KINGPIN

Martell and her husband Jose... finally we got to get her on the boat... like the title says without her... you get the point.

cutie

And the master of ceremonies

4th of

Morning crossing with the Hinchcliffers... excellent and lucky to say the least. Got anchorage because the sail vessel was just pulling out as we arrived. Great speed at the crossing, 16 knots range. A day before I replaced the racor filters and cleaned the bottom (spend almost 6 hours) and boy it made a great difference. Basin G is the filthiest lately... I had so much oily s..t on the bottom that it took me a long time to remove it. Anyway Emerald was busy but not so crazy like last year. Anchored in 48 feet of water right next to TETU a really nice vessel from up north. Later on the weekend we asked them for some Olive oil (we ran out) and got them giving us some for cooking. Great neighbors. The two day weekend was all about taking care of BABA. We all pitched in and loved it. No diving but the schedule was packed....

MOOD

Let the pictures speak for themselves...

emerald

Rocking and rolling for the most part one of our guest had to take dramamine but than she became better, Nothing serious but still not as calm as last time out. I liked it... lots of energy.

Here it is for the asking....

BAGARRE meaning....fighting, fight, scuffle, brawl, brawling, struggle, slugfest, tussle, war, hassle, rough-house, scrimmage, rumpus, fisticuffs, rowdyism, ruction, fraying...

Well it is on full force before the 4th of July festivities....

instrument panel

Well the weather is the worst I have seen for CA... so much for global warming.... or should I say global cooling? So tired of some kind of a calamity always in the news. Anyway I had put on 30 hours or so on the new V-drives and picked up an other knot and a half. Love that... Instrument panel upgrade and starting to work on the new swim deck... also finishing the entry system for Bagarre... lot of the stuff will be put under neath it... also lightening her. Lucas is off the project because discussion of Obama's actions are not allowed (I guess) or not liked by him. He has not called in 4 weeks and I think I just got it ... he is from Canada so socialism and communism for him is the answer to everything. Plus in his opinion Obama can not do wrong... He is not alone with this by the way. Very hard for me to digest escaping communist Hungary and sometimes it feels like that it has followed me over here. Enough of politics... Hope the weather changes soon... want some sunshine... com' on. You must be tired of Emerald but look at that water and this was on Easter.

the australians by large

Kirsty and her sister with the whole family arriving around 11:00 AM and coming aboard in 3 hours or so.... long flight and still wanting to get rocked to sleep. Trip over to the island went well... little Sasha slept all the way over but did not do so well once we anchored... she got so sick poor little thing that we had to rush her to the hospital in Avalon. Actually they took her in a boat belonging to the Coast Guards and we followed.



We had to spend a lot of time on the land because she never really got used to all the movement. She got better as the weekend went on but still we could tell how she'd change physically and her mood once on solid ground.

first time out

Emerald Bay had to be the first spot we go to... left in the morning because did not want to do a night crossing while being first out with the rebuilt v's. The crossing actually was very rough for the morning, usually it is a lot more calm. Anyway I took it easy and everything seemed fine except for the air vents on the boxes. They were leaking oil out. After looking at them I decided that the routing was such that no oil could drip back to the case and that is why oil was spewing out of them. On the way back, again instead of rough conditions (because it is always rougher in the late afternoon) we had almost nothing as far as movement. About 10NM out we had the dolphins welcoming us back in the circulation. Everything was fine on the way back.

first time out since September

John came over and helped me with trying of the new units. Everything checks out but the starboard side is making a noise since the bottom gear is brand new and the top gear (input shaft) is 60 years old. The noise is rather like a whistle get very noticable at 1200RPM after that it is not bad at all. Nothing on the port side... boy every time I think of that I get the chills. Darlene did not want to rebuild the starboard side she wanted to only deal with the unit which was giving us the trouble. I am glad that i convinced her that we need to do both side. As it turns out the Starboard side was way worse than the Port side, also the side I am talking about did not even have the flexibility required, by replacing the AJAX coupling. After studying the Blue Prints sent by Huckins I am understanding, what and how things should function. We tried our best and the rest is not up to me but rather her. She was so happy to be out there just cruising along in Santa Monica Bay. I am shooting a video of the whole thing just in case you wanted to see it.

assembly

By looking at the blue prints flex couplings were needed to protect the v-drives form miss alignment while on way, the Pacific gets pretty rough so things must move and if nothing allows for that, than everything transfers to the case and to the gears. Very long hours and limited amount of space makes this a very trying installation. Of course the shafts also had to be shortened so the flex will fit. Alignment is crucial and we did the best we could 10 thousands were allowed for the flex and we were able to get it within 6. The port side is an other question. Tomorrow I'll know if the engine will have to be raised and shimmed. So I'll have to build a contraption of some kind... God knows how complicated that is going to be... day by the day but we are closer and closer...

