Launching the boat and a Sea trial

We finally launched our boat after a year of renovation and repairs.  The day started early (for us) because there were still a few things to prepare for.  All the floor boards and cubby-holes that cover thru-hulls were exposed to allow quick inspection.  We also gathered the tools for our rudder installation (we removed the rudder about a week ago to allow us to replace the lower Teflon bushing/bearing).  While we were there (and after inspection), the aluminum housing also had to be replaced.  The plan is to pick up the boat, and while the guys put a layer of paint on the very bottom of the keels, we will be busy re-installing the rudder.  And hopefully we can get it done before they are needing to get us to the water - they don't like tying up a huge lift like this for very long.

On her way back to the ocean

Shiny new rudder housing

Ready to begin the descent 

The rudder only took about 30 minutes and then we let the paint dry for another 30 minutes before heading off.  The launch went great with no real excitement - we couldn't have asked for a more perfect day.  With Chris and Joyce from s/v Saltrun on board, we headed out for our first ever sea-trial.  After Chris got us out of the launching area and headed out to sea, everybody from s/v Catchin' Rays took turns at the helm and getting a feel for the boat. The winds were calm and the sun was bright - just a spectacular day to launch - timing is everything. 

Chris and Joyce arrive to help us with the sea-trial & docking

Tami getting some guidance from Chris

Here I am doing my Captain Ron impression 

Justin acting like its another day at the office

Brandon drives the boat like his Chrysler Crossfire

Swag

Chillin'

After a couple of hours, we headed back to port and our new home in the marina.  Justin had the helm and Chris had his back.  Although everything went well, docking a 17,000 lb. boat is a little trickier than expected - you can't man-handle them very well.  We settled into our new home and tried to get everything back in order. 

The motley Crew

The first problem on the new list of repairs are that both mixing elbows on each engine leak due to a small hole although the starboard is much worse than the port (new stainless steel ones are already on order.)  The second problem is the circulation pump on the a/c system leaks at a broken fitting - easy repair, but part two of this issue is that we can't figure out how to even power up the system.  The only other hiccup was that our boat kept tripping the floating dock's breaker - they say that the floating dock has a very sensitive GFI, and for some reason our boat kept tripping it.  So we had to move to another spot by ourselves - thankfully, it was a straight shot to our new location because we had to do it by ourselves.  

Sittin' at the dock of the bay

But all in all, it was a pretty successful day - now we just have to start tackling all the new things on our to-do list.

Lifting the Boat

I went back and forth on the decision about whether or not to remove the starboard rudder.  I've known for a long time it had a small amount of movement in it at the bottom - and I did get an opinion on it soon after the purchase.  The first guy told me not to worry about it, that it really doesn't  move that much (about 3/16" front to back) and he maybe right.  But it's been bothering me for about a year now...and the fact that we've repaired or replaced just about everything on the boat except the rudder - one of the most important pieces on the boat - kept gnawing at me.  So, I got another opinion - and obviously this one agreed with me - you gotta fix it.  And the decision to repair our wobbly rudder was set in motion.

First was trying to decide if I thought it was the teflon bearing/bushing and/or the aluminum housing that it goes in.  So the thought behind it on my part was that teflon should wear out faster than an aluminum housing - so for $150, I had France send me two bushings - an upper and a lower.  But in the mean time, I figured that we're pretty handy and we might as well start tearing into it while we waited.  And it really only took about 30 minutes and we were dropping it down - of course it only goes down about 18" before it hits the boatyard surface, but it was enough to see that it wasn't only the telfon bushing, it looked like the aluminum housing was messed up too.  

The never-ending rudder shaft

A frantic call to France was quickly placed even though by this time, it was already 7:00pm in France, but I tried anyway.  To my surprise, Mr. French man answered the phone, and while it was too late to find out pricing or availability, we did set in motion getting the housing here as soon as possible.  

So today, we lifted the boat to get the rudder out so that the housing could be replaced.  And the reason for the post is to express how extremely nerve-racking this process really is.  When you've only seen your boat resting peacefully in a boat yard, to have it picked up 3 feet in the air takes some getting used to.  And we thought 3 feet wasn't going to be enough - seems our rudder post is quite long.  And just when the travel-lift was maxed out on it's lifting capabilities, we pulled the rudder out.  Now its time to get that housing out - wish us luck (you have any ideas how they place a rudder housing in a boat?....we don't either.)

