February 07, 2012 — Kemah, TxToday was a pretty good day. The bushing I ordered from Beneteau arrived and the rudder which was really pretty loose got repaired. It turned out that the old bronze bushing had corroded and fused with the bit it was supposed to slide around. The result was that the fiberglass sleeve in which the bushing was seated had gotten worn. The new bushing was put in place with a Mylar sleeve to secure it firmly. The net result is that Paul, the shipwright, deserves kudos for a perfect fix. The steering quadrant is taut and feels like new.While Paul was working on the rudder, one of the other yard crew cut and waxed the gel coat on Pearl’s hull. Even though this kind of thing can be expensive, it’s a helpful thing to do to protect the boat’s finish. The wax, has sealed and protected Pearl’s gel coat after Her rough ride through the snow down to Texas.
I had to do a bunch of juggling and organizing on the boat to allow the rudder to be fixed. During the course of this, I realized the I should have the raw water system that I’d like for the galley sink installed before Pearl gets dropped back in the water. Its really nice to be able to wash dishes with salt water in the sink as opposed to doing dishes on the transom. This cuts down dramatically on fresh water use — something that really concerns me.
It turns out that there is a conveniently available through hull fitting under the sink that I may be able to tap into to supply the faucet. I need to figure out whether to do this, or to install a new through-hull fitting. The other thing that would be really nice is a fitting that can drive a wash down station near the transom. Grrrr!
Prepping Pearl to go cruising is beginning to get a bit expensive. I will make a decision on the plumbing projects tomorrow. Hopefully it’ll all get done and Pearl will be back in the water before I leave in the afternoon.
Pictures from today’s activities follow.
