Engine access
 

"Capt.Mooron" wrote in message
news:n1uxf.71191$m05.42787@clgrps12...
I have without a doubt one of the easiest accesses to my
auxiliary. Cockpit


Neal may have you beat.

S

Engine access
 

wrote in message
oups.com...
While changing the oil on the Yanmar 2GM a few days ago I considered
how my boat seems to have both odd engine access and very good access
compared to their boats I have seen. Engine access in the 8.5M S2 is
via a large hatch in the quarter berth or via the cockpit locker. I
can easily reach all engine components and easily reach the stuffing
box. This is with a larger engine than is standard as I replaced the
original 1GM 2 yrs ago. With the 1GM, I could get into the engine
compartment and actually crawl all the way around the engine (being a
former caver, tight places do not give me claustrophobia). In fact, I
find myself wondering why S2 didnt make the quarter berth (already big
enough) larger because there is what seems to me to be a hanger sized
space behind the engine that is hardly used.
I wonder if the leaky stuffing boxes on most other boats is simply due
to poor access and if the reason why so many engines seem to be in poor
shape is for the same reason. I have to admit I did not plan this and
did not know of this accessibility before I bought the boat and I just
got lucky.

Depends on the boat, I reckon. My diesel can be lifted through the
companionway hatch. Stuffing box is easily accessible through the aft
"cabin", problem is, you have to remove one of the large cushions back there
to get to it. Would have been better if Catalina had made two large cushions
for the bulk of the area, and a small cushion to cover just the area of the
stuffing box and aqua-lift muffler. I think most folks are simply too lazy
to check things like stuffing boxes, hence the popularity of dripless shaft
seals. The rest of the engine bits are easily accessed by removing the
engine cover, on newer C28's the cover and companionway ladder are
integrated, on my boat the ladder and cover are seperate, which isn't as bad
as it sounds, you can remove the cover and set it out of the way, swing the
ladder down and still be able to exit the cabin without replacing the cover.

John Cairns