| Last updated 02/24/2010 |
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Extended Sea Trial - May/June 2009
Since our last update in December, we have finished the secondary projects related to the repower (primarily refrigeration and woodwork), and taken Windwalker for several day trials in which the engine and systems were put through their paces with mostly success.
In May we decided to sail down to the Keys for a 2 week extended trial to see if we are again ready for extended cruising. The weather was pretty lousy, with lines of thunderstorms every day, and the wind was either on the nose or non-existent for most of the trip. In all, we put on about 60 engine hours, finishing the break-in period and cycling engine and transmission fluids. The other systems that were disrupted by the repower - refrigeration, water, bilge pumps, fuel manifold, exhaust, charging - all were tested out and performed well.
As you would expect, there were some problems uncovered, and we returned to the dock with a good size to-do list before we leave again.
The engine moved us at about 6.4 kts at 2200 RPM (after cleaning the bottom!) on less than a gallon per hour, and gave us a clean 7 kts at 2400 RPM on the ICW. With a 10 kt headwind and 2 foot head sea, we got about 6.2 kts at 2400 RPM. Full power is obtained at 3000 RPM, but I'm thinking that 2200 will be our normal cruise speed, with 2400-2500 for when we want to make a bridge or something. I haven't replaced all the noise insulation yet so it seems louder than the Volvo. Prior to the trial, I had settled on about .002" variation on the engine alignment, but now that has probably increased as there is clear vibration at most speeds and you can feel a slight side-to-side motion of the transmission. There is also a resonance at 1000 RPM (out of gear) that is pronounced. This is now top of my list and I plan to try for a perfect alignment after balancing the 4 legs in hopes of reducing the resonance.
Some other minor engine things included a leak that developed from the shaft of the raw water pump at about 30 hours, and some erratic operation of the Balmar ARS voltage regulator which causes the startup delay to be as much as 3 or 4 minutes. We picked up a spare pump seal from All-Keys Diesel in Marathon, but I found the leak stopped after repositioning the o-ring that sits on the shaft between the oil and water sides. I plan to debug the ARS, and also recalibrate the tachometer.
The refrigeration was running good when we left. During the repower, the compressor hoses had to be lengthened so I had recovered/replaced the R-12 and installed a new RFD. With a new 12 oz. can obtained from a friend, I topped off both the engine drive and AC drive loops and the reefer performance was as close to book spec as it has been for a long time. Unfortunately, during the trip the engine drive clutch started blowing the breaker (it was pulling 9 amps!) and needs to be replaced. Also, although the freezer side is working great (0 degrees in less than 1/2 hour), the refrigeration plate has lost its eutectic mixture. I've had a leak for quite a while but it had been doing OK lately with the application of a little "stop-leak". This time though it will need more serious attention. The holding plate has a cover with gasket that forms the side of the tank facing the wall. Rather than trying to get it out of the box - which would require draining R-12 from both loops, I've decided to cut through the box wall from the outside, fix the problem, then re-glass the cuts. A lot of the furniture and box insulation is in the way of course, so this is going to be a longer project - now in process.
Other issues that surfaced were pumping issues with the toilet/holding tank that will take a minor rebuild, outboard idle problems (fixed in the field), and some minor electronics things. The new Avon RIB worked great, although I broke off one of the tank hold-downs that needs to be re-glassed.
Apart from the sea-trial aspects, we had a good time in the keys when the weather permitted. We visited several of the reef spots for snorkling, sailed up to Cape Sable for a night until the bugs drove us back to Marathon, and did a night at Bahia Honda State Park. Altogether a good 2 weeks.
Check out some of our pictures from the trip and the Windwalker Log.