each cable, one at a time I fed them down and, finally, out the lower end of the pedestal into the space beneath the cockpit, ensuring that each cable led directly from the base to the top without being twisted or otherwise interfering with the steering chain and cables, nor the compass wiring.  I’d never have gotten the cables threaded down and through the bottom holes of the pedestal without the messenger lines.  I could finish up the upper end of the cables, including the clamping, later on, when my new clamp arrived, but my immediate goal had been to continue to finish up those projects that were more easily done before the engine installation continued, while I’d as much space inside the boat as possible.

With what I hoped was the worst part of this nasty chore over with, I took a moment to apply a quick coat of 2-part epoxy primer to the new fiberglass in the aft end of the engine space–the strut and stern tube patches, and the waterlift platform–to prepare these newly-epoxied areas for engine room paint.  I wanted to finish out the space beneath the fuel tank before the engine foundation was in place, as access was much better now, and one-part paints tend not to cure properly over new-ish epoxy without the tie coat between.  I happened to have leftovers from a batch of the primer that I’d used on another project earlier in the day, so it was the perfect opportunity.

Total time billed on this job today:  2.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
45°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  sunny and windy, high 57°

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Friday

Continuing with the engine room preparatory work, I focused again–and first–on the fresh water plumbing, picking up where I left off.  I added a new length of hose leading from one side of the tee fitting downstream of the new accumulator tank to eventually service the cold supply for a water heater.  I led this, and the other pair of hoses, around the back end of the engine room and down to the port side, where the hoses fed into the cabinetry near the forward end of the engine room.  I secured the hoses with rubber-lined clamps as needed to keep them safe and out of the way.

Near the pump, I found room for another tee fitting that was part of the original configuration, where the two tank supply lines conjoined, and, as required, I shortened  and reconfigured these hoses to lead into the water pump suction side.  I extended a hose leading from the port tank, exiting the cabinetry on that side of the engine room, but for now I left this length of hose unconnected pending the installation of the engine foundation, after which I’d know how and where to lead and secure the final length of hose.

When I removed the old engine, I’d removed the original battery switch and its cables, which were in the way at the time.  Now, the potential routing of these cables would have an impact on my chosen fuel filter location, near the head of the engine room to port.  This might require releading or replacing the existing cables, so to start I marked and removed the three cables from the back of the switch, and reinstalled the switch in its original position.   I’d route the cables back to the switch later, but their original routing left something to be desired and for now these cables were secondary to the requirements of the fuel system.

After preparing the new fuel filter–supplied by the owner with his engine purchase–with the appropriate fittings, I installed it on the blank cabinetry at the forward port side of the engine room where it’d be easily serviceable under any conditions.  I left room above the filter to allow removal of the cartridge even when the overhead cabinetry and drawers were in place.  Clearance between the filter and the engine would be tight-ish, but the footprint of the engine foundation was outside that of the filter, and according to the engine drawing the engine should remain inside the edge of the foundation here.  Later, I’d connect the filter, using new hoses, with the existing length of copper tubing that remained at the aft side of the engine room.  First, though, I required an adapter fitting to convert from the flared nut end of the tubing to a hose barb.

The final pre-installation in the space was the raw water filter, which I mounted on the starboard side directly above the raw water intake seacock.  I’d connect its hose runs later.

Engine control cables require fussy little clamps at the engine and transmission to hold the cable in place, and before installation I always liked to replace the irritating shallow-slotted screws  and tiny metric nuts with 5/32 Allen-head bolts and #10 nuts for ease of installation in dark and tight confines typical of most engine rooms.  One likes to remove unnecessary frustrations wherever possible.

Similarly, I always replace the tiny original screws holding on the raw water impeller cover plate, choosing instead large knurled fasteners for ease of use.  When the pump impeller fails underway, the last thing one needs is a slotted screwdriver and minuscule screws standing between quick replacement of the impeller.  Easy fasteners promote sound maintenance practices too, for annual inspection and replacement of the impeller.

The epoxy securing the limber hose I installed through the base of the engine foundation was cured, and I cut off the excess hose length as needed.

Total time billed on this job today:  3.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
42°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny, near 80

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Thursday

One final step I wanted to complete before the engine foundation was ready for installation was to deal with drainage through the space.  There  would be no clear passage (that I could determine)  directly beneath the foundation base from  end to end, because the recess and opening for the Saildrive leg more or less obstructed the way, but I thought it was prudent to add a limber hose beneath the foundation so there was at least some means of drainage from the aft part of the boat.  The solution would be necessarily imperfect, but worthwhile nonetheless.

To this end, I installed a drain hose on the bottom of the foundation, exiting at the centerline at both ends.  I secured the hose out of the way around the Saildrive opening as required for clearance; this forced an uphill angle in the hose run at the aft end, but there was no helping it given the contours of the foundation and how it related with the hull.  To secure the hose at the ends, I bedded it in some thickened epoxy adhesive.  Later, I’d cut the hose ends flush with the foundation.

Later, I continued work in the engine room with the potable water system.  As needed, I shortened the existing wiring harness and reconnected the wires to the water pump, then installed a new accumulator tank on the aft bulkhead of the space, connecting it to the pump’s outlet with a new length of hose.  From here, I began to reroute the existing water hoses around the aft end of the engine room, where I felt they’d be most out of the way.  I planned to continue this run across the top of the after bulkhead, then down the port side to where the hoses re-entered the cabinetry.  As needed, I’d replace fittings, clamps, and extend or shorten the hoses accordingly.

With only a short time window this day since I’d been focused on a small–but time-sensitive–side project for a couple days, I made worthwhile progress despite the minimal change in the noticeable appearance of the system, but now the route forward was more clear, and I looked forward to wrapping up these ancillary installations as soon as possible so I could move on with the engine installation itself.

Total time billed on this job today:  1.75 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
39°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  sunny, high in the 70s

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Wednesday

After spending the morning working on an unrelated project, I turned back to the foundation, and sanded as needed the fiberglass tabbing I’d installed around the saildrive leg opening.  With prep work now complete on the foundation, I test-fit it once more to ensure that my new fiberglass work didn’t impede the opening and space required to rotate the drive during final installation.  I didn’t expect it to, but didn’t want to find out later.  Fortunately, the opening looked good, and since it clearly allowed rotation room within, I didn’t bother to test-fit the drive leg again, though I’d been prepared to if needed.

Before I could permanently install the foundation–and then the engine–there was some ancillary work to complete in the engine room, beginning with the fresh water system and its myriad hoses.  I’d earlier moved the pump and some of the hose runs to give me more room to work and to fit in the new foundation, and the owner wanted to move the pump forward, to the starboard bulkhead, so with an eye towards getting the engine room squared away, I began to sort out and label the hoses so I knew what went where, which would help in reconfiguring the system.  Things looked like a mess, but the photos below actually show progress.

With some of the hoses and nearby wiring beginning to sort themselves out, I started some reinstallations on the bulkhead, including the little icebox drain pump, and, below it, the electric fresh water pump in the new mounting location I’d chosen.  Later, I’d reroute and shorten the related hoses, and also add an accumulator tank to the system, but had to get the pump in place first.  Meanwhile, I routed and secured some of the wiring that ran through the engine room, which I”d been holding out of the way during the foundation work, but now it was time to lay things out so I could install the immediately-related auxiliary equipment required for the engine installation (i.e. fuel filter, raw water system).  I’d have to leave the wide space above the pump open so the in-counter trash can had room; it fit in that countertop opening directly overhead.

Total time billed on this job today:  3.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:
39°. clear.  Forecast for the day:  sunny, high 60s