Unraveling the Contrasts Of Sailboat Life - Ran-day EP13  

I watched this old house with my dad for years... Your channel is the equivalent... "This old boat" thank you for information on all things about old boats.

I really like this format - vignettes of various events, observations, and maintenance issues. It makes for interesting but easy viewing. Good job!

It's great to see Randay. You're troubleshooting, fixing your dramas, and getting to know your beautiful ketch. She looks splendid under way. Keep at it, mate.

Randy, put some ultraviolet dye in the coolant, and use a small ultraviolet pen light to find the source of the leak

Why is it so cathartic to watch/listen to someone else's sailboat "challenges"! 😂

Hi Randah. Im a professional equipment mechanic. Here are some tips. Water always flows down. Start at top and look round and round. Get a mirror on a stick. Use a nice bright LED light. There are two types of leaks, cold and hot. Hoses may leak cold, but swell when hot. Same with seals on waterpump. But pressure builds when hot so buy a new cap and run it until it is hot. If you can somehow restrict water/air through your radiator to get it hot then just pay attention. Most engines can handle temps up to 210F without damage. Higher than that is bad. 200F will build about 10lbs easy. Look for crusty yellow scum and follow it up. Most water pumps have a weep hole under the bearing housing. Use the mirror to see. Also head gasket leaks can be seen with engine under load better as head bolts stretch. You might have to let a friend drive it hard whike you inspect it.

Thanks for the shout out Randall! Looking forward to seeing you again at the boat shows this fall.

Apologies if this has already been mentioned but a good place to look for used sails is Bacon in Annapolis. They have a pretty extensive inventory. Another thrifty option is sailrite sail kits. Although with your size of boat you will need an industrial sewing machine to assemble them. It definitely gets you in touch with your sails and makes later repair an easy part of your new skill set. I've sewn two mains a jib, staysail, genoa and drifter using their kits.

“Floating cottage”, is not exactly what Hepburn would call “Yar”. Loving your sailing boat learning curve. Honest and funny with a serious dose of reality. BZ Ran-day and thanks.

Randay, I bought new sails for my 28ft.S2 from Precision Sails two years ago, and they do fantastic work. Their prices were very competitive. They built me offshore sails, and they are reslly well constructed.

Bought my first bigger, keelboat this winter, so I can really relate to this series, especially the highs and lows. Your ketch is a real beauty!

I met you and the Captain at the Annapolis Boat Show two years ago, You had just bought your boat and I was in love with the Cassiron tour de monde. Today I sit for the first time on my boat, a Reliance 44. Thanks for all the information you have provided me, I could talk the talk when pushed and I feel I have a great ( for me ) boat. Again , thanks O

All exciting things! Looking great, and can't wait to see more of the progress you've been making!

Even with all the issues that is a beautiful SV. Glad you are getting to enjoy it.

Goodness! I guess if it's gushing then it really is a non-drip system! The old traditional stuffing box seems a lot more reliable somehow.... but at least you found it and thats one less unknown unknown. Here's hoping it doesn't decide to let go!

I thought Mr. Schulz made it perfectly clear that your stuffing box deficiency needed to be addressed immediately or yesterday. I wholly concur. Your boat needs to be on land, and getting the stuffing box replaced. Sinking is no good. Watching sunsets from land with dry feet beats the alternative. The repair time will pass quickly. Take care and as always, thanks for the posts.

You've got a sweet boat, asking for love and attention. Worth it!

Get yourself a nice inspection mirror and bright pinpoint flashlight. Very useful for seeing in areas you can’t get to for troubleshooting and even after repairs/assembly.

A good headlamp and inspection mirror are priceless in the engine room. Some safety tie wire on those stuff box fasteners can save your boat from sinking as well. Good time watching your vids.

The biggest unknown ! Where is the leak coming from? The relief is from finding the problem because then you can fix it. The "fun" of owning and sailing a yacht. Hope you find the coolant leak , if it's not on the side you can see, I bet it's on the other side and in the most difficult place to get too... it's the law of the sea.. oh and it is the last place you look.. lol. Thanks for the video.

