S/V FAST BREAK
MAINTENANCE and IMPROVEMENT RECORD
06 – 10 NOV
Bend on Hood Main and take Manchester Main to sailmaker for repair of the problem involving the sticking slugs.
14 – 15 NOV
Replace Secondary (engine-mounted) Fuel Filter (OEM / YANMAR).
Replace Primary Fuel Filter: Install RACOR R230R2 Filter & R20S Element.
Upon removal, the (originally fitted) FRAM fuel filter appeared to contain only a minimal trace of foul-smelling mung which I suspected was deteriorating rubber from a washer or seal or hose or else a trace of dead algae. I detected no water in the filter. All this after having been assured by the Newport, RI Yanmar dealer that I was certain to acquire some water-contaminated fuel on the delivery and that this would make it necessary to change the filter element at least twice before I reached Florida. The primary motivation to change from the FRAM to RACOR was to acquire an enhanced capability of monitoring the intake of water and other contamination and an ease of serviceability and replacement.
Service Raw Water Pump: Inspect & Retain Impeller. The impeller looks brand new. It now has no less than 230 hours on it (including approximately sixty in Wayne’s 2000 season if he had it changed out this spring), some of which involved running it dry for a total of no less than 20 minutes, and a fair amount of which involved running in “silty” water. There are no signs of wear or deterioration such as cracking of the vanes near the hub or abrasion of the tips of the vanes. It appears as if it could be relied upon for another 250 hours at the very least. I was promised in no uncertain terms by Mike at the Yanmar dealer in Newport, RI that I would find it necessary to replace the impeller at least once on the delivery. Oh Well.
Finish Re-plumbing Electric Bilge Pump: Pump hose now re-routed and fitted with check valve in bilge.
Replace spinnaker sheet snap-shackles with larger ones; cut and re-splice sheets and fit braided lanyards to shackle pull rings.
Re-fit washed air cleaner.
Bend on Manchester Main after sailmaker’s
1) replacement of slides with longer-bodied slugs,
2) fitting of chafe patch at points-of-contact with spreaders and
3) cutting slits in foot to accommodate reefing earring passed around boom.
Install refurbished two-burner Origo alcohol stove.
Adjust Stuffing Box.
Install support brackets for ½ bulkhead shelving in salon.
Replace aft starboard N/F ventilator ring with pull-ring fitted to insert.
Replace zinc collar anode on prop shaft.
Finish reconnection / refurbishment of holding-tank plumbing (head and pump-out hoses)
– began on 24 NOV.
Finish reconfiguration of cockpit locker stowage and access to shaft log from port.
Affix FL 9197 LK and FL State Vessel Registration Decal to forward topsides (P&S).
Replace aft port N/F ventilator ring.
Finish upgrading bracing for holding tank (which now will not move, as in “slide”, aft without the bracing being removed).
Re-installed 14 gallon fresh water tank (now fitted with a 6 inch inspection plate) and its associated plumbing and installed Whale hand pumps in the galley and head.
Repair compass illumination: inoperative since purchase of boat.
09 JAN
Remove a “birds nest” from inside the mast – must have been put there in the winter-spring of 2000 and not noticed when the mast was stepped. Discovered it totally by surprise when fishing around inside the stick with a coat hanger probe through wiring holes in an attempt to start on restoring the foredeck light to service. Quite a surprise – could have “knocked me over with a feather” so to speak, Ha Ha!!
11 JAN
Finish re-installing refurbished manual bilge pump.
Complete installation of GPS/PC interface and 12V DC power
hook-up.
Remove the roller furling drum from the forestay to provide less obstruction to sailhandling and reduce chafe at the foot of the headsail. The drum was inoperative and had been installed only to receive PHRF rating credits.
