Bad Bunny Out of Water at Mill’s Creek Marine, Hamilton, Bermuda for Shaft Seal Replacement, June 2017
During the sailing trip from North Carolina to Bermuda, we had three pretty important repairs to make on the boat for which we had to order the parts from the States; (1) order and replace a new voltage regulator on Generator, (2) order and replace four engine mounts, and (3) order and replace a Propeller Shaft Seal.
Our Bermudian friends ‘Jen and John’ (S/V Aeeshah) ordered a repair part on time and let us use their address for the delivery of a repair part. With their local knowledge, we saved time and money finding a reasonable priced Boat Marina, Mill’s Creek Marine in Hamilton. We had to haul out the boat and replace with a new ‘PSS Shaft Seal’ out of the water.
New PSS Shaft Seal with Water Cooling (left, replaced in Bermuda) vs. Worn Out Old Uncooled PSS Shaft Seal (right). John replaced bellows one month ago. The top (right) was 50% larger one month ago when Bad Bunny was out of water in North Carolina. We only motored 30 hours motoring in one month.
We first met Jen and John in St. Martin in January, 2015. Later we happened to meet them again in St. Croix (February 2015), Curacao (August 2015), Colombia (October 2015), and San Blas (December 2015). Our sailing routes were similar. This time, they arrived in their homeland, Bermuda two weeks before us. Meeting them on their homeland, we enjoyed their hospitality and local knowledge. They gave us a tour of the Bermuda and invited us to their 40th Anniversary party. We met their children, grandchildren, and friends. It was so heartfelt and warm. We will remember their Son, Gavin’s powerboat rides to the America’s Cup Race, watching the Tall Ships depart, and watching the J-boats race.
Gavin (http://www.gavinhowarth.com/about/) is a professional photographer with his own studio in Bermuda. Check the stunning pictures on his website
Howarth Photography Ltd. (http://www.gavinhowarth.com/).
One of Four New Engine Mounts Replaced at Bermuda, June 2017. Our engine was shaking when motoring to Bermuda.
We also met our great friends ‘Michele and Randy’ from S/V Nautilus. John met them first in Haiti and in many other islands when they cruised the Caribbean together years ago. During our cruise on the US East Coast last year (2016), we enjoyed their water front house in Florida and great room and board. They are always generous. This time, they visited Bermuda with their friend’s boat as crew, a week before us. Their own personal boat is currently in Curacao. Meeting them again here was unexpected. We were thrilled not to mention Michele and Randy’s research skills and network in the states. They helped us find the right boat parts and order them inexpensively through their friends in the States. We didn’t plan on meeting them here but we were so happy to spend some time with them in Bermuda. We visited them at the place they were staying in Bermuda and enjoyed watching the America’s Cup race from the front yard. We are hoping to meet them again next year when both of us cross the Panama Canal.
Old Cracked Generator Voltage Regulator. Generator didn’t output 120 volts AC (alternating current voltage) anymore. It was John’s guess that this was the problem but he was correct.
