Blue Water Sailing - June 2018

(^46) BLUE WATER SAILING • June/July 2018
BWS
{ BROADREACHING } by ANDYCROSS

P

ushing the throt-

tle slowly down, I

watched the RPMs

climb and listened to

our old Perkins diesel

chug away. Yahtzee

moved forward over a pane of glass

and I settled in to enjoy the scenery

of Alaska’s stunning Resurrection

Bay while the boys played on deck.

Then it happened.

All of a sudden, a horrible whin-

ing noise came piercing through

the air. Quickly easing back on

the throttle, it stopped, but when

I sped back up it returned. I shut

the engine off, dropped below for

a quick inspection and then tried

it again. Same noise.

Jill took the helm and I did the

checks down below again with the

engine running. At first it was hard

to tell where the noise was actually

coming from, but I soon zeroed in

on it. It wasn’t the engine at all,

the noise was coming from our

sail drive’s transmission. Not good.

When we returned to Seward

— albeit slowly and limping — I

arranged for a mechanic to have a

look and listen, and my diagnosis

was quickly confirmed. The gears

inside the transmission were slip-

ping badly.

On newer sail drives, that prob-

lem can be remedied relatively

easily. But on our 34-year-old relic,

we discovered quite the opposite.

Upon thorough investigation

by our capable mechanic, it was

determined that the 34-year-old

drive couldn’t be repaired in the

water, and might have to be taken

completely out of the boat to be

rebuilt or replaced. An expensive

proposition, to be sure.

After further consideration and

talk of also needing a rebuild of

the engine in the not too distant

future, we decided to do something

I’d been thinking about for a while:

we needed to re-power.

There are numerous decisions we

make as cruisers, and for those of us

with boats of this vintage the simple

truth is that engines can be tired.

And re-powering can be inevitable.

I knew that when we bought Yahtzee

six years ago and I’ve relearned it

time and again as we’ve thrown

money at various engine problems.

In all actuality, I’d been researching

a new engine for years.

The reality of a re-power is

that the project is both costly and

time consuming. But the flip side

is that a new engine breathes life

into a boat. Modern diesels are

quieter, more efficient and often

times smaller than their older

counterparts. And by getting the

old one out, I’ll be able to clean up

the engine compartment, replace

ancient insulation and rework the

fuel system. Plus, a new engine will

restore a level of confidence that

had been fading in recent years.

As I write this, a new Beta 50

with a sail drive is being assembled

in North Carolina and my excite-

ment at starting the project is

growing. Once it’s all said and

done, I know that the effort and

expense will be worth it. Because

we know we want to keep cruis-

ing far and wide, we just need the

power to do it.

Andrew, along with wife Jill and sons

Porter and Magnus, are currently

cruising Alaska aboard their Grand

Soleil 39 Yahtzee. Follow their adven-

tures at threesheetsnw.com/yahtzee.

POWER

STRUGGLE

When a new

engine becomes

the best option