Carburettor Issues #2 - This time its Terminal

Or how to save nearly £100 on a £200 part.

The reason there haven't been many posts for a while is that the boat has been laid up due to engine failure, or more specifically, carburettor failure. After years of poor low rev performance and cutting out, I decided to take the carb in to Fox Marine for an ultrasonic clean.

On collection, I received a bag containing my carb in bits, as the housing for the main jet had split as they tried to remove it. It is important to note that this was NOT their fault, as I had been a bit ham-fisted on previous occasions of removing it. I needed a new carb :-(

After a fruitless search on Ebay for either a secondhand engine or carb, I decided to bite the bullet and get a new carb. I asked Fox Marine for a quote...5 times. By phone, voicemail and email. How hard can it be? The lack or response WAS their fault and inexplicable, given that they knew I needed one and these parts cost nearly £200. All I can say is that business must be booming for them.

An internet search to my favourite online UK Honda supplier, Lings showed that the part was going to cost around £170 including shipping.

Then I discovered http://www.boats.net/ who could supply and ship from the US for $123. That's less than £100! Can anbody explain this. Lings couldn't. Honda UK couldn't.

 Reader, I bought it.

Battleship Grey

Given that it was the only day I had in the whole Easter holidays on which I could do anything with the boat, I was not excited by the forecast.

As you can see from the pics, its best to ignore the forecast and carry on as planned.

With the tide too low to get onto the drying pad (a non-starter in any case as the two boats on it remained on it despite having booked it for Kamala) I had to come up with another plan. Thanks to a tip off from Martin (Vitesse) I knew I had a chance of getting onto the tiny concrete pad next to the blocks on the North Arm.

I was doing this at about 6am with a borrowed 2.5hp and no rudder. (The rudder was at home for a re-profile and re-varnish and my Honda 5hp has died. That's another story for another day.)

The boat slowly dropped with the tide and I stood on the blocks to ease into the right place as it hit the bottom. While the tide continued to fall I began painting the topsides. You can see the grey line round the top.

I returned later on to commence the annual anti-foul job and found the sand bank being removed at harbour entrance. Bottom painting wasn't as foul a job as expected due to the hard work put in last year to remove all the old bottom paint.

Then to add the final touch - a coat of Crown grey undercoat, leftover from a job at home. Why?
a) because it was cheap and all I had
b) because the old paint work was in a such a poor state that even grey undercoat is an improvement
c) because in September I will get a free lift out to the boat park and have her blasted back to gel coat to do the job properly.

So there she is in a her new colours. Everyone seemed to know 'the little red boat opposite the Tenby' but now she's less distinctive. Until September.

PS I did go for a sneaky sail as I put her back on the mooring, just don't tell the wife.

Seawych for Sale (Not mine!!)

https://www.jerseyinsight.com/Classifieds/Vehicles/Boats/19ft-sailing-boat/

Sounds like it could be a bargain for someone!!

Oars

Painting the oars with some yacht enamel I picked up for 50p from a boat jumble. Must be at least 10 years old. Very 70s colour.

posted from Bloggeroid

Spot the Seawych #1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-u6JWaRPgE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

An occasional game. This YouTube video from Mr Keep Turning Left, Dylan Winter, features a Seawych 19 somewhere in the footage. Can you spot it?

Dylan Winter is travelling the coast of Britain in a 19 foot sailing boat. (Sadly, the wrong 19 foot sailing boat, a Mirror Offshore). As a former BBC cameraman he is making short videos along the way and these are excellent. Look for keepturningleft.co.uk on the web.

posted from Bloggeroid

Windy Wendy says 54kt gusts.

Just went into the garden with the dog and got blown all over the place. St Helier pierheads is saying 33kts gusting to 54kts (62mph / F10). I think this is the highest I can remember hearing in the last few years. Anyone heard a higher value from Windy Wendy in the past?

posted from Bloggeroid

Harbours Response to the Muddy Protest

Further to the Muddy Protest by Roy Deeming at the weekend in relation to the mud build up in St Aubin's Harbour, Myra Shacklady, the Commercial Operations Director at Jersey Ports, was interviewed on Radio Jersey this morning.

CLICK HERE to listen to her comments. (about 5 minutes long)

Apologies for the poor sound quality at times.

Prior to that Roger read out an email from Bob Thompson praising the work harbours have done in association with SOBOA.

Listen to that HERE (50s long).

If anyone reads this blog, please feel free to add your views to the comments below.