If you need Brandon, just text him, he's usually available

Getting the keels sanded and painted while it was in the air

Don't talk to me, I got a lot on my mind.

The underside of our starboard keel

The whole crew...and Daisy drinking some water

Video - Refit Part 5 - Watermaker and Solar Panels

I'm happy to announce that this will be my last video in the "refit" series that I've been making for the past year.  Although we have a rudder bearing/housing to still replace, we've serviced all 7 of our winches, and there's still a few more things to do - there will be no more in this series, at least for awhile.  I think I have well worn out the welcome when it comes to making repair videos, and am more than happy to move on to the "sailing" videos - starting with, of course, the "splash" video.  Today we watched a 43' Fountaine Pajot Belize - which is almost identical to our boat - get launched, and it was exciting.  The realization that we will be floating in about 2 weeks is pretty cool, and we're all waiting with great anticipation.  So, thanks for watching all the videos up 'till now - now the real fun begins (and I think it will be much more fun for the people that watch my videos and for me too.)  Enjoy.

New Vinyl Lettering

Just a quick post - we finally got our new vinyl lettering in today and did our best to install them.  And for some reason, this definitely makes us feel like were getting close to getting her in the water.  Add to that, we got the main sail back in place along with the new stack-pack - and it was easier going up with it than it was taking it down.  

Anyway, here are a couple pictures from today.

76426 - Represent!!!

Fantasy Fest 2014 - where the Crazies Come Out

Fantasy Fest 2014

Last night we attended our first Fantasy Fest (at least one day of it anyway) that's held every year down here in Key West and it did not disappoint.  We were told it was Mardi Gras gone bad and that all the demented people gather here every year and let it all hang out - and they do.  From old (and they were out in droves - I've never seen so many Grannies with their boobies hanging out) to the young (small children being towed behind in wagons) and everything in between. 

The start of the Parade

S/V Saltrun invited us to join them so we could get a taste of a good old fashion party - Key West style.  Yesterday's parade was the Masquerade March where anybody that is dressed up in some sort of costume can enter - and they just walk through the streets on a set route.  While Chris and Joyce were both wearing great costumes of their own, they wanted to see the parade rather than be in it - so they hung out with us on the sidewalk.  

The Prom King & Queen from s/v Saltrun

The thing I found interesting about the parade is how funny and creative people are - the Ebola Hazmat Team that was spraying the streets; a group of men and women all dressed up like Flo from Progressive Insurance.  The blow-up doll that kept posing for pictures with her mouth in a perfect circle.  Adam and Eve were another favorite mine and that were happy to pose for everybody that wanted a picture.  With so many funny costumes and weird people, it was hard not to be completely entertained.  

One of the Flo's from Progressive Insurance

The Hogfish

"My back's killin' me!!"

With the parade over, we decided to call it a night and skip Duval until another day - we still have a boat to launch, and times running out.

Check out the latest going's-on aboard Catchin' Rays here:

Installing Solar Panels - 840 more watts of Freedom

We knew we needed more solar power when we bought the boat - it only had four small 46 watt panels that equaled 184 watts total.  But how much is too much?  The only restriction is money - although having the space to put them does start to creep in as the number 1 restriction, because you can run out of room to put them pretty quickly. 

I had two options:  1.  Put them on the fiberglass hardtop or 2. Install them on the solar rack above my dinghy in place of the smaller panels.  I would then have to relocate the small panels to the hard top or elsewhere. 

The top of the solar rack is actually about 17' off the ground

We went back and forth on the location weighing the pros and cons of each decision - and for some reason or another, I ended on making a new (and gargantuan) solar rack for above the dinghy.  It will measure 120" x 77" and I had it all figured out - down to the sixteenth of an inch.  We'll make a new slide adjustment for the starboard side, we'll have supports front and back/and side to side.  It will be awesome!!  and so I thought.  

Some "dry runs" to see what the possibilities were

Maybe it won't be too bad after all

We went down to the local metal shop and purchased about $200 worth of 1 1/2" aluminium angle stock and delivered it to the metal shop right next door to my boat.  He said he'd have it done lickidy-split - about 2 weeks later, we got the finished product (I wasn't in that big of a hurry anyway.)  

