low-tech and wingin it

No matter how computerized and wi-fi'd things get,

there'll always be a place for low-tech wingin' it.

A friend acquired this workhorse of a sailboat,

known more for it's history as a smokers lounge

than as a sailing rig.

Did he know what he was getting himself in to?

One thing I've learned,

there's no easy way to stop momentum

once the ball is rolling.

This thing had another history,

a coop for nesting seagulls and shore birds.

The PO's ex-girlfriend had left all the hatches open,

probably even filling the cabin with bait,

attracting enough birds to coat the inside 

with a thick layer of guano.

There was bird chit in places birds wouldn't ever go.

Fortunately I missed the cleaning part.

(I'll try to edit in some before photos)

The original plan was to pull this boat anchor out on the mooring.

How could I resist not helping with this challenge.

Plans changed when the boat needed hauling out.

Didn't make it too much easier.

Also didn't change my part in the puzzle.

You think this is a good secondary use for a Ford axle?

The original vision was to do this Bahama-style,

swinging the engine onto the dock 

or our whaler,

with the boom.

I really wanted to try it,

but this was stressful enough.

The mast rig held strong as an A-frame.

Whew...

Mark wasted no time jumping in to the poop hole.

Fertilizer easily an inch thick.

holey chit...

This guy Jared couldn't wait either.

Fortunately the owners son Phil has friends that don't mind getting dirty.

My secondary responsibility was streamlining the operation.

Boatyards pull every trick in the book to get more lay days.

Guess I'd do the same in their position,

more time on land is more money in pocket.

The yard penciled in Thursday to crane this sucker out.

6 days later?

Uh no...

They may have a slot Monday morning...

Guess they didn't expect us to power over the weekend.

Anyway by Sunday night both engines were chained and ready to go.

On Monday I was on call.

No texts early on..

Cool I had other stuff to do.

9:13 - "hey mark, what's up?

10:22 - "I'll go check"

10:37 - "haven't heard anything yet..."

10:55 - "we're on the clock in 5 minutes!"

Of course I'm 10 minutes away.

While in the drivers seat,

the operator goes down the prep list.

Chain-yeah

Other one chained - yeah

Hook straps - yeah

Gee, thanks for the heads up!

At $350 an hour billed every half hour,

glad we were prepared!

The blocks were in and out in 20 minutes.

Since I was the only one wearing a hard hat,

I got to take the pictures.

Re-entry went smoothly,

Even with the rebuild being larger and heavier 

with the head and cooling system installed.

Another axle strength test...

Mark was happy but this was the easy part.

With a little sweat and gravity defying tricks,

the Perkins diesel slid into place.

So if your searching online,

a small diesel can be pulled out using the boom!

With new thru-hulls, valves and bottom paint,

the boat could float again.

We'll do the hard part,

get it running...

later.

Thanks Phil, Nolan, Jared and John for your help,

and not getting injured in the process...

TP