To view a few photos of the finished project (I still need to add a few
coats of protection to the brightwork before fall) see the photos
labeled "83" on page 3 at:

http://www.pbase.com/gould/extreme_makeover


An account of a loose nut behind the wheel and some overall
conclusions:


Extreme Makeover, Conclusion


We took delivery of Indulgence on June 29, just in time to enjoy
cruising for a few days during the Independence Day holiday. Seaview
North turned an aging boat that was definitely showing evidence of her
"experience" into a bright, fresh jewel. If there's a beauty
contest for 1982 boats anytime soon, we'll be sure to enter her. It
would be presumptuous to insist that she would win, but she would be
well in the running by even the strictest of standards. The freshly
painted hull and refinished brightwork that looked so impressive in the
shadowy confines of the hangar were even more fabulous when allowed to
reflect sunbeams and sparkling ripples in her natural environment,
sal****er.

Loose Nut Behind the Wheel

After more than 4 months' work and hundreds of operations, we could
only find two minor things requiring some last minute attention when we
were ready to pick up the boat. The wiring to our ancient but remounted
CRT Raytheon radar set needed a minor adjustment, as did the propane
supply to the new galley stove. Seaview North put the appropriate
specialists aboard, and we were set to go- (we thought)- in short
order.

In the last installment of this series, I mentioned how I thought the
newly installed bow thruster would probably come in handy once in a
while. It already has. The bow thruster saved my paint job and
prevented a series of certain collisions that would otherwise have
resulted from a defect that Seaview North could not have foreseen (and
for which they cannot be held responsible); a loose nut behind the
wheel.

During the last week of our refit, we decided to rebuild the hydraulic
cylinder for the steering ram. I was less than confident that the
corroded fittings on the original cylinder would continue to hold
indefinitely, and consistent with my general practice of preemptively
replacing or rebuilding the oldest critical mechanical part each year
the cylinder was well past due.

We had only a foot or two of clearance between vessels both forward and
aft along the haulout float as we fired up the engine to get underway
for the first time since February. Several members of the Seaview North
crew stood by to wish me well as I began maneuvering away from the
dock. With the bow well clear of the transom of the boat just ahead, I
turned the wheel sharply to port to bring the stern out into the
fairway. Nothing happened.

"I've got no steering!" I shouted. A Seaview North crewman dived
across the swimstep of the boat I was in danger of whacking, ready to
serve as a human bumper if need be.
By dumb luck, and some providential shoving by the diving crewman, we
managed to avoid a collision. I found myself in the middle of the
Squalicum Harbor fairway, in a 15-knot breeze, with only forward,
reverse, and my freshly installed bow thruster available to control the
boat. The wheel was useless, and seemed to have no influence at all on
the rudder. By jockeying fore and aft in the wind and steering with the
bow, (an entirely new experience for this old single screw skipper), I
managed to attain a position where the wind could blow me against a
vacant float of the opposite side of the fairway. I assumed something
must have gone haywire with the steering rebuild, as that was the only
variable that had changed in the steering system since February. (Or so
I thought).

The Seaview North crew came rushing to the rescue, motoring across the
fairway in a work skiff. We removed the hatch in the lazarette, and the
rudder post could be clearly observed as it turned properly to port and
starboard in response to the wheel.

"Start the engine and put it in gear while we're tied to the
dock," suggested the Seaview crew. "We'll check your prop wash to
see if the rudder is aligned correctly."

With the engine running, we observed an enormous prop wash to port with
the wheel turned appropriately, but almost no prop wash to starboard
with the wheel hard over the other way.

"We'll need to haul it back out to check the rudder indexing,"
came the verdict. "For some reason or another the rudder might not
have been in the proper position when we hooked the steering ram up
again." As it is human nature to assume that any problem is surely the
fault of somebody else, that sounded reasonable to me at the moment.
With a couple of extra deck hands aboard, the bowthruster that had
already earned more than its keep, and some help on the opposite side
of the fairway ready to catch lines, we set out again. We managed to
very ungracefully crab back across the fairway, upwind, and come to
rest at the base of the Travelift.

"I'm going over to the Web Locker for a burger," I said.

"Good idea. We'll probably have this sorted out by the time you get
back."

Indeed they would.

I sat pondering the steering problem as I ate one of enormous, tasty,
full meal burgers served at the Web Locker. My train of thought made a
whistle stop at, "That was sure weird the way that wheel didn't
want to respond with the engine running, it was almost as if
"Indulgence" had an autopilot.....but wait! She does have an
autopilot- of sorts! It wasn't working when we bought the boat and
hasn't worked since and we haven't turned it on in years...omigosh!
I need to get back to the boatyard!"

Some of the technicians and shipwrights at Seaview North can be
amazingly tactful. As I scurried across the yard, I noticed
"Indulgence" was back in the water (if indeed she had ever been
hauled out). The two technicians that had assisted my upwind crabbing
back to the Travelift were walking toward me. I exclaimed, " As I was
chowing down on that burger it suddenly occurred to me there is
something else we should check!"

