BRAVO Refit - Weeks 2 and 3

Progress has been frustratingly slow these past couple of weeks.  After the tanks came out at the end of week 1, we thought we were "off to the races".  Unfortunately, at this point, three weeks into the project, the plywood mockups to get the new tanks fabricated are still not quite complete, so we will not have new tanks for at least the next 2 weeks or so.  We also learned that our shipwright Don does not work on Mondays!!!  WTF???  This adds 20% to the schedule for any of his work.  Not good.  At all.....

Well here's where we are at this point:

Tanks:  Mockups ALMOST done, then will go off to fabrication

Fitting the structural supports that will go between the tanks on the starboard side.  These get fiberglassed to the hull and support the generator above, as well as anchoring the tanks.

 Partitions have just been glassed in.  Pretty, right?  Well hold that thought...

When the 3 tanks were mocked up in plywood, the 3rd one was slightly too big to maneuver into position in the tight space.  So it and the adjacent tank needed to be redone, and the glassed-in partition will be cut out and re measured and recut (remember, boat hulls taper from bow to stern, so each bulkhead is unique!)

That's what the mockups are for, but it would have made more sense to try it BEFORE glassing in the bulkheads!!!  just sayin'.......

Repair of old through hull fitting hole will be as strong as original.

Meanwhile over on the port side....   We've figured out how to rebuild this side in a single tank, eliminating the hassle and expense of multiple tanks like we need on the starboard side.  It means a large vertical tank, thin enough to slip in the entry, and elimination of the horizontal leg of the L-shaped previous tank.

This required moving a through hull fitting which is the vent for the propane locker.

The repaint project is well underway.  BRAVO has scaffolding all around, and is being prepped and sanded, with the all small dings and scratches of her 30 years of voyaging being filled and faired.  We're also stripping all of the varnish off the exterior wooodwork, and polishing all of the stainless steel.








Ahhh, and now on to the galley.  As you may recall, the freezer box has been a terrible energy drain for us, requiring that we run the generator daily for perhaps 1 hour.  The refrigerator box, on the other hand, has been relatively efficient.  We figured that the freezer had to have bad or lacking insulation causing the problem, and decided after 3 years in the tropics to do something about it.  This past weekend, surgery began, as we tore out the existing counter top and the freezer box itself, along with its insulation.  Not pretty.  At All !!!

Demolition beginning.  Laminate surface removed, as is the freezer hatch (freezer is in the background)

"There's yer problem, ma'am"  Poured foam insulation along the hull (back wall of freezer) is around 1/4 inch thick!!!  Recommendation is for R-28, which is nearly 5 inches!!!  Other walls were better, with around 3"

Galley today, awaiting new freezer and counters.

Back topsides, the boom has gone off to the welding shops.  We're making some improvements to the reefing system, and strengthening the gooseneck (connection of the boom to the mast).

Poor BRAVO is looking a bit shabby now.  Hopefully the next few weeks will see progress as the rebuild continues.....stay tuned!

Bravo refit, week 1

It's begun...our long awaited major work effort started on Monday, as we hauled out of the water, pressure washed, and gently set down in the cradle that will be our home for the next (hopefully) 6 weeks or so.  All went right on schedule.










On Tuesday morning the real work began.  Don from Riverside Boatworks is the shipwright we'll be working with most closely, and we began demolition to get at the fuel tanks.  Both have proved to be worthy adversaries, not totally unexpected.  In order to remove the port tank, we needed to remove the watermaker and the cabinetry that it sat on.  This (the cabinetry) was pretty much trashed in the process, and will need to be reconstructed.

We've found the place where the port tank developed its diesel leak in Ecuador, a corroded point under the tank at the low point.  The tanks were apparently installed in the hull before the deck was put on.  Nice idea for the rascals building the boat.....not so nice when you need to remove the tanks 30 years later!  No way would they fit out of the openings of the boat, so we needed to cut them up and remove in pieces.  Very smelly, messy work, using a grinder to hack up the 2mm stainless steel monsters.  But by Friday afternoon, it was done, the last of the two tanks, in pieces, lay on the ground.  We'll save the bits to make patterns for the replacements.  In order to fit them into the boat, the new tanks will each need to be built in three tanks, plumbed together to work as one after getting them below.  No fun!

