August 17, 2010

Saturday was devoted to a quest for replacement ports for Circadian. When I got her, most of the ports in the forward cabin had been removed, blocked off by new interior panels and crudely sealed with a rough layer of caulking on the outside.There were assorted new and used stainless ports included when I purchased her, but they were of uncertain quality at best and a variety of sizes. They might have worked, but I didn't relish the idea of putting in all the labor to end up with plexiglass windows, stamped metal frames and plastic knobs. I found some new all bronze ABI ports on craigslist for about a third of the normal price and a couple of old salvaged all cast bronze genuine Wilcox Crittenden ports the same size even cheaper.

To inspect and purchase them, I ended up driving most of the day and meeting a couple of interesting characters. I came away with 5 of the ABIs and two of the WCs. They are all heavy suckers...about 13 lbs each! The odd number of ABIs is indeed odd. I will see if the fifth will work on the aft end of the forward cabin, opening into the cockpit. If so, I'll use it. If not, I'll add it to my swap meet inventory. (It would have cost me almost as much to buy four as five, since the seller wanted to dump them all.) Since Circadian requires eight ports just for the forward cabin, I was still shy two just for that. I found four more smaller bronze ports on ebay that are suitable for the forward-most port in the forward cabin and could also be used in the aft end of the aft cabin. I haven't received those yet, but my booty from Saturday is shown in the photos below:Amazingly, the WCs are almost exactly the same size as the ABIs, although they lack the fine polish of the ABIs. That won't matter because all four (or five) of the ABIs will be in the main cabin, while the two WCs will be in the head and and the locker area opposite the head. The outside is another matter. The ABIs came with trim rings; the WCs did not. After carefully studying the hole layout on the mounting flange and trim ring for the ABIs, it was clear that the trim ring was, indeed, strictly for looks: the holes for the mounting flange and trim ring do not line up. The trim ring is intended to cover the mounting nuts and bolts and simply be screwed to the cabin side. However, to do that, the nuts on the mounting bolts would need to be countersunk into the cabin side, meaning that the cabin wall would be thinner in the very places to which the port is secured. I don't like that idea. I also don't like the idea of paying $75 apiece for two more trim rings for the WCs. So, I may just let the mounting bolts and nuts show on the outside. I'm sure it will look like something that belongs on a tank, but Salars are tanks! If I decide I just can't tolerate it, I'll probably end up fabricating trim rings out of teak or plastic. They can be thick enough have the countersinking in the trim ring instead of the cabin side.

With the lack of trim rings to cover imperfections, I'll have to be especially careful to cut neat holes in the cabin sides, which means I'll invest some time upfront making nice patterns. The mounting is further complicated on the ABIs because the protruding frame is sloped downward and there is a curved filet where it meets the mounting flange. More fun!

As for the rest of the weekend, Sunday was spent prepping for a colonoscopy on Monday. I'll spare you the gruesome details. Let's just say it was a disgusting, unpleasant and exhausting ordeal. The procedure itself is not bad, since you are under anaesthesia. However, it leaves you doped up and wiped out for the rest of the day. The good news: no problems.