New Engine - Day 10 and Done!

Morning dragged by with still no shaft....it had been sited in Mackay just down the road but the delivery company would not guarantee when it would be at the marina so by 11AM, one of the mechanics drove to town and picked it up!  A couple of hours of final fitting and it was all over but the crying....that would be paying the bill part...which was way more than they said it would be but gave us no choice but to pay it or find ourselves in the yard till we did!!  The good news is that no corners were cut in doing the job.  The best of materials were used and everything was done to a high standard.  I am very happy with the result!

Mark, the master mechanic came along for a sea trial.  We motored out of the harbour and after tightening a hose clamp on the muffler to stop a small trickle of raw water, he asked my to give it full throttle!  That took us up over 7 knots which we had never been able to do before under power.  Settling back down to 2000 RPM, we moved comfortably over the water at more than 6 knots so the engine is putting out more power and maybe the new pitch on the prop is more efficient as well.  On the return, Mark noted a slight wobble to the shaft so will drop by in the morning to adjust the coupling.

It was a sad day for the old Nissan that served us well for so many years!

Its off to the yacht club for dinner and hope to head to an island about 20 miles from here tomorrow, relax for the weekend and return to have Mark check everything after running it in.