Sailor of Fortune
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Lots of work but I agree with teakless deck. I'll second the KIWI grip scenario on that deck.
My Short Haul Refit
- Thread starter O C Diver
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I'm curious if any of these hulls had trim tabs, and if you know whether they helped get the boat on plane (with the original engine). Tabs are essential to get our OA out of the hole in a reasonable amount of time, and can then be retracted most of the way once the boat is over the hump (such as it is for a semi planning hull). By the way, I think your re-engine was the right move for that hull and will pay off nicely when you eventually sell.
OP
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O C Diver
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Few more external projects :
The boat has side fuel tanks that have fill ports in the corner of the back wall of the salon. the fillers are mounted on these chessey plastic castings that are recessed into the wall. They are awkward to access. They're likely ok if your fuel dock has light automotive style fueling nozzles. The commercial nozzles with their heavy 2" hoses proved to be too much for the plastic as they both cracked.
The solution was to fill the holes and properly glass them over. Fabricate wedge shapes out of coosa to mount the filler pipes to. The wedges had to have enough angle so that the nozzles won't fall out of the fill pipes. They're properly attached to the wall and 2 layers of bi-axial cloth were molded over them to the wall to guarantee they will support the weight of any nozzle I can stick in the filler pipes. The one concession is that they're no longer recessed in the wall. I'm good with this as it was a bear to get the caps off.
I'm always amazed how Sean can take a piece of bi-axial cloth, mold it over a protrusion, and get it to lay flat against the wall. There are no cuts in that piece of cloth that is molded!
Sanded up and ready for gel coat fairing.
This hull has chines and there is no coring near the water line. As a result, when at anchor in modest chop, you get chine slap when waves trap air in the chine pockets. The sound reverberates in the master cabin as the is no coring in the hull to muffle it. This is an attempt to eliminate the pockets that the air gets trapped in. Coosa was bonded in to fill the void. Then bi-axial cloth was layered over it. Finally fairing it with gel coat. Should work.
The boat has a double anchor pulpit and. Below it is a strike plate of sheet pvc warped to conform to the hull. The strike plate was through bolted with 1/2" lag bolts. Most of the holes had cracked outward and the pvc was ugly. Thought about having one made out of stainless which became cost prohibitive. So Sean faired the bow and covered it with mold release paper. Then he laid up in fiberglass a strike plate of the same size and shape as the pvc one. The idea is to have one held in place with more modest screws so that it can be removed and repainted if I get careless. Haven't decided whether to match or contrast the hull color.
The bow pulpit was another [STRIKE]nightmare[/STRIKE] story. There was a fair amount of flex to the pulpit. To the point where all the bondo in, under, and around it had cracked. after grinding out all the bondo, it was clear that there was 1 or 2 layers of fiberglass covering a laminated stack of plywood. The good news was that the plywood was dry and solid. So Sean added many layers of bi-axial cloth to the front sides and bottom of the pulpit glassing it back to the hull. The idea is to form a channel like a piece of structural steel. Don't remember how many layers of cloth went into it, but it's now solid as a rock. The tough part is making it stronger but trying to keep the appearance close to the original.
So if you spend your days glassing and painting boats, what do you do for stress relief? Sean duck hunts on Chesapeake Bay and it's tributaries. He has a fiberglass boat that he wanted 2' longer. His uncle who owns 1/2 the marina has the same boat. Uncle Eldon made his 2' longer which greatly improved tracking, stability, and actually increased the speed. So Sean is lengthening his. The boat has molded in lapstrake. So Sean built a new transom out of coosa board. He then built a mold for the extension so that the lapstrake will continue to the new transom. Once the class work is done, he will remove the inner mold.
With patience and dedication like that, I'm glad he's doing the work on my boat!
Ted
The boat has side fuel tanks that have fill ports in the corner of the back wall of the salon. the fillers are mounted on these chessey plastic castings that are recessed into the wall. They are awkward to access. They're likely ok if your fuel dock has light automotive style fueling nozzles. The commercial nozzles with their heavy 2" hoses proved to be too much for the plastic as they both cracked.
