I declare

I'm sure there is a rule somewhere in the Captain's book of "Stuff you can get away with" that says said Captain has a certain latitude in making declarations. (As in, "The chart says there is enough depth", or, "The anchor feels set to me.) So I am going to say that the galley is done, (though there is a light bar left to install.) The plumbing is done as well, (though I have two tank lines to replace and we have yet to check it for leaks while under pressure). I also pulled about 30 feet of old and unused gas line that ran from near the stove, under the sink, though the bilge and under the cabinet where (I assume) an LP gas heater used to reside. And please don't ask why I left it in there so long as I have no good answer.

On the "nearly done" list is the engine to water heater system. The .1 SBU manifold is assembled with all of the proper fittings. The old one, not a surprise, was a hack job - hoses clamped onto pipe threads rather than barbed fittings. The lines are run to and from the water heater itself. The only open question is how to plumb the engine loop side without getting tangled up in the belts. Though I have complained about it I know now why the previous dock-side owner never hooked it up. Access for belt maintenance is going to be a bear; the price to be paid for hot showers on the hook.


Finishing the engine drive train repair now looms large as the next thing on the list. One would think that a 40 year mechanic would be more comfortable with the bolts, nuts, grinding, fitting, torquing and assembling kind of work required for the drive train than the cutting, sanding, finishing, installing kind of work we have been doing to the interior. The truth is I am looking at the drive train with a bit of trepidation - there is a long way to go and a lot that can still go wrong. It is pretty easy to shape wood and Corian to what is needed and make it work. Bell housings, couplings, V-drives and transmissions are not nearly so pliable.

But it is next on the list and stands between us and getting off the dock. Let the wrenches fly.