Essential spare parts for Chesapeake Bay delivery

[MarkT]

In the first week of April I will be delivering my new boat down the Chesapeake Bay from Baltimore to Gloucester Point VA. The boat is a 1988 model #326. The previous owners had the boat two years and it almost never left the dock so it comes with nothing extra in the way of spare parts. I figure I need some basic spare parts for the engine, impeller, belt, fluids, etc. The question is what things would I be well advised to have that I might not know about already. This isn't my first boat so I'm well aware of the concerns of picking weather windows for making the trip at this time of year. I was on the bay on Sunday delivering my old boat to it's new home. The weather was beautiful but the wind off the water in March is still VERY cold.

She also has a spinnaker pole and halyards etc to fly the spinnaker just no sail.

Mark Tamblyn
Alena #326

[BillG]

since you don't know the condition of the diesel in the tank, make sure you have extra fuel  filters for the Racor.

[Ken Juul]

If you don't have paper copies, down load from the home page the owners manual and engine manual either onto a laptop or print your own copies.  Good reference if questions arise.

Duct Tape

the engine is metric.  Basic metric wrenches and or sockets.

Check hoses to the thru hulls.  One sink and the engine are probably all you really need to open.  If the hoses look suspect, enough of the proper size hose and hose clamps to make an emergency repair. 

Have you looked at the anchor/rode.  Can it be deployed in an emergency?

check your PM

[Craig Illman]

Mark - there's some standard hardware on the engine too. An 11/16" box-open wrench fits both the HX zinc and the transmission dipstick (although it might be a close metric equivalent). Not required for your trip, but a good addition to the toolbox.

Craig

[Stu Jackson]

Mark, this one's easy:  a search on the word spares brings up many hits, but this recent one covered just about everything, with humor --  http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,4378.0.html  While some material may be considered "overkill" for your limited cruise, it's never too early to start assembling what you should have on board.  Don't forget the tools and the manuals.

[MarkT]

Useful advice. I will make sure I have a spare racor element I would likely have missed that and I've just now found the instructions on changing it. I have the manuals printed and I expect to have lots of tools spare belt, spare raw water impeller, new battery plus a second in case of issues. I guess I should figure out what parts I need for the head in case that is a problem. My wife and kids will be part of this adventure after the initial shake down and I don't want them to suffer the indignity of the bucket.

It is a week before our departure so if anyone else has any thoughts please chime in.

Mark Tamblyn

[WTunnessen]

Not a spare part, but a suggestion if you have not done it already:  Check the exhaust manifold and hoses before heading out.  The exhaust line leaving the engine is black steel pipe wrapped insulation.  If it has not already been replaced, its probably getting close to the end of its life.  You probably need to grab it and give it a good firm shake since visual inspection won't work.

Also check closely the "Y" shaped fitting where the raw water mixes with the exhaust prior to going into the water muffler. Mine had to be replace last year right before I delivered #531 (1988) from Norfolk to Galesville MD.  It failed just after the survey, in fact...   Almost had to postpone delivery because of the repair, but the PO was a real gentleman and ensured it was fixed.

There is a lot written on the exhaust system on this forum.

You might also look at forum threads for other common issues on hulls of the era.

[MarkT]

After some challenges our new boat is now tied up on the Potomac at a friend's dock and only an easy weekend sail from her final home at Gloucester Point VA.

Lessons Learned:
Buy a Fresh Water Pump and a Raw Water Pump as spares. You will need them one day so buy them now.
Expect engine water hoses to fail and watch the temp gauge. (A water hose failed near the water heater failed and we lost our fresh water circulating pump too)
Check out your sails and lines before getting into high winds. There were no reefing lines rigged on our main though all the hardware was there to do the job.
Buy gloves for handling the lines
Buy a new battery unless you know absolutely that the battery is good.
Bring metric tools for the engine, feeler gauges to check the alignment
volt meter
soldering iron and solder along with misc connectors and ends for wire, wire strippers and crimp tool.
wire for connecting new required accessories (12V lighter plug and galley light)
trickle charger (in case of battery charger failure)
Be sure your ground tackle is up to snuff and have a backup anchor. (we used both anchors when we anchored with no engine)
Bring a dinghy and outboard
A 15A to 30A adapter plug is very useful when getting power to a boat on the hard as is a long extension cord.
A plug in anchor light like a Davis light is a very useful accessory
Paper charts and electronic charts (I have Sea Clear and NOAA charts on my laptop)
101 sealant, sail lube, ptfe for the zippers, cordage for tying up things, simple green, 409 cleaner, head lube etc etc
A propane heater for this time of year is essential
Down sleeping bag

There is much more but the important thing is to not go to sea with a tight schedule and with a bad weather forecast. We were careful of when we were on the bay and so when we ran into trouble it was not a big deal to sail to an anchorage or put up sails while troubleshooting the engine. Having enough hands with some experience helps an awful lot too.

Mark & Annette Tamblyn
1987 Catalina34 #326 Alena
Gloucester Point VA

[Stu Jackson]

Congratulations, Mark, on your first trip.  Your points are very valid.

For the hoses to the hot water heater, please see this photographic post I started that explains WHY ALL owners of older boats MUST check them out carefully: 

Hose Replacement to HW heater http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,3769.0.html

In spite of your travails, I'm sure you had, in retrospect, a great cruise!   

And you do have a very good engine (M25XP???) and you'll get years of life out of it.  We're here to help you out with anything you need.

Welcome aboard.

[MarkT]

My engine is an M25 also known as a Kubota D850 when you are buying your new water pump from edi distributors.

The replacement water pump was less than $100 (fresh water / circulating pump)  www.edi-dist.com. They were the cheapest source we found for Kubota parts and they had the part shipped to us overnight.

Mark Tamblyn