Now where was I?

Wooooohooooo!!!  Finals are DONE, papers are DONE, presentations are DONE, and it is officially summer!  There was a period there where I didn't think I would make it.  The past several weeks have involved some long, long nights at the library, but it paid off.  I found out that I aced my big final and I feel good about the papers I wrote and presentation I gave.  I should have my grades in a few weeks, but I feel like I did alright in both classes.

So now that I am done with finals I can finally focus on Creeky a bit more.  Last week I sold my bed, which was a big step towards moving aboard.  I have started packing some things up, and as soon as I have my motorcycle back from the shop I plan to start spending most nights on Creeky.  The next big goal is to have everything else that I don't need sold or given away by the end of June (if anybody needs/wants any stuff please let me know).  Pretty exciting.

Unfortunately, the issue with the propulsion persists.  I have triple confirmed what I already knew about the transmission; that it cannot be run in reverse.  I also found out that the V-Drive can be run in either rotational direction based on the input, but that doesn't help me very much.  As for the prop, I still have not been able to get any information from West Mekan, but I did manage to get in touch with Gunner at Scandia Propeller Service, where it looks like the system originally came from.  He is working on doing some more research on the system but was able to give me at least some valuable information in the meantime.  He confirmed that the prop blades can only be installed in one direction and that they can't just be flipped around, which makes sense.  He also thought the easiest thing to do would be to replace the V-Drive to get the right rotation at the prop.  He thinks that will be cheaper than getting new blades, but is looking into whether or not they are available just in case.

So it looks like I need to do some hunting for a used V-Drive that will fit the bill.  I can't afford to drop $3,200 on a new one right now, and I don't think it would be right to put something new and fancy in with the current setup.  I'm going to try to find a rebuilt Walter RV-20 with the opposite rotation and see if that takes care of everything.

Despite all this seemingly productive research I am still in the same place I was a few weeks ago.  Let's not forget the other major mechanical projects like the steering, diesel tank installation, permanent control mounts, etc...  Then there are also the critical things to make the boat inhabitable, like getting the deck plate put on for the forward head (which is disgustingly over-full), getting water sorted out, and getting the propane system installed.  Obstacles or not, progress will continue!

Home stretch!

I'm in the home stretch!  One more night of studying, a final tomorrow evening, and then I am free!  I can't wait.  Almost there...

I am not good at waiting

I have to admit that while I do like to do a lot of things the old fashioned way, I am not very good at being patient when that's what the old fashioned way requires.  Being spoiled with having all the information you could ever need on most topics available at your fingertips makes it really hard to do things like wait for marine specialists to get back to you about outdated boat parts.  I got in touch with a woman at Scandia Propeller Service earlier this week, who it looks like sold Henry the West Mekan setup, and she said that Johann would almost definitely know about the system.  She took down all the details and asked me to email her what documents I have, which I did.  No response as of yet.  I also emailed West Mekan twice and made the long distance call to Norway speak with Konrad.  He said that he got my emails and was sure he could find some more details on the setup I have and would send them to me via email.  Nothing from him yet either.  Now it's Friday evening and I don't expect that I'll get much more news over the weekend.  Efffff...

How did anybody get anything done in the 80's?!

Not that I have any time to do anything on the boat this weekend, but I was hoping to at least spend a few hours on it if I make enough progress.  Beyond that it would just be nice to get some definitive info for the sake of closure.  Now I will continue to be consumed with trying to mentally figure out something that is impossible to understand without some more information.  Oh well, at least I have studying to keep my mind mostly occupied until next week.  Maybe I'll try to get in touch with Henry and Birgitta this weekend and see if they remember anything about the setup.

One thing I was able to get some info on was the V-Drive.  I emailed Walter Machine and explained to them that I have an RV-20 V-Drive from the 80's with zero hours on it that I would like to trade with them for the same model with the opposite output rotation as the one I have.  I thought maybe they would have some dusty ones lying around in their shop somewhere or a rebuilt one or something.  This is the response I got:

"Your RV-20 V-Drive would be replaced by current production model RV-26; cost with Idler Gear Assembly is $3,224.00 plus $118 for new #25 prop shaft coupling (if required in your installation).  The new RV-26 would come with new mounting brackets and a 12" long #27 splined connecting shaft."

