Messages

Great article Stu, thanks!

I am moving Dixie south for the Winter and will be crossing the notorious Columbia River Bar sometime the end of this month. Any of you Pacific NW Sailors who have made that crossing with good advice for my first time would be very appreciated. They don't call it the graveyard of the Pacific for nothing.

Thanks, Kirk

The stuff from Hamilton Marine looks just like the WM insulation I just used couple of months ago....... and half the price! The 32x54 should give you enough to do the entire compartment but lay it out carefully and try to use all of it. I had to patch remnants to the underside of the top cover. Made a huge difference on mine.

Both the battery bank and the engine panel volt meter show the same reading. Pretty sure it is going to need a new v regulator, have a buddy coming up this weekend with tools who can check it out for me. You are correct Ron, my engine does not have the High Temp warning switch so I won't be using this wire after all.

Thanks, Kirk

Just got back to the water and am seeing the Volt Meter (part of the wiring harness upgrade over the Winter) nearly pegging at 15 to 16 volts and drops very little even at idle rpm? I have checked all connections and appears nothing loose and wired correctly. Where would the likely place to start looking be?

On another note concerning the wiring harness upgrade, the Tan/Black wire is for the High Temp Alarm and is suppose to run from the panel to the high temp switch on the block? My ignorance is showing but where will I find the high temp switch on the block?

Thanks kindly, Kirk

Ditto on the Magic Eraser. They didn't end up looking brand new but sure made them look much, much better!

Hi Mel,

Yes, new insulation from WM (about $120.). Somebody told me you can get the same stuff at a car stereo shop that does installations but I didn't have any luck and we have very few of those shops up here. The old insulation was saturated with oil & antifreeze. Can't believe how much better the cabin smells with that taken out!

Thanks, Kirk

Jack, we will be sailing out of Cap Sante for the Summer, will keep my eyes & ears open!

Dave, no wonder I can't get the batteries to charge!

prh77, all hoses were changed out....... including those which were a real trick!

Thanks, Kirk

and how could I have forgot about the joy I had replacing the cutless bearing and the old oberdorfer with the rusted stud broken off in the block! Makes me break out in a sweat just bringing it up....... but hey, got 'er done!

It's been a long time on the hard but am about ready to put Dixie back in the water, thanks to many of you on this site! There is really no way I could have done it without your help. Thought I would attach a picture of the M25-XP and wish I would have thought to take a 'before' photo to show how far we've come. This is after having done the wiring harness upgrade, replaced all fuel and water hoses, pulled and cleaned the fuel tank with acetone, pulled the HX and had it boiled out before priming and repainting, chucked the Jabsco and replaced with a Raritan PHII and much more that escapes me at the moment. All this from a guy who hadn't pulled a wrench since the late 60's!

You guys have been very kind and once again, I do appreciate your great advice!

Thanks, Kirk

Thanks very much I do appreciate your help and great advice!

I just received the PHII and am getting ready to deepsix the Jabsco but have several questions that I do not find answers to in the many PHII/Jabsco threads (and my 2 calls to the Raritan tech line have not been returned yet).

1.   The discharge hose on the rear of PHII goes 90 degrees straight down (whereas the Jabsco goes out the side straight into the hanging locker) and not enough clearance unless I drill a 2" hole in the bathroom floor (which is the way the diagram shows it) to route it forward into the hanging locker where it needs to make another 90 degree upwards to a vented loop then 90 degree's back down and forward again into the port settee storage where the holding tank is. This sure seems like alot of 90 degree turns for solid waster to travel in such a small 1 1/2" hose, does it actually work without getting plugged up?

2.   Has anybody else drilled a hole in the floor to accommodate the discharge hose and was there enough room under the floor to make this work?

4.   How high does the vented loop need to be to make it work properly (the diagram does not specify).

Thanks as always for your help!
Kirk

Hey Kevin, I did mine several months ago and if I can do it just about anybody who can read and is willing to take the time to methodically go thru the process can do it. You absolutely do need to trace the wires though as several on mine were different colors from end to end. One thing I would really recommend is that you open up the aft cabin by removing the port and aft wall partitions (an electric screwdriver is great...... lots of screws!) which really gives you free access to the existing wiring and running the new harness. This would also be a great time to pull and clean the fuel tank (Ron Hill article in Technotes) and replace the fuel lines. Again, sounds much harder than it is and truly worth the piece of mind, you won't believe how much crap is growing in your tank unless it's been done by the po.

Good luck!
Kirk

That's actually my project today will let you know how it turns out. I have been saturatiing daily with PBB......

Steve,

Where did you find it 'off the shelf'? Yes you're right I do know the answer, visions of exploding fireballs would put a damper on that first cup of coffee in the morning!

Thanks, Kirk