Retirement and sailing.

[Capt Popeye]

Bit of Slight 'Fred Drif ere' reading all the comments usually based upon experiences , I think , about the Equipment failures needing repairs etc on these extended Cruises /voyages ; setting sail before boat is really completely 'Ship Shape' so well founded , I am woefully reminded of reading reports of the unfortunate affair of the Round the World Yachtsman from Devon who never returned , disapearing en route ; When reading up of the various accounts of His /Boats mishaps , unfinished /completed repairs etc etc I cannot but help of the similarity recounted on these posts ; maybe not as a Yachtsman I find the accounts concerning , but as a Motor Boat fella i am horrified by the expected need to improvise , repairs and rebuilds , etc etc en route !

Might ask , were the earlier Voyages fraught with disasters , equipment failures , etc etc , were the Yachts used in earlier Times more robust , maybe made easier to repair etc ; My Old pet tvo Kelvin had a statement in the Manual that the engine was designed so that in almost any corner of our Globe the Gaskets etc could me made from available materials to hand ; maybe todays equipment should be designed in a similar way ?

 

[Graham376]

as a Motor Boat fella i am horrified by the expected need to improvise , repairs and rebuilds , etc etc en route !

Why are you horrified? Not just yachts, I know plenty of mobos which have had severe problems, many things can't be foreseen so sh*t happens. In our case, boat fairly new to us, engine serviced and running fine. Off coast of Portugal, blew all the oil out with stuck rings in one cylinder, well gummed up most likely due to previous owner repeatedly having run at low revs motor sailing. Except for a couple of tools I was short of, not much different to fixing at home, parts (rings, gaskets etc) delivered next day from UK by courier, engine stripped Monday, back together and running on Friday. Could just as easily have happened in home waters so what's the difference?

 

[Capt Popeye]

Why are you horrified? Not just yachts, I know plenty of mobos which have had severe problems, many things can't be foreseen so sh*t happens. In our case, boat fairly new to us, engine serviced and running fine. Off coast of Portugal, blew all the oil out with stuck rings in one cylinder, well gummed up most likely due to previous owner repeatedly having run at low revs motor sailing. Except for a couple of tools I was short of, not much different to fixing at home, parts (rings, gaskets etc) delivered next day from UK by courier, engine stripped Monday, back together and running on Friday. Could just as easily have happened in home waters so what's the difference?

Engine Serviced you state ? guess it was a LIGHT service not an overhaul eh ? My guess is that if an Engine is known to be used far from home waters it should realy have had an overhaul and the condition of Rings n Pistons etc examined

Good job the task was within your capabilities

 

[geem]

Engine Serviced you state ? guess it was a LIGHT service not an overhaul eh ? My guess is that if an Engine is known to be used far from home waters it should realy have had an overhaul and the condition of Rings n Pistons etc examined

Good job the task was within your capabilities

That's nonsense. Do you strip and rebuild your engine everytime you use it? What's the difference where you are?

 

[Graham376]

Engine Serviced you state ? guess it was a LIGHT service not an overhaul eh ? My guess is that if an Engine is known to be used far from home waters it should realy have had an overhaul and the condition of Rings n Pistons etc examined

Having served an apprenticeship as a mechanic (half a century ago) I disagree. No-one in their right mind strips a perfectly running engine to inspect bores, rings bearings etc. If oil pressure, temperature and compression are all OK. In our ownership, the engine had previously run fine on trips from Solent to Conwy and Conwy to France. If anyone would remove and strip an engine which showed no problems and not burning oil, I would suggest they have more money than sense.

 

[Capt Popeye]

That's nonsense. Do you strip and rebuild your engine everytime you use it? What's the difference where you are?

Having served an apprenticeship as a mechanic (half a century ago) I disagree. No-one in their right mind strips a perfectly running engine to inspect bores, rings bearings etc. If oil pressure, temperature and compression are all OK. In our ownership, the engine had previously run fine on trips from Solent to Conwy and Conwy to France. If anyone would remove and strip an engine which showed no problems and not burning oil, I would suggest they have more money than sense.

