nav desk

When I have more time, I'll go into a little more detail about why the nav desk remodel required destroying the helm console and re-wiring the port side of the boat. But for now, let's just relish it's completeness and the fact that I didn't start anything on fire.

The point of the project was initially to clean up our 12V panel to make room for a few new circuits. Many of the circuits were doubled up so we decided to put in an auxiliary 12V panel. That led to... well, it's a long story.

12V panel before:


12V panel during:


12V panel complete!

(I've been told that the difference between the before pic and the after pic is, well, nothing. However. If you look closely, the blue labeled circuits are removed and tidied up so no circuits are doubled up on the panel. Humor me, willya? That took me HOURS to do that.)

Nav desk before:


Nav desk during:


Nav desk during (Christy's dad, Carl, doing the skilled labor):


Nav desk complete!


My estimate for this project? 3 days max. MAX.

Actual duration of this project? Around 30. Give or take a week.

Carl, thanks again! This project would have been a trainwreck without your help.

Hello World goes to Alaska (hopefully)

Being the tech savy guy that he is, Jason suggested I use a facebook event for our going away party (that, and the last evite we sent out didn't reach all of the intended invitees). Facebook, however, is not my friend at the moment. So, to all of those who got multiple invitations, sorry. And to those who didn't get invited, consider this your invite (hmm...this is a good test to see who's reading the blog, huh?)

:)

Mark your calendars. Sat, May 9. Pre-funk starts at the boat at 7pm. At 8pm, we'll mozy on over to the Lockspot Cafe.

Things to bring to the boat: drinks that you'll consume before we head to the bar
Things not to bring: presents (by May 9, we'll be luck if we can fit a few people on the boat at all!) :)

Spread the word to those who don't read the blog!

Boat address: 7001 Seaview Ave - dock J28
Lockspot address: 3005 NW 54th St

Party will no doubt go for a while...until Jason starts cleaning up with his tongue...

project update

I've been waiting to update the blog on project statuses (statii??) until I actually finished some projects. Here's a list of projects "in the works":

• nav desk re-wire


• stereo install


• chartplotter install


• radar install


• helm console destruction and rebuild


• LED anchor light install


• single side band (SSB) radio hookup and test


• solve VHF radio reception problem

A few of these projects are within a solitary gasp of the finish line. Others have a long uphill road in front of them. I'll post in the next day or two on the nav desk re-wire and stereo install since they are almost done.

Making headway on the project list...

In my first week of retirement, I'm very happy to report the following projects are complete:

1) The forward head has finally been fixed. What started as a clog about 6 months turned into replacing all of the pump parts and much of the hose leading from the head. Thanks to Fisher for some of the help (he did lose a bet and had to help me, but still, thanks). It turns out that the secret ingredient to this project was KY Jelly. I never thought I'd be proclaiming my love for KY on the interwebs, but here I am. After much swearing and procrastinating, I added some lube and the sanitation hose slipped onto the hose barbs with only a little more swearing.

2) The diesel heater that died the night from hell the night from hell has been unclogged (it's been a good week for unclogging). We have a Dickinson diesel heater and there is a nut at the very bottom which can be unscrewed which opens up a passage in the fuel line from inside the heater. Unclogging it is as easy as using the unclogger do-hicky to clear the fuel line through that passage. Poof! The heater is better than ever! We now have a boat that doubles as a sauna!

3) And we finally have a boat name! Yes, the re-naming ceremony did happen around the time the forward head got clogged, but who's keeping track? We got some tips on how to apply the lettering which worked really well:

a) Tape the name in the desired location with painters tape (on the top only)


b) Cut the lettering between each letter


c) Remove the backing from the adhesive one letter at a time

d) Use a straight edge to flatten the letters from the top down as the adhesive makes contact with the hull



e) Remove the top layer ensuring that each corner stays adhered to the hull


f) Ta da!!!



What might have worked better would have been if we applied the name within a month or two of getting it printed. Instead, we decided to test its durability and throw it around the boat for 6 months. For all of the abuse, it did pretty well...though we might have ended up with a few less air bubbles had we applied it last summer.

Jason is still working on the nav desk project that he started before his retirement...

boat project complexity

I've tried to quantify the complexity of a given boat project using some very simple metrics. Hopefully this will help with your future projects. Overall project complexity (C) is a simple formula:

C = (AD / ED) ^ 10 + OMTS + (FB * 8) + FT^3 + 2 * M^2 + (1.34 * SQRT(Length of Boat))^SAT + REI^REI

Variables

Estimated Days (ED): number of days I think it will take me to complete the project.

Actual Days (AD): number of days it actually takes me to complete the project. If AD <= ED, then C = 0. I was probably just filling water balloons.

One More Trip to Store (OMTS): number of trips to a hardware store or boat store to get supplies after the initial trip where I definitely got everything I needed.

F-Bomb Index (FB): the number of times I drop the f-bomb while working on the project.

Float Tests (FT): the number of times I drop a tool or crucial piece of equipment overboard.

Missile Index (M): the number of times my frustrations reaches a level that the only logical recourse is to throw whatever is in my hand. If this breaks said item and increments OMTS, multiply Missile Index by 5. If this increments FT, the Missile Index is cubed.

Smoke Alarm Tests (SAT): the number of times I set off the smoke alarm.

Reckless Endangerment Index (REI): number of items from the first aid kit put into use during the course of the project. If a hospital stay is required, raise the REI to the power of the number of days in the hospital. Multiply by pi if any subsequent wounds can only be revealed by removing pants.