Tug Project – Wk5
Tug Project – Wk5
by: Peter A.
Sunday is often spent studying the metrological situation for Mondays & Wednesdays, in the hope that we might be able to put paint to metal at some point. Fortunately, the weather has just about obliged and some progress has been made.
The second coat of blacking has now been applied to the hull, so that is finished. The old paint on the roof, a strata of several generations, required needle gunning off, so we just had to put up with the noise of that activity for a while. The primer has been applied and today, the first coat of CCT Green has gone on, with the usual transformation in appearance of the vessel.
At the stern end, we have been attending to the slack in the bottom rudder bearing. A new sleeve and reprofiling of the rudder pin has removed the rattle level slack that had developed over the years.
A unforeseen problem. This morning, before starting the engine, the oil level was checked. Good practice, especially as the level of oil on the dipstick was over the top level, when it had been originally filled to the correct level!
The only thing that could cause this, was the presence of water having found a way in and resting in the bottom of the sump. A quick check using the sump pump verified that there was indeed water under the oil.
The Lister is most helpful in that it has large engine side covers that are easily removed for inspection inside the crank case. This revealed that there was water dripping very slowly from under No.4 cylinder piston. So we decided to remove the head, release the piston and then extract the cylinder liner using an improvised jacking system – which worked well.
Once removed, it was very clear that a small hole had developed in the component, just above the bottom piston ring, through which the water was leaking. We now need to source a replacement liner. It was fortunate that we spotted this whilst the boat was in the yard, as such work is executed much easier and quicker with all the tools to hand.
Despite this setback, we still need good weather to complete the painting work and there is a bit of interior panel work to do too. This is already in hand. Once the engine room work is complete, we will be able to apply the deck paint. Hopefully, the bits are in the post!
