Friday, December 27, 2013

Sailors Exchange….Vows.

Hands down the most amazing thing about living on a boat and being a part of the sailing community are the interesting people that you meet.  Our friends, Jim and Denise, decided to get married the other day.  Our formal invitation consisted of Jim shouting to us through the marina’s bathroom door while we were showering, and asking us what we had in store for the next day.  When we said nothing, he told us to go to Sailors' Exchange, where he works, at 2pm the next day for him and Denise’s wedding.  Imagine our surprise when he said this. The celebration was an informal one to say the least, but the love in the air was certainly palpable. With the vows exchanged right in the middle of the store, and the part of the marriage officiant played by Clay (current owner of Sailors Exchange), we toasted to Jim and Denise’s life together as husband and wife.  Congratulations to you both!

Friday, December 20, 2013

Splish Splash

I’m proud to say that Moitessier is back in the water.  We got her back in a couple days ago, and I must say, I never thought this day would actually come.  The day of the splashing was unnerving.  We had spent the day before prepping all that we could to ensure everything would go smoothly.  We prepared by vacuuming the bilges, checking that the thru-hulls that needed to be open were open, and closing the ones that didn’t.  We did a thorough off the hard cleaning as well, as Moitessier was filthy from all the yard work that had been going on around us.  We got ready our dock lines, our fenders, and made sure that we had a boat hook handy if we needed it.  In the end, everything went off with out a hitch.  We were both a bit surprised to see that the engine was working properly and that none of our thru-hulls leaked.  Actually we were REALLY surprised about that one.

I could tell that Frank was more anxious than I was, and I can surely understand why, as this day was the culmination of 1 year and 8 months worth of work that he has done.  I am very, very proud of him as everything that he has taken on he has learned along the way.  I have simply been his helper, the one who he’d vent to (yell at), as well as the primary financier.  This has had its own challenges of course, but nothing compared to what he has had to overcome.  Without his problem solving skills, we would’ve never been able to refit to the extent that we have.  It has been an arduous road, and often I wondered if we would ever make it to the end.  Not just make it back into the water, but make it as a couple, as 2 people coming together to live a shared dream.  This has been the most challenging thing that either one of us has taken on, and we have risked everything for it….our relationship, our savings, our mental well being.  We have both learned a lot about ourselves and each other, and the past 2 years of this refit has taught us more about one another than the 9 years we had been together prior.  We have learned our limitations, our shortcomings, our strengths, and our flaws.  As sad as it may be to grow up and to see that we are weak at times, the juxtaposition between that and what we have overcome has certainly  been most enriching.  From here, what will we do?  Where will we go?  Many people have asked us this, and to be honest, I have no idea…

In the slings...
Our empty concrete pad where we have lived for 1 yr and 8 months
Finally in the water!
Frank relaxing in our hammock after a stressful day
Our new view :)



Friday, December 13, 2013

And Bob's Your Uncle

We have been waiting for the past 2 weeks to finally splash the boat.  It's looking like we have another week to go before a slip is going to open up.  Hurry up and wait!  We have decided to stay at the docks at this marina for a little while longer once we get back in simply because of the price for living aboard here.  We still have a list of projects to do once we are in, but it's looking like we are finished with our "on-the-hard projects".  Hallelujah!   Here's a quick run down of things that have kept us busy for the past few years.  I think I may have missed some, but you get the point:

