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Post by pilgrim17 on May 16, 2017 19:13:58 GMT 1
Off in the morning Richie & Stan have joined with John Jones & come over to the "Dark Side" for a trip out tomorrow on Belle, forecast is good & if we set off early enough we should have a few hours on Langland Reef before the run gets too much. As long as we have an uneventful trip mechanically I don't care, but a few fish would be a bonus as well. Pies & sausage rolls have been bought, I will pick up milk in the morning, & I hope I can remember how to call the locks to get out , will let you know how we get on.
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Post by pilgrim17 on May 15, 2017 11:59:56 GMT 1
Not posted for a few days Sorry Huw I know you like to read it before you go to bed but it has been frustrating having to cancel trips because of mechanical problems. At least it had nothing to do with my modifications to the "furniture" that was responsible, apparently it all stemmed from a poor earth that went from the alternator/starter to the panel on the dashboard, which feeds power to the instruments. Seemingly if the earth isn't working then in the case of the VHF when you key the mic to call, & the earth isn't working, it causes some kind of problem in the workings, that affects the "foo foo valve" or similar inside. Anyway the VHF was knackered, I could send but not receive, I could hear myself calling the marina office (on the radio of a boat opposite) but got no reply. The consensus was that trying to get it repaired would be false economy, so I bought the cheapest model available & fitted it, so now we have VHF again, (but the DSC still has to be connected). It also seems that the "Blocking Diode" is knackered & needs replacing? The auto electrician has created a "harness"? to get the batteries charging, & everything working. To cut a long story short we are now ready to go & I have arranged a trip for Wednesday, where we go & what we chase will depend on wind & tide, but at least we will be out at last!
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Post by pilgrim17 on May 10, 2017 9:43:46 GMT 1
More electrical problems! The auto electrician came to the boat yesterday & quite quickly identified the VHF as the problem, because it is linked to the plotter by the GPS, both were affected. He ran a new earth from the engine to the back of the instrument panel (because he considered that could have been the cause of the problems) We opened the engine compartments to give him access & he shook his head at the wiring, he said it was a quart in a pint pot, & compared it to the wiring on the "Integrity" (the boat in Alaskan Bush People on Discovery channel) He managed to get the plotter & sounder working again, but the rev counter, the horn & the ignition light are still not working, he is coming back on Thursday when he has more time. The consensus from the boat committee is to buy a new radio (repairs could cost as much as 75% of cost of new) but I have asked a guy who does radio repairs for a living to give me a quote before I lash out £120 on a new one. I will keep you posted on how "Integrity" is shaping up
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Post by pilgrim17 on May 6, 2017 18:22:00 GMT 1
Spent the morning Looking for the answer to the electrical problem, I disconnected the winch from the battery in case it was that, but it wasn't it, I disconnected the live wire to the volt meter & it wasn't that either, & the advice I had from a guy who knows far more than me was "leave it for the auto electrician" & that's what I intend to do, he will be there on Tuesday. Keeping on trying to make them work if there is some faulty connection could do it harm & a couple of days is nothing saying as I have already been 6 weeks without a trip. Keep the faith troops it will be worthwhile when its finished.
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Post by pilgrim17 on May 5, 2017 16:41:36 GMT 1
More electrical problems! Since the winch has been reconnected, most other electrical instruments have gone rogue? The VHF doesn't give a screen display & makes a ticking noise that sounds like the fishfinder transducer pulse? The Chart Plotter switches on & displays "Lowrance HDS" then after a few seconds the screen dims & it goes into "standby mode", The fishfinder comes on & shows a display which doesn't look right & there is a "Low Voltage 10.3v" notice on the screen? The forward bilge pump wont go into "auto mode" Before the auto electrician left I tested everything (except the winch which was still disconnected) & everything worked, & all I can do is disconnect the winch & see if it makes any difference? If it does, I could lift the anchor using the "Alderney Ring" method (the anchor is still rigged for that) & I mainly use my tablet for Navionics navigation, & the Sonarphone for depth sounding, plus I have my own personal handheld VHF. However they are not the "default equipment" of the boat & club, & although I am happy to use them, I don't know how it sit with the club's insurance, plus the issue of the non working bilge pumps I cant cover (except with a baling bucket ) Even if I get it sorted tomorrow it will be too late to cancel as people will have bought/dug bait, so best I make the call now to save time & money, the auto electrician is coming back on Tuesday morning to sort it out, if I haven't managed to solve it before then
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Post by pilgrim17 on May 3, 2017 17:21:49 GMT 1
At last! I have managed to empty the boat of the accumulated tools, & associated crap (offcuts of timber etc) ladder, Workmate, extension leads that were so useful in my "upgrade" of Mumbles Belle. There are still 1 or 2 things to organise (I don't want to take a box with paint, rollers etc) out with me, nor empty fuel cans etc, but the marina authorities seem to have a thing about Mumbles Belle, other boats in the marina have virtual horizontal wardrobes attached to the pontoons but they constantly keep nagging me about anything I put on the pontoon, but the Gin Palaces seem immune to such orders. Similarly when Belle was out of the water recently, some "Jobsworth" came & told me to get my scooter out of the yard At the time there were 3 commercial "marine services" vans, a Range Rover & trailer, & a Land Rover parked in there, so I told him that when they moved so would I, the same goes for the boxes on the marina. Some of the yachts in there have bowsprits that stretch halfway across the pontoon, they leave rubber dinghies on there, I leave a dustbin with 2 empty fuel cans & they have the cheek, to go aboard the boat & put the bin aboard, somebody is likely to get a slap as David Moyes said! Looking forward to Sunday now, hopefully find a spot on Tesco Car Park at Langland & see if the bream have arrived, then maybe a drift or two in the bay for plaice on the way back, roll on summer
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 29, 2017 17:55:45 GMT 1
Pick up my tape, & do a quick check I needed my tape to measure how much more fascia we need to finish cladding the chalet handrail, so while I was on board I gave the engine a run to help keep the batteries charged, & I checked a few other things to make sure she is ready to go when we get a suitable day. I noticed that I haven't secured the grease pot for the stern gland, I will have to do that next time down. I have a mystery with my crab trap, I checked it the other day & there was nothing in it & even the bones of the herring I put in it were gone I checked it again today & the same thing has happened, so we have a creature living in the marina that eats fish bones? I was hoping to get a few hard crab for a trip on the hounds later on in the week, looks like I will have to go & turn some stones!
