Shipyard Vid 3: New Coupling & Rot Repair

Calling all boat project fanatics, this one’s for you! Boy, did we have a time trying to get our engine aligned. While Phillip and I knew we had some kind of issue going on with our prop shaft, the key that fits in the shaft (which was always coming out and we were hammering back in, brilliant plan!), and our coupling, we didn’t know it was quite as bad as it was.

Watch along as Brandon, Shane, and the great team at http://www.perdidosailor.com help us diagnose and solve many issues relating to our prop shaft and how it seats in the transmission. We had a machinist re-engineer our old coupling and make us a new one. We also re-bedded the strut and replaced the gutless bearing.

And, just as boat projects always do, the boat had a lot of extra hidden work in store for us in the form of a rotten engine stringer portion (under the raw water pump on starboard, no surprise) that we had to repair along the way. Fun, fun! Misery loves company! Give it a watch! More photos and write-up available at http://www.havewindwilltravel.com.

I hope you all have been enjoying these shipyard videos while Phillip and I were off galavanting across the Atlantic Ocean. We’ll have plenty to share from that adventure once we get our heads back on straight.  It can be hard, at times, to transition from offshore sailors back to full-time lawyers/marketing gurus.  But, the work is always worth it.  In exchange for all of those photos and videos of us out sailing and traveling the globe, enjoy seeing us here all grimy and greasy wedged down in the engine room on our boat!  You’re welcome!  B.O.A.T., am I right?  : )

Shipyard Vid 2: Removing the Quadrant & Replacing the Cables

Maybe they should change that B.O.A.T. saying to “bonded or about to.”  The hardest part of our rudder drop was getting the stinking quadrant off! Heat, impact, cheater bars, nothing would work.  So, the creative guys at Perdido Sailor had to come up with a different fix, and boy did they!

Ahoy crew!  Shipyard Vid #2 coming at you, from Cascias, Portugal nonetheless!  I put this video together a while back so you all would have something fun to watch while we were embarking on our second Atlantic-crossing helping deliver a new Lagoon across the pond from France to the USVIs!  I know how you all LOVE boat project videos, so here’s another one for you from our interesting work at the shipyard this past summer.

While I wrote about this project several months back here, some of my followers love to see the video!  This one’s for you!  Phillip and I always enjoy working alongside the guys at the yard because we learn so much. They point out problems we didn’t even know we had and teach us fixes we didn’t even know were possible.

Watch here as we (finally!) get the quadrant off and make the necessary modifications to do that, check on our G-flexed keel seam from 2016, replace the cables for the throttle and shifter (because, according to Video Annie, they sounded like “Grandma’s panties coming down”), and shared some fun lighthearted joshing at the yard!

We hope you are all enjoying the shipyard videos and having a great time tracking us along while we are sailing back across the Atlantic Ocean. Follow on our facebook page at www.facebook.com/havewindwilltravel for real-time updates and locations via our Delorme!

Life is short. Fill your sails!

#79: How to DIY Inspect, Repair & Replace Rigging

Thank goodness we went with the hi-mods, as we were able to change these out ourselves and get our (newly-stepped) rig back up and going again on our own, without having to call in a rigger.  Just some fun tips for you all that we learned while trying to drop a new main halyard, stepping the mast to re-configure the mast cap and changing out the hi-mods.  Hope you all find some useful tidbits in here. Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions!

BIG NEWS at the end of the video, too. Next week we’ll be announcing our 3rd GIFT OF CRUISING on the YouTube channel, and my Trans-At movie will also be available for rent on YouTube then as well, Oct. 7th.  Ain’t life grand?  If you can’t wait that long, go get an early ticket to view on Patreon.

#78: How to Budget (and Brace) for BIG Boat Repairs

Unexpected mast pulls can happen to you!  While we’ve dealt with our fair share of boat projects here at HaveWindWillTravel, it’s good to be reminded there will always be more and you need to know “How To” be ready — both mentally and financially.  Have fun watching Annie go up the mast (I lost count how many times!) trying to solve this problem and stay tuned next time when we show you what we learned during this whole fiasco that Phillip and I are sure will serve us well during our Cruising to Cuba days this winter.  Enjoy!

