This weekend Mariola attended the 24th Annual  Morgan Invasion at The St. Pete Yacht Club at Pass-A-Grille. It was a decent event with about 14 boats turning out. The Saturday race began about 11:00 and Mariola finished sometime around 3:00. Winds were from the south and very light in the a.m. This made the first, downwind leg slow going. Around noonish the wind picked up and came around to the Southwest. This made for a great close hauled second leg and beam/close reach on the final third leg. Mariola placed third in her class – which I think was made up of 5 boats. It was tight for the top 3 spots – with only 45 seconds between first and third place.

Special thanks to Antony of Bliss, Ross_in_Tampa and CannonBall for crewing on Saturday. Great job and I really appreciate it fellas – had a great time.

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This title kinda sounds like some sort of fetish movie  – which if it was, would probably earn me a lot more dinero. Actually it’s just overdue maintenance on Mariola, the PyratSail Morgan 321. After a little bit of price quoting, I chose Salt Creek Marina for my haulout and bottomjob. They quoted a fair price ($32.50/foot all included), are a do-it-yourself yard and most importantly, close to home. I’ve been through the haulout process before and there’s a lot of back-and-forthing during the week to fix those minor things you normally can’t get at. One of them is waxing the topsides.

Lather, Rinse, Repeat

Shaving, mowing the grass, trimming bushes – these are all things that I HATE. They are time consuming, the results are temporary and you have to repeat them after a very short time. I want anything I spend time on to last for as long as possible. This sent me on the search for the ultimate boat wax. What I learned, I think, is that any good wax has high quality carnuba and some fancy synthetic polymers in it. I was pretty much settled on 3M paste wax when I walked into West Marine, but the helpful sales lady said that Trewax is the best, and she used to wax boats for a living. I picked up two cans, checked out and headed down to the boat with Cannonball.

Polishing – Poland Style

Armed with TWO brand new polisher/buffers from Harbor Freight Tools, Cannonball and I figure we’ll have this job knocked out in a couple hours. A little note on Harbor Freight. They have tons of cheap tools at great prices. If you find something on sale on their website, print it out and bring it in. The store doesn’t keep track of the online sale prices and only honors them with a print out. They did go in the back room and make a print out for me since I didn’t know the policy until I got there and stared at them like they were insane “…but it’s YOUR website…” Back to polishing – I got two because they were on sale for $29.00 ea. which made me think we could cut our time in half by each working on one side.  The plan worked and the two of us got the boat washed and waxed in about 3 hours. One trick with the Trewax. Instructions say to let the wax dry to a white haze. Don’t let it dry too long. As soon as it starts to haze, start buffing. If you wait too long in the sun the wax turns to a white cement. Really hard to buff off.

A word about the buffers – they fall off the tops of the ladders very easily. I broke mine. The plastic pad backer cracked minutes into the jog. Luckily it held out and didn’t seem to effect anything.

Up Salt Creek

Salt Creek Marina boat yard is great. There’s another yard right next door called Salt Creek Boat Works. It’s very confusing, the Marina was originally owned by the owner of the Works, and the manager of the Works now works at the Marina…blah blah. One thing pointed out to me by a friend was that the Works offers a BoatUS discount, the Marina doesn’t. I think the price given to me by the Marina was fare so I’m not too worried about missing out on the discount – at least I don’t want to know what it would have been…

Overall, a great experience and everybody at the yard was very friendly. Someone even stopped by to give away extra expoxy they had mixed. It worked perfect to fill some gouges on the bow. Mariola is now shined up and the bottom is barnacle-free. Getting ready for some big excursions. More on that to come….

Here’s an exciting video of the waxing.

Salt Creek Marina, Manager: Jim Bradford 727-895-4481

“RumHead, this is your wallet – what’s wrong with you? I’m down here on your right cheek, doing wallet stuff, and suddenly you wrench me open and tear out my innards, leaving me feeling empty and violated! How could you be so cruel!?!”
“Shut-up wallet, get used to it”, RumHead.