I just bought a 1978 Sabre mark II 28 and moved on board. I'm all in now. I'm loving it, but it's a lot to learn. It's a good boat, I trust it. It's weaknesses are me. Not her. I bought a case of Dinty Moore stew. Please tell the captain. A lot of what you guys have presented helped me to make what I think was a sound decision. It's no small thing. You can learn so much. And that's it in my opinion. Learning. A living thing that is always changing in every regard. The work is never done I don't think. It's in good shape but she was thirsty. The wood, metal, plastic, rubber, seals.. I'm still staring at this $60 pint of varnish. Stirred not shaken. Stick with oil for now. But what is better than beautiful varnished wood? That's part of what I learned from your videos. When you can see the pride in ownership over the years. It shows and matters. That's what I looked for. You and Q helped me. I have a sound boat. So what you do with these videos isn't just entertainment. But that too. My pool of resources was very vast. It was a huge life changing decision. But I know I will never regret it. Your work has value. Honestly I'm jealous. Being able to scour New England for boats would be a pretty cool gig. In my search that's where most of the good ones were. Old sailors that cared about them. Sometimes they sell them for a song just to pass them on to someone they think will carry on the legacy. You guys find ones like that. Thank you.

I had a coolant leak I couldn’t find. Did the pressure tester and didn’t lose any pressure. Turns out, I had a faulty cap. It would release coolant from the overflow fitting at a lower pressure than it should. Once replaced, everything worked great.

OK, I'm not a sailor, small time on sail boats years ago in college; just another nut on the Internet - but I'm a woodworker with too many years in a lumberyard: When it comes to sealing with epoxy I'd advise against it (unless wooden boat experts disagree) because - we all know you will have to refinish your wood bits from time to time and that epoxy is going to be a bear to deal with. I'm thinking stick with finishes and sealers that are "easy" to deal with and refresh. It will be less work in the long run and you'll be much more willing to do those tasks because they won't require so much work. Talk to the boat yard folks on what they recommend; for me, the starting point would be a good oil sealer that can soak in and that you can just do a coat per season. But that is assuming I can't find a good boat yard to bounce ideas off of.

Ran: Totally gripping episode!

Ran-day, a few thoughts for you. Steam clean the engine, add an ultra violet dye to the coolant, pressurize the system then look around for the leak with an ultra violet light. bilge pump counter

I really enjoy these videos about your boat. It’s a great into into boat ownership for those of us who are totally green.

I absolutely love this channel! Thank you for bringing thought provoking content.

Love the updates. Miss you and The Captain. Hope he is ok

This content deserves it's OWN channel, Randall. I watch these episodes more than once. But, it's flavor is more grown up than the dreamer side OH, to own a big boat!! Either way, please keep it coming and thank you.

So interesting hearing about your restoration / repair of your beautiful boat.

Thanks for your videos. You always do a great job of explaining the problem and how to fix it.

Love this channel.

You may want to utilize a bore scope to aid in seeing where your head doesn't fit. Good luck, Randy!

Love the updates, thanks

Thanks Ran-Day!

Gorgeous grates randay! And love your honesty and openness.

Such a dream boat and always looking forward to hearing of your projects aboard! Thank you!

Interesting and entertaining video Randy!!! I am looking forward to more of your journies and the learning curve!!!

Brilliant and so educational. Thankyou heaps

Great video Randy!! Thank you

Thanks for sharing. I really enjoy these videos.

Thanks for sharing your journey! ❤

thank you very much for posting these videos for just-above-being-newbies. They are without doubt the most informative. You answer the question that appear when watching a video! The graphics are always very, very useful and appear right when they are needed. Buon vento!

Tanks for putting in the pricing.

A real pucker up moment when you find a leak that bad going on . Thank goodness you found the reason why so easily and can deal with it for now and in the future you won't spend mega bucks to fix .It's nice to hear your already getting to spend fun time on it and with friends .

