Before pic of backstay chainplate

Replacing Throttle and Shift Cables

After launching Spartina this spring, the trusty Yanmar fired up on the first push of the start button.  However, she would not go into reverse.  I soon found the culprit was a frozen shift cable.   The cables are original so I've decided to swap out both the gear shift and throttle cables.

If you have to do this job - here are some notes that you may find helpful.

• I made the assumption that I would need to remove the cables first to measure them properly so that I could buy replacements.  This was an incorrect assumption.  Little did I know that the model numbers on the cables actually included the length.   My cables are Morse 301947   288  - the 288 indicates the length 288 inches or 24 feet.  Both my cables are the same length.  I ordered them through Redden Marine Supply   - They cost $49.00 each  (I had tried to order them from Edson but they didnt have any in stock).  
  
• Morse cables are now part of TeleFlex 
• There are two fittings holding the cables in place inside the pedestal tube.  Both fittings are through bolted to the aft side of the pedestal with the cap nuts accessible.  My fear however was that if I removed the cap nuts, both fittings would fall into the tube and be impossible to remove.    So - I called Edson to talk to them about the best approach - they were extremely helpful.  They informed me that the fittings had the bolts locked in place so that they would not fall into the tube if I removed the nuts that hold them in place.    That elimited the need to remove the pedestal - which would have added a lot of work!  Picture of the top fitting is below - note how the nut is locked in place by the cotter pin.  

Here's a step by step guide to how I did this project:  

Part 1 - Removing the Old Cables - time to complete:  5 hours

1)  Remove the compass and related hardware.  Be sure to mark the compass base (fore and aft) so that you put it back in place correctly.    Remove the clevis pins connecting the cables to the gear / throttle levers.

2)  Disconnect the cables at the engine side - remove the connecting hardware and keep it safe.

3) Start to feed the cables from the engine side back toward the pedestal - you'll have to remove any fasteners holding them in place along the way.  BE SURE to attach a thin line to the cable ends - so that you can feed the new cables back the same way you are removing the old cables.   This part took the longest on my boat - accessing the cables in the lazarette was the toughest part.  

4)  Once the cable ends are fed all the way back to the aft cabin - below the pedestal - it's time to remove the two fittings holding the cables in the tube.  Remove the cap nuts on the aft side of the pedestal.  Once removed push the bolts into the tube.  

5) You can now pull the cables up throught the pedestal - it's a little tight getting the top cable bracket past the wheel shaft - but it does fit.  I took mine up to starboard of the shaft.  

Part 2 - Installing the New Cables 

1) Put the two fittings  that reside within the pedestal post on the cables first.  The plastic one fits into the slots on the cable ends.  The other fitting is a cable guide - measure the distance between the two holes on your pedestal and place the lower cable guide that far below the plastic cable fitting.    Place some tape around the cable just below this distance so the fitting won't slide down too far.  

2)  DO NOT Attach the top ends to the shift levers.  Feed the cableds down the pedestal - you'll be going down on one side of the shaft connected to the wheel.  Once it's all the way in, you'll pull the shift cable up on one side of the shaft and the throttle cable up the other side.  

3)  You'll now try to get the exposed bolt on the bottom cable clamp seated into the lower hole in the pedestal tube.  I found it easiest to do this from below - looking up the bottom of the base with a flashlight and manipulating the cable until the bolt went into the hole.  This is where the tape you pu t on in step one above is critical - so that the fitting doesnt slide down when you move the cables.  Once the bottom clamp is in place, the top clamp is pretty easy to align with the hole and secure with the nut.  

4)  Attach the shift levers, and reassemble the binnacle.

5)  Feed the cables back the way they came out and reattach to the engine. Don't secure the cables to bulkeheads etc between the pedestal and the engine yet - first attach them to the engine.  

6)  After the cables are attached to the engine and working properly, then begin reattaching cable clamps and / or zip ties to the cables to secure them in place so they don't chafe.  I found it best to start at the engine and work aft - leaving the "extra" cable in the lazarette.   

2008 Season Recap

Pre-season maintenance was the usual - nothing out of the ordinary.

This years summer vacation had it's challenges - but it still was a blast. It started as it usually does with a mad rush to load the boat with food, toys, kids and gear. We finally threw the dock lines off on Saturday and headed for Newport for the night. As I always do before a trip, I had checked and topped off fluids (including using a coolant that was red in color).

