Keeping her ship-shape

The first two years of owning a boat is quite a learning experience. I have never been one to tinker with engines or with mechanics much, but when you own a boat you don’t have much choice. I’ve fallen into the role of chief mechanic on Obsession 305 with a steep learning curve. Since our boat is over 20 years old now, it’s understandable that some parts are wearing out and corroding.

There are still a couple of ongoing areas that I’m working on. Electrical connections in the engine seem to be a problem. They are starting to corrode. This past spring, we put the boat in the water, and went to turn on the engine. No luck. We were below the crane, trying desperately to get out of the way so that the next boat could get lifted in, but couldn’t get the engine started. We pulled the boat out of the way, and after a few hours, worked out that there was a problem with power getting to the starter. Thankfully, my father-in-law was handy, and he was able to bypass the starter and get us going. Ironically, the engine then wouldn’t turn off (although this wasn’t electrical – the cord to stop the engine had slipped). Since then, there have been a few other electrical components that have had to be replaced. Keeping our radio working has also been a problem, since the coaxial connector also wants to keep corroding. I have to replace the connection in the spring.

Oh, the joys of boat ownership!