1/7/16    Thursday   Stuart, FL....still

We're waiting for mail and packages that will come to cousin, Kathryn's house, probably Sat. or Monday. So we're here for more than a week. Not a bad place to be but we're now getting a bit antsy to move on.

Lovely, gentle day. In to marina via dinghy to dry our clothes. That rain storm last eve. Read, finish, my book Dirty Blond and half- Cuban. Terrific view of Cuba in 2005-ish. Great to recognize some of the places described in the book. Then back to the boat where David and Amelia took naps. I made a curtain...by hand...no machine...well, scissors are a machine, I guess, but all hand stitched. I even found a way to attach the hooks that attach to the ridge for hanging. I should take a photo but it's dark. Off to bed soon as I didn't get a nap this afternoon.

David's taking over:

Today may have been recovery day from the stress culminating with yesterday's day of work on the engine alignment and "motor mounts." Previously, there had been discussion of a haul out, pulling shaft, etc. to fix vibration problem. Yesterday we had a mechanic come to do an assessment and decide on a haul out, etc.

Godblessem! He concluded the fix was possibly doable right at the dock. {"Let's give it a try.")

MOTOR MOUNTS
We had recommended to us, and hired, (luckly) one great mechanic who was practical, efficient, fun and funny. He had never seen this type of motor mounts before (i warned him there had been much cussin about them on the Nauticat owners forum) but, he figured out how to fix the alignment and got it done.

For those who do their own alignments,  we have a Vetus flexible shaft coupling device to reduce shaft vibration between shaft and transmission, that allows for some mis-alignment, and protects the transmission, but alignment between the shaft and the face of the transmission should be less than .020" measurement. We found the alignment off by >.043" (3X what is OK) and believe that is why the boat vibrated so much, the shaft vibrated so much and the stuffing box was leaking.

With normal motor mounts, normally one would use a wrench to micro adjust the alignment of the engine. Ah, but our  our Ford Gustavson has motor mounts on which you must use a pry bar to adjust. (Holy Moly! ten thousands of an inch with a pry bar?) We watched as Rick replaced bolts and pried and sweated and brought alignment back to about .014" . (Think the thickness of a match book cover.)

Then after he turned off the clock and gave us a very reasonable bill for his work, he proceeded to make suggestions and recommended fixes for us to do about a number of things. A genuine good guy.

So, if ever in Stuart FL and needing boat help, call me for his number. You can count on my having kept it!

FURTHER TRAVELS
We are studying charts to make a passage across Lake Okeechobe, then south across the Gulf side of the keys. Very shallow but doable if you pick your weather.

The Eastern side of Florida is easier but we want to see more of the Everglades and I grow weary of the noise and development on the East Coast. We will see the East Coast soon enough when we return from the Keys in the spring, when we are heading North.

UPCOMING MAINTENANCE:
It seems, from this blog, that my life is occupied with only mechanical things; but truly, I enjoy watching the changes in the weather, the various birds, the unique places we pass by and what we watch at anchor. None the less, I got the message regarding this blog, "more about the boat" so I am trying to comply.

The Gustavson Ford is due for a change of the transmission oil cooler. I have received this new cooler and plan to replace the oil cooler in the next few days. Stuart is a good place to do this, because if one of the hydraulic hoses needs to be replaced, replacement is nearby.

The oil filter housing is also to be changed from antique oil cartridge to spin on filter (look back at blog about the last oil change that took almost eight hours including clean up of the bilge due to oil spilled.)

SOLAR PANELS - HELP:
We are not getting enough input from our solar panels to offset even nominal usage. I need to determine what the problem is. Any suggestions or direction will be welcome.

I understand that moving a house (our boat) thousands of miles down the east coast will require some maintenance of the various systems and parts. Staying ahead of unexpected events is the purpose of maintenance.

FOLDING BIKES
Everywhere we look, it seems folks are riding folding biles. We looked at several today. The two we saw advertised were not for us. The two we liked were too expensive. We continue to look for one more bike so Nancy and I can both go exploring.

All the best,
David