Messages

Fellow D dockers - Gorbash is on the hard for two year maintenance.  All my zincs were gone and there was a a bit of starting electorlysis on the prop.  Just a heads up to check sooner rather than later.  There may be some extra current flowing this spring.  I had a diver put two on 9 months ago.

The fellow painting my (well Gorbashes) bottom suggested digging a used zinc plate out of the toss barrel and droping it over the side at the dock - tied to the block - when the boat is at the dock for a long period.  Old fisherman trick to save the shaft zincs.  I dug out a large plate and am going to try it.

Randy

Thanks for the suggestion Stu.  I will.  Also, I think I saw a blurb about WM making good on this same model for the same problems I had.  Need to dig for it - may have been in PS.

I don't consider Binocs disposable once they hit the $300 level.  I could understand parts of the strap falling off but not the eye cups.  Stu is right, these haven't seen too much sun!  One of the frustrating things is that this particular pair has great collimation so I'd really like to be able to fix them.  We'll keep on using them for the glass for a while longer.

Randy

I'm not generally a flamer or complainer but I've got a 7 year old pair of West Marine $300 binocs that have had all the rubber parts break or fall off.  They refuse to repair or replace them so I'm going to take digital pics and start grinding on them through various forums and directly.

I've taken plenty of things back with good success so I don't know if this is something new.  The headquarters fellow that the store manager called told him to give me a "hug" and the store manager accidently repeated it out loud.  I'm going to see if I can give them a very public hug in return.  I'm pissed.

Randy

Steve, I can't comment on your particular installation like Craig can but I sure am a believer in AIS.  You probably saw my write-up some time ago about using the Shipplotter AIS program on a PC with a modified scanner for a receiver.  Last summer it paid off for us a few times.

We had just left Anacortes to head for Bedwell Harbour (I see you're in Vancouver and know the territory) and were running late so we just tossed everything in the boat and headed out.  In Guemes channel we went from a bright sunny day to a pea soup fog just as we were heading into Rosario strait.  I turned on the radar and immediately saw a huge reflection a couple of miles to the north heading for us at 15 knots or so.  I fired up the AIS program and could see the name of the vessel, the fact that it was being herded by two tugs, and that it was a 1000 foot long oil tanker headed for Anacortes.  If it turned for Anacortes, it would clear us.  If it headed down the strait, it was bore sighted on us.  It was a simple matter to call the ship on the VTS channel by name and ask if it was, in fact, going to make the turn.  It was and all was clear.  I could have called VTS and figured out who the ship was and where it was going but  preferred to have the info available real time.

We use AIS every time we cross Haro strait to avoid being surprised by the fast traffic turning the blind corner at Turn point.  We also use it going through Dodd Narrows, Active Pass, and the other blind, high current passes.  It's great to be able to see the big ferries ahead of time.

Virtually all US commercial vessels and big international ships use AIS.  I did notice that the further north we go toward Port Port Hardy, the fewer smaller vessels use it.  You can count on cruise ships, ferries and big tankers, freighters, and other giants.  You can't count on fishing boats and small and mid sized tugs.

AIS started out for me as a curiosity but has turned into a real benefit in crowded shipping lanes.  Go for it.

Randy

Jon,

Good info but I'd like to argue one point.  You are correct that the fuse should be nearer the source but the batteries are a far far greater source of potential current than the charger.  The issue is fire.  If the wires short at the end away from the charger, the charger dies but the number 4 wires hardly heat up at 20 to 30 amps.  On the other hand, if the short happens at the charger or in the charger, the batteries will happily dump more than enough current to slag the wires and start the insulation and anything else close on fire.

Both the charger AND the battery are sources and the battery is the more dangerous one!  Personally, I put the fuse blocks and breakers near the batteries so shorts anywhere else in the wiring keep the stored energy where it belongs - in the battery.  I suppose you could put fuses at both ends but you'd need to watch the total resistance buildup.  I haven't run the calculations.

Randy

For northwesterners:

I tried 4 D125's from these folks this summer.  They are a local manufacturer in Seattle.

http://www.dynobattery.com/index.htm

They are carried by Fisheries Supply and are much less expensive than Trojans.  Time will tell if they are a bargain.

Randy

Another mystery...

I replaced my engine to hot water heater hoses today and found this 2 inch long hollow piece of plastic stuff sticking a half inch out of the hot water tank outlet.  Can't figure out if it's something that came unglued from inside the heater or was some form of flow restrictor put in by the PO.  Anyone seen this before?

It does explain why the hot water always heated very slowly from engine heat!

Randy

Thanks Ron.  I think others probably have this arrangement as well as several have noted the movement and the fact that the threads bottom out 90 degrees around from the properly aligned position.

