Shifting Gears

The shift lever for the Honda BF5 is located on the starboard side of the outboard motor.  This is not exactly conveniently located when the motor is mounted on the Chebacco considering the distance to the transom for the cockpit.  Add in the mizzen mast, main sheet traveller and boom gallows to make the reach even trickier. 

Cleverly (thought I) I could make a sort of poor man's remote control by attaching wooden control dowels to the shifter lever and the twist throttle (using a commercial throttle extender).  Holes were drilled into the cockpit bulkhead and the dowels extended slightly into the cockpit.  Thus, without so much as standing up I could control the shifting and speed from the cockpit.  This system worked great for general motoring but it fell short in that the motor was now locked into position on the centre line of the boat and could not longer be pivoted to manoeuvre in tight quarters.  This is a definite disadvantage considering the poor reversing and stopping characterists of this Chebacco/OB combination.

Remote shifter 1.0 one end...

...and the other

Back to the drawing board as they say.  Jamie Orr has the same motor on his boat, Wayward Lass.  He added a short extension to the shifter that allowed him to shift by reaching over the top of the motor to shift gears.  When motoring in tight quarters Jamie would perch on the port aft deck and be able to control shifter, throttle and tiller handily.  This arrangement allows the motor to still pivot when required for tight manoeuvring.  Clever chap that Jamie, so I copied him.  My lever extension was in fact the plastic extended socket wench thingy that came with  my new kitchen faucet and it fit perfectly.  Never throw anything out.

Remote shifter 2.0

A keen observer may notice in the top two photos the extension to the motor pull cord.  As with the shifter -the mizzen, rudder post, main sheet traveller and the distance to the transom from the cockpit make pulling the starter cord a challenge and a risk to back, elbows and fingernails.  Very considerately, when purchased, the Honda OB came with a back up starting cord to be used in the unlucky event of cord breakage or failure of the ratchet mechanism.  This cord is attached to the rubber hand grip of the built in starter cord and reaches easily to the cockpit.  Simple and slick.

Crash

I was really looking forward to this past August 19th.  The plan was to meet up with my brother Gary early at the Pitt River Marina where we would launch Bluster then motor up to the Pitt Lake ramp where we would meet up with my friend Curtis and his Siren 17.  We would then spend the whole day exploring the lake and adjacent waterways.  The next weekend was the Vancouver Wooden Boat that I was really excited about participating in for the first time.

I arrived at the marina early, about a half hour ahead of Gary, so I loaded up the provisions and gear then hooked on the trailer thinking that I may as well go ahead and launch while waiting. This is easier with two people but the ramp was quiet and  I have certainly done it alone many times so I wheeled out of the secured parking and over to the ramp.  I executed a ninety degree turn to begin changing direction from driving towards the ramp to backing down.  As I came to a stop I felt the car/trailer pull backwards slightly and thought it was just the weight of the trailer that was now on the downward slope.  Not quite in the right position I pulled forward again.  Bang!  My first thought was that for some reason the trailer hitch had popped off the ball so I stopped  the car and stepped out...I had caught an overhead cable!  Where did that come from and how had I launched here three times previously and never seen it?  Bluster's mast was angled back about twenty degrees and the bowsprit was angled up at forty five degrees taking a big section of the foredeck with it.  What a mess.    In a shock-like state I drove back to my parking spot.  Gary arrived shortly after, also looking forward to a day on the water, and we began to assess the damage.

Not a good way to start a cruise.

It appeared when I caught the mast on an overhead cable the mast flexed backwards pulling up on the bowsprit and snapping the 1/8" ss cable bobstay.  The sturdy bowsprit (really a bowplank) was undamaged and the six 3/8" ss bolts ensured that the foredeck it was attached to travelled with it.  The only damage to the mast was split on the foot where the locking bolt on the tabernacle is inserted.  Hull, sails and rigging all OK.  We spent some time lowering  the masts, removing the anchor and bowsprit.  This is a disappointing end of the sailing season for me, for now.

The next day I cancelled my monthly storage at the marina and towed my wounded Bluster to Gary's farm where he generously offered to store her whilst I was to undertake repairs.  I was getting over my grieving and starting to plan for the future - I still had a couple of pieces of the original marine plywood fiberglass cloth and some fresh epoxy.  Having built Bluster I am acutely aware of her intimate construction details. 

Maybe I won't be going to the Wooden Boat Festival next weekend but Sam and I had been talking about a backpacking trip to Garibaldi Park...

A very good plan B