The solution was to fill the holes and properly glass them over. Fabricate wedge shapes out of coosa to mount the filler pipes to. The wedges had to have enough angle so that the nozzles won't fall out of the fill pipes. They're properly attached to the wall and 2 layers of bi-axial cloth were molded over them to the wall to guarantee they will support the weight of any nozzle I can stick in the filler pipes. The one concession is that they're no longer recessed in the wall. I'm good with this as it was a bear to get the caps off.
I'm always amazed how Sean can take a piece of bi-axial cloth, mold it over a protrusion, and get it to lay flat against the wall. There are no cuts in that piece of cloth that is molded!
Sanded up and ready for gel coat fairing.
This hull has chines and there is no coring near the water line. As a result, when at anchor in modest chop, you get chine slap when waves trap air in the chine pockets. The sound reverberates in the master cabin as the is no coring in the hull to muffle it. This is an attempt to eliminate the pockets that the air gets trapped in. Coosa was bonded in to fill the void. Then bi-axial cloth was layered over it. Finally fairing it with gel coat. Should work.
The boat has a double anchor pulpit and. Below it is a strike plate of sheet pvc warped to conform to the hull. The strike plate was through bolted with 1/2" lag bolts. Most of the holes had cracked outward and the pvc was ugly. Thought about having one made out of stainless which became cost prohibitive. So Sean faired the bow and covered it with mold release paper. Then he laid up in fiberglass a strike plate of the same size and shape as the pvc one. The idea is to have one held in place with more modest screws so that it can be removed and repainted if I get careless. Haven't decided whether to match or contrast the hull color.
The bow pulpit was another [STRIKE]nightmare[/STRIKE] story. There was a fair amount of flex to the pulpit. To the point where all the bondo in, under, and around it had cracked. after grinding out all the bondo, it was clear that there was 1 or 2 layers of fiberglass covering a laminated stack of plywood. The good news was that the plywood was dry and solid. So Sean added many layers of bi-axial cloth to the front sides and bottom of the pulpit glassing it back to the hull. The idea is to form a channel like a piece of structural steel. Don't remember how many layers of cloth went into it, but it's now solid as a rock. The tough part is making it stronger but trying to keep the appearance close to the original.
So if you spend your days glassing and painting boats, what do you do for stress relief? Sean duck hunts on Chesapeake Bay and it's tributaries. He has a fiberglass boat that he wanted 2' longer. His uncle who owns 1/2 the marina has the same boat. Uncle Eldon made his 2' longer which greatly improved tracking, stability, and actually increased the speed. So Sean is lengthening his. The boat has molded in lapstrake. So Sean built a new transom out of coosa board. He then built a mold for the extension so that the lapstrake will continue to the new transom. Once the class work is done, he will remove the inner mold.
With patience and dedication like that, I'm glad he's doing the work on my boat!
Ted
Last edited:
Marlinmike
Guru
Ted great project and love your sense of humor, keep the progress reports coming, enjoy following along!
OP
OP
O C Diver
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Sanding, will it ever end?
Most of the construction, repair, and modification was Finished in the fall. That is to say everything but the sanding and fairing. Sean spends the next 2 to 3 months sanding, fairing, and removing the last of the bondo. Meanwhile, I'm inside the boat connecting engine systems, the generator, hydronic cabin heating system off the engine, and the new air conditioners. You have to imagine working inside a fiberglass box that someone is sanding on with machines most of the time. In spite of the boat being closed up, the fine dust from sanding finds it's way in side. Everything is coated with dust. Can't imagine how many days it will take to clean the inside of the boat.
Outside is much worse. It's winter now and the building is closed up. Everything is covered in dust. It resembles a fresh dirty snow fall.
