Norm from Pat's Marine came down to Zephyr to inspect our "new" Paragon transmission. After an hour+ of looking and tinkering with it, his report--TAKE IT OUT! Norm said it could be adjusted by removing a washer on the side of it, but that probably wouldn't solve the problem. The transmission just wants to rotate the propeller shaft when we are in neutral. With Zephyr having an "Aqua Drive"(like a universal joint on a car) the drag on the propeller shaft is non-existent. With out this "drag" on the shaft, it just wants to turn and that is a bad thing. If we started the engine at anchor to charge the batteries(regularly done when out cruising) the boat would most like drift around the bay on the end of the anchor chain. With other boats in the harbor, there is a good chance that we would hit them as we moved--again--not a good thing.
Norm also said that the water pump needs replacing(already have a spare) and that the anti-syphon device on the engine exhaust cooling system needs to be replaced(lots of water blows out the top of the fitting when the engine is going. I'd checked that fitting a month ago and it had appeared fine but will now needs to be replaced. More projects to be done.
Calls were made and the discussion has started as to who is going to pay for this. We contend that we already paid for the transmission and it's installation. Sea Marine says that they are just the "middle man"--all they did was install it. Great Lakes Marine(dealer that sold Sea Marine the transmission) says they want it shipped back to them so they can put it on their bench and inspect it and if they find anything wrong(which we all know they won't find anything wrong), they will pay the freight both ways but that is the scope of what they will cover. No one is about to take responsibility for the cost of the labor to pull it out and put it back in!!! The finger keeps getting pointed at us for the costs(insert lots of $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$here). I spoke to Sea Marine and they are willing to give us a free haul out and put us in their yard at no expense plus give us a reduced rate on the labor fees(can range up to $115.00 an hour) to get the job done (because we have been such a good client) but that's all they're are willing to do at this time. Keep in mind that there are some times that up to three people will be involved in taking this out and putting it back in. The labor fees grow quickly.
Later in the afternoon, I got a call from Larry of Sea Marine(head mechanic). He had been talking to Great Lakes Marine about the situation and they "might" cover some of the labor fees but want pictures of the boat(Good knows why) and the engine room sent to them. Larry talked to several people and as they say--"the lines of communication have been established". They want an accounting of the hours that get put in doing the job and then and only then will they make the decision as to how much they "might"cover in the labor fees.
With this information in hand, there was no longer a reason to stay in Shilshole Marine another day as the weather was deteriorating so we decided to head back to Point Hudson at Port Townsend. We left in cold weather and it just got worse. Snow. Winds built to 35 knots--of course straight at us from the North and lots of rolling waves(up to about 4 to 5 feet) about an hour out. We took lots of water over the bow sweeping the deck and splashing into the front of the cockpit area. The snow was on and off but the winds just kept at us. The tidal currents hadn't changed so we were still fighting the end of those so we were only doing 3 knot at some times and got knocked down to 1 knot several times. We didn't start making decent time till the last leg of the journey. What took us 5 hours to do on Sunday, took us over 7 hours yesterday. We left just after 1115 hours and got in about 1840(6:45pm) hours. A long slog. The fur people were NOT impressed. We never saw Shadow. Blue drooled and lost her breakfast. She then plunked herself down in the galley and didn't leave. Snowshoe took it the worst. He came up into the cockpit for a while and just looked miserable. Drooling--even after getting a sea sickness pill and yarking down in the cabin. He just isn't a great sailor. He spent the majority of the trip in the cockpit sitting and drooling in someones lap.
The Garmin chart plotter started acting up again just as we were setting off. It had been fine for the trip down. On and off, on and off. I checked the bus bar that it is attached to(feeds the power from the main circuit board) and got no power there at all. As I went about other jobs getting ready, Matt started in on finding out the problem. It ended up being a loose screw at the circuit breaker. He checked and tightened up all the screws while he was at it. It's great having a circuit savey person on board that can diagnose and fix problems like this. I'll get there in time. Once he was done, the plotter worked perfectly.
We passed freighters and several tug boats all heading up the channel to Seattle and had several Coast Guard helicopters fly past us. There was a "Small Craft Warning" out for the Admiralty Inlet. We got passed by a Coast Guard cutter about mid afternoon. Sure look big as they passed us.
About 5:00pm we heard on our VHF radio a call from the Coast Guard that there were 4 people in the water off Point Wilson--just past Point Hudson. A call was put out by the station at Port Angeles and two different cutters responded. The race was on to see who could get there first. Apparently a boat sank or floundered in the winds and surf and four people ended up in the water. The Coast Guard Cutter Midgett got there first and pulled the people aboard. From what we heard on the radio, everyone was fine. As cold as it was yesterday, I can't imagine how cold the water mixed with winds were on them. YEOW!!
We pulled into Point Hudson just before sunset and got tied up. The winds had dropped so it wasn't to bad getting in. Matt--our son came along for the ride. He got chilled to the core being out there. During the trip, he went out on deck to take a look around. That last about a minute and he was back inside the enclosed cockpit area(thanks Bill & Susan-sure glad you had it installed). The Webasto heater was fired up and by the time we got back from dinner, the cabin was nice and warm.
Today(still cold) will be spent cleaning Zephyrs exterior. With waves crashing over the bow on the trip up, we are pretty well covered in salt and all that has to be cleaned off before we get hauled out. I'm sure more discussion will be had over the next day or so to iron out the monies involved in this latest chapter on us trying to "live the dream".
It would appear that Alaska is now out of the running for us to see it. Figuring a minimum of a month to get the transmission out, shipped back, inspected, shipped back and installed. Plus then there has to be hours put on it to make sure it is functioning the way it is supposed to and it will be June at the earliest and that is too late to head North. OH SNAP as Amy would say!!
Time will tell. Stay tuned for more of the continuing adventures of Zephyr and her motley crew. Some day we'll get out of here!?!
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