Yes well if contemplating a long voyage abroad (it has to be abroad as Britain is not large enough) then I guess an in detail examination and tests are required , much more detailed than a general service ; I find that a lot of Garages are reluctant possible not able to attend to our Cars , past the Plugs , Oil Air filters ,Screen Washers levels , etc etc any REAL inspection adjustments are it would appear , to be well beyond their capabilities or expectations ?

 

[geem]

Yes well if contemplating a long voyage abroad (it has to be abroad as Britain is not large enough) then I guess an in detail examination and tests are required , much more detailed than a general service ; I find that a lot of Garages are reluctant possible not able to attend to our Cars , past the Plugs , Oil Air filters ,Screen Washers levels , etc etc any REAL inspection adjustments are it would appear , to be well beyond their capabilities or expectations ?

In a sailing yacht a long voyage, say crossing the Atlantic, we would not be dependent on the engine. That's why we have masts and sails. My Perkins engine does very few hours on a long voyage because we are a sailing yacht. There is no way we would strip a perfectly good engine just because we were sailing a long way

 

[Graham376]

Yes well if contemplating a long voyage abroad (it has to be abroad as Britain is not large enough) then I guess an in detail examination and tests are required , much more detailed than a general service ; I find that a lot of Garages are reluctant possible not able to attend to our Cars , past the Plugs , Oil Air filters ,Screen Washers levels , etc etc any REAL inspection adjustments are it would appear , to be well beyond their capabilities or expectations ?

I am reminded of the number of posts on the forum from folks who had an outboard in for service and now having problems. If it aint bust, don't fix it!

 

[mjcoon]

I am reminded of the number of posts on the forum from folks who had an outboard in for service and now having problems. If it aint bust, don't fix it!

Similarly, with something like a Mars Rover which is way beyond the possibility of "preventative maintenance", if they land OK they can then keep working for many times their intended lifetimes!

 

[Graham376]

In a sailing yacht a long voyage, say crossing the Atlantic, we would not be dependent on the engine. That's why we have masts and sails. My Perkins engine does very few hours on a long voyage because we are a sailing yacht. There is no way we would strip a perfectly good engine just because we were sailing a long way

You remind me of our first boat, a Centaur with MD11C engine. Doing delivery trip Solent to Conwy, just myself and instructor on board, doing DS practical. We had one stop at Falmouth and the engine lost oil pressure coming out of there. What to do? It's a sailing boat said he, let's just keep going. Arrived Conwy a bit later than expected and bloody cold, it was January.

 

[geem]

You remind me of our first boat, a Centaur with MD11C engine. Doing delivery trip Solent to Conwy, just myself and instructor on board, doing DS practical. We had one stop at Falmouth and the engine lost oil pressure coming out of there. What to do? It's a sailing boat said he, let's just keep going. Arrived Conwy a bit later than expected and bloody cold, it was January.

We broke a flexible drive on our old boat at the start of our summer holidays many years ago. We had left Pwllheli heading for Cornwall. The drive failed motoring into Fishguard. There was no way we're going to give up our holiday so we sailed to Padstow with no engine. We even sailed through Jack Sound. I managed to cobble up a drive with some threaded rod to get us into Padstow harbour. We ordered a new flexible drive and an engine mount and the holiday resumed.

 

[Graham376]

I'm sure Cpt Popeye thinks we're completely mad so maybe needs reminding that a sailing boat's engine is a backup, unlike mobos.

 

[geem]

I'm sure Cpt Popeye thinks we're completely mad so maybe needs reminding that a sailing boat's engine is a backup, unlike mobos.

My pal sailed his 38ft boat (12t) without an engine for the first 15 years. He used to pull the boat into/out of harbour with his dinghy and 15hp engine. He crossed the Atlantic twice, cruised the Bahamas, Caribbean, Azores, Canaries and more.
I once watched Haitian engineless traditional boats sail in and out of the Harbour at GT Inagua in the Bahamas. Great skill. They can't afford engines. Their boats area about 60ft and heavy but they manage fine.