The technicians grinned, broadly, and I continued, "There's an
autopilot on that boat that hasn't worked ever since we've owned
it. I never turn it on, so it isn't part of my start up routine to
make sure it's off. There's an unlabeled switch not too far from
the wheel that powers up the autopilot, and we should check that to see
if it got accidentally bumped 'on' during all this work that's
been done."

The two statesmen from Seaview North smiled just a bit more broadly.
"Don't worry, Chuck. Your steering won't give you any further
problems."

"Was it the autopilot?"

"Well, we did have to bleed the system through the autopilot when we
rebuilt your steering cylinder, so you could say that had something to
do with it. Let's just say we solved the problem with a very minor
adjustment."

(In plain speech: "You should have checked to make sure the autopilot
was off, of course, before departing the dock. The minor adjustment
essentially involved throwing the appropriate switch).

Don't ever let it be said that a bow thruster is superfluous, ours
just saved "Indulgence" and who knows how many other boats from a
loose nut behind the wheel.

Happy Ending to Re-Launch Day

Jan had dropped me in Bellingham and driven back to Seattle, so I was
single-handing southbound. We were scheduled to rendezvous on June 30,
when she would catch a ferry to Bainbridge. I put into Oak Harbor late
on the afternoon of the 29th. As I was drifting in the large common
area inside the breakwater and rigging lines and fenders for a landing,
a voice called out, "Hello, Indulgence! Is that Mr. Gould?"

"It is."

"You look like you're single handed, come on in and we'll take
your lines!"

"Thanks!"

Three couples were gathered on the float to assist my landing. It's
amazing how well "Indulgence" maneuvers, (particularly with the
defective autopilot in its customary "off" position), but any
landing is made easier with the addition of some competent help. One of
the welcoming committee proved to be the Commodore of the Navy Yacht
Club in Everett.

"We were just sitting here looking across the harbor when you came
around the point," said the Commodore. "Somebody said, 'Wow! Look
at that stunning little tug!' and I guessed that it might be you.
I've been reading your makeover series in Nor'westing.
She really does look like new. Congratulations."

"Thanks very much," I said, (while making a mental note of the
first spontaneous compliment extended to the refurbished
"Indulgence." "Stunning," so very nice to hear.).


Recap:

The rebirth of "Indulgence" really began a couple of years ago
when her original Perkins engine fell victim to a defective exhaust
manifold and became hydrolocked. If we hadn't been so extremely
pleased with her new Perkins/Sabre engine (supplied by Stewart's
Marine in Seattle and installed by Granville Marine in Anacortes) we
probably would not have undertaken the extensive cosmetic refit just
completed at Seaview North.

Certainly, between the new engine, the bow thruster, the ALEXSEAL paint
job, the new mast and boom, the rebedded windows, the new shaft, new
headliner, new interior veneers, newly finished cabin soles, new swim
step, new stove, and rejuvenated bright work we have spent a sum that
many would say "makes no financial sense." They may well be right.
Very few decisions in the wake of "Let's buy a boat!" will ever
prove to be fiscally conservative. For us, however, the alternatives
were to continue boating in a vessel that was becoming dog-eared, or
trade her away for something we couldn't imagine enjoying more and
might prove to require much of the same work. "Indulgence" is
almost a member of our family, and now we can take pride in her
appearance at a level that corresponds with our fondness for her.

Would we recommend that other boaters take the "extreme makeover"
alternative rather than trade up to a different boat? In certain
specific cases, yes, but if a boat is too small, too slow, too
inefficient, or configured in a way that proves to be undesirable in
use, no amount of paint, varnish, and refit will resolve such
fundamental issues. One might even question the expenditure for an
extensive cosmetic upgrade if the main engine or engines haven't been
replaced. Some folks describe their boats as "just a boat, and we
have always traded up to a larger size every few years and we intend to
do so again soon." For anyone planning to trade a boat away in a
short period of time the money it would take to make a substantial
difference to the appearance of an older boat might go a long ways
toward (and be better spent) curing some of that "two-foot-itis."

A total paint job and cosmetic refit is very appropriate for boaters
like Jan and I. We like our current boat more than anything we could
own for what we could realize from her sale, as well as more than
anything we could buy with the expenditure of the additional money we
invested in the upgrades. Perhaps only from this limited perspective
does our decision make any of that elusive financial sense.

Seaview North did an outstanding job. "Indulgence" is a fiberglass
boat with an incredible amount of teak trim and a teak interior, so we
were compelled to choose a boatyard with a wide range of abilities to
work expertly with a variety of materials. In my profession, I am in
contact with most of the leading boatyards in the area and I can think
of at least a few that might have been successful choices as well. That
said, it would be hard to imagine anyone actually performing to a
higher standard than Seaview North. We fully expected to be satisfied,
and were pleasantly surprised to be delighted.