We spent the Christmas/New Years holidays at the boat so that is the beginning of the 2010 updates.
As for what we accomplished, here is a small list of things:
Got the new sails checked for fit;
Installed additional handrails inside;
Made & installed some fiddles so the cushions don't fall out when healed;
Put 2 more wraps of fiberglass insulation on the exhaust pipe;
Installed the second computer display for the cockpit;
Filled all the acorn nuts with set screws;
Got the Raymarine/NMEA interface wired up & working;
So I guess that we start with the sails.
We had decided to have North Sails make us a suit of custom sails. Had the boat measured in August, the sails arrived in September, and got them up to the boat & test fitted the end of December. Kate went all the way up the mast and installed the head block for the gennaker halyard! While she was up at the top she took some great pictures of Sherpa, who is sitting next to us in the boat yard, as well as MOM.
There were some problems, but nothing that couldn't be fixed quite easily on the main and the gennaker. Looks like the genoa will have to be remade as it was 6" too short on the luff. That took a little bit of convincing, but the president of North Sails gave it the go-ahead so we are getting another genoa that will fit our boat very nice.
As for the additional handrails,
I had the measurements with me in Utah and did a little cutting & welding to make some very custom ones for the the stove guard and above the port quarterberth. Another little handhold/fiddle was made for the galley counter that is aft of the stove. After this round of handrails we have a better idea on where some additional ones need to go. So with some measurements & patterns I'll be making them soon.
Fiddles for the cushions.
Made some nice fiddles from some baseboard stock that I found in Home Depot. These should hold in the dinette cushions as well as the "couch" and the little seat opposite the head. Kate finished them with Watco oil so they give a touch of wood grain to the boat (if anyone notices those things).
Fiberglass tape insulation on the exhaust pipe.
Last summer we still had a little too much heat coming off the dry exhaust pipe. I found a local supplier in Utah that stocked some 1/8" X 3" wide fiberglass tape at a much better price than the "marine" stuff. So we got 200' of that and installed the additional wraps on the pipe. Topped it off with some aluminum foil tape to keep it all contained and help keep some of the radient heat inside the pipe. This was perhaps the worst job of the trip as there isn't much room around the pipe and working with any kind of fiberglass is nasty. It took 100' just to make one wrap on the pipe! I did a 2/3 overlap so each "wrap" makes for an additional 3/8" thickness of the insulation.
Second computer monitor for the cockpit.
Last summer we decided that we needed to be able to see the computer screen from the cockpit. My decision was to use a VGA splitter and drive a second monitor that could be seen while in the cockpit. I was very lucky in getting another 15" matching waterproof, daylight readable monitor from Argonaut as they had discontinued production last spring. Anyway after much debate about where to mount it (it could be out in the cockpit, or could be just inside on a RAM mount to swivel around, or it could be mounted in one of the aft windows). In the end we choose to mount it against the aft port window on the inside. This made cabling easier.
Filling the acorn nuts with set screws.
I was concerned about dirt getting into the acorn nuts and was looking for a way to block them off. In looking at options, I found a deal on some 1/2" nylon set screws. I ran the bottom tap into each acorn nut (MOM has 114 of them) then installed a set screw with a little bit of oil on it. Now all these little holes look a bit more finished and will not collect much dirt either.
Raymarine/NMEA interface wired & working.
We wanted to be able to see the wind data as well as the depth sounder reading on the computer screen. This took getting a special interface box that translates from the Raymarine SeaTalk network to the standard NMEA 0183 data format. It really is nice to be able to see this information next to your chart on the computer screen. I also reinstalled the repaired AIS unit & checked it out to verify that it works properly (it did).
After losing the GPS when the AIS failed last year & relying on the Garmin handheld, we wanted to have some additional backup capability. We now have 2 additional spare GPS units that plug into the computer USB port. They are waterproof and have a magnetic base so they are perfect for MOM and only cost about $25 each.
So that is about all for now. We plan on getting back to the boat in March.
NOTES ABOUT "OUR" SCRAP YARD (UTAH METAL WORKS):
We have told and told people about how wonderful our local scrap yard (Utah Metal Works) is. So here are some pictures of what you can expect to find at this place. While most folks are really "scrounging" for any stainless steel, we always have a HUGE pile to look through (here is Kate next to the pile of pure stainless). The only problem is that this place has constant turnover as they chop up all the stainless & ship it direct to China so there is a big difference in what is available from week to week. The trick is to get there & see what has come in and get it before the chopping begins. Anything that is stainless steel can be found here as it is the largest non-ferrous metal yard in a 5 state area.
April update
Things added or changed to the running rigging:
1. Added a rigid boom vang (to eliminate the topping lift while reefing)
2. Added a block to the boom to facilitate reefing the main from either side of the boom
3. Upgraded the mast winches to self-tailing
4. Added stantions blocks down the port side for the tack line on the new gennaker sail
5. Added turning blocks to the rear stanchions on both sides
Some things that were added to the interior were additional handholds on the steering station and the table. These also act as fiddles to keep things from falling while heeled. Also put in some small folding steps for use while under way. We are giving a try to some material called hypervent that is supposed to help with eliminating condensation under the mattress - we'll see how that works this summer.
Upgraded the ham HF radio to a marine HF radio with PACTOR modem. Rerouted the cables and fuel tank vent going through the aft deck holes and added a large metal box that will have a 12 volt power plug plus the receptacle for the autopilot.
Changed out the entire Photovoltaic system. Went from four 60 watt panels to three 135 watt panels. Change in surface area is only 1360 square inches but the new panels are 16% efficient and the older ones are 10%. Also upgraded the charge controller to a MPPT type to help keep efficencies up. Haidan of Tardigrade (see some videos on the links page) is getting the older system to get him started on the way to power independance.
Put markings on the anchor chain so we know how much we have out.
Installed a second primary fuel filter and a valve system to make them "hot swapable" so they can be changed while under way. Two identical RACOR filters with water separators.
That about sums up the changes/improvements that got accomplished in the 20 days I was at the boat. I hope to get up again later this month & do some painting & welding.
Got to Lopez Island on April 27th and met Haidan at the boat yard. He had his boat in the bay where it could dry out at low tide. I took several pictures of Tardigrade at low tide(1, 2).
Then I got to work with several welding projects that had planned on doing. It was great to use my little inverter welder using nothing but the boat's electrical system to power it all. Haidan was there to check on the current draw from the batteries and it peaked at around 230 amps according to the DC to AC inverter metering system. With the welding that I did the batteries were completely recharged with the PV panels. Nice to know that I have an elecrical system up to that job without running the engine.
Some of the things that I got welded were some little support "wings" to hold the outboard aft ends of the PV panels. Also added some secondary winch pads to the comings. And made up a bracket for the tiller pilot to be installed.
Other jobs were to replace the old 5/8" 3-strand nylon anchor rode with something that was a bit stronger: 5/8" Samson Deep Six nylon anchor/mooring line (heavy-duty six strand line). Now I have something rated at 13,000 pounds average breaking strength. Also the nylon is now marked every 5 fathoms so we know how much goes out for setting our scope properly. I used some stuff for cleaning stainless steel that worked good and is supposed to passify & remove any free iron. And finaly I got another coat of paint on the hull sides so MOM looks much better!
Next we will return to the boat in June to get MOM ready for launching on the 10th.