Posts Tagged “Mechanical”
Nordhavn delivers an unusually complete fuel manifold with far more flexibility than most production boats. In fact, the manifold is sufficiently complex that some new owners can find it difficult. More than once, I’ve heard of an owner accidentally closing the return path for the main engine or generator, leading to fuel leaks or, worse,…
One of our eight Lifeline AGM GPL-8DL batteries recently went into thermal runaway, and we’ve had a few questions on the nature of the problem and why we chose to replace the full house battery bank. The lazarette smoke/CO alarm had gone off at 3am, and upon investigating we found a rotten egg smell (hydrogen…
Steering is a great area to be picky about in overall mechanical system health. About three months back, we noticed a tiny amount of play at the spherical bearing that forms part of the rod end where the steering cylinder connects to the rudder. The play was minor, but spherical bearings should exhibit close to…
Dirona carries 1735 gallons of diesel for the main engine: 835 gallons in each side tank and 65 gallons in the day tank. (We also have a 10-gallon supply tank for the auxiliary engine). Although 1735 gallons would have been fine for the roughly 2,000nm trip between San Francisco and Hawaii, we added 532 gallons…
Because the Nordhavn 52 is a new boat and because we chose to go with a more powerful engine than standard, we receive many questions on how we like it, whether more power is a good idea, and the fuel burn at different speeds. Now that we have over 600 hours on the engine and…
Choices like engine brand are personal. We didn’t make a Deere vs Lugger decision on our Nordhavn 52—we would have been happy with either. Although the high quality support offered by Lugger clearly is important, the reason why 5263 will have a John Deere main is that we wanted a little bit more power and…
Last Friday I visited the engine for our new boat (next boat). It’s a John Deere 6068AFM75 M2. The standard engine in the Nordhavn 47 and 52 series is a Lugger L1066T.2 with a ZF220A gearbox. Both are great, long lasting components. We chose to move to the John Deere 6068 to get a bit…
A recent question on Bayliner 4087 fuel consumption: We are currently in negotiations to purchase a Bayliner 4087, 2001 model with 330 Cummins Engines. Can you set my expectations for fuel burn? Second question, we have just sold our Grand Banks 32 for a faster boat. However, much of the time I do anticipate cruising…
Some time back I came across a query on whether synthetic oil could be safely used in marine diesels. My response: Most manufacturers permit the use of synthetics, but don’t allow longer oil change intervals when employing them. The question I’ve always had is whether the gain is worth the cost. Some of the…
Some time back I got a question from an owner of a larger Bayliner concerned that he wasn’t running his engines hard enough and that, as a consequence, they may not last as long. The advice he’d been given was that diesel engines need to run wide open for at least one hour in 10. …
I recently had a question on how to eliminate diesel-engine sooting at the transom. It’s an interesting topic because almost everyone is convinced they have a solution. These solutions run from expensive diesel fuel additives to passing the diesel through permanent magnets on the way to the engines. Overall, I’m pretty resistant to paying…
A recent question: I am just learning about these pumps and at 1000 hrs on 330B, my starboard raw water pump began leaking at a rate to great to ignore. So after plunking down over $1600 with California’s 8.75% sales tax for two, if one’s bad the other must be near death right? However after…
I recently came across a posting that is a good reminder for all of us. It was a standard 30-amp shore power cord. On the outside, there was slight evidence of heat. Upon taking the plug apart, it’s completely melted. It’s not my picture so I’ll not post it here but you can see it…
When we’re cruising farther from home, we typically move the boat each day. The engines are run enough to charge the house batteries fully, and power is never a problem. But when out on the weekends, we often work and don’t move the boat as much, if at all. Usually we have several computers running…
I got a question earlier this year that essentially asked: I can’t quite reach full rated RPM under load but I’m only 50 to 100 RPM low in my Bayliner 4788. I’m considering playing it safe and repitching my props but my dealer recommends that I not bother until next season. Is it OK to…
I get the odd query, and this one is perhaps of broader interest. Gerald Albertson wrote: Hi James and Jennifer, I absolutely love your pics, especially Desolation Sound at Christmastime. It is a fine goal that I obtain the proper skills and confidence to do an Around-Vancouver Island adventure one day. One of…
Diesel engines have a great reputation for incredible longevity, yet most recreational marine diesels fail well before they should. The two primary killers are 1) overload (discussed at Diesel Engine Overload and Tony Athens’ Engine Life vs. Engine Loading) and 2) poor maintenance & operating conditions. Both are easy to avoid with a bit of…