On the left side of the pic all the way forward is my parts table. Most things that came off the boat and will be reinstalled are labeled and put on that table. Everything is covered with an 1/8" of dust. Find what your looking for, blow it off, and go install it. In the beginning it drove me nuts. After a while I just stopped caring.
Then one day the sanding nightmare is over. It's time to clean the building and prep for the first round of painting. It may have taken a week to clean the boat and everything in the building. We literally hauled trash cans full of sanding dust to the dumpster. There were trash cans full of sanding paper and sanding discs for various machines. Here are some pics of the shop floor which is really grey not white, and the boat getting ready to be masked off.
Next up it's pictures from round one of painting. These pictures are awesome and make the preceding 8 months all worth while!
Ted
Most of the construction, repair, and modification was Finished in the fall. That is to say everything but the sanding and fairing. Sean spends the next 2 to 3 months sanding, fairing, and removing the last of the bondo. Meanwhile, I'm inside the boat connecting engine systems, the generator, hydronic cabin heating system off the engine, and the new air conditioners. You have to imagine working inside a fiberglass box that someone is sanding on with machines most of the time. In spite of the boat being closed up, the fine dust from sanding finds it's way in side. Everything is coated with dust. Can't imagine how many days it will take to clean the inside of the boat.
Outside is much worse. It's winter now and the building is closed up. Everything is covered in dust. It resembles a fresh dirty snow fall.On the left side of the pic all the way forward is my parts table. Most things that came off the boat and will be reinstalled are labeled and put on that table. Everything is covered with an 1/8" of dust. Find what your looking for, blow it off, and go install it. In the beginning it drove me nuts. After a while I just stopped caring.
Then one day the sanding nightmare is over. It's time to clean the building and prep for the first round of painting. It may have taken a week to clean the boat and everything in the building. We literally hauled trash cans full of sanding dust to the dumpster. There were trash cans full of sanding paper and sanding discs for various machines. Here are some pics of the shop floor which is really grey not white, and the boat getting ready to be masked off.
Next up it's pictures from round one of painting. These pictures are awesome and make the preceding 8 months all worth while!
Ted
healhustler
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Awesome Awesome Awesome!!!!
OP
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O C Diver
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Painting with Awlgrip:
Now we are to the painting phase. The hull is all sanded and faired. Here is how the process will go. After all the masking is done, the areas that aren't getting painted the first day are covered to avoid over spray. Sean does all the painting, so the boat is broken down into several days of painting. The hull is wiped down with paint prep the night before to remove any last traces of wax, etc. First he will shoot 2 light coats of primer. This is to make the surface compatible with the Awlgrip paints. Then he shoots 1 to 3 coats of Ultrabuild (primer and ultabuild shot the same day). This is a thicker primer that will fill all the pin pricks, slight scratches, sanding marks, etc. in the fiberglass, gel coat, and West system surface .The number of coats is determined by the fairness of the surface. If he could do the entire boat at one time, he would then sand the Ultrabuild. Sanding the Ultrabuild produces the final fairness of the hull. After sanding the ultra build, he will wipe the boat down again. Then come 2 more light coats of primer. After the primer the hull will be sanded lightly for the last time with 400 grit paper and wiped down again. Top coat is 2 or 3 coats depending how it looks after 2. So to recap: 2 coats of primer and 2 coats of ultabuild all on the first day so they can chemically adhere together. Then sand the boat. 2 coats of primer on the same day. Sand lightly. 2 or 3 coats of top coat on the last day. Since the boat is to big to do all at once. He will paint all the sections with ultrabuild before sanding, then he will paint all the sections with primer before starting the final sanding. Top coat will be painted in sections also, and there are 3 colors.
Here is a couple of boat units worth of paint. Not all the reducer is for me. Sadly, none of the top coat is on the table or in the price.
The next 4 pictures are after the first day of painting. Yup, Sean did 4 coats of the hull and back deck in one day......and half of that evening. Dedication!
This last pic is from Thursday afternoon when the last of the ultrabuild was completed.
Some will tell you it's possible to do the painting in less steps (coats). It may very well be possible.......but not on my boat.