Repack the stuffing box; replacing the old grease-impregnated flax packing with a newer type of synthetic grease-impregnated teflon-based fiber packing used in conjunction (as the ends of a sandwich configuration) with a moldable “drip-free” packing. The constantly dripping box is now bone dry at rest and is supposed to remain that way while turning as well. The box is very warm to the touch but that symptom is supposed to disappear as the packing “beds in”. The shaft is scored already but what can one expect after 15 years of service. Hoping for the best.
Replace the pull-ring handle on the icebox lid – broken since the acquisition of the boat.
Install new VHF and antenna (on sternrail).
Replace forward N/F ventilator ring with new one.
Fit newly acquired N/F 24-hr solar powered ventilator to forward ring.
Replace old warped stained wood propane locker lid with new gray “Starboard” lid.
Replace sea strainer-to-water pump ½” OD barb with 5/8” OD barb to match water pump diameter and remove flow restriction.
Rewire sidelight wiring in forepeak – replacing wire nuts with bus-bar and removing taped loops which dangled and threatened to snag or be strained during ground tackle evolutions.
Replace foredeck illumination bulb in mast-mounted combination fitting. The bulb was burned out since the acquisition of the boat.
Secure throttle/shifter mechanism to cockpit side with thru-bolts – replacing OEM lag screws which were working loose and contributing toward making shifting difficult.
Change OEM sea-strainer cover gasket with new one to improve ability to seal strainer and water intake system with less load on strainer cover wing-nuts.
Replace prop shaft zinc collar anode. Previously installed unit fell off due to inferior installation technique.
Install Clinometer below engine instrument panel.
The #1 Genny was repaired at UK Rhode Island for $135.00. The leech had torn away from the upper portion of the sail for approximately six feet, probably as a result of spreader chafe, leech flutter, rough handling, old age or a combination of any of these things. The leech is now approximately eight inches inside of its former position.
Replace after starboard lifeline stanchion which was damaged in a collision in a race on 14 JUL. I picked up the stanchion from Rig-Rite in person after a long walk from Apponaug Harbor to “downtown” Warwick. Cost = $75.00.
Service Raw Water Pump: Inspect & Replace Impeller. The old impeller looked brand new. It now has no less than 500 hours on it (including approximately sixty in Wayne’s 2000 season if he had it changed out in the Spring of ‘00). Again, as in November of last year, there are no signs of wear or deterioration such as cracking of the vanes near the hub or abrasion of the tips of the vanes. It appears as if it could be relied upon for another 250 hours at the very least. I changed it because I just didn’t want to think about it any more or have it fail at an inconvenient time on what remains of the delivery.
Replace Water Pump faceplate brass Phillips head screws with stainless hex screws.
Repack the stuffing box; replacing the synthetic grease-impregnated teflon-based fiber packing installed in January with grease-impregnated flax packing which was all that was available in Georgetown, SC. The “drip-free” packing was great while it lasted (approximately 225 - 250 engine hours) but it quit in a hurry; going from fine to totally unacceptable in approximately 30 – 40 engine hours.
28 SEP
Replace the fresh water circulation pump which had begun to throw water out of the “trouble” hole during the last days of the delivery and which felt “loose” as a result of a possible failure of the non-serviceable bearing unit (a result of over-tensioning the pulley belt and/or the expiration of the serviceable life of the bearing. A messy job but one that was done right the first time with parts from Sun Power in Ft. Lauderdale.
Remove the fuel tank inspection plug/port after breaking galled threads loose with a special tool made by RJN – 02 FEB. The plug/port had been galled shut since OCT ’01 when I over-tightened it during a refueling in Melbourne, FL. It was necessary to remove the plug in order to be able to eventually perform a periodic cleaning of the tank and its fuel. Replace the galled fuel tank inspection plug (OEM) with a PVC plug.
Remove and re-mount the Whale fresh water pumps in the galley and head – upgrading their mounting on small “starboard” pads which now cover the holes left in the counter tops when the hot-and-cold faucet sets were removed. This project was started in early February and involved inferior craftsmanship and flawed pattern-making skills or it would have been completed much earlier.
Replace prop shaft zinc collar anode.