It is good you are getting some sea time even with the issues you're having. The more time on the water, the more things you will find to fix or replace until everything is ship shape. It is all part of the process. Take care and best wishes for fair winds and following seas.

Very informative video, especially showing the realness of owning a sailboat or any boat, there’s always maintenance. Also enjoyed hearing you speak about the joys of sailing and lessons to be learned. Absolutely love this channel.

What plumbers do in South Africa is they put a slice of bread around all the the fitting and let it rest a while under pressure... if the bread is wet there you found your leak

Nice music good JobWithTheBoat

Hey Randy, I don't know if it's been mentioned, but try using fluorescent dye to find your leak. It's a perfect solution. You add the dye then cruise your boat under power for a few hours and using a black light you'll see exactly where your leak is originating.

I’ve owned several yachts…4 powerboats and 2 sailboats… and without fail, every time I’ve had coolant in the pan under the engine, it has been from over-temping. A very slight increase in temperature…even 10 degrees… will cause the coolant to expand and discharge through the overflow. With rare exceptions, you can generally tell if the leak is coming from the coolant overflow or a leaky hose fairly easily. 1. If coming from a bad hose, it is leaking when the engine is hot/under pressure, and you will see coolant sprayed on the walls and ceiling of the engine room and on the engine. You will still see it dripping when you shut off the engine. 2. If you don’t see evidence of coolant spray on engine room walls and/or the engine, the coolant is probably coming from the overflow. The engine is “talking” to you. Something in the raw water cooling system is restricting flow and allowing the temperature to creep up. I go through all of these steps, when I think coolant is coming from the overflow: 1. Shoot temps with a gun. Don’t trust the gauge. Shoot temps as engine heats up with a gun. Shoot the manifold, the block down low, the heat exchanger, and the block around the raw water pump. Take readings of those locations every 5 minutes as the engine heats up. I believe you have a Perkins 4107 or 4108. None of your readings should be above 165. 2. Dive down and inspect through hull, and make sure no critters are blocking the intake. 3. Check sea strainer for vegetation. (This should be part of your pre-start checklist…check oil, coolant, tranny fluid, sea strainer, check water flow after starting) 4. Check/replace impeller 5. Service heat exchanger core. (I soak mine in white vinegar every 6 months) 6. Check/change thermostat. 7. If you don’t have good water flow out the back…especially after doing 1-6…you may need a raw water pump. That’s not common. They last forever. 1-6 in that order usually resolve the issue. I hope this helps!

They sell a dye kit with a U.V. light that will pin point leaks, oil, or water/coolant.

To own or not to own, that is the question. To own is to have to fix. Thank you for sharing. Have a great day and stay safe.🙂🙂

Can't wait to see this sailing in the Caribbean. I volunteer to crew on the trip down. :D

I really like your boat, what a beauty!!!

Thanks Randall. This content is VERY instructive. Especially for those of us intending to follow in your footsteps into classic boat ownership. My main takeaway is to dramatically upskill on boat maintenance, so I can avoid labour costs for all but the most specialised jobs, like engine overhaul etc. And as others have said. Your presentation skills are exemplary!

I bought a set of sails from Precision a couple years ago. They were great to work with. I went with the more expensive tri-radial sails and a partially battened main. I don’t regret the extra $$, don’t race anymore but I appreciate a good sail shape. Just sailed this afternoon.

You can add a UV due to the coolant. With the right light source it will be easy to follow the trail. You can also get a tester that will pressurize the system with a hand pump.

Always fun to look forward to the next “chapter” in your life as an old boat owner. Like an old house one major project a year is necessary but each one just makes you love the “old girl” more. Yours is certainly one to treasure. Your comments about the condition of the sails needs to register clearly on purchasers. Locally old sailboats are grossly over priced because the sails (and rigging) are always in good condition according to the seller, but of course they are usually as old as the boat with few if any refurbishing. That adds significantly to the true cost of the boat and it is rarely mentioned when you and the captain review a specific boat. Speaking of the captain, I hope that he is healthy and fit as he has made only rare appearances this year. Please assure us that he is. Cheers.