Coming next will be some of the inside projects.
Ted
Now we are to the painting phase. The hull is all sanded and faired. Here is how the process will go. After all the masking is done, the areas that aren't getting painted the first day are covered to avoid over spray. Sean does all the painting, so the boat is broken down into several days of painting. The hull is wiped down with paint prep the night before to remove any last traces of wax, etc. First he will shoot 2 light coats of primer. This is to make the surface compatible with the Awlgrip paints. Then he shoots 1 to 3 coats of Ultrabuild (primer and ultabuild shot the same day). This is a thicker primer that will fill all the pin pricks, slight scratches, sanding marks, etc. in the fiberglass, gel coat, and West system surface .The number of coats is determined by the fairness of the surface. If he could do the entire boat at one time, he would then sand the Ultrabuild. Sanding the Ultrabuild produces the final fairness of the hull. After sanding the ultra build, he will wipe the boat down again. Then come 2 more light coats of primer. After the primer the hull will be sanded lightly for the last time with 400 grit paper and wiped down again. Top coat is 2 or 3 coats depending how it looks after 2. So to recap: 2 coats of primer and 2 coats of ultabuild all on the first day so they can chemically adhere together. Then sand the boat. 2 coats of primer on the same day. Sand lightly. 2 or 3 coats of top coat on the last day. Since the boat is to big to do all at once. He will paint all the sections with ultrabuild before sanding, then he will paint all the sections with primer before starting the final sanding. Top coat will be painted in sections also, and there are 3 colors.
Here is a couple of boat units worth of paint. Not all the reducer is for me. Sadly, none of the top coat is on the table or in the price.
The next 4 pictures are after the first day of painting. Yup, Sean did 4 coats of the hull and back deck in one day......and half of that evening. Dedication!
This last pic is from Thursday afternoon when the last of the ultrabuild was completed.
Some will tell you it's possible to do the painting in less steps (coats). It may very well be possible.......but not on my boat.
Coming next will be some of the inside projects.
Ted
healhustler
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Holy crap! Does Sean have a wife and kids that I can kidnap and get him to do work on my boat?
BruceK
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Stunning truly amazing work. Your boat is a showpiece, a credit to you and Sean. Better than new!
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Guys, I appreciate all the kind words. This has truly been an epic project that I won't repeat. But when I look at it now, I can't help but smile from ear to ear!
Larry, don't know if you missed that part about duck hunter. He has more guns than Manyboats has anchors. Sean is very conservative and protective of his family (wife, 2 kids and dog). I imagine he would hunt you down and field dress (gut) you so that you would remember not to do it again, before he killed you. Intentionally hurting his dog (Roxie) would probably be a fatal mistake.
Ted
Larry, don't know if you missed that part about duck hunter. He has more guns than Manyboats has anchors. Sean is very conservative and protective of his family (wife, 2 kids and dog). I imagine he would hunt you down and field dress (gut) you so that you would remember not to do it again, before he killed you. Intentionally hurting his dog (Roxie) would probably be a fatal mistake.
Ted
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My guess is April or May. Waiting to see how long sanding the Ultrabuild takes. Let me know if your coming over, would like to stop by and say hello.
Ted
healhustler
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Yeah, yeah, but would he work on my boat?
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From what I can tell he likes money. Probably could even make Bucky looky purdy.
Ted
Sailor of Fortune
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I think Bucky is already purdy. She may not be everybodys' cup of tea, but she looks to fulfill her mission statement/design admirably!!From what I can tell he likes money. Probably could even make Bucky looky purdy.
Ted
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Engine install pics:
Thought I would add the engine install pics to the tread. Have posted these before, but for the sake of continuity added them plus some new pics. First pic is of the motor heading up to the boat. The only things that needed to come off the engine to fit through the door were the starboard engine and transmission hangar mounts. This engine is so much narrower that the Cummins which required a number of items to be removed to squeeze through the door.
