Deeper into the Mine

My last blog entry was accurately titled "Over the Worst" but we are nevertheless going deeper and deeper into this mine(field) and steadily taking the boat apart.

Pachuca in the work shed

The remaining antifouling has been removed from the starboard side and as I had expected we found less osmosis on that side of the boat. Bruce attributed that to the fact that for some reason the ultra hard "Copper Coat" antifouling was much thicker (and harder to remove!) on the starboard side.  With that difficult and toxic task completed Bruce was able to focus his attention on other matters.

The mast has been completely stripped for painting after a lot of effort spanning two days by Bruce and Steve the rigger.  All of the lines have been removed and several  of them will be replaced, no surprise given that they were on the boat when I purchased her in 2005.  It was discovered that the mainsail outhaul line had a twist in it inside of the boom which explained why try as I might I had not been able to keep the foot of the sail properly stretched.  Also removed were the mast steps, wind instruments, radar dome, standing rigging, hounds, crosstrees, etc.  A small  crack was discovered on one of the lower crosstrees that was a failure waiting to  happen, and there was the inevitable corrosion which has been dealt with.  The masthead "Windex" wind indicator fell apart and my reaction was surprise that it had lasted so long because life for that fragile instrument at the top of the mast for a decade through several storms and countless gales had been as difficult as it gets on a boat.

Stripped Mast

To prepare the deck for painting we removed the stainless steel platform in front of the mast then all of the fittings associated with the life raft.  We then removed two bolts that had been embedded in the deck above the navigation station to support the cumbersome old-style radar that had been on the boat when I purchased her.  I had cut off the lower half of the bolts but had not been game to cut into the decking to remove the upper parts.  The heads of the bolts had been bleeding rust onto the deck and had to be removed before painting.

Removing radar bolts

Over the telephone Bruce had told me that Steve had recommended that we remove the mast stump - the part of the mast that passed through the deck into the cabin and was supported by a thick (12mm or so) plate below the floor because we should see what was in that area.  My initial reaction was shock at the scale of that task but I agreed.  By the time I visited the boat the stump had been removed with the assistance of a small crane and I helped Bruce remove the supporting base plate.

What we found was a sorry mess.  Corrosion had turned parts of the aluminium material to a white paste and the drains connecting that section of the bilge to the rest of the system were blocked up.  Sooner or later the base would have failed leading to catastrophic consequences for the mast.  After Bruce had cleaned up the piece we had a discussion about its condition and agreed that the entire piece should be replaced.  The new piece will have smaller and better targeted openings for the bilge drains and be anodized rather than left bare had the original plate been.  Greg the marine electronics man (who had been my go-to man since the Angie days in the mid  80's) knew Pachuca well and mentioned that the aluminium supporting plate had been retrofitted when problems had developed where the mast threatened to punch its way through the hull.

Mast stump removed, looking at aluminium base

Underside of plate.  Black cables are for lightning protection

Sad condition

Removing that plate provided good access to the forward keel bolt and having the boat resting on its keel provides the perfect opportunity to see if we can (or even want to because they can be over tightened) tighten the bolts and we will seek advice on this.  (There is no movement or leak from the keel, but hairline cracks in the antifouling appears at the extreme ends of the join to the keel, considered normal and inconsequential, and reflect the fact that the end keel bolts must leave some distance to the ends of the join.)

Then Zelko came into the picture.  Zelko is an experience boat builder from the days when Marco had his small shipyard.  His expertise is in teak.  Among his many achievements, he did all of the teak work on Greg Norman's gigantic (69.5 meters/223 ft) $70 million yacht built by Austal Shipbuilding a few miles to the south.  Bruce and Zelko go back a long way, and Bruce brought him on board to discuss some requirements. 

In order properly repaint the deck and to eliminate possibility of leak the boat's toe rails must be removed.  The big problem of this task is gaining access to the hundreds of closely spaced bolts running along the inside edge of the hull.  We have been immeasurably helped by my having stripped all of the obnoxious mold-growing material that had been glued to walls and ceiling from one end of the boat to the other.  This gave us relatively good access to most of the screws.

Note main table at left.  Entire bilge will be prepared and painted.

Section after cleaning.  Single lead  keel bolt at end compartment.

The ceiling of the main cabin must be dropped.  I've done this several times and will do the work on my next visit.  However, a cabinet on the starboard side was built after that section of the ceiling was put  up. so we had to spend some time cutting the panel in two and removing the two sections.  Then there as the more difficult problem of exposing the area above and behind the built-in drawers.  Zelko had a good look at the problem and came up with the plan of cutting the supports of several of the drawers (which are now in my garage), which he would rebuild later.  This plan made my thinning hair stand on end but I trust that Zelco knows what he is doing.

While we were at it, we discussed the Bruce's discovery that the deck was flexing under foot load on each side of the cabin, something  that I had never noticed.  With those areas exposed Zelko will  be able to fit 2 or 3 small deck supporting beams along those spans.