Watermaker being disassembled.  Tank is behind the bulkhead on the left (with access panel opening)

Same bulkhead, watermaker and cabinetry now gone

Bulkhead cut away to expose forward face of the tank.  It's an "L" shape, with this the vertical leg, and it extends aft under a seat in the shower.  Not an easy beast to remove!

Tank has been pulled forward. 

Sparks and grit fly everywhere as the tank is cut apart with a grinder.  Large hose is for exhaust blower

And out comes the first part, into the cockpit

Finally the tank is out!

In order to remove the starboard tank, we needed to remove the AC generator which lives above it.  This was a planned project, as we need to do a full service on it in the shop.  Needed to remove the cockpit dodger and framework so that the boom truck could lift the generator (nearly 400 lbs) out through the companionway.

Cutting away the fiberglass and teak plywood panel hiding the starboard fuel tank.  This tank wasn't leaking, but we thought it best to replace the two at the same time.  The generator can be seen above the tank

Cutting up the tank.

Pieces of port tank on the ground.

We also plan to tear out the existing freezer box and build a new one with new, improved insulation to save lots of electricity, hopefully.  So we had a refrigeration tech come out to vacuum out the old refrigerant gas (protecting what little ozone is left down here!!!), and tear out the copper refrigerant lines.  We'll reinstall the gear after the new box is built, along with new galley counters.

 

Now then, just so you don't think it's all work and no play for the Bravo crew, the weekend saw us at the Whangarei rodeo....a pretty big deal for these parts...of course the usual events, bull riding, bronc riding, both saddled and bareback, calf roping, barrel races, all good.

That's gotta hurt

So does this!!!

Headin' for the hot tub....

One event unique to New Zealand rodeos was the sheep chase....just for kids.  The herd of sheep was released into  the ring.  All had ribbons around their necks.  Then a herd of kids was released from the other end of the ring, and the object was for them to get a ribbon off a sheep.  Good fun for all, well probably not the sheep, but that's the way rodeos go.

All in all a successful week.  Bravo is now totally torn apart, but hopefully next week will start the fabrication of the new tanks, as we move on to other projects.  Happily we have friends on another boat who are back home in Norway for a visit.  They wanted their boat looked after in their absence, and invited us to live aboard until our work is done or they return.  Looks pretty obvious which will come first!!!  ;-(    

Happy Holiday blog post from Down Under!

Wow, it's hard to believe it's been 2 months since our last blog post....a record since we left Seattle over 3 years ago.  To any die hard loyal readers who may still be with us, sorry 'bout that!!!  Will TRY to do better...2013 has seen us almost steadily on the move, traveling over 8000 miles from Ecuador to New Zealand, and it's just been so relaxing to be in one spot for a while!

So what have we been up to, anyway, over the past couple of months?  Well, we spent the first few weeks in New Zealand settling in....and that includes meeting with various tradespeople, and scheduling our major projects that will take place over the next few months.  Welders, shipwrights, sailmakers, canvas workers, boat yards, riggers, painters.....lots of meetings with some really great folk.  We committed to several to start work when we haul out of the water on January 6.  New fuel tanks, new freezer and counters, headliners, new rigging, engine and genset work, the list is long.  But we have a lot of confidence in the team that's assembled.  Hopefully the work will go reasonably smoothly, fingers and toes crossed.  We've really enjoyed our introduction to "the Kiwi way", best described with the 3 words, "no worries, mate".  It's a can-do attitude, and here's to translating the words into action when the saws, cutting torches, and other tools fire up next month!  "...and Bob's your auntie".......

