Tag Archives: hc38mkII

Sailing a Hans Christian 38 MK II with some high and low adventure.

Wrecked at the Finish Line

adventure, boats

After 4 (uneventful) days offshore, we motored the arrival for the last mile or so in late afternoon sun. The desire was to find and secure our berth in the marina before losing the light.  In this pursuit we were on track and feeling good about all that we had accomplished during our long sail. Fenders deployed, mooring line pre-rigged; we eased past the last channel marker before turning in. The marina is very tight quarters for maneuvering and with a light skiff with outboard coming out of our lane I needed to delay in order to allow him to exit. Selecting neutral and then reverse was the proper action but then surprise. Ineffective reverse. Transmission problem? Our trajectory is aiming us at a transient catamaran moored to a side dock and we are still making way. Reverse gear is making a dreadful sound and although speed is next to nothing we bounce off of the cat. About to ricochet off the fuel dock behind us I select forward gear and surprise, it too is gone. How could this happen? We were all good for days and then at this critical juncture — hell handed to me in a hand basket. How can this be? This was not the grand finale I foresaw.

IMG_3014

[damage: apart from my pride — this crease in a shroud turnbuckle on the other boat]

So, a glorious conclusion was not to be and instead turned into a story to tell. Luckily there was neither wind nor adverse current and having rubbed up against the fuel dock and with the very limited propulsion, I was able to get a line on and secured. We called it a day and spent the night. I just needed to check one thing. I stripped my shirt, and donned a skin diving mask and went over the side. I wanted to have a look at the prop and discovered that there was nothing wrong with the engine or transmission…

IMG_3042
[fishnet encounter]

The prop was fouled. Evidently the netting debris had wrapped up on the shaft and aft of the prop blades but when reversed slid forward to tangle and gum up the works. Too big a job for my Leatherman, to deep, dark, and I can’t hold my breath that long, a Diver was called and he cleared the mess that you see here.

Who would know? The takeaway is check your brakes (reverse in this case) before entering the traffic pattern.

One hand for the ship, One for Yourself

adventure, boats

I had heard this old adage. I knew it. I learned it (again) the hard way. I had made my way aft and arrived at the port side winch which had my full attention. Knees were fully bent in the squat position and balancing on both feet. At the same moment that I reached out for the jib sheet the boat rolled. My hands came up with air and I tumbled over backwards feet out in front. Hard corners of the companionway hatch met the back of my scull with a wallop,
18772155400_e66c575bb6_nthat I won’t forget…and neither will my crew — imagining various recovery scenarios and outcomes!

Hardheaded that I am, I knew I was okay. Only the scars remain.

Lesson learned: …which may derive from the days of sailing ships, when working high in the mast rigging and before the advent of modern safety harnesses; it was an essential precaution that each sailor should hold on with one hand at all times, while working with the other.

This gave rise to the idiom “one hand for yourself, one for the ship” This saying remains excellent advice.

 

Sorting the Tankage

boats

Talmid, our Hans Christian 38, has a small diesel auxiliary which is supplied fuel by two ‘black iron’ storage tanks. One (60 gallons) is located port side forward of midship. The other (85 gallons) is starboard and located beneath the aft quarter berth. They have separate fill ports and are not interconnected but are linked at a valve manifold so as to supply the engine depending on which source is selected.

The forward fuel tank had not been used for several years. All that I knew was that this tank was empty with no trace showing on a screw cap dipstick. The previous owner had explained that he never used the tank. Since I intend to voyage beyond the Bay I need to have this reserve range. It would serve no purpose empty.  Some sailors extend their boats range by lashing Jerry Cans on deck but Talmid has lots of capacity. I figure that with a conservative throttle setting the burn rate will be ~1/2 gallon per hour. This Energy will be used for maneuvering, electricity generation, and propulsion when the wind drops.

However, there were concerns. The forward tank wasn’t being used… How about residuel fuel contamination or tank integrity? The supply lines leading aft to the manifold likely contained air if the tank was truly empty and Diesel engines, unlike gasoline engines stop running and won’t re-start if there are air bubbles in the delivery system. The lines have to be ‘bled’ ensuring a steady stream.

The place to do this is in the marina slip as opposed to dead in the water on open ocean while pitching and rolling. After much thought and from the security of the berth since this was my first foray,  I proceeded as follows.

  • Added a few gallons at the fuel dock ensuring that the unused tank did in fact hold fuel – checking that the bilge stayed dry. (What a clean up mess if it hadn’t!)
  • Motor back to the berth on the known good aft tank.
  • Acquire a length of 5/16″ short hose and a primer bulb from the marine store.
  • Partially drain the Raycor (pre-filter) and disconnect its fuel supply line.
  • Connect the make shift pump (primer) to this line and direct the output into an empty plastic water bottle for discard.

primer bulb
This is a juggling act and a bit messy. Diesel is nasty smelly stuff. Laytex gloves, paper towels and containment diapers required. The procedure worked. The first emission was deep red indicating old fuel from the line but quickly gained the healthy pink color of fresh. Further, after drawing off an additional quantity it remained so. There weren’t  any debris or contamination to note which was a relief.

Reassembling the Raycor by attaching the tank supply line that I had undone was simple enough as was topping the element bowl and securing the screw top lid.

Since air bubbles were likely introduced at the Raycor, my attention was directed downstream to the engine mounted secondary filter. Disassembly is not required. A bleed screw is installed for this purpose and the procedure is:
fuel filter housing bleed screw

  • Unseat the bleed screw
  • Actuate the mechanical lever of the fuel feed pump to purge the fuel
  • Observe the fuel gurgling from the bleed as you pump fuel
  • When there are no more air bubbles escaping seal the bleed screw
  • Start the engine and check for smooth operation as it runs.
  • Shutdown if there are no problems after 15-20 minutes runtime.
  • Cleanup and good to go!

Having accomplished this exercise I now have the experience of having done it and verified which tools will be required should a tank accidentally be run dry or a filter need changing. Most importantly designed capacity (145 gallons) is now available.