Lots of room to spare on the sides. Also the engine is shorter which made the install easier.
Engine is in place so we can position the 3/8" thick stainless steel bed plates, and mark where bridges and isolators attach. A rough shaft alignment is done to get the bridges under the transmission isolators at the right height.
Everything looks good, so we move the engine out of the way to finish the bed plates.
The bridges are welded to the bed plates. All the holes are drilled and tapped for the isolator bolts. Holes are drilled for three 1/2" stainless lag bolts that will anchor each bed plate. Pilot holes are drilled in the engine beds. Then the engine beds and pan are sanded, wiped down and then receive 3 or 4 applications of gel coat. Finally the bed plates are lag down with three 8" lag bolts per side and a generous amount of 5200. They're not going anywhere.
The engine now is set and a final shaft alignment is done. After everything is bolted down tight, the 13' x 3.5" shaft can still be turned with one hand. As they say at the marina, "It's not perfect but you're not getting any closer."
Sean is holding the model I made for the custom stainless exhaust riser with the extension on it. The string going across represents the engine room ceiling. The sound insulation will be reworked above the riser to accommodate the extra height. Marine Exhaust of Rivera Beach, FL will make a custom stainless riser with heat wrap from my model. The model has to be flat against the turbo, discharge has to be 3 dimensionally exactly where I want it, maximum height needs to be correct, and brace tab and raw water inlet also need to be correct. There is a lot to get right and not much room for error. They also wanted pictures to understand all the points. Second picture is without the extension to floor reference.
2 months later here's my new riser. It's not perfect but it couldn't be any closer.
There is a brace that runs from underneath the high section down to the transmission mount to help support the weight. Below the discharge will be a 12" x 12" x 12" lift muffler. The discharge will go straight up then straight back over the genset before turning to starboard then out the transom. All the remaining exhaust parts are waiting for me to return from FL in a couple of weeks to install them.
Next will be upgrades to the electrical system.
Ted
Thought I would add the engine install pics to the tread. Have posted these before, but for the sake of continuity added them plus some new pics. First pic is of the motor heading up to the boat. The only things that needed to come off the engine to fit through the door were the starboard engine and transmission hangar mounts. This engine is so much narrower that the Cummins which required a number of items to be removed to squeeze through the door.
Lots of room to spare on the sides. Also the engine is shorter which made the install easier.
Engine is in place so we can position the 3/8" thick stainless steel bed plates, and mark where bridges and isolators attach. A rough shaft alignment is done to get the bridges under the transmission isolators at the right height.
Everything looks good, so we move the engine out of the way to finish the bed plates.
The bridges are welded to the bed plates. All the holes are drilled and tapped for the isolator bolts. Holes are drilled for three 1/2" stainless lag bolts that will anchor each bed plate. Pilot holes are drilled in the engine beds. Then the engine beds and pan are sanded, wiped down and then receive 3 or 4 applications of gel coat. Finally the bed plates are lag down with three 8" lag bolts per side and a generous amount of 5200. They're not going anywhere.
The engine now is set and a final shaft alignment is done. After everything is bolted down tight, the 13' x 3.5" shaft can still be turned with one hand. As they say at the marina, "It's not perfect but you're not getting any closer."
Sean is holding the model I made for the custom stainless exhaust riser with the extension on it. The string going across represents the engine room ceiling. The sound insulation will be reworked above the riser to accommodate the extra height. Marine Exhaust of Rivera Beach, FL will make a custom stainless riser with heat wrap from my model. The model has to be flat against the turbo, discharge has to be 3 dimensionally exactly where I want it, maximum height needs to be correct, and brace tab and raw water inlet also need to be correct. There is a lot to get right and not much room for error. They also wanted pictures to understand all the points. Second picture is without the extension to floor reference.
2 months later here's my new riser. It's not perfect but it couldn't be any closer.
