Old Spice's dirty bottom...

[Hightower]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

I'll be along trying to hide in the back of one of Tim M's ribs :-)

So Wheres Old Spice then? A Christmas cruise without the old girl won't be the same.

[Jimbo]

Originally Posted by Hightower

So Wheres Old Spice then? A Christmas cruise without the old girl won't be the same.

Still in Haslar Marina. The engine suffered a catastrophic failure a while back - to quote the mechanic "she ran away with herself, sucking in fuel and air like crazy, and was doing about 14,000RPM when she failed."

I've found another Mermaid engine for a good price, but the trouble is for a credit crunch strapped freelance instructor, a good price is only good if you have the money in the bank!

Oh well, Adrenaline Sailing and it's former owner Dr Smith are in court with me next week, if I win that one, it's new engine here we come

[biffer]

jimbo, i'm interested in what caused your old girl to run away so to speak, i've had the same on a yamaha 240 sti and found that we had blown the turbo, it ran flat out on engine oil

[Downhilldai]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

"she ran away with herself, sucking in fuel and air like crazy, and was doing about 14,000RPM when she failed."

How fast was she going at the time?

[Jimbo]

Originally Posted by biffer

jimbo, i'm interested in what caused your old girl to run away so to speak, i've had the same on a yamaha 240 sti and found that we had blown the turbo, it ran flat out on engine oil

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure. This was a little while ago, and somebody else was using her at the time - Tim M may be able to shed some light on it as he is the one that liased with the mechanics. I do know that the turbo was ruined in the process.

Originally Posted by Downhilldai

How fast was she going at the time?

Again not a clue - she used to do 29kts flat out with that propellor - and tended to be run fairly flat out.

[Rogue Wave]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

I do know that the turbo was ruined in the process.

Bummer. That turbo isn't a special mermaid turbo. The lump is essentially from a ford d300 7.5t truck. Apart from the marinisation components and mayne hardened rocker stuff and valves I suspect everything else engine wise (inc Turbo) would be available from a truck breaker at a lot cheaper priice than marine sources.

[LURCHER]

It will need more than Three Wise Men to get Old Spice going by then , when I pulled her out at Camber she looked like the Great Barrier reef and there was even a tiny lobster in the exhaust port !

[matt h]

Blimey Lurcher, Me Tinks you might be out with out with the jet washer this weekend!!

[Nasher]

She was sat on her trailer a few weeks ago when we launched at the camber for the SR cruise, and had already been cleaned off.

It's a bit sad that you let her get so bad Jimbo.

Nasher.

[Carl]

pete will be turning in his bunk

[Knot Yet]

Originally Posted by LURCHER

It will need more than Three Wise Men to get Old Spice going by then , when I pulled her out at Camber she looked like the Great Barrier reef and there was even a tiny lobster in the exhaust port !

Crikey - how long did it take to get like that - what a bugger for you Lurcher

J

[Jimbo]

Originally Posted by Nasher

It's a bit sad that you let her get so bad Jimbo.

I kind of resent that a bit Nasher.

Throughout her ownership with me, she was covered whenever left for more than two days (she was kept in a marina berth) and always washed off after use.

The engine was serviced twice by Seaway marine, and once by myself, and my mechanic (Malcolm from Morling Marine) carried out numerous repairs as and when anything broke.

She was used on an almost daily basis during the summer months, as a support boat, leisure boat, and teaching boat, and as such had all manner of extras fitted, and maintenance carried out. Bilge pumps were re-routed, decks re-painted, she came out of the water to have the seals done on the steering ram, all the usual.

When she went out for the last time and overheated, the water had been checked a week previously, as had the oil. The engine failure came as I was going through a bad patch trying to sort out various HMRC fines (through my own stupidity and lack of understanding how to account for a company properly), I'd had two major customers go to the wall owing me a lot of money, and a string of accidental damage to chartered in boats that, thinking of myself as an upstanding sort of chap, I made good out of my own pocket. I am in fact still paying off an engine that blew up as a result of one of my (new, now ex) instructors putting in four stroke oil to a two stroke reservoir.

Believe me - I would love nothing more than to have her working again, and as soon as funds allowed to have her released from the marina, with the help of Lurcher and his trailer, and Tim M (who has been a great friend regarding helping with Old Spice) she was taken out, scrubbed off, and properly inspected by Kings Marine, where I discovered the extent of the damage.

Things change, Lurcher needed his trailer back, so she's back in Haslar Marina racking up a storage bill, while I scratch around trying to find £1000 for an engine I've found.

Yes, she's not working. Yes, she was weedy through not being used for a few months. Yes, I'm almost broke just trying to cover the costs for her, and yes I would love to get the new engine in and either sell her to a new owner or see her working again (I've still got the quotes for the re-trim and new console I was planning on fitting), but I'm doing the best I can, on a minus budget.

It's very sad that she's inoperative, but it's not something I have "let" happen, as though there were some kind of choice or option, it's something I have watched happen whilst all the while working to stop it.

Hopefully, with a few large invoices out this winter, I will be able to raise the cash for the engine, get it fitted, and she will be joining you all for some sort of Easter Cruise.

[matt h]

if i could i would come down and do the cleaning off for you to help out a bit, im miles away at the moment!!

[Jimbo]

Originally Posted by matt h

if i could i would come down and do the cleaning off for you to help out a bit, im miles away at the moment!!

Cheers Matt, that's very kind

As it is, thanks to the help of Lurcher and Tim M, she is now all de-gunged and has a shiny bottom - new engine and a re-trim and we'll be all set!

Rogue Wave - thanks for your comments on the engine, the one I've found (which I'm hoping is still available) is a Mermaid AND a Ford D-series, for the bargain price of £1k - I'm optimistic I should be able to end up with one working and one nearly working engine if it all pulls off.

[Carl]

cant you keep old spice on the hard standing

[willk]

Originally Posted by Knot Yet

Crikey - how long did it take to get like that - what a bugger for you Lurcher

J

Looks like 8 - 10 weeks?

Once upon a time, my old man left one in for a summer season (in ignorance I think!), it gave me (aged 10) something to do for September that year

[Jimbo]

Originally Posted by Carl

cant you keep old spice on the hard standing

That was the original plan - she was going to be blocked off at Trafalgar Wharf for the winter, but as I said things move on, John (Lurcher) needed his trailer, Tim M's business plans and connections with Kings Marine altered, and the cost of having her craned out, blocked off, and stored at Trafalgar was not dis-similar to having her in a winter berth at Haslar, where I can at least pop down to her to stop her filling with water etc.

I'm investigating various options, but am currently working in Falmouth with "disadvantaged" kids until at least the 2nd December, so can't do much until I'm back!

[Knot Yet]

Sorry Jimbo - I thought it was Lurchers boat - what a bugger and all that growth in 8 - 10 weeks very scary!!

J

[Tim M]

That was probably about 9 months growth, not 10 weeks.

It was hilarious when me and lurcher pulled her out. We were standing there admiring all the crap on the leg, when all of a sudden John exclaimed "theres a f**cking lobster in there"

[Knot Yet]

Ahh okay 9 months sounds more reasonable - that was a scary amount for 10 weeks - made me wonder why anyone would keep their RIB in the water and not dry stacked

J