2009 and the progress

Well everything had to be made by hand, nothing is available for these units... Yet we were lucky enough to be able to replace one of the shafts. There were 2 teeth missing from the lower output shaft. We have been using the boat this way since we bought it. I do not think I broke the teeth plus we could not find the pieces inside the case. Also it is quite noticeable on the starboard side that someone has changed the couplings since we still had the original ajax flexible on the port side... anyway ... everything will have to be aligned and get as close to perfect as possible... Thanks to God John has a great machine shop and everything had to be made over there in East LA. I never had so many things go so wrong while rebuilding these babies... I often think that they were not worth it but that is just me thinking since the parts alone cost close to 5 grand. Blah... blah... blah... we are still not done.

x-mas

The flexible couplings are here and I had put together the port side V-drive with a 3/64 (were sold as a 1/16), 1/32, and 2 1/64 handmade gaskets to get the 0.007 clearance between teeth. I had to take the drive apart and kept on measuring to get it just right. In the meantime the flexible couplings have arrived so the shaft will have to be taken out and dealt with. It will need a shortening. Looked up Steyr motors for retrofitting boats with new technology... must say it is a great design and could be used as a hybrid. Boy that is very interesting and hey it comes from Austria... how is that for being on the edge of things?

a week before x-mas

So, I guess the units are ready to be put together and than they need to be aligned in a way that everything is in line and working just the way they were designed to. Have to take the shafts out and they will have to be shortened. The key way have to be lengthened and doing this on site might not be so easy. Taking the shafts out of the boat is not exactly what I would call an easy job. The new shaft hasn't arrived yet so if everything is on time it'll be here tomorrow. Have to make shims and also have to come up with a system where the engines can be lifted and positioned for alignment. I wish I was at that moment already. Not just yet but the day is coming.

huckins blueprint

The original blueprints are showing the Ajax flexible couplings and since they are no longer avail. to reproduce the same results...and not to even mention protecting the gears in the V-drive. I think the flexible coupling is what has to be done to reduce misalignment and flexing and anything which might want to transfer from the boat flexing while it is on her way. Pacific Ocean can get pretty rough and we are moving so there is impact and things get hammered. The shaft will have to be removed and shortened of course. Alignment will also be crucial.

Port side

Here we go with the prep work... everything has to be made by hand. Gaskets in different thicknesses and this very funny looking rubber gasket for the oil cooler. We already bought the material which will be used to cast the gasket... we hope. Did I mention that Huckins have a brand new shaft for the Starboard side, lower shaft with 29 teeth. I was ready to put it together like it was with two of the teeth broken (we have been ridding it like that for 2 and a half years, since we owned her and God knows how long the previous owners have been ridding it like this) and was going to start looking for drives and shafts. It is a pain that these v-drives are obsolete, everyone who has seen them said that they are a piece of art. Finding someone who makes these shafts from scratch would be an other story all together.

V-drive and the rest of the story

Well I did remove the drive on the starboard side and boy am I happy that I did it. The coupling was giving me a hard time but was able to take it apart. I certainly did not want to cut it off like I had to, on the other side. Starboard side was not giving me any trouble at all but I felt something was wrong while turning the shaft. Well as it turns out two of the teeth are broken but not by us since I did not find any broken tooth at all in the case. It is very disturbing to me that we have to deal with this... have no idea how? Was told that the only person who could make this shaft is on the east coast. I am going to call the factory on Monday and want to talk to them about this.

upper shaft for V-drive

It has been welded and also had been grounded down to proper size. We will still have to make a tool so taking the drive in and out will be much easier and have to make all the gaskets etc. Still have not been able to locate the gasket for the oil cooler where it butts against the case. The one unit (actually a pair) we had located down by Newport Beach was cut up and sold for scraps by the yard whom obviously did not know what these puppies were. Too bad, have to keep an eye out for some other ones.

what would FPH would think of this?