We brought it home and quickly hoisted it up into place.  And it was big - but I was prepared for that.  I had done drawings and photo-shopping to get an idea of how big is was going to be.  But to back up for just a bit, why did we opt for the solar rack and not the hard top?  I really don't know other than to not take up our entire hardtop with solar panels - my sons might want to use it as a launch pad into the water; we might want to store stuff up there; I don't really know - but the decision was made to make a massive solar rack and put it above the dinghy.

And it was good - it fit right into place, and soon we were test fitting our solar panels into the rack to see what we'd gotten ourselves into.  And they fit perfectly; one right after the other - the measurements I'd given the fabricator were spot-on!  But soon after the panels were in place, a quick movement of one corner up and down and I started to get that sinking feeling.....the one where you just might have wasted a few hundred dollars and a few days of work kind of feeling.  So I tugged on it again - and this massive wave of movement rippled over the entire three panels - and if that wasn't enough, the entire solar rack moved about 2 inches from side to side - it moved so much, that it even moved the massive dinghy davits that bolt through the back of the boat.  And I slowly convinced myself that this was a bad idea.  

Tami....you remember that solar rack I had built...well...

Now, I just had to convince my son and my wife that this was a bad idea and that the panels now needed to go on the hardtop where I knew in my gut that they needed to go from the beginning.  

The next day, we had the old panels back in place but with a couple extra side-to-side supports and an additional slide support - and then it was time to wait on the Z brackets to install on the preferred location.  I also bought 80' of 6 awg wire to run to the control panel that will be located under my berth, right next to the battery bank along with a 50 amp shut-off switch.  

Four days later, we were installing the Z brackets on the panels and putting them into place.  The only thing we had to watch for is how close the boom came to the panels - my boom will actually hit the hardtop if let out enough - and so if I have solar panels that stick up another 3" then the boom will hit it even sooner.  So we cheated all the panels as far back on the top that we could - and it was an easy install.  A little dab of 5200 and six screws each and we had the panel installed.  We then wired each one together in parallel and attached it to the wire we had previously installed while we were waiting on the brackets.  

Justin wiring up 3 panels with 6 AWG 

1024 watts of solar power kickin' ass!

In the end, the panels look right at home on the hardtop and I don't have to worry about them ripping off my boat in a stiff breeze.  And what about all the added power I have to run all my shit?  ....well, that's priceless my friend.  

Video: A Sailboat Refit - Part 4 - Seatalk Hs Cable, 12 volt Panel, and more Rigging

Here's our latest installment of our on-going "Refit" series.  Only one more after this, and it will be time for the "launch" episode.  

Painting Bilgekote in the Engine Rooms

It wasn't fun, it wasn't comfortable, and it was pretty much the equivalent of getting bitch-slapped  - but painting the engine rooms with BilgeKote was definitely worth the trouble.  Its something that I've put off for awhile, and for good reason.  To begin with, there is barely enough room to turn around, and forget about squatting.  But to make matters worse, the curvature of the boat on both sides of the engine slant upward - so there's not even a comfortable spot to stand.  But when your back begins to get those deep aches from leaning over a Yanmar engine and you do try and stand upright for just a minute, you inevitably hit your head on some goddamn piece of boat that comes out of nowhere.

Justin started the project by cleaning and scrubbing everywhere he could reach - wash, rinse, wash repeat.  And I kinda felt bad looking down from the deck - I kept wanting to tell him to, "Put ze lotion on ze skin" but stopped myself - didn't feel like being such a smart-ass that early in the morning.  After an hour of scrubbing, rinsing, and repeating, it was my turn.  We tried to suck out as much water as we could, but I still had to use a towel to dry places that the shop-vac couldn't reach.  I then placed a towel on top of the engine so it could avoid any accidental drips of paint - but there are so many lines in an engine room - fuel lines, water lines, and push-pull cables - and trying not to get paint on them was a trick.  I did have a spare work rag to wipe away any drips that did find their way where they weren't supposed to be - and I used it quite a bit.

This is what it looked like when we bought the boat.

I got a brilliant idea: lets put disintegrating foam everywhere in the engine compartment.  Sure it showers the entire area with non-stop shit, but think of how well it will deaden the sound!