We then went topside and discussed the replacement of the two plyboard pieces that support the life raft.  My design and material (marine ply of course) was strong and snug fitting along the curve of the deck, but I had made the mistake of using nails of mild steel which had over time bled rust down the  sides and onto the deck.  Zelko will rebuild them of teak using my pieces as patterns.  We then discussed the replacement of the bases of the rail stanchions, which is currently a mixture of original teak and modern polymer material that I cut and installed in Mexico.

Life raft supports.  Lower part built by me to eliminate deck curve.

Another thing that we will fix is the insane path of the port water tank filler hose that passes diagonally through the electrical compartment.  We will move the filler forward to above the water tank where it belongs, and as the starboard side is set up.

I also took Pachuca's bow plate to Osborne Park on the other side of the city for a quotation on a new one of thicker plate than the current 1.3 mm. The job will be made much easier by the fact that the fabricator will have a perfect pattern to work from  and will not have to visit the boat.  ... Why the other side of the city?  Bruce told me that the further away you get from Fremantle, the cheaper the stainless steel work gets.

And we also discussed removing the heavy aft batteries in order to gain access to the area below the cockpit.  I require this access to replace the connection between the HF radio tuner in the lazarette and the ground shoe on the starboard side of the hull.  The thin and broad copper ribbon has proven to be hopeless for strength and durability and I will consult Greg about using a heavy cable instead.

Over the Worst

The worst is over with the unexpectedly difficult job of removing all of the antifouling.  Bruce has managed to break through the layers of super hard "Coppercoat" that had been laid before my time, without damage to the gelcoat.  I've been shown the weight of the material removed and expect Pachuca to ride much higher in the water when she is launched.  I must give Bruce credit for avoiding the fast and easy way of soda blasting, which would have damaged the gelcoat resulting in much remedial work later.

This week I worked with Bruce to remove Pachuca's stainless steel bow plate which shows the scars of its successful role in protecting the hull from anchor damage.  We managed to remove the three bolts fixing the plate at the bow with some difficulty but the screws along the outer edge were easy to remove.  Then it was a matter of prying the plate from the spots of adhesive that bonded it to the gelcoat.  We now have a choice of polishing up the bow plate or having a new one made.  Making a new one would be relatively easy giving that the fabricator would have a pattern to work with, and Bruce will seek a quotation.

Bow Plate Off

Stern Fittings Off

For me our most satisfying work was a the stern of the boat, where our goal was to remove the fittings that support the Monitor self steering and the boarding ladder in preparation for the spray painting of the hull.  This necessitated my removal of the gas cylinders and their plywood box from the lazarette, taking great care when detaching the gas regulator and gas sensor.

But then Bruce observed that the two large aluminum bollards at the stern did not appear to be on proper bedding.  I agreed that it could be the case, given that I had never touched them during my ownership of the boat.  I then pointed out my concerns of a large diameter brass fitting for the boat's bilge pump. In  calm conditions this fitting was above the water, but it rough conditions, the fitting would be in and out of the water as the boat pitched.  Bruce looked around the edge of the fitting and he could see my light inside of the lazarette, indicating a huge potential for leaking.  This could very well explain the enormous amount of water that the boat has always shipped when sailing hard to weather.  Over the years I had eliminated the bow and toe rail areas as well as hosing and keel bolts as the source of the leaks, and I had had all through-hull fittings below the waterline replaced in 2007. 


I knew that there was a problem in that area because the in rough conditions there would always be water sloshing in the lazarette before finding its way into the bilge.    If this turns out to be the source of the leaks then I deserve a big kick in the backside and an apology for all who have crewed on the boat for not having having dealt with this at the beginning.

That day Bruce drove to Kewdale to have the bollards soaked in acid to help free the bolts, which will be removed with the use of heat if necessary.  They will then be refinished and come back as new.  Why the trouble?  New ones will cost over $100 apiece and will have a different footprint than the existing ones.

 In clearing the lazarette the layers of thin and wide copper foil that acted as conductor between the grounding plate on the hull of the boat and the HF radio tuner disintegrated like confetti before my eyes, no doubt facilitated by the enormous amounts of salt water that had sloshed around that section of the copper day after day.  This means that we will need to gain access to the below-cockpit space by removing the three extremely heaving batteries.  I will consult with Greg Hansen on setting a more durable ground cable.  I can't complain too much because the ground plate and copper connector that I installed in Mexico had done a brilliant job of providing me with good long distance HF communications.  I reliably spoke with South Africa twice a day until I reached Cape Leeuwin.

This all represents the inevitable mission creep to be expected in a project like this.  I told Bruce that now that we are into it, let's do it right, and I'll worry about the money (gulp!).  He gave me a pat on the shoulder in appreciation.  Putting myself in his place, the last thing that I would want is for the client to be carping about delays and whining about costs.  You either trust the man or you don't. If you trust him then support him, and if you don't then replace him with someone else.

The grey circles on the hull mark the areas of osmosis.  They are not exactly trivial as I had thought, but not particularly bad either.  I expect the starboard side to be much better because there were no bulges showing through the antifouling. I'll know when Bruce has finished sanding the remaining area aft of the keel.