DIY weekend #5

Achieved a lot today, finished disassembling the duratorque trailer axles, ready to be refurbished. One bearing was clearly on the way out, the grease was a bit grey, instead of purple, and had fine metal particles through it.
I'm getting the duratorque half axle suspension units overhauled, as part of my winter plan.  It's a bit of a pain, Trailcom Auckland have removed the suspension rubbers, and now I'm waiting for them to come back from JetBlast sandblasters, before getting larger axles welded on, with larger hubs/bearing assemblies, then re-galvanized, and then back to Trailcom for re-rubbering. Should last another 20 years then..!

Old hubs, and bearings

19 October - Finally got the axles back, looking as good as new.  The interesting thing was the unloaded position on these axles was around 30 degrees, much less than the standard duratorques you can purchase from Trailcom, so these must have had the swing arms welded for a low trailer height. It does mean that the loaded position is horizontal.  Low trailer ride height = easier launching !

Below is a pic of the installed suspension. Bought new hubs and bearings to match the new OD of the axles, and make the axles compatible with new trailer hardware. The old stub axles were 1 1/4 inch, (31mm), new ones are 39mm..

Refurbished duratorques, new larger diameter stub axle, hubs and bearings

Got around to installing the Ritchie V-537 bulkhead compass, finally picked a location.  Its a bit more difficult on these boats as the side panels of the cockpit are removable, so you can't mount anything there without losing the ability to remove them, and it is one of the trademark features of these boats. I had to move the power switchboard slightly to accommodate the placement of the compass,which is offset to the left slightly to clear the arc of the winch.  I've also had a handheld compass donated to me by my friend Evan, which will be perfect for taking bearings of landmarks, and triangulating our position.

Also got around to mounting the fishfinder transducer in a more suitable location, inside the hull, underneath the sink unit, firing straight through the hull.  I fixed it using window silicone sealant, but it needs testing in the water to see how well it works, both for depth and picking up fish!

Finally, looked at the outboard mounting board, and decided to replace it, as it was de-laminating after the boat got filled with water during a winter storm. I could do a better job with some a offcut of 18mm tanalized ply. Cut to shape, painted, and fitted. Replaced the bolts which correct length and type, and fitted with sealant.

June Trip to Europe

During my holiday for a friends wedding in Europe, I found time to include visiting my old friend, who lives near a fjord in Denmark.  We went sailing on his 30ft Danish keel boat, in great spring weather.

Its an old IOR design from early 80's called a Albin Ballad, with fin keel, and massive furling headsail with big overlap.

We saw 6.5 knots upwind on the speed log, and 8 on a reach!

Winter DIY progress..

New squabs and interior fitout progress..

While I was at it, installed a new Cobra VHF radio from MrMarine

An improvement on the old trim...