There was some God-awful foam insulation that was close to 2" thick and was stuck everywhere.  I understand the thought behind it, but this stuff was completely non-user-friendly.  It would be impossible to service these engines without giant pieces of foam breaking away and down onto the engine and into the bilge.  So a few months ago, the first step to this process was to scrape the lids and side walls of all the insulation and suck it out with a shop vac - my sons were not happy.  The following picture was the after shot.

But now, months later, it was time to finally paint them.  And to reiterate, I can't stress how horrible this job really was, and the buzz I was getting from the fumes wasn't strong enough to make it any better.  Although I did have a work-fan blowing into the area, it didn't quite makeup for the limited space to work and move around in - my feet, legs, and back were all pretty spent.  The only thing I can think of that would make somebody feel like this was if I exercised - yeah, that's it - it's like I exercised or something.  The final results speak for themselves and I would totally do it all again, but on second thought, next time I'll just let my sons get some OJT on painting BilgeKote.

Port engine room

Starboard engine room

Lobster Hunting with s/v Saltrun

Our new friends at s/v Saltrun - Chris and Joyce were kind enough to invite us for our first ever lobster hunt.  After purchasing a Florida fishing license with a lobster stamp, we set off with a boat full of scuba equipment.  Chris ventured off about 30 minuets from the boat-ramp to one of his favorite spots and we dropped anchor.  

Captain Chris at the helm

We decided that the easiest thing to do was to dive in teams so Saltrun went first.   After suiting up, they dove the anchor to make sure it was set, and away they went into the current as Justin snorkeled above to learn how its done.  The trick to it (other than avoiding all the jellyfish that kept drifting by) was to keep up with everything needed to catch them - a tickler (encourages them out of their hiding hole), a net (to trap the buggas), and another net to contain the keepers.

Time to suit up

Fortunately for us, Saltrun came back with six beautiful keepers - now it was our turn.  And although it had been about 7 years since either Justin or I have strapped on a tank, it was literally like riding a bike (and diving in 12 feet of water, if anything should go wrong, you can just drop your weights and go to the surface.)  We descended to the bottom and off we went.  You look for any formations where the sand is - basically anywhere there isn't grass. And then you look for their tentacles sticking out - and they were everywhere.  Each place that you see that looks like a lobster should be, they were there.  Justin was the "encourager" as he tickled them out of their home and I was the "netter" - snatching them up as they try and back into their hiding hole.  But unfortunately for us, they were all too small - but catching them was a blast.  Its amazing how fast they are - I'd even have them back straight into my net - but if I wasn't fast enough, they'd swim right out of it.  

Gettin' my grove back

One of the lobsters we had to let go due to size

Sometimes, its good to be under-sized 

Other than the gorgeous weather and good company, the best part about the day was just being on the water.  It was just another beautiful Key West day - sunny and warm with a great ocean breeze.  But it was time to go back to the boat ramp and back to Catchin' Rays.  Chris was nice enough to let us keep their catch, but we didn't really know how to clean them or prepare them - so once again, they were generous enough to invite us over for dinner where they would show us how to prepare the lobster.  We posed for the picture with the 6 lobsters and told everybody on Facebook that it was "our" catch - Chris said he didn't mind. 
   

We'll still take credit for them

We then practiced pulling off the tails while trying to get as much meat as we could to stay with it, and Joyce showed us a great way to de-vein them.  The meal was great, and once again, so was the company and conversation.  Preparing and cooking lobster (well, Chris does the cooking) in their back yard that backs up to a gorgeous canal - it just doesn't get much better than that.  We can't thank them enough for being so generous with their time and for giving us a much needed day off.  Now its time to get back to boat work. 

Video - the latest Going's-On at Catchin' Rays

Here's our most recent video of the projects aboard Catchin' Rays

Never-ending Projects and Making new Friends

Part of the problem with refitting an older boat is finding space to add new electronics in the 12 volt panel.  And while its possible to use the existing power that ran the old equipment, there comes a time when there are only so many slots to tap into.  Maybe there's a way to install a bus bar behind the panel, but we don't know enough about how much we can continue to power through what's already there.  On top of it, the way this boat is designed, there is 2 foot channel that measures 3"x 5" directly behind the navigation desk by which all wires must pass in order to get to the panel - and its a bitch to access.  But having ran so many wires through this area previously and the fact that the area is already taken up by the original wiring, there's not even enough room to run fish-tape through it any longer.  

