Haulout Complete!

We successfully completed our first international haulout and splashed back in the water after 9 days on the hard. All in all it was a typical haulout, complete with a number of successes and frustrations. We successfully completed four important projects: new bottom paint; new propeller paint; replacement of the PSS shaft seal; and replacement of the cutlass bearing. We successfully deferred two projects: rudder bearing and oil seal carrier replacement; and blister repair.

New Bottom Paint & New Propeller Paint

We started communicating with the yard about 2 months before our planned haulout to inquire as to whether they had space in the yard for our boat and whether the lift had availability for our preferred haulout date. From there we started inquiring about contractors and services available. The yard in Puerto Escondido allows boat owners to do some projects on their own, and requires contractors to do other types of projects. This is similar to yards we hauled out in back in Seattle, so it was not a surprise. Bottom paint was required to be done by a contractor. After months of slow responses from the paint contractor, we learned that it would take them 6+ weeks to obtain our preferred bottom paint (which is why we started trying to get answers back in December…). Since it was already late January when we learned of the paint delay, we opted for a different paint brand that the contractor could provide right away. We had a similar situation with the propeller paint. We wanted to use Propspeed and obtained a quote for it from the contractor. Once we were hauled out, we found out that they did not have sufficient Propspeed in stock and it would take weeks for them to obtain more. So once again, we opted for a different brand so the work could proceed. The crew working on the paint did a good job. They were much more detail-oriented than what we had seen in Seattle yards. For example, they lightly sanded the hull and made the effort to move the rudder from side to side to fully paint the hull in the area above the rudder. They also spent time scraping out the through hulls and painting the insides of them.

Replacement of the PSS Shaft Seal & Cutlass Bearing

The dripless shaft seal system that the boat came with was a PYI PSS shaft seal, which is the most common dripless seal system around. It was replaced by previous owners back in 2016. PYI recommends the bellows (the rubber accordion looking piece) be replaced every 8 years. Visually our bellows looked perfectly fine, and these PSS seals are known to last perfectly fine for 12-15 years or more without issues (at least for coastal cruising). However, we’ve had issues with the carbon rotor piece (the black ring) flinging dust and water out from the critical face that’s making the watertight connection, suggesting there was gunk or pitting happening on either side of the connection or lack of enough compression from the bellows. We had tried using sandpaper to clean the steel rotor side, as recommended by PYI, during a haulout back in Seattle, however it made no difference. For these reasons we decided it was worthwhile to buy the maintenance kit as well as a new carbon rotor since it was clearly being worn away. Since this work requires the propeller shaft to be nearly removed from the boat, we decided we might as well replace the cutlass bearing while we were at it. The cutlass bearing only had maybe 1/32″ of play, which is generally still ok, but again with the shaft being moved it made sense to do this preventative maintenance now. The cutlass bearing sits in the propeller strut (metal flange outside the hull that holds the propeller shaft between the propeller and where the shaft exits the hull), and it is what protects the shaft and strut from interfering with each other.

We had concerns about the yard having the proper tools for this job, as it can be very difficult according to fellow sailors in the Outbound Yachts Owners Group. Some owners who did this job themselves had to cut the propeller shaft off to get it out of the boat due to the propeller shaft coupler being stuck and in a tight access spot. The coupler is an interference fit on the shaft (meaning it’s metal-metal inner diameter of the coupler is ever so slightly smaller than the shaft), and it is what connects the shaft to the engine transmission. These usually require a gear puller of some type to remove, which can be very difficult without something custom to fit in the 6-inch space available between the transmission and shaft seal. Some owners reported being able to remove it by brute hammering force over a day or two. We also didn’t know exactly what other nut or castle nut was hiding inside the propeller shaft and coupler because it is covered up when connected to the transmission. We thought we might have the appropriate custom tool for the job because we had a random tool on the boat, with an unknown purpose (to us), that we thought maybe the Outbound factory provided with the boat when new (spoiler: it was).

Rather than try to source specific tools for the job in Mexico and spend days on end trying to remove everything, we opted to hire the yard mechanic (Lauro) for the job. And we’re glad we did as Lauro and his co-worker were able to get everything disassembled within a couple hours. By the end of the day, even the cutlass bearing was removed. Cutlass bearings are also notorious to remove without special tools due to the interference fit. Though there was a bit of luck as the coupler piece we were most worried about actually came off rather easily. We suspect this was probably due to previous work for the same job in years past such that the piece no longer had a true interference fit (which we’re ok with considering the safety wired bolts that secure it to the shaft). Removing the coupler bolts that fasten the coupler to the transmission was a harder job given that someone had used Loctite on them. The nuts are Nyloc nuts, which means there is no need for Loctite because the nuts are designed to essentially lock in place on the bolt. We believe the use of Loctite along with the Nyloc nuts was a belt-and-suspenders approach by a previous owner since these bolts that are notorious for coming loose and wrecking havoc.

From the photos, you can see why we were glad we did this work now, as the steel rotor piece was rather badly scraped from the years of use and debris getting stuck between the carbon and steel rotors. No wonder the carbon rotor was flinging carbon and water spray! Lauro took the steel rotor to a local machine shop to put it on a lathe and sand the face back smooth again.

