Day 24 We have liftoff!

Ladies and gentlemen--we have achieved lift off!!

The engine has started!!  The mechanic showed up this morning and in a space of two hours we were up and running.  While I watched intently, Tracy made lots of notes and watched.  We both learned a lot about the ins and outs of how to do the jobs.  We started out changing the first filter.  I'd have screwed it up.  My old Austin had a similar filter arrangement.  The big difference was that the screw up the center of the filter undid the entire filter.  With this filter, it only opened up the filter to drain the bottom of the filter.  It turns out that the entire filter has to be turned as a unit.  With that done, it dropped off slick as a whistle.  All the air has to be bled out of the filters.  Bet you didn't know that.  No air can get into the engine--at least not that way.  Bill(the previous owner) had installed an extra pump in front of the filters and it drove all the air out of all three just fine.  The engine started up at the first crank of the starter.  We had achieved engine!!

After letting it warm up for 10 minutes we shut it down and changed the oil.  Again--slick as a whistle.  Fired it up again to let the oil circulate and we were done.  Now we can do what ever we want--even go sailing--yes--go sailing!

After we came back from running errands--our "drill" came in as did the bits that fit in it so we can use it with the winches.  Our third remote control showed up for our Select Comfort mattress(it didn't work right either) and the cutting board we ordered for the new stove came also.  We were on a roll.  We went to the fuel/pump out dock to check on taking Zephyr over for her pump out. They had closed early.  Oh well, you can't win them all.  

Tomorrows another day.