Not quite what I was hoping for, but it was worth a shot!

The end of the semester is in sight!

Well, the semester is almost over and I can't wait.  I have two ~20 page papers to write by May 7th, one presentation to give, and one final on May 14th.  After that I can set my sights back on making some serious headway with Creeky.  However, despite my efforts to focus on school and work, Creeky keeps creeping into my train of thought.  It's kind of a problem.  Where I intend to spend 5-10 minutes researching things online between homework assignments or meetings I end up spending at least an hour.  I'm just trying to put some dots together in my head so that when my schedule opens up I have an action plan to complete projects rather than taking more measurements and spending more time researching things online.

The main thing I have been researching is the engine and drivetrain configuration.  To recap, the issue I am having is that when the transmission is in forward the thrust is in reverse.  Right now I am chasing down as much literature as I can find on the various components involved (see below).  I have managed to find quite a bit of information on just about everything except for the controllable pitch prop system, which is Norwegian.  I have emailed West Mekan a few times, but have not received a response to date.  I plan to call them tomorrow morning.

Engine: Westerbeke W80
Transmission: Velvet Drive C71 (Model 10-17-004, Ratio 1:1) 
both of these are reverse mounted with a driveshaft going into an independently mounted V-Drive
V-Drive: Walter RV-20 (Ratio 2.56:1) 
which goes into a controllable pitch prop
Prop: West Mekan AS Type 40 HV3 Controllable Pitch Prop System

What I know so far is that looking from the stern of the boat the engine rotates in the RH direction.  When the transmission is in forward the driveshaft going into the V-Drive also rotates in the RH direction.  This is reversed by the V-Drive and the output of propshaft is in the LH rotation.  From what little bit of information I have been able to find online about the West Mekan system it appears that the prop is likely a RH prop.  I have tried adjusting the pitch of the prop all the way in both directions, but it does not go past the feathered position to allow a reversal of the thrust while maintaining the same rotational direction.

It seems like the issue may be that the V-Drive is the incorrect model (they made the same model with an idler gear to keep the rotational direction) or the prop is incorrect.  However it seems extremely unlikely that Henry (the original owner of the boat) would have made such an oversight given all the thought he put into everything else.  Another possibility is that when the prop was installed the blades were put on facing the wrong direction, but I don't even know if that is possible.  Since the prop is underwater, this is the one thing I can't visually diagnose, at least not easily.  A final possibility is that everything is correct and I just need to use the reverse gear to obtain forward motion, but I am almost certain that is not the case.  From what I have read this will kill the transmission in a hurry, but there are a few sources that also disagree with this.

What I really need is a free weekend to really go through all of the possibilities while I am on the boat!  For now I will just have to keep digging for more info and try to be patient, which is not one of my strong suits.

It doesn't help my brain that the prop is feathered in this picture because I don't know which way the blades rotate.

Creeky moves to Chelsea

So I have had a very busy and productive past few weeks, but have not had a lot of down time.  With traveling for work, writing papers for class, and studying for finals (not to mention working on Creeky) I have had my hands pretty full.  I definitely have lots of updates to post, but they may need to wait until school settles down a bit.  Until then, here are some teasers:

Creeky leaves Constitution Marina with lots of help from Brian and my dad (Sebastian the Constitution Marina dock master pictured here with me) 

The extra windy and cold trip up the Mystic River to Admiral's Hill Marina in Chelsea, MA

Creeky's new home

I wish I could say she got there under her own power, but with the clock running out on the patience of Constitution Marina I ended up getting a tow.  Since I still haven't received my coast guard documentation and the boat isn't close to legal I think it was a good move.  We actually had to drive right through a state police boat training that would have probably racked up a few tickets had I not been in tow.  At least that part is done and I can focus on finals for another 2 weeks before shifting it back to Creeky.

