AdventuresAboardAvatar: Projects in Paradise

Sure we would like to pretend that it is all fun and good times while cruising the South Pacific, but you cannot forget the real definition of cruising: Traveling to exotic ports of call to work on your boat!!

We have had many projects and we do them as they arise or as needed.

With company coming for the wedding, Shelly had to get busy and sand and varnish our new cockpit table that Pedro built, just before he sailed off to the Cook Islands. (Thanks Pedro!!) Painting and varnishing has been designated as a pink job.

When we were riding around Bora Bora, the shaft on my bike pedals started removing itself. So when we were in Hawaii in October, we bought some bike parts and tools so we can fix them up properly and ride safely. And thank you Danny for making that awning, so we can work in the shade on the foredeck.

On the crossing from Mexico the gooseneck pin came out and scratched up the side of the mast's brand new paint job! But what we found was several of the machine screws holding the gooseneck to the mast were pulling out.

So we removed them all and drilled and tapped both the gooseneck and the mast and put in larger size screws.

During the rainy season we have found that the awning likes to hold water, so it will make an excellent water catcher after Mike sews in these patches for the drains. Sewing is a blue job ;-)

The big project which has taken months to get completed was repairing the main diesel generator. It had been leaking oil on the passage. Then the water pump went out and the exhaust with out water melted the plastic muffler. We had been using our back up Honda for some time, until it too died from over usage. We had to order parts twice from the states and have more parts brought by wedding guests and we got a new fiberglass muffler when we were in Hawaii. Let me just say, that shipping parts to French Polynesia, usually cost about the same or more as whatever those parts cost!! Because the generator is down under the cockpit locker, Mike decided we should hire Adrian, a fantastic mechanical engineer from Hungary to help with the job. Definitely cannot afford for Mike to injure his back, since his surgery 2 years before the trip!!

At first we thought just the valves were stuck.

Here the guys are working to get the valve spring back on.

Adrian is lapping the valves.

The whole cockpit became the workshop.

This is where they annealed (soften) a copper washer. After heating it with the flames they dunked it in the glass of water for cooling.

Rocker arms and valve assembly going back together.

It is a tight working space down there!!

Mike still had to jump in the hole to help and give advice.

At this point we find out that there is no compression and the rings have seized up inside the block. So the whole project got put on hold until after the wedding and more parts arrived. This time they decide it has to come out of the hole. So the generator part (that makes the 110 volts) comes out first so it will fit out of the hole.

Next we rig up a block and tackle to hoist out the diesel part. Adrian guides it from inside the hole, while Mike guides the lines of the tackle and I get to do the pulling.

There she is!

That is the piston inside the block.

More torn apart.

The last thing we found was the oil leak which was what started this whole dang problem in the first place. Turns out it was the oil seal on the crank shaft. So out it came out again and went to the machine shop to be turned down a mico amount and new seals were bought.