No pictures taken but on Friday, Jennifer, the kids and I hosted Graeme and Janna and their two kids on Appa. We got to the dock at 430pm and took a look at the weather and decided to strip the cover off and go sailing. By 5 we were out there. A little blustery and Sammy started to act sick. Fever and the like. She rallied though and we were able to have a nice sail to Port Madison and then back to Shileshole.
For those that don't know, Janna wrote the very entertaining Motion of the Ocean. Once back in the slip after a 8-9 knot crossing of the Sound, we started to make pizzas and SB75s. Again for those that don't know, SB75s are our offical boat drink. SkyBison75 is the full name. Rum with squeeze of lemon or lime mixed with grapefruit drink. We like this one.
Graeme and Janna own Kotuku and raced pretty much all last year. They are getting ready to move abroad this summer in preparation to take the boat out on a cruise next year. We picked their brains about the trials and tribulations of living on a small boat and cruising. We had a great time. That Kotuku is a cool boat. They keep her just a couple slips away from us.
So on Sunday I was able to put a couple hours together, thanks to my wife, and I got a bunch done on Appa. Here are the teak decks with the TeakGuard on them. I still have to do the starboard side and the cabin top. Couple of days and I will be done. For now.
So on Sunday I was able to put a couple hours together, thanks to my wife, and I got a bunch done on Appa. Here are the teak decks with the TeakGuard on them. I still have to do the starboard side and the cabin top. Couple of days and I will be done. For now.
I think they look pretty good. Especially when compared to last year at this time.
While taking Appa out on Friday the engine cranked over very slowly and almost seemed like it wouldn't start. I thought it might be the wiring as the start battery is fairly new. The wiring was undersized I thought and I was not impressed with its installation either. There was a selector switch buried next to the start battery that would allow you to crank the engine over with the house bank, the start battery OR both. Normally that is a fine arrangement except the wire running from the house bank to the battery selector was size #6 and had a run of 20 feet. After the 20 foot run, it had to go through the selector and that would have some voltage drop and then it had to go another 15 feet to the starter. Not 15 feet as a miniature crow would fly mind you.
So I got rid of the selector and the run from the house battery. I figure if I need the house bank to start the engine, I'll have my heavy duty jumper cables to do it. The start battery is separated from the starter by a big selector switch that cuts the ground to the starter. Not sure why it is wired like this. Might have something to do with the fact this engine does not have a ground UNTIL you press the start button. Then it grounds itself and then the starter can work. For sure there are some funky things going on with the boat electrically. I'm going to have to ask people smarter than me about this. Anyway, as it stands now the start battery is hooked directly to the starter. This is how it normally was anyhow as the selector switch was buried and I just left it selected to the start battery. The engine started better than I have ever heard but it was warm out and that might have helped. I'll try again this coming week after it has sat for a bit. I will still increase the size of the positive and ground wires from the engine and try to decrease the run.
That is about it for now.
While taking Appa out on Friday the engine cranked over very slowly and almost seemed like it wouldn't start. I thought it might be the wiring as the start battery is fairly new. The wiring was undersized I thought and I was not impressed with its installation either. There was a selector switch buried next to the start battery that would allow you to crank the engine over with the house bank, the start battery OR both. Normally that is a fine arrangement except the wire running from the house bank to the battery selector was size #6 and had a run of 20 feet. After the 20 foot run, it had to go through the selector and that would have some voltage drop and then it had to go another 15 feet to the starter. Not 15 feet as a miniature crow would fly mind you.
So I got rid of the selector and the run from the house battery. I figure if I need the house bank to start the engine, I'll have my heavy duty jumper cables to do it. The start battery is separated from the starter by a big selector switch that cuts the ground to the starter. Not sure why it is wired like this. Might have something to do with the fact this engine does not have a ground UNTIL you press the start button. Then it grounds itself and then the starter can work. For sure there are some funky things going on with the boat electrically. I'm going to have to ask people smarter than me about this. Anyway, as it stands now the start battery is hooked directly to the starter. This is how it normally was anyhow as the selector switch was buried and I just left it selected to the start battery. The engine started better than I have ever heard but it was warm out and that might have helped. I'll try again this coming week after it has sat for a bit. I will still increase the size of the positive and ground wires from the engine and try to decrease the run.
That is about it for now.
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