I’m standing over a workbench in the repair area of Will’s Starter and Alternator.  The bench is covered in parts – copper, wirey, electronical looking parts. The down-to-business technician picks up a round wired piece and begins to explain it’s decrepit state – all I can think is “how will my alternator and starter ever get back together!?” They look nothing like they did when I dropped them off – they must have exploded! I’m sure for the technician, the reassembly is something he can do in his sleep – to me, it is certain doom for my precious Yanmar electrical department. His words go in one ear and out the other – is that thingy in his hand from the alternator? What’s that big copper gadget? What a cool looking pair of pliers, I smell grease…

I refocus on his words – the pile of dirty copper parts makes my head hurt. I ask – “when you said “test” I thought you hooked them up to a machine to see if they work.” “No, how can I inspect them if I don’t take them apart?” he said. I could see what he was thinking – “how did this guy manage to put his shoes on this morning?” Electric stuff baffles me, I admit it. It’s difficult enough when the offending unit is whole – impossible when it’s strewn out on a bench before my eyes. My Yanmar, my entire sailing future was in their hands.

Patient Down-To-Business Tech does his best to explain why my alternator and starter are ready for retirement and that they have similar, even better, replacement parts that are less expensive than Yanmar. He gives me some price estimates for rebuild vs. new. I’m still absorbing the information – “O.K., I’ll just get the new ones.” did I just say that? The new alt will need to have the correct pulley put on, etc. so I explain that I’ll be back in the morning and head directly home to Google “how to put shoes on”.  Why does everything always have to be so complicated?

Mariola’s new electric guts.

I get in the car and my brain finally kicks in. Alternators are alternators, I see many brands in the sailing mags, anything that fits will work. The starter worries me. The replacement unit looks nothing like the original and I’ve heard stories about inferior aftermarket replacement starters in cars. A quick call to Mastry Engine, a huge Yanmar parts supplier in the area, puts all my fears to rest. Parts guy on phone tells me: cost for a brand new replacement starter for a 2QM20 – $850. Gulp. He then recommends Will’s Starter and Alternator for a rebuild. (!) I tell him as a matter of fact, they have mine now but recommend a new, better replacement but I’m worried because it’s not Yanmar. He says “They know what they are doing, they won’t steer you wrong.” I’m happy again.

THE BOTTOM LINE
My original alternator generated 50 amps and would cost around $165 to rebuild.
Will’s brand new unit generates 100 amps for $185. Double me up on those amp things!
Starter – Will’s new one is a 2 kw or something – better than my original, price: $169

After a fumbling Q&A with Very Patient Technician #2 ( “what’s the red wire do again?”) I walk out carrying my brand new shiny electrical department. Wallet lighter, but feeling like I can leave the dock with less fear than before - and 50 extra amps.

Many thanks to Antony from Bliss for referring:
Will’s Stater & Alternator Service
4695 49th Street N.
St. Petersburg, FL 33709
Phone (727) 522-7420

We aquired our 1980 Morgan 323 Mariola (then El Caribe) in June of this year. Among some of the many discoveries during the last few months, one was that our salt water cooled Yanmar 2QM20 diesel engine had anti-corrosion zincs that require replacing. When we purchased the boat it was in decent shape but you could tell it was on the downhill slide in regards to maintenance. It was at the point where a decent amount of $$ and elbow grease was needed, probably the reason it was put up for sale. I guessed since the outside of the boat and engine needed cosmetic work, so did the inside. So the other day Cannonball and I put on our greasy clothes and went to work.

Let me just say a few things about my mechanical ability, because there’s really only a few things I’m good at. Taking things apart and leaving them that way. For some reason the deconstruction part is much easier than getting it back together without left over pieces. I mean, I know righty tighty – lefty lucy, there’s no such thing as a metric crescent wrench, WD-40 is magical, you know - the basics. At least diesels seem to be pretty simple, no distributor or electronic ignition wires protruding everywhere.

We now return to taking stuff apart, already in progress.
There are 3 zincs in the motor, two in the front, one in the back. They came out quite easily and were, I think, just ready to be changed. As I peered up into the head, I couldn’t see any salt buildup or corrosion. The only mess was right around the zinc and it scraped out with a little effort. They really seem to do their job. The previous owner had left a bucket load of new spare parts on board and there were 3 new replacement zincs in the inventory. Just to be safe I had picked up two replacement gaskets for the engine plates at Mastry Engine so we had everything we needed. We didn’t however, get the zincs back in that day. As long as the engine was exposed and apart, we decided to embark on a starter problem. See, things tend to stay apart.

