A More Durable Bobstay Repair

06/28/02

    Another exciting morning.  This morning, our task is  to implement a more effective repair for the bobstay.  The weather is pretty mild, so this is a good time to do it. 

    Eric has a large snap shackle, and after filing the end down a little, was able to fit it through the end link of the chain.  The then took a regular screw shackle and attached the end link of the upper chain to the snapshackle, and the next step was for David to lie down on the bowsprit and reach down to attach the snap shackle to the end link of the lower chain. 

    My job was to sit as far out as I could on the bowsprit to weigh it down to help the two ends meet.  David’s first attempt was unsuccessful.  Even with me sitting on the bowsprit and Eric pulling down on the line holding the lower chain with a block and tackle, we are not close to making the connection. 

    At this time we are visited on the bow by a school of dolphins.  It is quite a sight, sitting out on the bowsprit, with the dolphins crossing back and forth beneath me.  It is when I see the dolphins below the water that I realize how brilliantly colored the water really is. 

    We decided to add another shackle between the snap shackle and the upper chain.  With this arrangement, David was able to get the chain attached, but the resulting configuration was too loose to adequately tighten with the turnbuckle. 

    The next step was for David to lie down on the bowsprit and hang over the front, disconnecting the turn buckle from the fitting underneath.  As I watched from above, he struggled on the pitching bowsprit, trying to yank out the cotter pin which held the clevis pin in place.  The bowsprit was undulating from 7 feet above the water down to less than a foot above the water the whole time he was working. 

    He finally gave up on the cotter pin and went back to ask Eric for advice.  Eric was in the cabin performing surgery on the “Heart of the Sea” tape, which had broken when I was listening to it the night before.  He went forward to look at the cotter pin and yanked it right out with the vice grips, then handed me the clevis pin.  We hoisted the turnbuckle on deck with the safety line we attached earlier. 

    The next task is to detach the turnbuckle from the end of the chain so we can loosen it in the vise in the engine room.  This turned out to be a non-trivial task, as the turnbuckle was secured to the chain with a nut and bolt that had not been touched in a few years.  David and I struggled with this for probably half an hour, applying WD40 a few times to loosen things up.  At long last it started to give and we were able to get the nut off. 

    We had lunch (chicken salad on homemade bread – YUM), then Eric took the turnbuckle into his “lab” in the engine room and mounted it on the vise to try to loosen it.  The turnbuckle also had not been adjusted in years, and has constantly been dunked in salt water while cruising, so we don’t expect it to be cooperative.

    Eric spent quite some time working on the turnbuckle, emerging to get his utility gloves.  He finally emerged triumphant, and we all set about the business of reattaching the turnbuckle. 

    We had to decide how many links to exclude when we reattached it, to be sufficiently tight.  We first decided to drop three links, so we attached the shackle from the turnbuckle (we used lots of shackles today) three links  down on the chain, and David proceeded to lie down on the bowsprit and check the fit. 

    He announced that it was still way too loose, and we would need to go one more link (at least).  So we took off the shackle and reattached it down another link.  Now it fit better, and I handed David the clevis pin to complete the attachment to the bowsprit underfitting.  He was having a bit of a struggle. 

    Eric sent me back to the cabin to get the ball peen hammer, and when I came back, both Eric and David were lying side by side face down on the bowsprit, with both their hands underneath.  Eric made some comment about this being “position # 99”. 

    I fetched various tools for them as they worked; little vise grips, big vise grips, hammer.  Finally they got the clevis pin in position, and I provided the cotter pin so they could finish the job.  Now it was time for David to tighten up the turnbuckle, so I took a 1” wrench, tied a safety line to it, and handed it over to him. 

    The rigging on the bowsprit once more began to show life.  We had successfully completed an adequate jury rig to replace the broken bobstay!  We could now feel much safer if we encounter wind and waves.  Unfortunately, we could still not use the jib, as the bottom of the extrusion was still bungled up somehow.  We will still have a great deal of work to do in Horta.

    Eric is going to bake a cake this afternoon.  I suggested we call it a “Happy Bobstay” cake, in honor of our ordeal.