We spent most of November back in the US, visiting friends and family around Seattle, and buying heaps of stuff for Bravo.  Although you can find most supplies, gadgets, and gizmos here in NZ, you pay dearly for it all.  Things are way, way cheaper in the US.  And we can bring in boat supplies free of GST.  So shop we did, doing major damage to any semblance of any "budget" that we'd been kidding ourselves about.

Seattle was damned C*O*L*D for these tropical softies.  With temps in the teens (around MINUS 10 for you Centigradians).  We had to cover up skin we didn't even know we had!  But the skies were mostly clear, so not to bad.  We really enjoyed seeing friends and family.  To all we missed, we're really sorry, it was a whirlwind visit.  You know you can always come down here and do a bit of sailing down under!!!   And to those who put us up (and put up with us!!!) in our sofa surfing travel mode.....MANY THANKS!!!

Kevin brings up another pot of dungeness crab

Thanksgiving was terrific, as we spent a few days with the Hawken gang up in Anacortes.  Partying, crabbing, eating, drinking....hard to beat!!!  (Where did that keg of beer go, anyway???)

View from Hawkens deck...US Pacific NW at its finest!

You know Seattle is cold when Snoqualmie Falls freezes.  Amazing sight!  photo by David Fox  (lodge is setting of great tv show "Twin Peaks")

David, Diana, and us, the frozen tropic meisters, staying warm in Seattle

Took care of lots of dentist and doctor appointments...no fun, no fun at all.  But looks like we're in reasonably good health, so back we go for another year "out there"!!!  Yeah!!!










Flew home on 10 Dec.  Turned into a real Charlie Foxtrot.  First flight, Seattle to LA, left at 6 am.  A bit early, but no worries.  We spent a few hours in LA with Cindi's brother and his son, good fun.  The next leg, LAX to Fiji, was to leave at 9 pm.  But ughhhhh, that flight has been rescheduled for 7:30 the following morning.  A sick crew member, had to fly another in from Fiji!  Oh well, have to spend night at an airport hotel.  No big deal, right?

Security line in LAX to handle the rescheduled flight.

But ughhhhh, again.  We of course have now missed our final flight from Fiji to Auckland.  So needed to spend another night in an airport hotel, this one in Nadi, Fiji.  All said, the trip took over 3 days.  But our bags all arrived in good shape, so no complaints.

Adam with Ian, seller/builder of the camper, the deal is sealed!

Bought a camper van last week.  20 year old Toyota diesel Hiace.  Will be good to have a place to sleep while BRAVO is torn apart.  And then we'll be able to use it to tour around NZ, heading down to the south island in February.

Tooling down the highway with our new family member

Got back from our 3 day van buying trip, to find that our dinghy and outboard had been stolen from the marina dinghy dock.  Yes, it was locked with a heavy cable lock, both the motor to the dink and the dink to the dock.  Bummer!  Happily, another cruiser found the boat up a nearby creek, tied to a high tide tree.  But the motor was gone.  A trip to the local Yamaha shop fixed that problem, and lightened our wallet by around $2500 US.  We are insured, but our agent said it would count as a claim against us (our first ever), and if we had another in the next couple of years, they'd possibly cancel us.  Damn, it's really hard to win with this insurance game.

Spent Christmas yesterday with an internationally diverse bunch of fellow cruisers at a nearby marina.  Good fun, lots of great food and drink, and a bit of a headache today.  Amen!


 Well, that about wraps up this special holiday edition of the BRAVO BLOG.  We wish all of you a very HAPPY HOLIDAY season, and a terrific 2014.   More adventures to follow!

Days 6, 7 - Tonga to New Zealand

Yeeeeee Hah!!! We've now cleared customs and quarantine, and are sitting at a dock in Marsden Cove, New Zealand, 1066 miles after leaving Tonga a week ago.

The trip had bits of everything...strong winds, no winds, big confused seas, and flat calms. All in all, a good voyage. Nothing broke, and no one got hurt!!! We spent the afternoon clearing in, with a visit first from immigration-customs, followed by a visit from the Quarantine Officer. She went through our food, primarily, to determine what could stay, and what must be surrendered to the almighty Black Garbage Bag of Doom....pork - into the bag.....chicken - ditto. Dairy products, not so cut and dry. If it's from Ecuador, and much of our foods are, it's a no-go. But wait, your list says Albania, and Belarus are OK, but not Ecuador?.....don't ask, just look at the list!