There is a brace that runs from underneath the high section down to the transmission mount to help support the weight. Below the discharge will be a 12" x 12" x 12" lift muffler. The discharge will go straight up then straight back over the genset before turning to starboard then out the transom. All the remaining exhaust parts are waiting for me to return from FL in a couple of weeks to install them.Next will be upgrades to the electrical system.
Ted
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Upgrades to the 12 volt system and the house battery bank:
So when I bought the boat, one of the high priority items on the list was cleaning up the 12 volt system in the engine room. While the system did function and the components were of good quality, it was clear that the system had been added to in a poorly thought out plan. Basically the 150 amp engine alternator connected to a 2 battery bank charging isolator which provided power to one 8D battery for the engine and three 8D batteries for the house bank. The batteries and alternator were on the starboard side and the isolator was on the port side with the power distribution panel. Over 100' of 4/0 tinned marine cable tied this Kludge together. This was done when the new Magnum inverter charger was installed. From a bill in the boat records, the materials (not including the inverter or labor) were over $4K.
As space was limited in the engine room, the four 8D battery boxes were mounted next to the engine making it really tough to do engine maintenance.
First project was to relocate the battery bank. The Cummins engine used a very large lift muffler and a bunch of 6" exhaust pipe. That will all be relocated and replaced with a much smaller lift muffler and 4" exhaust pipe for the John Deere.
The platform for the old lift muffler became the location for the new battery box. Sean built this box out of coosa board, 2 layers of bi-axial cloth with polyester inside and out, and finally covered with several applications of gel coat. Did I tell you Sean does really nice work?
Battery box is filled with 8 Trojan T105 deep cycle 6 volt golf cart batteries. 900 amp house bank and 4/0 cable carrying it to the distribution panels. That should keep the LED lights on.
This is the old power distribution center. From left to right: Magnum inverter / charger, positive power distribution panel with lexan cover, below distribution panel is an always hot fuse panel for bilge pumps and radio memory, top to bottom engine battery switch - bank combiner - house battery switch, dual battery charging isolator, and negative buss and ground bonding buss. Took me a while to make sense of it all.
This is the new power distribution center. It's a little less busy. Not quite done. Still need to add a few cable anchors, some labeling, and the lexan cover over positive distribution panel.
Everything was disassembled ,cleaned, and reassembled with some minor changes. From left to right. Positive power distribution panel. There is a house bank battery switch and the engine emergency start switch. Engine battery is next to the engine with 16" battery leads; no point running extra wire and another switch. The emergency switch allows the engine to be started off the house battery. Next is the always on fuse panel. Above it is the shunt for the Victron Battery monitor.
Next to the always on fuse panel is the negative buss with a sub buss above it. Next is the ground bonding buss. The red box is a Sterling advanced alternator regulator.
Missing from the power distribution center is the dual battery charging isolator. Instead I mounted a second alternator on the engine with a Sterling 3 stage charging regulator. The engine alternator and battery only power the engine and it's gauges. Everything else is power by the house bank and 220 amp second alternator. In the event of a failure of either alternator, flipping the emergency start switch combines both banks so they can be charged from either alternator.
The cluttered engine room with the Cummins, the 8D battery boxes, and a lot of wire snaking around the front of the engine.
The engine room before all the wiring was done. The daily engine, transmission, and genset fluid checks along with all the fuel separators and tank manifolding are on the starboard side......by design.
Still have 2 milk crates full of primary wire left over after everything was reconfigured.
Next up my new raw water system.
Ted
So when I bought the boat, one of the high priority items on the list was cleaning up the 12 volt system in the engine room. While the system did function and the components were of good quality, it was clear that the system had been added to in a poorly thought out plan. Basically the 150 amp engine alternator connected to a 2 battery bank charging isolator which provided power to one 8D battery for the engine and three 8D batteries for the house bank. The batteries and alternator were on the starboard side and the isolator was on the port side with the power distribution panel. Over 100' of 4/0 tinned marine cable tied this Kludge together. This was done when the new Magnum inverter charger was installed. From a bill in the boat records, the materials (not including the inverter or labor) were over $4K.