Low Conductivity
Since the day we bought the boat it has had this interesting starting quirk – you push the start button and nothing happens, sometimes a faint “click” and sometimes nothing at all. You get nervous, look around for an oil tanker bearing down on you (this is when it happens), push it about 5 times and then the engine turns over. This drives me nuts. I either want something to be busted, or work 100% of the time. I hate not knowing if the engine is going to start. Let’s face it, when you need the engine, it’s usually because there is manuvering to be done. Back to making me nuts – while I was at Mastry picking up my gaskets, I explained the delayed starting problem to the parts guy and asked if it was the solenoid or “magnetic switch” on top of the starter. He said they either work, or they don’t.  Plus they cost almost $200 so killed my idea of just replacing parts until it worked – dammit. He then told me since the boat is 30 years old, it’s a probably conductivity issue. WTF? Old wires don’t carry as much juice. He said that I could purchase a “booster kit” for $110. I think I will just run new wires if need be. Sounds fishy to me – maybe he’s trying to win the company pool for “dumbest customer”, I showed him.

Still not completely believeing that wire loses it’s ability to carry current over age (I mean, come on! it just sits there!) CannonBall and I worked, checking all the connections, volts coming through, etc. Everything worked perfect, volts were 13.5 - the push starter switch, fuses, grounds, battery connections, etc. were good and making connections. What we couldn’t measure was the load being pulled when we tried to start the motor. Finally we just ran a new wire right to the starter and it turned over every, single, feaking time. Had the fellow at Mastry not told me about conductivity and old wires, I doubt we ever would have figured it out. He wins and I owe him some beer. Now, I guess this means I will be doing a lot of rewiring on the boat as well.

Humpty Is Back
Finally the other day I found some time and put the plates that hold the zincs back on. When I started her up (yes, first button push) she ran so cool I could put hand anywhere on the motor. A few days later I degreased and wire brushed the engine, primed and spray painted the rusty spots – now it looks dang good. I bought some type of fancy spray lube that I’m going to hose her down with and hopefully that will keep the exterior rust at bay. I plan on changing the oil – just as soon as I figure out the best way to avoid an environmental disaster.
 

After many, many, MANY debates, vetos and half-baked ideas, the Admiral and I have settled on a name for the Morgan that we both like a lot. Mariola was a suggestion from my mother, Mary. We talked about how we had a lot of Mary’s in the family -Grandmothers, mothers, etc. and it would be nice to have a “Mary” type name. My Grandmother Mary, always called my mother Mariola because it was a Polish interpretation. One day Mom just brought it up and we all said, “that’s it!”.

Bunch of Mary’s was a suggestion of mine while trying to combine all the Mary’s together somehow. It sounded way too “Friends of Dorothy” though and as soon as it came out of my mouth I knew nothing good would come of it. I can see a sailing day with just the guys onboard, requesting a bridge opening for Bunch of Mary’s – shudder. The Bunch of Mary’s idea led to our final name Mariola, reminding me that it always helps to hurl stuff at the wall and see what sticks. 

Keep your eyes peeled for Mariola on the waters of Tampa Bay.

Completed a few repairs on the new Boat. First was the fuel fill. There was a PVC elbow (not legal) coming out of the tank to some conglomeration of bronze unio and pvc. It seemed to have pulled out or not been put together properly. This all happens under the sink so it’s not too difficult to work on. I discovered it while cleaning out all the cleaning supplies, rags, bags and whatever else the p.o. had stored under the sink. There was a pile of fuel soaked bags and rags that stunk up the entire boat. It had to have come from above and then Cannonball spotted the suspious fuel connection. 

My parents were visiting one weekend and they helped me fix the leaking fill tube to the diesel tank. The repair looks a little ragged – it was difficult to get up in there and trim the hose edge, but it’s solid. While we were at West Marine buying fuel legal hose and fittings, I looked at a head rebuild kit because our head didn’t seem to pump out very well. The kit was $72 and a new complete head was $140. The rebuild kit had at least 10 different parts, valves and gaskets which the sales guy said took a couple hours to install. He also added that it was a disgusting job. That was all I needed to hear and we bought the new head. Took about 10 minutes to install and works great.

The gimbaled stove that came on the boat looked original and it didn’t work. We removed the alcohol tank from behind the port settee and pulled the stove out. When we taking the old alcohol tank off the boat, I barely bumped it on the dock. It caved in a rusty spot and what was left of the alcolhol leaked out. Glad to have that timebomb off the boat.