Reassembly went quickly. The new cutlass bearing was pressed in, the new PSS seal components and o-rings were installed, the coupler was reinstalled, the propeller was reinstalled, and everything was bolted back up with the propeller shaft back in place. The only remaining step for this project was to confirm engine alignment with the shaft once launched back into the water. It is necessary to ensure good fit of the new seal and misalignment is ultimately what will cause the cutlass bearing to wear excessively. This final realignment check is typically is done in the water, as the hull of a boat often flexes differently when sitting on supports in the dry dock versus floating in water. Good news for us, this is an Outbound and they are built incredibly stout. Lauro was a bit surprised when he came to do the in-water alignment and discovered that the coupler face was still perfectly aligned to the transmission with only a .003″ gap. He did not have to make any adjustments. This was the first time he’d ever seen this happen! Overall, we’re very pleased with hiring the mechanics to do this work. They were very knowledgeable, and their rate was very economical (~$1000 in labor) compared to what this would have cost in the US (probably upwards of $3-5000).

Future Projects: Rudder Bearing and Oil Seal Carrier Replacement & Blister Repair

We fully intended to drop the rudder in Puerto Escondido, but it wasn’t in the cards. First, the yard was fully paved. This meant that we would need to hire the lift to lift our boat back up in the air (not free or cheap) while the rudder was removed and then to lift the boat up again to replace the rudder a day or two later. In yards that have gravel or dirt instead of pavement, it is common to simply dig a hole to allow space to remove and replace the rudder. Not an impossible hurdle, just a logistical issue and cost consideration. Second, Mark started work on removing bolts and detaching the steering components and came across a 15mm fully seized bolt due to galvanic corrosion. Galvanic corrosion is a result of dissimilar metals in contact; here we have a stainless steel bolt through a large aluminum tiller arm. This is what really put the project on hold. We were concerned that trying to force the bolt out could break it or the tiller arm piece fastening it to the rudder stock, which could result in us being stuck on the hard for weeks trying to locate or fabricate a replacement. We tried getting help from Lauro and the yard, but folks were conveniently busy with other things, hard to blame them I suppose. So after giving it some serious thought, we decided to delay the project. We are comfortable with delaying this project since the current rudder bearings are not showing any signs of wear, and they are solid plastic bearings meaning there are no other anticipated ways they would ‘fail’.

Sadly this also meant we were not able to replace the ‘oil seal carrier’ piece, which we bought new from the Outbound factory. This piece sits atop the rudder post and houses lip seals to prevent the ingress of water from between the rudder stock and bearings. This was an upgrade the factory started doing around hull #30 (we’re hull #19). We had previously discovered the factory had sent us one of these pieces that wasn’t machined correctly (inner diameter of the cover plate was too small). First thing upon arriving in Loreto we found a machine shop with a lathe and had it fixed for $25. Not a big deal to skip this project, but it means we have to continue injecting grease into this area to prevent the ingress of water, and subsequently clean the area from grease squeezing out. We’ll delay this project for the next haulout too.

Blister repair was not on our project list, rather it is something the paint contractors pointed out after they sanded the hull in preparation for painting. We were aware of the issue when buying the boat, as it was called out in the pre-purchase marine survey, so this was not a surprise in Puerto Escondido. Blisters are caused by water finding its way into the fiberglass laminate via osmosis. Typically fiberglass boats use a polyester/vinylester resin during the glass layup, which is not waterproof. Next there is a barrier coat of paint that is applied on top of this non-waterproof layer, prior to application of the final outer layers of antifouling paint. Barrier coat paint is an epoxy paint, which is highly water resistant and heavily loaded with mica for further water protection. When this layer starts to fail (for various reasons), the hull can develop osmotic blisters. This is a very rare problem on Outbound boats as the factory is known to do a quality job, and most purchasers of new Outbounds select the factory option to apply 5 coats of high quality barrier coat paint. We don’t know for sure, but it appears the original owners of our boat may not have elected for 5 coats of barrier paint. Fortunately, this issue is only cosmetic for us as Outbounds have a very thick solid fiberglass hull. Hulls with a balsa or foam core might be more concerned because blisters could lead to core rot or delamination affecting the structural integrity. That being said, there are no documented cases of blisters causing a boat to sink. We plan to tackle this project once we’re in New Zealand, and we expect to have more services and capabilities available (such as soda blasting the hull) to permanently fix this problem. We are also budgeting in more time for yard work in New Zealand that we did here in Mexico. Here we would have only had the option for blister repair which is draining and sanding down each tiny blister and then applying a spot of barrier coat topped with antifouling paint. It will be better to fully sand the entire hull and apply multiple layers of a full new barrier coat. Additionally, this could give us the option to switch to a longer lasting, more environmentally friendly antifouling paint (i.e. Coppercoat).

Puerto Escondido, Loreto, & Isla Carmen

Meanwhile, we enjoyed our time in Loreto and Kris’ parents had the opportunity to come visit while we stayed on land. We took them hiking in Puerto Escondido, up to the historic mission at San Javier, and they went on a whale watching tour one day while we worked in the yard. Blue whales visit the waters of Loreto Bay National Park each year in February and March. Loreto is a small peaceful town with many excellent restaurants and a nice pedestrian area through the middle of town. We enjoyed attending the Blue Whale Festival one evening, complete with all kinds of vendors, kids games, live music and dancing, and a massive life-size blue whale mural stretching down the pedestrian street.

Once we splashed, we were eager to get back out to sea. We departed Puerto Escondido and stayed two nights anchored on the south end of Isla Carmen. We enjoyed one last dive in the Sea of Cortez, spotting many of our favorite fish, two kinds of nudibranchs, lobsters, and a jewel eel. Our last night there, after three and a half months in Baja, we were treated to three blue whales cruising right by our anchorage. They peacefully swam by, giving themselves away with their powerfully loud exhales, as we continued to prepare the deck and gear for crossing the Gulf of California.

Next Stops: Mazatlan, Isla Isabela, and La Cruz de Haunacaxtle