Great content - love it ! I'm quite a novice myself, but the thought occurred to me: "Most antifreeze preparations have added fluorescein to help detect radiator leaks and show a green-blue fluorescence under ultraviolet light." Might try that. There are cheap LED, UV flashlights available. I've got one to try and detect counterfeit bills.

This was exactly what I needed to see because I just bought my first sailboat and I'm terrified! Thanks Randaaay!

I guess that the podcast “How to Lose All Your Money” was pretty succinct. “Buy an old sailboat!”. Love the videos. Thanks

Hi Randal, try adding automotive uv dye to the coolant too and shine a up light in the engine room buddy.

Looking forward to your solution of the drippless propeller shaft situation.

"Something I'm going to deal with later, for sure." hahahahahaha Truer words never spoken.

I've sailed our 25' 1983 ODay CB with 10 HP Yanmar inboard everywhere you mentioned - Block Island, Newport, Westport (Tripp), P -Town, MVY, NAN, Cuttyhunk, Falmouth, Hyannis, Chatham and more. This year, like you, I had issues with the dripless shaft seal. It's probably as old as the boat! Just to get through the season I put a thick layer of silicone seal on it and tightened it up. I noted that in reverse, when the prop pulls the shaft toward the stern and the seal, there's no issue. But going forward when the shaft is pushed away from the seal, at high rpms, it opens up and leaks. It looks like your seal does not have a bellows - mine does and it opens the possibility of doing a MacGuyver and rigging up springs (attached to the engine mount) that will help pull it tighter, especially if the engine shifts a bit.

I love the all the shows you do. This series of videos are really interesting. Has it ever crossed your mind that the previous owners must of had no clue how close to disaster they were or they just gave up at some point? I see that scenario a lot and my friend and I always make jokes about how that isn't our luck. We're always the ones that the vehicle releases all the threads it has been holding on by, when it lands in our hands.

first one here! I am in Westport Ont. but have heard of the other Westports of the world.

Ah! That explains things. I couldn't imagine ignoring that particular 4/15/1912 comment i.e. the "dripless" shaft. Don't forget to check the coupling as well.

I haven't finished the video yet but wanted to give you places to search for your coolant leak. Either a hose or before the water pump aka coolant pump goes bad they will often start leaking from a weep hole in them..or it could be a gasket gone bad behind the pump.. you can also buy a cheap flexible camera that plugs into your phone to put in the hard to see spots and perhaps find the leak.. start with your hand above and work your way down until you find the wet spot

"...dangling in the air..." Ran-Day gots jokes! too funny, unexpectedly cool.

@captainQyachthunter Love your videos Randay! Great visuals! I particularly like your narration. I also really enjoy your choice of music. What artists are they? Thx again.

Do you have a house battery and and a dedicated engine starting battery as two totally separated systems? You also need a large volume "manually operated" bilge pump if all your electric bilge pumps don't function. No engine / dead batteries.

Don't overlook the radiator fill cap, an old one can release fluid as pressure builds from expansion. Replace it with one of the same pound rating as engine recommendation.

Reur genoa leech: Do you have padding on the ends of your spreaders? A "Must Have" to prevent wear such as this from happening. Your anti-freeze leak should be easy to find: it's a closed system: engine block / water pump / heat exchanger. I'd first check our water pump gasket. Your cockpit grating looks great; but, ... now is it slippery when wet?

Yeah RanDay!!!

If I ever were to get another sailboat (living in the mountains now makes that unlikely) I would name her: 'Theresalwayssomething'. Fair winds and following seas!

Thimble islands are a fun trip

I would suggest putting one or two solar panels on the boat to keep the batteries charged, particularly when you are off the boat. When you get to dealing with that dripless seal, I would also suggest just going to a traditional stuffing box with modern packing. I like Gore GFO, but teflon impregnated carbon of teflon impregnated flax works well and will last for years.