But all folks were extremely friendly, and no hard feelings all around. After we'd cleared in, we got together with friends on Mystic Moon, who arrived a few days ago, and Sea Whisper, who arrived a couple of hours ahead of us, for a celebration dinner that just wound down.

All in all, a terrific passage. As Bob McDavitt, our weather router meteorologist said: "On this passage, I try to limit the shitty times to 20% or less. You can't do much better for a 7-8 day crossing through an area with gales every 4-6 days" Amen, Bob.....ya done good!!! We're thrilled to have cleared into NZ before a significant low reaches here from the South Island in 2 days, with 30-40 knot winds. Happy to be at a dock for the first time in nearly 2 years, preparing for the boat projects to come.....Stay tuned, as we venture out into the wilds of New Zealand!

Day 5, Tonga to New Zealand

Well, the terrific breeze finally died last night. Been motoring for past 20 hours, and our weather map (GRIB files) show another 20 hours or so before it picks up a bit for the final push to Whangarei.

Wow, it's been cold!!! Around 60F at night, supposed to be down to low 50's by the time we reach NZ.....yikes!!! Worked on getting the heater working today. Finally got it to work while under engine power, while using engine heat for heat source. Will still need to work on getting it to fire at other times. After 3 years, no surprise!

Saw a couple of birds that we assume to be albatrosses today! Huge, perhaps 6' wingspan, and they glide for minutes without a flap of the wings. Beautiful, and a real indicator that we're digging deeper south with every passing mile.

Otherwise all good. Getting a lot of reading done, and the food fest continues.....burp!

Only 128 miles over past 24 hours, due to dying breeze. 255 miles to go!

Day 4, Tonga to New Zealand

The past 24 hours have been beautiful sailing. Winds a bit light at times, but we've kept moving, and have not had to motor yet. (Still expecting to lose the wind tonight, though).

We're getting very excited about reaching NZ in a couple of days, its been a dream to travel here for many years. But we still have to clear into NZ Customs! They're very strict about what can be brought into the country, especially food, as they don't want any bio contamination of their plant species. So we're been going through all of our stores aboard, and cooking and eating terrific meals, even better than usual! All the little treats that would otherwise be confiscated...eat 'em now!!! Prociutto grilled cheese sandwiches? Check....Crab omelet?, Sure, why not!......Gnochii with meatballs, sun dried tomatoes and capers?.....Wouldn't be sailing without it, would it now??? This'll be the first passage with major weight gain! But tasty business, that's for sure, and it beats tossing it into the customs incinerator!!!

Still boogeying along at 6.5 knots in 10 knots of breeze, with 390 miles to go! Yee hah!!!

Day 3, Tonga to New Zealand

Well, another day, another completely different report! (thankfully!!).

The winds have abated a bit, down to around 18 knots, but the big difference is the sea state. Swells are now down to around 5', making for a lovely past 12 hours or so of sailing. The forecast shows that it should start to die over the next day, and we may have a couple of days of motoring ahead of us. We have enough fuel for about 450 miles, so we hope the wind holds as long as possible before we have to start burning dinosaurs!

Just crossed a fun milestone, the official international dateline, at 180 degrees longitude. We're now in the eastern hemisphere, one day later than you readers to our east...(cue the eery music, plenty of reverb, and start up the theremin.....we're coming to you from THE FUTURE!!!) We've actually been broadcasting from the future since arrival in Niue, as Niue and Tonga jiggled the dateline to be included with the more futuristic nations, but crossing the dateline, we're now official!!!

Another milestone, we're at the 1/2 way mark for the passage, with 530 miles to go!!! (Saturday afternoon, 5pm)

Past 24 hour run, 171 miles
GO BRAVO GO!!!