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 28, 2017 18:11:27 GMT 1
Now ready to go! The new starter has been fitted & wired up, & the alternator wiring rejigged to suit the new starter, the auto electrician asked me to test everything before he left & I thought I had, but I forgot the winch & the day after he left I went down to start tidying up & make the battery connections permanent, only then did I see the wires from the winch lying unconnected in the battery box Now both of these wires were attached to the bolt that goes through the terminal clamp, so I just connected them as they were, onto the battery terminal, no winch Nobody told me that one was negative & the other positive did they, so how was I to know? Anyway the error of my ways has been pointed out by Steve & the winch is working again, just in time for the wind to turn easterly & increase However the boat needs to be emptied of the junk used to do the work (& some of the stuff that was on there & never used). Hopefully Richie & I will load it onto the minibus on Wednesday, go down to the chalet & finish cladding the handrail, then drop all my junk off at the house (don't know where I am going to put it all ) The boat started easily even with the batteries low, it threw the engine over straight away, apparently in the new starter, the old solenoid technology has been replaced by a small reduction gearbox, that starts to wind the Bendix up before it engages the flywheel, & there is sufficient inertia to turn the engine over even with low batteries, which is always a comfort to know. So hopefully next weekend will see us out amongst the fishes in the new "Mumbles McBelle"
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 22, 2017 16:38:47 GMT 1
Only the engine cover left to paint now & that will be the painting finished thank God, I hate painting! Then its just fitting the new starter motor & alternator & its away to go again. It's been a long hard slog to make all the changes I wanted to make, & some of it has been much more time consuming than I anticipated, hopefully it will improve the fishing experience on Mumbles Belle. Unfortunately because of the red herring I was given (in the shape of brilliant white gloss which refuses to dry) the first couple of trips may be "Standing Room Only" Until the sun bakes the paint dry. It is probably for spraying on in a heated booth as a 2 part pack, but my greed means that it dries at a "gentleman's pace" so be careful you don't get stuck to it like a fly on a fly paper! Given that the hounds have arrived I baited the crab trap this morning & already had a couple in it before I left so by next week there should be enough to have a couple of rods out for them, while I fish for the table. I hope to take a trip on Saturday or Sunday next week if the weather is ok, but dont forget to bring your rubber gloves!
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 21, 2017 14:54:08 GMT 1
Only the deck & engine cover left & that is the painting finished, mind when I lifted the duckboards to clean before painting, it looks like somebody has emptied a skip under them! Found beads, swivels, hooks, along with the general rubbish of long mortified worms etc, but a dustpan & brush got rid of most of it, however the deck needs washing down before painting, but without a pump to pump out the bilges I cant do that, but I hope my repairs to the drill driven pump work, if so I can finish the painting, then its only the starter & the alternator to be refitted then we are back in business. It would be nice to get out next weekend & target the smooth hounds that have apparently arrived, & it might be prudent to drop a worm baited "bling" trace down to see if the plaice have returned with them? I have to report that the gallon of "International" white gloss that was given to me by the "0ystercat Mafia" (& that never dried because it was a 2 part paint) never dried even with the 2nd part added! I am pretty sure that it was "acquired" because the labels on the tin are in Russian, Polish, Dutch, German, Italian etc, etc, etc but nowhere is there any English? Anyway I added part 2 to part 1 & painted it on with doubts in my mind, & 2 days later, if you touch it you are stuck to it, I will have to wait for the sun to bake it like last time Beware of Greeks bearing gifts, & any "buckshees" from the "Oystercat mafia" I intend to have a relaxing afternoon on Sunday fishing Alan Duthie's charity match on Swansea Beach from County Hall to Brynmill Lane, I will be in the area of the Slip Bridge so if you fancy wetting a line then come & join me its for charity so force yourselves.