So the plan was to head to Menemsha on Sunday morning. Before departing, a quick check of the bilge revealed a small amount of red fluid. I figured it was the antifreeze - expanding and spilling out the overflow. Fast forward a couple hours, we're under power, rounding the Brenton reef R2 bouy, setting a course for Buzzards Bay tower, I go down to check things again - and my bilge is FILLED with red fluid. This time I check and it's diesel fuel. I can't determine the source - so shut down and sail back to newport.

Long story short, the leak turned out to be at the joint of the lift pump - a 0.60 crush washer was replaced and the leak was gone.

On the way back from vacation - on the way out of Cuttyhunk, the engine died.... Luckily there was sufficient wind and we had a great sail home. After spending a week trying to diagnose the problem and replacing all fuel filters, I called in the professionals. Turned out that my exhaust elbow was sufficently corroded as to cause excessive back-pressure, which stopped her from running. We replaced the exhaust elbow and hose and she runs perfectly again.

2007 Season Recap

Another great season aboard Spartina. Sailed just about every weekend. Lots of weekend trips to Newport, Jamestown, etc, then took her out to Martha's Vineyard for vacation.

There were no real maintenance projects this year, just your basic stuff.

• Put on maintenance coats of Armada on all brightwork



• Made new lexan hatchboards (which worked out really well).



• Found a great product for the fresh water tanks - AquaBan - really "freshens" the water - gets rid of any tank issues.



• Rebedded some stanchions



• Replaced the spinaker halyard

New Mfg Name Plate for Spartina

On the top is Spartina's original manufacturers plate with the hull #. On the bottom is my new Solid brass plate. (I haven't engraved the name / hull # yet - but this is how Im thinking of doing it.)

Most expensive name plate ever created ..... but it'll look 100X better than the original plastic one!

To do list before we can sail

1) Complete traveler repair.

• Sand down bumps in epoxy
• Put hood in place
• Drill holes
• Caulk with lifecaulk
• Install thru bolts and screws

2) Install Spartite system

• Align mast to centerline
• Build dam for spartite & apply release agent
• Mix and pour spartite
• Cleanup
• Wait 3 days for it to cure.

3) Tune Rig (after spartite has cured)

4) Install Rigid vang (drill and tap for boom fitting).

5) Connect VHF Antenna (install connector)

6) Put on sails

Lots to report

Have accomplished a lot since the last post. She went in without incident.

1) Stripped all exterior teak. Used straight blade scraper to remove most of the old cetol. Also used orange citrus chemical stripper on the bow sprit. Sanded it down, chemically cleaned and brightened. Then applied 3 coats of Armada. 2 coats of satin and one coat of gloss (on the recommendation of Kevin at Salks).

2) Replaced Head. Had planned on rebuilding old head - Once I took it out and started to dis-assemble it became aparent that it wasn't going to work. Bronze pieces started falling apart. I replaced it with a new Groco head. It's OK - not great. Had one problem with it - there's a seam where the halves of the pump assembly come together - the seam runs right thru the gasket area and was causing a leak. I had to disassemble and sand down the seam to make it flush. Pain in the butt - but it worked.

While I was at it I discovered that the hoses were clogged with dried up waste! Fun. - replaced the hose leading from the head to the y-valve. I've got enough hose to replace more - which I'll do later.

3) Mast - I discovered that the VHF antenna cable had been severed - so I replaced it with new cable. Also I had NEYR replace the shrouds (forestay, backstay, uppers, intermediates, babystay).

4) Hood over the companionway. I've been getting leaks and I suspected core saturation. Removed hood. Started on the starboard side - cut a 2" round hole near the aft bolt hole. Found wet core. Thinking that they'd all be like that I cut a 2" wide strip of deck out moving forward. To my surprise i found dry core and plywood around the other 3 holes. On 2 of the 4 holes in the front I found saturation. On the port holes - 1 of the 4 was wet.

For each hole - I removed as much core as possible. Using a wood chisel I removed the core (plywood). Where there were thru bolts I plugged the hole on the inner skin with rolled up paper towel plugs (cut excess away with razor blade). Then wetted all surfaces with epoxy (west system). Then mixed epoxy with High density filler and applied with caulking gun.

Next i will sand down the repair, drill new holes, lifecaulk the hood in place and tighten the bolts down.