Installed new 3 burner Dickenson stove
Installed new propane line from locker to stove
Installed new propane solenoid and Fireboy propane detector in galley
Built new teak propane locker
Installed new propane regulator and 10lb aluminum tank
Installed red light in refrigerator
Repaired and rewired refrigerator
Installed dividers in silverware draws
Replaced 110 outlet in galley with new GFI outlet
Removed old microwave and installed new
Removed old steering quadrant
Cut out rudder bearing
Installed new SS rudder bearing on custom bearing plate
Installed new rudder stuffing box
Install new Edson radial-drive and steering cables
Re-welded throttle and shifter lever cams
Installed new Morse cables for throttle and shift
Built new rudder stops
Built new battery box
Stripped and re-glassed cabin top teak pads
Installed new teak panels on cabin top (7)
Re-caulked cockpit teak
Removed delaminated glass on side decks
Re-glassed side decks with 1508 biaxial cloth in West Systems epoxy
Fabricated risers for deck fills (6)
Faired side decks and bulwarks
Primed and applied Awlgrip to side decks and bulwarks
Marked out and applied kiwi-grip non-skid
Re-bedded all stanchions
Re-welded 2 stanchions
Welded new stanchion braces for bimmini
Fabricated stainless steel mounting bracket for windless
Built new bowsprit using mahogany and treated all holes with wood preservative
Removed wind vane self steering gear, serviced, and reinstalled with new bronze bolts
Re-glassed self steering vane paddle
Made new mounting block for wind vane rudder
Installed new wind vane rudder with custom zinc
Installed new binnacle compass
Fabricated instrument pod for chart plotter
Made and installed cup holder
Made new cockpit table
Rebuilt cockpit winches
Fabricate new cockpit drains
Ran new wiring for running lights
Installed new port and starboard running lights
Replaced bow roller pin
Replaced Sampson post/bowsprit bolt
Marked and installed new spade anchor and 300 ft 3/8 chain
Replaced all bolts on bow pulpit
Repaired eye on bow pulpit for life line
Repainted anchor locker
Remove and reinstall windless foot controls
Re-bedded all port lights
Replaced port light seals
Removed butterfly hatch main beam and re-bedded
Fabricated new screens for hatches (5)
Removed all chain plates including whisker plates and cutwater and replaced with custom plates and custom bolts (12 plates) (42 bolts) re-bedded all
Cut open mast step and replaced coring with GRP plates (re-glassed over, faired, and painted with Awlgrip
Stripped and refinished external teak with Cetol + maintenance coats every 6 months
Removed and re-bedded granny bars
Repaired lazaret hatch faired and painted with Awlgrip
Installed SSB back stay antenna
Installed Furuno wind and depth displays
Replaced mast step bolts with new custom bolts
Re-welded and repaired mast step plate
Stripped all hardware from mast, boom, and spreaders
Sanded all failing paint, alumaprepped, zinc chromate, primed and painted with Awlgrip top coat
Replaced vhf antenna with new
Replaced wind instruments with new
Replaces Windex with new
Replaced tricolor with new aqua signal led
Replaced spreader lights with new Dr LED
Installed new steaming light
Replaced radar reflector with new
Ran all new wire through mast as well as vhf coax
Reinstalled radar
Reinstalled all mast and boom headwear
Rebuilt winches on mast and boom (5)
Added bus bars at base of compression post for mast wiring
Installed new boom bails’s and backing plates
Installed new Profurl on forestay
Repaired and reinstalled Profurl on staysail stay
Replaced all mast tangs with new including bolts
Replaced all standing rigging with new
Repaired outhaul
Replaced all shieve pins on mast and boom
Installed new custom bobstay
Uninstalled old depth and wind instruments
Repaired drip-less shaft seal and added new spare seals on shaft
Removed prop shaft and had straightened
Glass over old speed log through hull
Replaced through hulls (11)
Replaced cutlass bearings (2)
Removed old strut to have new one cast
Re-bedded new strut
Lapped and installed new Campbell Sailor prop
Sandblast prop, shaft, and strut
Applied 2 coats of Interlux 2000 to prop, shaft, and strut
Applied 3 coats Trinidad hard antifouling to prop, shaft, and strut
Installed new zincs on rudder skeg and prop shaft
Stripped bottom to bare fiberglass
Applied 4 coats of Interlux 2000 to bottom
Applied 3 coats international Interspeed 640 antifouling to bottom
Bonded all under water metals (sea cocks, sea strainers, strut)
Repainted boot-stripe black
Had hull compound polished and waxed
Fabricated engine access hatch in settee seat back
Adjusted valves on Nanni
Pressure tested Nanni
Removed old Nanni engine
Reorganized wiring in engine compartment
Degreased and painted bilge area under engine
Installed new custom water lift muffler
Installed new larger sea strainer
Replaced all fuel hose and fuel hose fittings on tanks
Installed new fuel selector manifold
Installed new Racore fuel filter with vacuum gauge
Installed speed seal for engine impeller
Installed sound proofing insulation in engine compartment
Installed coolant reservoir
Filled engine with oil, trains oil, and coolant
Bled all fuel lines as well as engine
Installed switch for Balmar external regulator
Installed engine instrument panel and wiring harness
Installed new exhaust hose
Installed new exhaust outlet
Wired engine
Had fuel tanks cleaned
Removed generator and sold
Clean up generator area and install new floor
Removed all cold freshwater plumbing and installed new PEX tubing
Added water selector manifold
Installed 2 manual foot pumps for fresh and salt water
Installed new water filter
Replaced fresh water pump
Installed new hot water heater hose from engine
Installed water monitor with remote display
Repaired water tank inspection port
Installed new automatic bilge pump with new hose and vented loop
Replaced hose on manual bilge pump and back up auto bilge pump
Removed repaired and reinstalled water tank under engine
Installed keel cooler for new refrigerator
Fabricated new sink drain
Sealed around both sinks with 5200
Installed new macerator pump and hose
Installed new shower sump pump, hose, vented loop, and custom teak cover for vented loop
Fabricated holding tank discharge elbow
Installed new shower faucet
Replaced valves on head faucet
Removed old head and head hoses
Installed Lavac head and all new head hoses, y valve, and vented loops
Replaced drain hose for head sink
Replaced freshwater fill hose
Replaced air conditioner water pump and sea-strainer
Cleaned water tanks
Cetoled shower seat
Repainted trim in galley and above chart table
Rebuilt instrument turtle above hatch
Installed socket holders in work room
Removed old engine instrument panel and built shelf in its place
Removed old diesel heater and fabricated new shelf and installed tell-tale compass
Installed new light above work table
Built new chart table seat and reinforced seat arm base
Installed new barometer
Installed new locking handles on floorboards (6)
Installed custom cut glass mirror in head
Installed curtains for Pullman birth
Installed lee-cloth on Pullman
Installed CO2 alarm
Installed various coat hangers, hooks, and shelf’s
Polished bronze and applied protective coating on all
Installed new air-conditioned control panel
Installed WIFI booster antenna with wireless bridge
Installed new stereo and 2 speakers
Installed new breaker panel
Installed new Vesper marine AIS
Installed backup Garmin chart plotter at Nav table with separate antenna 
Removed and re-organized wires throughout boat
And Bob's your uncle….(in Frank's case, that really is the name of his uncle and grandfather!)

Here are some random before and afters we have laying around.  Forgive me if some of these are repeats from past posts:

We lived like this for months
We found this in our old exhaust.  It was used to
make up the difference between 2 different sized
exhaust hoses.
This came off our old stove while I was cooking
Clustf*$k!  We couldn't figure out where half this
stuff went to, so Frank just redid it. 
Heap of crap in bilges before it was redone and organized
Fitting for one of the old fuel lines.  Almost
completely clogged :(
After!
New plumbing
None of these wires went to anything!