Some of the wins along the way were getting the drive shaft run into the v-drive, getting the engine controls set up, and getting the steering mostly figured out.

Some of the challenges still being faced are ordering the steering cable too short and not realizing it until after cutting it in half (eff...) and the direction of thrust being backwards when the transmission is in forwards.  I need to snag some part numbers and serial numbers off of the transmission and v-drive to see what the issue is, but from the preliminary reading I have done it seems like it may be at least somewhat easy to fix.  There's a chance that my model of velvet-drive transmission may allow for being run in reverse full-time, but I doubt it, or at least don't want to risk it.  More details to come...  Stay tuned.

Another step closer to getting Creeky on the move

This weekend was another good one in terms of headway.  Jesse and I got the exhaust fully installed, and a few of his boaty friends introduced me to Ward Marine over in Winthrop, MA.  Awesome!  I also got a bunch of new boat toys to play with in the near future, including a full propane detection and solenoid setup, some sweet LED lights, and some more West Systems epoxy.  Here are a few updates in pictures and videos:

The ridiculously large exhaust riser setup before installation:

The engine control lever box to go on the side of the steering pedestal

Brian helping me install the ludicrously priced Edson bulkhead steerer in the steering pedestal.

The Ural loaded up with the steering pedestal and the beginnings of what will be used to align the pull-pull conduit with the steering quadrant.

Here is a video of the wet exhaust system in action before we installed the flapper.

I also learned of another Creekmore 45 owner located a little further down the east coast in New Jersey.  His name is Tom and he started working on his boat "Cailte" back in 1989 and has been living aboard it since the 90's.  His story is an inspirational one.  He has already provided me with a ton of information on how his boat is set up and I look forward to hearing more about it soon.  

Creeky lives!

So thanks to even more help from my friends I had another really productive weekend aboard Creeky, including my first sleepover on it with Jennilee, who again is the best girlfriend ever.  It went something like this:

• [me]: So, I didn't quite get the head hooked up and pumped out so there is still no toilet on the boat.  If you have to pee you will have to go all the way back to the office or pee off the dock.
• [Jennilee]: That's fine, I love peeing off docks.
• [me]: I also couldn't hook up running water because the faucets are still apparently off for the season.
• [Jennilee]: I hate running water.
• [me]: (as I am moving tools and parts out of the entryway just so we can get past the bottom of the stairs) I also didn't realize how much of a mess everything still was or that I had removed structural parts of the bed earlier, but give me 5 minutes and I'll fix everything.  Or we can just go back to my place and sleep on the boat another time.
• [Jennilee]: Nope, I'll wait.  I want to sleep on the boat.  I'll be reading, let me know when you're done doing whatever you need to do.
• [me]: I love you.

Onto other non-mushy subjects...  My goal for the weekend was to get the boat to a point where it could theoretically be driven.  After fabricating an exhaust riser with a water-cooled inlet using about $200 worth of the largest steel pipe fittings you have ever seen, cutting out room for it to fit, and running some fuel line the engine still wouldn't start...  My uncle Bill and I did some diagnosing and fiddling to see what we were missing and the engine still just turned over but wouldn't catch.  Next, I asked my very boaty friend Dave (who is also my neighbor a few boats down and a marine mechanic) for some advice and then went back to try to work the air out of the fuel rail as he suggested.  Still nothing.  Eff...  So I went back to Dave's boat to annoy him again despite the fact that it was Easter and he had guests over.  Instead of telling me to go away, Dave invited me in and fed me arguably the best Easter dinner I have ever eaten.  We then went over to my boat and with a tiny spritz of starter fluid got the following results:

Success!!!  Don't mind all the smoke.  The exhaust was running straight into the bilge.  Mission accomplished.  It would have been a huge pain in the ass, but if I had to I could have theoretically driven the boat like this.  This weekend the goal is to finish the job with the engine and drive this thing to the moon.  Thanks again Dave, Jesse, Bill, and Jennilee for all your help.  Thanks mom for the Easter candy to fuel the creativity and complement the beer.