I had purchased an all stainless steel camp stove at Bill Jackson’s Sporting Goods that I was planning on fastening to the top of the old gimbaled stove but the propane hose connection was on the side, so the setup wouldn’t work. My Dad had a good idea – I gutted the old stove, took the burners out of the new campstove and installed them. It works pretty good. The oven doesn’t work, but that’s where the little propane tanks connect for the cooktop. It seems much safer, works and looks good.

Next on the repair list. Both plexiglass windows are cracked and leaking, the engine needs to be gone through and cleaned and I have a broken shift lever to fix.

New Boat, New Boat! It’s completely official- the deal is done on the Morgan 323. All the paperwork, insurance, survey’s, etc. – even going to the DMV twice because they just have a thing about wasting everybody’s time. The boat is resting comfortably in our slip in Gulfport. Now the fun begins. We’ve already had the cushions Stanley Steemer’ed, steemed cleaned and sanitized ($400), which seemed pricey, but they are two sided and were in dire need of a scrubbin’. Cannonball and I have gone through about every storage compartment and sorted the junk from the good stuff. In the process a few things were found that need to be fixed or changed immediately – quite a few others that can wait. The repairs will be posted in the weeks to come.  A unique experience, I’d like to thank the cast of supporting characters:

Boat Broker: Rick Hoving, Edwards Yacht Sales: 727-725-1600
Very nice fellow that is laid back, low key and knowledgeable. Also met the owner of Edwards who was a great guy.

Survey: Rich Parrey, Coral Marine Services: 727-527-6653
Reasonalby priced ($6/foot less than others), did a thorough job and provided the survey in a day.

Title Search: Debbie Rich, Creative Yacht Solutions: 813-677-6885
Perfored the title search, checking for past leans, etc. She can also handle the closing, but since it was a small transaction, I went to the DMV (twice) and took care of it. Debbie was a pleasure to work with.

Financing: Chartway Federal Credit Union, Heidi Milanowski: 1-800-678-8765 ext. 41258
Same company that I financed my vehicle through. VERY easy to work with. While searching for different boats and preparing offers, Heidi would get back with me on financing options via email (my favorite method of communication) within an hour.

Underwater Bottom Inspection: Matt Miller, Bottom Scratchers: 727-446-8898
Since neither the financing or insurance company required a haulout, I decided to take a slight risk by paying for a scuba inspection. If they found anything suspious then I would cough up for the haulout. The boat had been hauled and surveyed in 2003 so I wasn’t really worried about blisters forming in the last 5 years. While they were down they gave her a good cleaning too. Friendly guys, good service.

Overall, I really had a good experience with everyone involved (Other than the “removed teak pedestal cup-holder incident after the sea trial” by the owner. There, I said it and will never speak of it again) and though stressful, it was a positive experience. Looking forward to really digging into the boat and learning the systems.

The sea trial/survey went well on Saturday. Surveyor found no big surprises, just minor “normal” boat repairs. Boat seemed sound and motor ran o.k. Passengers aboard were the Broker, Surveyor, Owner, Cannonball, Rumhead and the Admiral. The actual sea trial took place out in the Gulf for about 20 minutes or so. Wind was only about 5-6 knots, not very exciting, but that’s o.k.

This buying process is a real chore. Paper work, title searches – lots of $100-$200 checks written here and there. I’ll be glad when it’s done and the boat is in the slip. Stay tuned.

Things are coming together on our possible new boat, a 1980 Morgan 32′ or model 323. We’ve passed the underwater/scuba survey, initiated the title search, secured financing and made arrangements for the full survey and sea trial for this Saturday at 9:00 a.m. This is all a first for me, as every one of our other boats have been purchased with cash and a handshake. All the other boats were a lot less money too. The cost of this new(er) Morgan is still very reasonable and I’m hoping to finally own a boat that will occupy my time with hours of sailing, not hours of buffing, cleaning and repairs. But hey, it’s a boat.

She does look right, feel right and has everything we wished we had on our other boats. Plenty of room below provided by the 11′ 6″ beam, full head and a diesel engine. There’s a bonus of a roller furling headsail that I will really enjoy. On top of all that, we’ll qualify for the Morgan Invasion!

After all is said and done with this transaction, I plan to write it all down for your entertainment, learning, pointing out of my stupidity, etc. I still have a bit of boat shoppers euphoria, but it’s almost wore off and by Saturday I should be able to suvey the boat with an objective eye…. Stay tuned for the Monday morning revelations.