Lots Of Little Jobs

SHIP'S LOG:

There are two (2) "big" jobs that still much be done (installing the watermaker, extending the LPG Locker) and a whole host of little ones, and I thought that I would take the day to knock off a bunch of the little ones.

I puttied all the screw holes in the woodwork below. After it firmed up, I sanded it prior to staining it. For some reason, the amount of dust that the sanding produced seemed to be larger than the amount of putty used. A similar thing happened with the epoxy used to plug the holes in the transom after the removal of the boarding ladder. Thinking back over all the repairs I have done over the years I realized that it was always this way. I am still not sure why. It just happens!

One of the first projects I completed (sort of) was greasing all the winches on the boat, all seven (7) of them. Now was the chance to go through and lube all the blocks, sheaves, shackles and tracks, a number that is almost beyond counting. I am beginning to believe that two words that that were missing from the former owner's lexicon were "preventative maintenance." I would have to say that a good third were none-functioning due to corrosion. I had to dismantle them ( as much as one can with the throw-away-rather-than-repair hardware of the day) and flush them with fresh water and then lube the heck out of them. I got all of them to work....except two(2). The Genoa cars, both Genoa Cars, were sized to the tracks and wouldn't move.

A Genoa car slides a block(pulley) along a track on the side deck to allow you to change shape of the jib, increasing its fullness making it more powerful or flattening the shape of the sail to decrease its power. It is an extremely necessary and important sail control and both of them were corroded in place. It appeared that they had been so awhile as there was a second car on each track that moved just fine. It was as though rather than repair the corroded cars, the previous owner just added other cars to do the job. It makes no sense to have equipment of the boat that doesn't work ( remember all that wire) and so I decided that I would un-stick the cars.....easier said than done.

I first took the time to make sure the blocks were lubed and functioning. That took a little time as they obviously not been used since the cars got stuck in place, a little lube and a gentle wack with a persuader and now they work just fine! The cars to which they are attached are a whole nuther story. Aluminum Genoa cars, sliding on a aluminum track, fixed in place with a stainless steel pin - not a good combination unless you do regular, simple, preventative maintenance. All it takes is to flush them with fresh water and keep them lubed. Simple! However, once they are corroded in place, getting them unstuck it a real chore. You spray them with lubricant, give them gentle taps with a hammer, wiggle them around and hopefully break the corrosion bond. Simple! Not quite.

The locking pin (ss) spins around but will not pulled up to allow the car to move. Truth be told, I doubt it would move because I am sure that the underside of the aluminum car is corroded to the aluminum track. So more lube, different lube, penetrating lube, Coca Cola....nothing seems to be able to break the bond. Little taps with a rubber mallet, a wooden mallet, steel hammer and wooden block, 2lbs sledge and a dowel, trying to find that place when the corrosion bond breaks and the aluminum isn't deformed. NADA! Bupkis! Nothing!

So I called for help. I called Jerry Schmitt, may teacher from Chapman's. I Captain Dan, a professional boat captain( caught him at the Cape May Sea Buoy heading south). I called Captain Chris who helped me bring the boat up from Annapolis. I called Captain Julie, the rigging wiz from Marblehead. Each call was basically the same, running down the litany of the options and suggestions, all of which I had actually tried already. (Evidently I knew what I was doing!) The end result was the ultimate option was to get a can of something called "BLASTER" and a heat gun, saturate the cars, let them sit for awhile, blast them with the heat gun, and then wack 'em!
I'll let you know what transpires. I hope that it works because the windlass awaits!

MASTER'S PERSONAL LOG:

While I was working on the stanchions, one of the yard workers went by. He called up and asked if I wanted to old wind generator that I had replaced. I told him that it had burned out in high winds but that it was his if he wanted to take a crack at it. We ended up having a gam about going south. He shared about his last trip south and the late start he got (November 7th) from Mystic. I talked plans and he countered with what worked for him and what didn't when my plans and his experience cross tracks. It was really enjoyable as so much of what I was planning was in sync with what he had experienced. I gave me a great feeling to know that I wasn't as "crazy' as I had a sneaking feeling I was. A lot of times, during the breaks I have to take, sitting in the cockpit, I run through scenarios about parts of the trip. Not so much the long passages as much as dropping the anchor at the end, working out just how to go about doing it. Sounds simple but there is a lot of pre-planning and thought that have to go into it, especially if you want to be safe and secure and don't want to drag around the anchorage. The same can be said for getting underway, from anchor, from a dock, in weather. As someone once noted, it isn't the water that is dangerous for the boat, it is the land. Still, there is a great and increasing sense of excitement as the reality of departure gets closer. I can't quite imagine what it will feel like to clear around Montauk and head for the Chesapeake at last, but I am looking forward to feeling it.