 

[Frank Holden]

A single ocean crossing is one thing. Extended cruising quite another.
All but one of the pumps on my Sealord has failed at one time or another. All failed at awkward times. OK you can live without a shower sump pump but the FW circ pump on an MD17D not so much.

And yes in some parts an engine is pretty important on a yacht.

Some may find it surprising but Patagonia involves rather a lot of motoring.

Even when offshore it is pretty handy to have an engine to get yourself somewhere comfy before the next bit of weather comes along

 

[geem]

A single ocean crossing is one thing. Extended cruising quite another.
All but one of the pumps on my Sealord has failed at one time or another. All failed at awkward times. OK you can live without a shower sump pump but the FW circ pump on an MD17D not so much.

And yes in some parts an engine is pretty important on a yacht.

Some may find it surprising but Patagonia involves rather a lot of motoring.

Even when offshore it is pretty handy to have an engine to get yourself somewhere comfy before the next bit of weather comes along

Of course an engine is desirable but will you strip your good engine down before you go sailing?
I keep our engine in good serviceable condition. It's only let us down once when a ISO 24/12v fuel relay failed. We managed to sail slowly in to an anchorage in the dark and drop the hook. I fixed the relay the next day. I am not suggesting us sailors strip the engine out and sail everywhere but we are generally a pretty resourceful bunch.

 

[Frank Holden]

My pal sailed his 38ft boat (12t) without an engine for the first 15 years. He used to pull the boat into/out of harbour with his dinghy and 15hp engine. He crossed the Atlantic twice, cruised the Bahamas, Caribbean, Azores, Canaries and more.
I once watched Haitian engineless traditional boats sail in and out of the Harbour at GT Inagua in the Bahamas. Great skill. They can't afford engines. Their boats area about 60ft and heavy but they manage fine.

Hang on, isn't that cheating?
An old bloke - maybe 70 - turned up in Puerto Montt from NZ some years back in an engineless H28. Reckoned he didn't need an engine as he had sweeps. Eventually convinced to fit a bracket and hang a v small outboard off the back.
They say he was a changed man by the time he arrived in Puerto Williams.

 

[geem]

Hang on, isn't that cheating?
An old bloke - maybe 70 - turned up in Puerto Montt from NZ some years back in an engineless H28. Reckoned he didn't need an engine as he had sweeps. Eventually convinced to fit a bracket and hang a v small outboard off the back.
They say he was a changed man by the time he arrived in Puerto Williams.

My pal eventually fitted a bracket so he could use the dinghy engine to get him in to marinas. The problem was the outboard just wouldn't stop him. He used to regularly clobber pontoons hard as his only way to stop. The boat was super strong so it never bothered him?

 

[john_morris_uk]

After talking to Camomile and reading their blog, I checked the stem head fitting last year. Sure enough there was a crack in it so off it came for the second time in 18 years. The stainless fabricators we use rewelded the centre plate and added a strengthening fillet.

 

[Frank Holden]

After talking to Camomile and reading their blog, I checked the stem head fitting last year. Sure enough there was a crack in it so off it came for the second time in 18 years. The stainless fabricators we use rewelded the centre plate and added a strengthening fillet.

I was just about to mention that.
Tied up next to a Conway in Tauranga 18 years ago days before leaving for Chile the first time - owner sez 'You know you have a crack in your stem head fitting....'
Now has a gusset (?) so no 'hard spot'. Note to self - time to recheck.

 

[Capt Popeye]

After talking to Camomile and reading their blog, I checked the stem head fitting last year. Sure enough there was a crack in it so off it came for the second time in 18 years. The stainless fabricators we use rewelded the centre plate and added a strengthening fillet.

Ah thats the real job , John , a thourough checking through your Yacht , even double checking just to make really sure all's OK , then just maybe another check later on to make sure that all the other checks were right

Best wishes for your travelling afar