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 15, 2017 12:11:04 GMT 1
Visitors have cried off But I am not going down the marina today, I don't think we had enough rain yesterday to warrant a panic, so I will leave it until tomorrow & combine the pumping, with the removal of the duckboards, & moving whatever is in the way either into the wheelhouse (if there is any value to it or room for it) or onto the wheelhouse roof, to clear the decks for painting. Oystercat has been struggling the last couple of weeks having to settle for lots of small thin dabs in Oxwich, & lots of rays off Porthcawl (neither of which are within our comfort range), hence me not being in a frantic dash to get Belle through the locks, even boats with speed & distance at their command are still struggling to catch anything, so don't despair because we are not going out. Keep your money in your wallet & your bait in your freezer until there is something worth catching out there. I am down the marina most days & I get the scuttlebuck on what is, & what isn't, being caught, & if we go out too soon the only thing being caught will be you!
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 14, 2017 19:22:14 GMT 1
Seeing as its standing idle Until probably Wednesday or Thursday I may as well empty it, lift the duckboards, & hose, or pressure wash, the seats & decks ready for painting. Me? not on your sweet life will you find me painting, I have done enough over the past few weeks somebody else can paint the seats & decks, I will give the duckboards a splash over with Creocote, but that's my lot! Health wise over the past week or more, my health has been up & down like a brides nightie, on Wednesday I felt ok, yet on Thursday I was unwell again & I even missed Club Night which is not like me at all, & today I feel as though I have been hosed down & run over by a HGV! Tomorrow I have visitors so it will be Sunday before I get down the boat, I will remove the duckboard & probably give then another coat. Thursday looks to be a good day so I will ensure everything is off & stacked, & that the boat is washed down ready for painting, anybody who wants to spread some paint, then Thursday morning will be a good time to fulfil your fantasies!
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 12, 2017 15:17:58 GMT 1
The problems continue The word from the auto electrician is that his supplier are out of stock of the starter motor we need, & that the new one needs to come from Belgium? I am glad that it isn't middle of the season otherwise I would be around the scrap yards looking for a replacement. Apparently the old one was damaged beyond repair & to replace it "like for like" would be expensive, so he has suggested a more modern & cheaper replacement a "reduction gear starter" as opposed to a "direct drive starter" which the original apparently was. What it means though is that with the boat "powerless" there is no way for the automatic bilge pumps to work, so whenever it rains "Muggins" here has to go down on his scooter to empty the bilges manually with the emergency pumps Steve & I have created. If you don't know what its like to ride a scooter in the rain let me assure you it isn't comfortable, & to avoid being soaked to the skin you have to dress so that when you stop you have a job to walk! With Easter coming up fast I can see this starter not being fitted until next Wednesday at least, & with other things to do once we have power, the first trip is liable to be another week after that. Not that there is much to catch out there, but I enjoy taking your money off you regardless
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 11, 2017 13:37:45 GMT 1
Flu like symptoms? Not been down to the boat for 2 days because I have had what resembled flu (chesty cough, sore throat, aching limbs etc) but I had a flu jab in October so it cant be flu? Last time down I filled the ballast box under the new deck in the stern, & secured the 56lb weights I couldn't get under the deck, under the stern deck retained by a cage of 8mm stainless all thread (it aint gonna move) lol. The auto electrician visited the boat & looked at the engine & the way it was wired & said that a replacement starter of the same type would be VERY expensive (if one could be got) & recommended that we replace the starter with a "reduction gear starter" I have no idea what one of those is, but I told him to go ahead anyway, seeing as I have no idea what he was talking about He says he thinks that there is probably something wrong with the wiring from the ignition/starter switch to the starter, so he will be chained to the pontoon until all is working before he is allowed to leave. Once he has fitted the starter & all is working again I will power wash it down & hand the paint, roller & tray, & brushes to John Jones (who confessed to being a painter) & he wont be allowed off until he has finished it. I expect to be ready to take the boat out after 23rd April by then all should be finished, unloaded, painted ready for 2017.
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Post by pilgrim17 on Apr 6, 2017 16:11:44 GMT 1
Alternative pumping strategy Seeing as the electrics are disconnected, there is no automatic bilge pump working, so Steve Bryant has taken an old bilge pump home (not working automatically) & is setting it up as an emergency bilge pump, & I have repaired the drill driven pump for the same purpose. After yesterdays discovery of just how much water can get in, & how quickly, so it pays to be prepared I haven't been down the marina today despite the weather & the amount that needs doing, but I was threatened with physical violence if I didn't cut the "lawns" & throw out last years tomato & cucumber plants ready for this year. I have just finished & I am knackered. I have had no word from the auto electrician on the state of the starter despite him saying he would contact me yesterday, but seeing as it isn't critical I will give him some time. Next job will be fit the new support brackets under the stern floor & get the batteries & ballast stored away to clear the stern, then when the rest of the problems are solved, remove the entire contents of my workshop/garden shed, from the boat, back to my workshop/garden shed, & clear the bow area ready for John Jones (who claims to be a painter) to paint the inside, while I watch!
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