Showing posts with label steering wheel removal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label steering wheel removal. Show all posts

October 18, 2010

The weather didn't cooperate this week, so my planned tasks had to be modified a bit on the fly. During the week I continued to apply varnish to the saloon table and its flip-out leaves and applied Cetol to the teak hatches. I finally got an acceptable "final" coat on the main center part of the table - some small dust zits, but I'll never do better without a room with filtered air.


Despite the threat of rain on Sunday, I had hoped to have time to seal some cracks in the teak hatch bases with Lifecaulk. Once applied, if the joints got a little wet, it would only speed the curing of the Lifecaulk. Well, I got one of the two hatches done before the rain came down, so I had to go to Plan B. I measured the batten pockets on the mainsail so I could get some battens for it. (They were missing when I got the boat.) I removed the steering wheel using my new cheapie wheel puller. It was still stubborn, but I got it off eventually. I needed to remove the wheel to get at the leaking hydraulic steering pump. It will be an "interesting" learning experience to see if I can open up the pump and either make a new gasket or seal it with silicone 'form-a-gasket' without creating an unintended FUBAR consequence. While the wheel is off and at home, I'll clean it up, wrap the rim with small line, and if I'm ambitious, fabricate a cover for the center hub, which is now naked and ugly. I also removed a small extension of the saloon table top that wraps around the mast support and to which the table top is mounted. It should match the rest of the newly-refinished table, so home it went. Back in the shop, I sanded off the old finish and got the first coat of varnish applied before calling it a day.