 

And, for those lucky Patrons out there who have already indulged on the Atlantic-crossing movie, let me know what you thought of it in a comment below!!  So exciting to know it’s up on Patreon now for you all to watch.  I hope you LOVE IT!  Coming out for rent on YouTube soon!

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#74: Splash Day! (Season Three Finale)

Take that “Hard Times on the Hard!”  We are out of the yard!  Looking back, though, it almost seemed easy.  Almost.  But it was definitely worth it.  After three months in the yard, Phillip and I are better boat owners for it and ready to start working on our boat in exotic places.  Like Cuba this winter!  Let’s go!

Kind of cool to watch this footage, too, knowing it was March 29th and neither Phillip nor I had any idea in exactly two months from that day we would be stepping on a boat to cross the Atlantic-freaking-ocean.  It has been such an exciting and fulfilling year already, and we still have so much in store.

Hence the desire to give back and share the dream.  Next up on the Tube, we will announce our 2nd Gift of Cruising giveaway winner.  Shut the front door.  I’m serious.  Don’t miss the train!  Get inspired and get ON BOARD!

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#73: Raising the New Rig — Part 2

Here comes the Hotstepper!  And here comes the hi-mods.  Watch as we step the mast and install mechanical fittings (hi-mods) on each of the stays and shrouds to complete the final phase of replacing our original 1985 rod rigging with uniform 5/16 stainless steel wire.

Now that the stick is back up, we’ll splash on the Tube next week and then finally … get our boat out on the water.  Say what?  She floats?!  Hell yes she does!  You’ll be seeing a lot more of this soon.  : )

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If you’re enjoying the videos, books or other HaveWindWillTravel content, please consider becoming a Patron.  We’ll be giving away our 6-day Bareboat Charter certification course to one lucky Patron in just a couple of weeks!  Get inspired and GET ON BOARD!

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#72: Raising the New Rig — Part 1

Three months in the yard and we are finally (in video time) ready to raise the new rig.  Watch as we assemble the shrouds and stays, put our first hi-mod mechanical fitting on the forestay and complete all of the leg-work in order to (finally!) step the mast and raise the new wire rig.

If you’re digging the videos, be sure to subscribe on YouTube, give our video a thumbs-up and join our Give the Gift of Cruising campaign on Patreon in time to be eligible for our Bareboat Charter course giveaway.  Get inspired and get on board!

#71: The 847 Other Projects

They say: “If you’re going to haul out, be sure to do this and that and this while you’re out of the water.”  Well, trust me.  We did.  I have spared you for quite some time but I now think you’re ready.  I give you …. just a small glimpse at the mountains of OTHER projects we did while at the yard as a final farewell to our shipyard days.  Next up, we start the rigorous process of stepping the mast and raising our new rig.  Enjoy!

#70: Turnbuckles, Tangs, Taps … Oh My

If any of you have re-rigged your own boat, you know — there are so many crucial, critical pieces that must all fit together and offer fair leads for each shroud and stay.  In short, a LOT of work goes into a re-rig.  Watch as we match, mount and make sense of the new fittings for the rod-to-wire re-rig.

As an aside, I am sitting as I write this in a little cafe in the Azores pondering this amazing journey I have undertaken, the incredible sights, sounds (yes, plenty that I am looking forward to merely trying to describe to you) and sensations I have experienced along the way.  Thanks to all of my friends, family and Patrons for your continued support and encouragement.  I hope you have enjoyed the journey vicariously!

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Phillip and I also want to wish you all a fantastic Fourth of July weekend with family and friends.  Shoot fireworks, sing and dance, clap and shout and be grateful for this incredible country we live in that allows us amazing opportunities to travel, work, create and prosper!

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#69: Meet Hydraulic Auto (a.k.a. Mr. Roboto!)

“Don’t nobody got no Mr. Roboto!”  This is a really fun video guys.  You’ll get to see, from start to finish, the installation of our below-decks hydraulic auto-pilot.  Video Annie loves her some new steering!

Enjoy the show and if we haven’t docket yet in France, get on the boat!  The tracker link is up on Patreon.  Join the journey.

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