Since I didn't know there was a junction there, I never used a sealant on those threads.  For the very short term I'm going to goop up the threads with hi temp goo so we can use it for the next two months.  The motion is really quite small and it's on by 4 1/2 turns.  If it starts to wiggle again, I'll pull all the insulation off and have Catalina make me a new stainless one.

Thanks,
Randy

Well...I thought my riser was stainless from the bend in it but now I'm not sure what's really under the wrapping.  Here is a photo of the whole riser plus one of the flange end unwrapped.  Everything looks solid with no apparent corrosion, pitting, or other problems.  The water injection nipple seems solid as well and makes a "clean" sound when struck with a hammer.

I'm going to goop up the pipe to angle threads and put it back in as have too many projects underway now.  I'm sure it will be good practice to have new one made in the next year or two. 

Any observations or opinions?

Thanks,

Randy

Ron,

Posted my reply to the end of the next thread.  Here it is again plus some additional comments:

Ron:

When I take it off, I'll follow your advice exactly.  What I remember from having the riser and flange in hand before is that screwing the riser into the flange hit a solid stop about 4 or 5 turns in.  This was about 90 degrees past where proper riser orientation happened.  I remember others describing the same thing.  I'll figure out what that stop really is.  If it's the threads running out, your suggestion won't work and that may explain why some of us are having recurrent movement - just not enough threads engaged to provide a solid seal.  I'll post what I find when I get it apart.

Randy

Today I spent some time on the Permatex web site plus standing in front of the gasket section of my local NAPA store.  I bought a tube of Permatex Ultra copper which goes to 700F intermittent.  It's the highest temp material I can find in the Permatex line.  I'd really like to know what the temperature actually is at the interface between the riser threads and the flange threads.  A web search shows diesel exhaust temp running from 300F to 1200F but that flange is a bit downstream and the engine itself is a big heatsink.  I'm going to measure flange temperature with my IR thermometer next time we run the engine under full load for a while to try to figure out what we're really dealing with.

Stu mentioned plumbing tape so I also looked for a high temp tape to use for that function.  I bought a package of Muffler bandage to try out.  It's a thin fibrous bandage that's soaked in a sodium silicate solution before application and then sets with high temperature.  I may try this first.  If so, I'll try using it just like plumber's tape, using as many wraps as it takes to cause the joint to tighten up at just about the correct takeoff angle for the riser.  Since the material is "wet" during application, it may help solve the backing off problem that Stu and Ron have discussed.  Hopefully, the tape will mechanically fill the gap between pipe and flange and will provide a matrix for holding the sodium silicate (muffler paste) in position.  I'll report how it works.

Randy

OK.  I'm going to try the gasket sealer and see how it works.  I'll also use a helper to be sure I don't unscrew the threads when I put on the hump hose.  I don't think I moved it much last time and the paste was still malleable but who knows?

Stu, your thought about plumbing tape is an interesting one.  I wonder if there is a high temp tape-like material that would perform the same function as plumbing tape?  If the gasket sealer doesn't do it, I'm going to see if I can find a tape material to try.  Welding might be fine but somehow I don't find it attractive.  Probably just a comfort zone issue.  I've been bitten way too many times by the law of unintended consequences - a law that makes Murphy's law look weak!

Thanks all - Randy

Thanks all for the replies so far.  Stu, I'll see what you find out and then take another shot at it.  There is a very minor amount of carbon deposited on the heat exchanger so there is a litttle blow-by. 

I suppose the good news is that I'm getting really good at getting the riser in and out quickly....  I'd like not to do it too many more times as the fresh water hoses to the water heater and many other projects await!

Randy

Ron, Stu or others,

My riser started moving again when gripped at the top end of the blue hump hose.  This means the riser is moving slightly in the exhaust flange again.  I've tried two different types of muffler paste but it still coming loose.  I've examined the threads in the flange and on the riser and they appear to be in good shape.  The hump hose end moves about a sixteenth or so so the motion at the threads is pretty small.  There doesn't appear to be any unusual vibration, nor is the riser up against anything that would induce a side load.

I remember Ron saying he used a high temp RTV.  Do you remember what you used?  Any other suggestions for something that will really cement the riser in the flange?

Thanks,

Randy

I rent a 1 7/8 inch open ended wrench at my local rental outfit on the way to the boat.  It's about 2 feet long and is useful for self defense as well as unlocking the packing gland.  I put the West Marine adjustable on the gland so it turns against the bottom of the boat and then give a gentle tug on the big wrench.  Rental fee is $7.  Seems silly for a 15 second task but it beats all the fooling around, soaking, and waiting I did before.

Randy

Gorbash is back home.  Good trip around the usual Gulf Island haunts.  Great weather.