2017 - South from the Chesapeake

[PT26]

Hey everyone!

Paul and I plan to put our little Grampian back in the water in the next couple weeks and then leave South down the ICW for Florida.

What started as a plan for a 'toes in the sand, drink in hand' trip has taken a bit of a turn to more of a planned relief effort as most of our forward storage will be full of carpenters tools.

As our first message for this trip, in Afourian style, the boat has been on the hard for a few years now -- work and such destroys playtime 😉 -- But I have been turning the motor with our handy-dandy hand crank religiously every month to keep things from getting stuck. Today we plan to suck out all the gas that was left in the gas tank, change the spark plugs, check the water impeller, change the oil, change the water separator, etc... am I forgetting something important?

Hopefully when we launch there will be no issues with our A4, but if there is it's awesome to know I'll have you guys here for help!

--Trina
S/V PT26

PS: The boat show is coming up and we're planning to go, anyone else going to be there?

[edwardc]

Make sure none of your thru hulls have stiffened or seized. Much easier to rebuild them out of the water!

We'll be at the boat show, but haven't decided which day yet.

[PT26]

Thru-hulls

Good advise. I checked out the one under the sink and we're off for parts to repair it. LOL. The plastic fitting shattered in my hand when I wiggles the sink drain.

[Dave Neptune]

Paul, drain and replace the fuel lines. Cheap to do and good assurance that no "line boogies" foul things up. Double check the carb incase it to has some deposits inside. Did you run the engine out of gas when it went into storage? If so the carb should be fine unless the needle sticks and then a bit of a tap on the side usually frees it up.

Dave Neptune

[PT26]

Hey Dave, yes I ran some ethenal free gas through it and ran it dry.
Good idea on the gas hose!
There is so much to think about and remember.
You are right Dave, it's cheap insurance I won't get a boogie in there.

I checked over the engine today it's looking good but decided not to pull the plugs, I shot them with some more lubricant today just to be safe and not break one.
In thinking about the gas hose, I should probably take a good look at the exhaust hoses too.
I wonder what spare parts I should carry, I have a spare alternater, coil, complete ignition ready to drop in.
Hmmm...

[sastanley]

Yay, Trina!!! So glad to hear you and Paul are re-launching the good ship PT-26! Dave's covered most things I could think of. As for spares, maybe something like an impeller..

We will be at the boat show too, but not sure which day either. Maybe Sunday, but Friday is really my favorite day...everyone (including all the vendors) are still fresh and energetic. By Sunday, they are all beat and lethargic.

See you all at the Pusser's tent!

[edwardc]

I'm leaning towards Friday too. Thurs is too expensive, and Sat & Sun too crowded.

[HOTFLASH]

Left out

So which show are you all referring to? Did I miss something?

Mary

[sastanley]

Hi Mary,

Check it - http://www.annapolisboatshows.com/un...sailboat-show/

It is a long way for you, but BWI Airport is not far away from Annapolis.

[PT26]

We're going on Friday to the boat show. Hope to see some of you guys there 😁
-- Trina

[sastanley]

I dunno if there are any pictures, but Laura and I ran into both Paul & Trina, and Ed & Joan on Friday, at different ends of the boat show several hours apart!

In addition to that, there was an Ajax siting (and his now wife the "Power Ranger") and we spent lots of time running around the boat show with them, and my buddy Smitty (he owns a diesel sailboat, but he is almost as cool as Ajax, that also went to the dark side.)

[PT26]

It was great seeing you guys!
Hopefully we'll be in Solomons Island soon.
Almost ready to splash the boat.
We are so ready to set sail!

[sastanley]

We are here..give us a shout as you leave so we have some warning. We are 6 minutes from Solomons by car.

[PT26]

Minor holdup

Will do!
Had a bit of a slow up... Should have listened to Hanley and changed the two temporary fittings when we put the new A4 in the boat.
My excuse, "I forgot" lol.
Upon starting, water started spewing out of the manifold fittings on the (IIRC)
The Tom Thach mod.
Had to use the back up outboard to get to the slip!
All fixed now the A4 is purring like a kitten.
The info found here and all the suggestions on keeping it on the hard worked.
18 months on the hard and it started up first try.

[PT26]

It looks like this is our weather window so we are headed to Solomans island today.
We completely went over the A4 all is in great shape.
I did find an extra fuel pump it was the last item on the spare parts list.
The winds look like they may be light for a couple days so right out of the gate we will have to run the motor.
That's ok though, I don't mind running it after sitting so long.
If you guys want I can post our MMSI number and you can follow us on vessel finder.

Cheers