Kwazy
Shared on Thu, 05/08/2008 - 16:41My boat, that is. And it was such a nice boat. It was 1984 Wellcraft open bow runabout. Bought it with trailer three years ago for $3000 bucks...a hell of a deal considering the condition. Tan with blue trim. Near pristine original upholstery and carpets. Last year I replaced the mechanical ignition with an electronic set. The engine ran like a Swiss watch, leaked no oil, and made no smoke. And everything was completely water-tight...until the end of last year, that is, when I noticed a small amount of water leaking into the engine compartment.
Pulled it out last October and went over it with the mechanic at the marina. He noted that that the bellows were getting pretty soft, and that was likely the source of the water. No problem. We'll store it for the winter, and a few hundred bucks will get it fixed by May.
No problem=big problem
When he tore into it this week, the gimbal pins were frozen. Put a torch on them, no dice...stripped out the heads. Drilled them out, no dice...broke his extractor. Shy of cutting apart the gimbal ring, which would likely also destroy the housing, there is no way to get the assembly apart.
Total project estimate for a new gimbal ring, housing, main bearing, pins, and associated seals and gaskets with 8.5 hours of labor: $2464.11. In all likelihood, that is more than I would get for the boat if it were actually running and much more than its worth in its present crippled state. Of course, I've already paid $300 to store it for the winter.
At this point, I'd like to cry. Or punch an elderly nun in the face. Maybe both.
Pulled it out last October and went over it with the mechanic at the marina. He noted that that the bellows were getting pretty soft, and that was likely the source of the water. No problem. We'll store it for the winter, and a few hundred bucks will get it fixed by May.
No problem=big problem
When he tore into it this week, the gimbal pins were frozen. Put a torch on them, no dice...stripped out the heads. Drilled them out, no dice...broke his extractor. Shy of cutting apart the gimbal ring, which would likely also destroy the housing, there is no way to get the assembly apart.
Total project estimate for a new gimbal ring, housing, main bearing, pins, and associated seals and gaskets with 8.5 hours of labor: $2464.11. In all likelihood, that is more than I would get for the boat if it were actually running and much more than its worth in its present crippled state. Of course, I've already paid $300 to store it for the winter.
At this point, I'd like to cry. Or punch an elderly nun in the face. Maybe both.
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Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 05/08/2008 - 17:39
Submitted by Kwazy on Thu, 05/08/2008 - 20:07
Submitted by microscent on Thu, 05/08/2008 - 21:50