Mayday Mayday Mayday

[joey69]

HAPPY TIME!!

[Bergovoy]

why the deadline? is it weather opening? or is there a place you need to be, and you need to be there on time??

[Jon4399]

I found this link to fiberglass rudderpost repair. Sounds like the same technique could be used here. The Fiberglass Boat Repair Manual - Google Books

But then the problem is the packing gland. Can you disconnect the shaft from the engine and gain enough clearance to remove the gland and hose from the front end of the shaft?

[SaltyMonkey]

Just plug the damn thing up and be done with it. You don't need no stinkin' engine anyway...you aren't gonna go to Alaska or anything...and the hole will keep you up at night. If you want, stick a silly seagull outboard on it to get you into a port or two...or get out your trusty rowboat and drag her in.

[Charlie]

Ok Zee here is an idea. Right now you have a combination stuffing box and bearing. In order to accomodate this you have a super long shaft log. What if you separated the two. The end idea woudl be to have a bearing on the deadwood and then a short log and traditional stuffing box. In order to make this happen you would have to:

1) pull the shaft.
2) cut the existing log to a more reasonable length
3) glass over the shortened log so that it is well supported by the hull
4) Add the black hose connection of a traditional stuffing box
5) Add the stuffing box in new location.
6) Repair any damage to the deadwood
7) Install a new bearing
8) Reassemble and it will be good as new.

I would think that you could do some of this work before hauling the boat in order to save time on the hard. You could do the glass work on wrapping the log. It just looks like there are going to be other problems from there - removing the prop and the cutlass bearing. Not an easy solution probably better suited to Mexican enginuity rather then parts replacing American mechanics.

[zeehag]

yard wants 8k-- the mechanic wouldnt thing outside the box at all-- i think glassing the tube from concrete deadwood tot he beam is a good idea to get this to maz-- the packing gland unit is waxed to not piss.... i can sail with minimal engine and still have flotation....i also have a diver i can use him to coordinate an effort in water--as he is willing to hang out and stuff stuff up the sterntube of this boat-- then we can fix for a lot less than yard with similar effect-- without the major investment into a yard and the mouths of those folks without imagination. and with smirks. no yard in diego. principle now......as the packing gland is inside beneath my dinette and so is end of the evile tubo-- the pink end-- the rest looks fine-- norkmal color--i will tap it to make sure before i decide on anything--we can go two ways--either a lasdrop system and cut back the tube or glass the tube and use it with antique system again, or cut back tube and use a different dripless system... seems the other boats like mine have the dripless system of some kind with cut back sterntube----and only one tried to sink so far.......

[Adax]

Zee, I could not participate in the collection bit ,but if you need a Spanish speaker who can talk to the non touristy yard you propose let me know.
Thing about Mexican craftsmen is that they are used to thinking cheap and out of the box . Whether they can apply this to a sailboat I don't know.
Drop me a line if you want me to investigate.

[meburma]

Figures. This town is a vacuum for your cash.

I LOVE San Diego... grew up here for the most part and will always call it home. But I'll be damned if I feel like living here is a good use of my money.

Must be why I'm hankerin' to get out and see how the rest of the world lives.

I'm heading down to the boat show at the bay in a couple of hours Zee. I'll give ya a ring when we get down there!

[meburma]

Zee, I hear La Paz has grown into a pretty good destination for sailboats and may have the ability to get the repairs done. Not as big a town as Mazatlan, but that might work in favor of getting the repairs done at a better rate.

Just a thought.

[Adax]

If La Paz is better then I can meet you up there in Feb as one of the boats I am interested in is there.
Or are all the boatyards in English speaking hands ? Was wondering about that as Mexicans seem to be more into powerboats than sailboats . I base that on few Mexican owned sailboats being for sale.

[Bergovoy]

from what i can tell this industry is similar to all industrys and they end up running amok until some point when there is a 'correction'...

ther is zero reason to justify these diesel engines to be valued/worth what they are getting...

You can buy a LS crate engine for less then these silly small diesel engines...

the labor is maybe a little more 'awkward' but certainly not as much as swapping out an engine in a camaro or corvette...

or any other newer model car...

I am guessing these 'winches by lewmar' arent costing a ton of money to biuld/fabricate, and thier only justifcation for cost is totally based on what folks are paying...

until such time as consumers can organize and create an 'incentive' to thise greedy companies, they will continue...

[zeehag]

adax--i will meet ye in mazatlan if ye wish-- my friends there are the only schoooner in maz, they do a charter business there-- and have some connections -- he is as i am-- refuses to spend retail-- built his schooner in his back yard in seattle. all traditional working schooner--no shine, no yacht club affect. this couple is my catchers mitt, as it were-- i will be going right to their dock, and is his friends with the mechanic for my boat--- used to doing heavy duty stuff, so is perfect.
and my friends are a married couple, and he will introduce me to the mechanic so it will all be proper-- is welcome for you to come and play with us.. my spanish is somewhat limited to ordering food and triaging emergently ill patients in emergency room.....

la paz has gotten a bit touristy for my tastes.. too many yotties hanging there. i had planned to bypass that spot..not that mazatlan isnt touristy--is just i have friends there -- goood friends, so it kinda makes a lil difference...

[Jon4399]

I did like Carlie's suggestion -- simply cut the tube back to the good metal (if possible),glass it in, and install a new hose and packing gland. But I suspect the cross member is providing thrust support to the shaft. Or is all of the thrust (fore,aft) being transfered directly to the transmission? In reviewing the various stern tube and packing gland arrangements, I have not figured out how the thrust stress in transferred to the boat. Perhaps someone here can explain. But after all that is figured out, seems like the answer is to plug the hole and sail to Mex.

[Adax]

Zee, if I have the time I would love to see you in Mazatlan and play with ya all ,just so many options for my new life and so little time to get it all going.

Glad you got friends and connections there already as even with Spanish good mechanics are hard to find. I saw the prices of La Paz yesterday - wow. I gotta go there as my white elephant is there, but part of the considerations to buy it or not will be how soon I can get away from their marina. Yikes.

[Bergovoy]

i met Zee yesterday and had a great time... She is everything I expected and then some...I was not able to see her boat, as she only had a kayak to get to and from the beach to her boat... but oh well... I doubt i could offer any suggestions but did want to try to understsand how things worked, or in her case, didnt...

it sounds like she has had issues in the past with 'corporate' mentality, and thier practice to do things by the book, (flat rate book pricing seems to come to mind).

I wish someone else was there to talk with the mechanics, as i kinda think that there was sime communication issues there...

She didnt get a written estimate, which is inconsistant with them doing things by the 'book'

I think that written estimate might have helped a lot of us discuss and understand what they were thinking about doing and how, but again, there is the same info we had when we started this discussion.

I do hope her friends in Maz, will be able to help her, as it sounds like a last resort kinda thing...

other then snappin on a outboard, which i kinda think is the best thing for her... looks / appearance / resale value / arent things Zee seems to care about...

and Im guessing she can get an outboard for the money she got... I certainly wouldnt be comfortable sailing her with the issues she has now, but hey, I am still a virgin, and want my boat water tight for the most part...