I remember Walter's "Last Gasp" comment and I'm really surprised you didn't pick up on that. Perhaps he was understating, but I don't think I would have taken that boat from the dock without having this looked at by a professional. I could see you reliving April 15th and that would not be an episode I'd like to see. Stay on it !

You and Q got me interested in sailing, so it's only fair that you give me some sailing to watch. Good job tracking down the problems...and even better job getting some sailing in. All work and no play, makes for a really expensive, annoying, hobby. Keep on sailing.

The cockpit grates look great. But as things are falling, the EP will get punctured by heavy or sharp ones. The varnish is quite soft and the EP is hard. 7 layers of varnish is not that much, but as teak doesn't need UV protection this might be alright. Hope the EP has UV protection otherwise it will become opaque and yellow out.

Ran-Day, you call that warm water? I grew up in Florida, and that's warm water!

Yikes, 23 through hulls! On my little O'day 25 I eliminated the two it had. The depth sounder can be replaced with one that registers through the fiberglass, and my little galley sink can drain into a bucket to dump later. I believe every through hull should be absolutely necessary. I wonder why designers don't combine intakes and exhausts to reduce the perforations. I even wonder why a straight shaft to the propeller is preferrable, even though it is simplest. I envision using transmissions to run a shaft through a watertight bulkhead above waterline, putting the vulnerable stuffing box into a tiny compartment that cannot swamp the boat even if filled. Or spin the propeller on a hydraulic pump, so no moving parts go through the hull. Glad to have an outboard.

Comparing the drive shaft leak to the Titanic sinking and Leonardo Decaprio and needing 12 bilge pumps to control that leak is a scary description of the problem ... Definitely this problem has top priority to fix ...😮😮😮 ...

Dripless shaft seal is way more maintenance than it is worth and service timetable is every 6 years. Prop shaft needs to come off to replace bellows. If you plan on going offshore maybe replace with traditional stuffing box. More piece of mind in a scenario like what you had.

The mast shrouds have to be physically tied to the ends of the spreaders with safety wire. If you don't do that, and heavy wind loads stretch the shrouds, the leeward shrouds may fall out of the spreader notch, and then your mast no longer is supported and held in place. In the worst case, with both shrouds no longer attached to the spreaders, it's bye-bye mast.

Was wondering if there is a used sail market..? Seems like the way to go....even if they need a little alteration.. good luck Randay ...

Love your channel! That is a sweet boat! I would get that stern gland replaced ASAP... that fails and it's game over. not Worth it.

Aye karumba matey, new sails and a stuffing box? I think my plan is to live on the hard (i get way seasick anyway 🥴) and stay here in Hawaii where the water is warm like where you are 😜

Use dual lens inspection camera for coolant leak diagnosis.

No floating on a door for Randy so that's a good thing. 😎

Try coolant UV dye. Find leaks with a uv light.

I always look at my boating customers and shake my head " You want to use your boat? No, no boats are for working on, not use.😗".

I prefer the ol stuffing box.

There a dye you can put in the antifreeze and follow it I think there a tool that that detects the dye

Hi Randy, I have a old boat as well 1969 C&C redwing30. This season my Yanmar Sb12 Seized, I chose to put in a newer Yanmar 2QM20. Great motor. Now i have a small amount of oil ending up in the bilge... I've put down paper and cardboard under the engine to try and see where the leak is. Any Yanmar experts out there have any tips?

Order an endoscope type camera for your phone. You can really get into tight spaces with it.

Really enjoying this new series! Very informative and I love your story telling! PS: Hope CQ is ok!

When I saw the price for new sails I immediately gave birth to a three-headed cat. Second thoughts about the sailing life. Oh wait. The antifreeze problem, the leaking stuffing box and the overburdened bilge pumps took the edge off of things.... I'm now going to try out wind-surfing or race-walking. What can go wrong?