My solution to this on-going issue was to install a new panel that has easy access, and at the same time allows much more room for expansion.  I have a Sirius weather receiver to power, a 12 volt ethernet switch, and another chartplotter, not to mention any future expansion that may include 12 volt televisions in the cabins.   So I ordered a new Panel-tronics that came with five breakers pre-installed.

The new 12 volt PanelTronics

But cutting holes and running wires through all the nooks and crannies of a sailboat is never an easy task.  And you've never really appreciated the usefulness of fish-tape until you've used it on a boat.  We've ran it through so many tight spots that would never be possible with any other method - we've almost worn out the two reels that came with the boat.  But to make things worse, the battery bank is located under the back section of the berth where I sleep.  Bedding, clothes, mattresses, and support racks had to be removed in order to access this area. The final product powers up well and will be a snap to run any present and future power needs.  Now I have an easy spot to power my new cockpit chartplotter that we've just finished mounting a couple of days ago - hopefully the location proves to be ideal and the Navpod stands up to the harsh environment.

We ran the wires as professionally as we could

My modified NavPod for the Raymarine E90W

We've also made new sailing friends - Chris and Joyce own a 38' Manta catamaran named Salt Run and stopped by the other day.  He and his wife have a house down here in the Keys and just moved their Manta down from Jacksonville to the marina next door to us.  They found me through my blog and recognized the boatyard where we work and live and was nice enough to come by and say hi.  They are some of the nicest people that I've ever met - in Florida or Texas - and even offered us a truck to use, a place to spend the night, and a lobster/mahi-mahi dinner - all of which were much more than generous.  But we did take them up on the dinner.  They have a nice place that backs up to a canal just a few miles down the highway, and needless to say, the conversation was great and it was some of the best seafood we've ever had.  They've also just produced their own sailing blog, and you can find it here.  If we meet other cruisers in the sailing community that are anywhere near as hospitable and kind as Chris and Joyce, this will be an awesome adventure.  

Getting down to the Nitty-Gritty

The final moves have been made this week as Justin and I ready ourselves to go back to the boat to tie all the loose ends together as we target November for the big splash.  I've alerted my current place of employment that I will be emailing my resignation letter the first week in October (no need to submit sooner than I have to - I like back-up plans and security blankets.)  We've moved two cars into storage along with the RV.  Forwarded my mail to.....oh shit, I don't even care.  And the closer it gets to our flight, the more nervous I seem to be as these are not decisions for the faint of heart - quitting your job and downsizing your life to two suitcases isn't that easy.

Sure, it all sounds great when its next year, next month, or next week, but when its Wednesday, it becomes a little more real - this is final - we're moving onto our boat full-time - shit's gettin' real and it can be a little overwhelming at times.  But one of the hardest parts of this go-around is leaving Tami...... again - although her flight has at least been purchased for the end of next month, it means 5 weeks without her.  In addition, we've once again left our boat for 3 months and I worry about her.  Did she leak and take on any rain water?  Has somebody broken in and stolen anything?  And I won't feel better about it until I get back and make sure everything is in its place.  To top it off, it seems to be an endless forecast of rain - 80% chance for the 3 days following our arrival and I'm not sure if we'll be able to get anything done for the first couple of weeks. 

But its exciting too.  As I tell my co-workers about the plan, I realize that all of the planning that has gone into this, and all the changes my family as endured, has come down to this moment in our lives.  Over the years, when you have a plan in place that takes this much maneuvering in your life, you wonder if you'll ever get to  see it through to fruition - and now we're here - its surreal.   But am I overly excited?  I try not to be.  Its kind of like when I got the call to interview for my first (and present) nursing job.  Although it had taken over 10 months to get the first call for an interview - I had all but given up on the idea that I'd ever get the opportunity to utilize my degree - and I was ok with it.  But after the call, a huge sinking feeling came over me because I knew what I was in for - I had heard all of the horror stories.  Some nurses have reported crying on their way home for the first 6  months because the stress is so intense.  

But now after almost 3 years on the job, I can honestly say that it was the smartest thing I've done in my life aside from buying real estate. And I feel that it's the same way with owning and living on a sailboat - it can be the best decision we've ever made, but that doesn't mean it won't stress me out at times and make me want to quit everything.  Somebody once told me that a smart man has a natural fear of owning a sailboat much the same as a normal man has a fear of alligators - you just know the potential it has to make your life real shitty.