Engine Inside of Boat

I arrived at Pachuca at 8.30 AM not expecting much to happen for another day or two and Joel was already on board making preparations for fitting the engine today.  He told me that they would start at 10 AM.

I was down below at 10.30 AM when I heard footsteps above.  I stuck my head out 5 minutes later and blow me down if Pachuca wasn't under tow with one launch forward and one aft.  We arrived at the fuel dock with its steel pylons and I saw that the lifting method was going to be much different than the one that had been described to me two days earlier.  Strapped to a pylon was a swinging crane that they had welded together and the Volvo engine was waiting on the jetty still on the cart that they had used to wheel it from the workshop. 

The process went like clockwork.  They lifted the engine out of the cart then set it down on the jetty, did some fine positioning of the boat, then lifted the engine over the rail and cabin winch and lowered into position with Joel down below to guide it.  They made it look easy.

The crew immediately dismantled the crane and towed Pachuca back to her berth.  The next lifting of the engine off the steel rails would be from a heavy piece of timber across the companionway.

Neil ask me what the clearance was between the cutlass bearing and the propeller.  I told him that it was 1 inch, which was correct given that the shaft diameter is 1.25 inch.  I told him that if it was really important I would dive down and measure.  He told me that they had already arranged for a diver and sure enough 20 minutes later there was a scuba diver below taking the measurement.

Joel did some adjusting below and came up extremely pleased with the mating of the engine and propeller shaft couplers, breaking his usual reserve with a big toothy grin.  There was no need for me in the cramped working space below so I left the boat, had a shower and change of clothes, them waited for Brenda and The Dock Cafe over a cold beer.  Brenda arrived 30 minutes later with my lunch and after a lemonade for her and another beer for me we walked over to Club Cruceros where I had lunch then we explored the DVD and book libraries.  Before we returned to the apartment I had a quick look inside the boat and saw that Joel had removed the steel and the engine was sitting on pieces of wood.  That means that they had been marked for drilling.

The fiberglassers were here and I got my first sight of the new instrument panel.  "Ah, my hermoso!" I said.  They laughed and carried on with their work in the mid day heat.

Brenda's footpath challenge today is  obstruction. These come in many forms and often necessitate taking one's chance with the cars.