Hey RC, my Windlass Stopped Working..?
Umm yes it did...
Every now and then it might pay to check on the windlass motor....
New Fangled Swatch Motor
Just like a Swatch Watch you can see the inner workings of this motor, how cool....
Wait, that window into the inner workings is not supposed to be there.....?
By the way this windlass kept tripping a 200A breaker due to a direct short from the crumbling mess. Always use a fuse or breaker..
Replacement Alternator
This "professionally installed" alternator replacement was anything but professional. The new alternator had a 1/2" pulley yet this engine uses a 3/8" belt.... Can you say engine choking belt dust....
How any technician could walk away from a boat like this is beyond me. According to the owner at least two yards, beyond the original install, had looked at this and none solved the problem. Sad really because the issue is SO obvious. One look at where the belt sits in the alternator pulley vs. the crank and water pump pulleys and it becomes painfully obvious....
C'mon What Does An O-Ring Cost?
This fuel tank was full of water, including salt water.. Why? The deck fill o-ring was completely missing as in NON EXISTENT!!!
This is the frozen mass of filthy water I took out of the fuel filter in mid winter....
A Siphon Break.....er.. BROKE!
This was one builders idea of a siphon break. They brazed some thin walled copper tube to a yellow brass nipple then placed it directly over the engine. It failed and began showering the diesel engine with salt water..... FAIL!!!
My VHF performance Stinks...
Yes it does! Friction fitting a VHF cable and failing to execute the termination properly is a recipe for FAIL.....
Salt Water, Aluminum & Copper DO NOT MIX WELL
The white color of the bottom corner of this aluminum tank was caused by a leaking deck fill, salt water and a copper pick up tube.
This is a prime example of why the ABYC standards specifically prohibit the use of copper based alloy fittings in aluminum tanks without a form of isolation.
The corner of that tank was "hot" and had multiple pin holes eaten clean through it. The rest of the tank was perfect but where the salt water, copper and aluminum met the corner was ruined.......
The stench of diesel in this boat was enough to make you vomit....
Factory Fuel Tank FAIL
Quality control was apparently unheard of at this fuel tank manufactuer. This factory installed fuel sender landed right over a weld and leaked from day one. Nobody could figure out the problem. One look at the sender and it was painfully obvious why this boat wreaked of diesel. Every time this owner sailed on port tack the tank leaked....
How anyone could let this sort of crap slip is beyond me....
Oh, They Knew......
The sad part here is that the tank manufacturer/factory KNEW exactly how badly they f*cked up.
They even went so far as to grind a corner of the sending unit off to try and make it fit... Pitifully sad example of FAIL.......
Plastic Thru-Hull Fiting
Yep this is safe..... FAIL!!
Dezincification = Sinkification
This is why we don't mix bronze and yellow brass below water. This yellow brass male adapter completely dezincified, became brittle and failed.. Boat sinking FAIL!!
Hey RC I have a Leak........??
Why yes you DO!!!!
Again this is absolutely positively why you DO NOT want to use yellow brass below water. The 85-5-5-5 BRONZE seacock (85% copper, 5% tin, 5% lead & 5% zinc) this was attached to was PERFECTLY FINE.
This yellow brass nipple (60% copper & 40% zinc) had dezincified & wasted away to the point where it was leaking badly.. The threads literally looked like they were melting away, and they WERE...
GROCO makes BRONZE pipe nipples, USE THEM, if you need a nipple... Please don't fall prey to Home Depot yellow brass for your below waterline fittings!