So, wouldn't you love to get two of these? 1948 perfection with 2008 perfection, simplicity at it's evolved form. The Prius of the PWC world... more on this later. The Bagarre awaits the correct
wheel bearings and the shaft is being welded where it was chewed up.

weld or metal spray?

That is the question. By Monojet welding and regrinding to size is the way to go but have to find the person who will do a great job and will recreate it so it is true. In the mean time we have located a drive in Newport Beach, it is a little different because the drive has the oil pump and oil is circulating through it. The one we have is basically an oil bath design. The shaft is chewed up so first things first.

the love has just gotten more intense

3 and a half days(!!!) later we finally removed the unit (model M 48) and started taking it apart. Would have been nice if we had some literature on this whole operation because it is kind of tricky. Because of the space considerations we needed a special tool just to remove this baby and the tool I am thinking of has to be made so the installation is much better and more straight forward. My idea of removing the drives was completely different, must add I was just thinking of unbolting and taking things apart. So was John, well now we know.
Talked to Dick at Huckins and if we are lucky he might have the bearings and the gaskets etc. for the drive. Thank God the teeth are not broken or damaged, if they were we'd be in a whole lot of trouble and we can not afford that at this point. Also the the drive on the other side (starboard) also has to come out, I can already tell that it is a lot more roomier over there. The person who built the kitchen was not thinking of servicability at all because he framed 100% over the drives so things had to be cut and could not be removed. For example the water heater is right over where you need the space the most.

Washington DC and V-drive

So both of the v-drives need to be rebuilt but the one on the port side needs to be dealt with right
away. We are hoping that there is nothing wrong with the teeth and the only thing needs to be replaced are the bearings. Talked to the factory and Dick Rogers is again at the helm and helping me with whatever he can with. Blueprints etc. The factory stopped making these so it is very hard to come by with these and I have to tell them to look for one for us just to have as a spare. I also asked them what they do when they do a complete refurbish. Obviously they can not use the same system since the Huckins V-drive is obsolete so what they do is they replace the engines and install a tranny v-drive combo. I really want to see the factory and see what they do over there. Fascinating place and people. Just love the whole idea that they are still in business.

Dock rebuild

After 2 years finally it happened. We were all ready to do it ourselves and I am so happy that the county just went ahead and did it in three days. They did a great job and also made it a little bit different where you can actually put stuff on the dock form the dinghy. What is also interesting that we were looking around for an other docking situation. I went out and checked out several situations and the new marina called Espirit is just opened up. Prices are a little bit on the high
side but the docks are great and it looks great but would be not able to do anything boat related after reading the rules and regulations. You could not even hang a towel without getting punished for it. I am so happy where we are I never really wanted to move but it is hard for some of the women and it is a catcher's net and one day we will be able to move I am sure to a proper dock with water and electricity. It is also rather hard to get out when it is windy and it is windy
most of the time in the afternoons. And it is a catcher's net. I was in the wheelhouse one day and these people are just coming at me and I am saying to myself what the hell they are coming really close. Some piece of shit sail boat and the people are laughing and chatting about that they are trying to rescue a hat which evidently flew off but they are having engine trouble and their boat will not go into reverse. The wind was light thank God and they missed the Bagarre about 5-6 inches or so and smashed into the pile on. By the way this kind of thing happens all the time. Anyway enough of this. Right now we have a brand new dock and we love it.

signage after two years

Well it has taken a long time and a lot of work but finally there is a name for her. We were going to have someone do it for us but that did not get finalized so we ended up with someone in Florida. Yes, Captain John is the man who helped me by talking to me and sharing with me all his experiences with the installation. I was having a hell of a time with what was suppose to be an easy install. It just would not do what was said on the instruction paper. I could not sleep for two days and was very worried about damaging the art-work. After talking to the maker everything just became so much easier. Now get on with the swim platform. I have decided that it needs to be as wide as the back of the boat, so the teak swim step will become an insert so a frame will have to be made.