As space was limited in the engine room, the four 8D battery boxes were mounted next to the engine making it really tough to do engine maintenance. First project was to relocate the battery bank. The Cummins engine used a very large lift muffler and a bunch of 6" exhaust pipe. That will all be relocated and replaced with a much smaller lift muffler and 4" exhaust pipe for the John Deere.
The platform for the old lift muffler became the location for the new battery box. Sean built this box out of coosa board, 2 layers of bi-axial cloth with polyester inside and out, and finally covered with several applications of gel coat. Did I tell you Sean does really nice work?
Battery box is filled with 8 Trojan T105 deep cycle 6 volt golf cart batteries. 900 amp house bank and 4/0 cable carrying it to the distribution panels. That should keep the LED lights on.
This is the old power distribution center. From left to right: Magnum inverter / charger, positive power distribution panel with lexan cover, below distribution panel is an always hot fuse panel for bilge pumps and radio memory, top to bottom engine battery switch - bank combiner - house battery switch, dual battery charging isolator, and negative buss and ground bonding buss. Took me a while to make sense of it all.
This is the new power distribution center. It's a little less busy. Not quite done. Still need to add a few cable anchors, some labeling, and the lexan cover over positive distribution panel.
Everything was disassembled ,cleaned, and reassembled with some minor changes.
From left to right. Positive power distribution panel. There is a house bank battery switch and the engine emergency start switch. Engine battery is next to the engine with 16" battery leads; no point running extra wire and another switch. The emergency switch allows the engine to be started off the house battery. Next is the always on fuse panel. Above it is the shunt for the Victron Battery monitor. Next to the always on fuse panel is the negative buss with a sub buss above it. Next is the ground bonding buss. The red box is a Sterling advanced alternator regulator.
Missing from the power distribution center is the dual battery charging isolator. Instead I mounted a second alternator on the engine with a Sterling 3 stage charging regulator. The engine alternator and battery only power the engine and it's gauges. Everything else is power by the house bank and 220 amp second alternator. In the event of a failure of either alternator, flipping the emergency start switch combines both banks so they can be charged from either alternator.
The cluttered engine room with the Cummins, the 8D battery boxes, and a lot of wire snaking around the front of the engine.
The engine room before all the wiring was done. The daily engine, transmission, and genset fluid checks along with all the fuel separators and tank manifolding are on the starboard side......by design.
Still have 2 milk crates full of primary wire left over after everything was reconfigured.
Next up my new raw water system.
Ted
Marlinmike
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Really nice attention to detail, should make for a very reliable and sound vessel. Any thoughts on sound deadening as well as what is your cruising plans with this fine new vessel?
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Boat was well sound insulated with soundown insulation. Have added some more in areas, but will do sea trials before going any further. Cruising plans are annually the Chesapeake in the summer and Florida in the winter until I retire. Great Loop in 2016 or 2017. Planning the East coast from Maine to Texas, and near Caribbean Bahamas and maybe Cuba.
Ted
dimer2
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Can certainly see how it's theoretically better. Wonder if there is much of an actual difference? With the large wire size lugs, getting that third lug on the battery terminal is going to be tough.
Ted
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Marlinmike
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Awesome plan, I'm a few more years further out then you, some common plans of where to travel, not looking to do the full loop, northern Canadian canals which we haven't done and maybe the BVI/AVI areas is what we are hoping for.
Thanks again for sharing, all the best!
Thanks again for sharing, all the best!
Ted: Are you adding a SOC monitor for the house bank?
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Yes, a Victron battery monitor, shunt is in the 6th pic of post #83. Plan to use it as a rough guide for state of charge, and reset it each time the bank is completely recharged. Really more interested in amps out and amps in rates as opposed to state of charge of the bank. Working under the assumption that when amp flow in drops to almost zero after many hours of cruising, the bank is close to fully charged, and the 220 amp alternator is producing for current consumption only. Does that sound like a viable plan?
Ted
