Page 2

The engine installation was straight forward and took less than a day working alone. My experience as a millwright and rigger in a previous life once again came in handy. The 400-pound engine was on a dolly, so it was easily rolled around the shop; how to lift it approximately five feet and move it sideways about ten feet from the shop to the engine room was the challenge. I had originally hoped to use my front end loader with a boom attached to the bucket to lift and lower it in, working from inside the shop but that hasn't been working for a coupla years. I did lots of measurements and determined that I could erect my scaffolding (or staging) inside my shop to support one end of a 20-foot steel beam which would extend out over the boat. I hoped the other end of the beam would rest on the horizontal wooden beam that supports the roof over Puff. It turned out that this arrangement didn't give me sufficient lift height to clear the cockpit coamings. I ended up piling up concrete blocks in the cockpit itself (seen below) to support the outboard end of the beam, which gave me a few extra inches of height. Even at this, my measurements showed it would be very close--too close as it later turned out.

In the pic at right we're standing in the large doorway that leads from the shop out to Puff Land. We see the engine has been lifted and moved out to the boat. It's currently resting on a board on the side deck. The engine hangs from a chainfall attached to a home-made trolley that rides on the beam. The come-along was needed to pull the trolley along the beam. This beam sticks into the shop about ten feet and rests on metal scaffolding. The pile of cement blocks in the boat supporting the beam is visible, as is a temporary 2x8 plank helping to support the beam. It was at this point that I confirmed that the engine would not lift over the coaming, simply not enough space left in the lifting arrangement, so I let it down on the side deck to consider my options. I lost about 20" of clearance with the trolley, chainfall, and chain attached to the engine. It was so close, only about 2" additional lift would clear it. The same shot from a different angle is below left.

After some thought, I decided I could get it over the coaming by re-hanging the chainfall directly from the roof--the engine didn't need to travel laterally, just be lifted straight up and over the coaming, then let down into the cockpit, where I could re-hang to the trolley for the final several feet into the engine 'room'. The only problem was that the roof is very lightly built and the framing would not support the weight of the motor.

The solution was to shore up the appropriate roof framing so that it would support the weight of the engine, then re-hang the chainfall from a higher point. The details of the rehanging can be seen in the next picture, right. The chainfall is now hanging from a 2x4 purlin, and there is a 2x8 block edge-wise on top of the beam which supports the purlin. The tall vertical 2x8 clamped to the beam and resting on the cockpit sole is now critical, as it's helping to support the roof of the shop (which is supporting the motor) through the steel beam. The trolley, now not in use is to the right of the 2x8 block.

You can see the engine is now clear of and inside the coaming. I simply placed a piece of 3/4" scrap plywood inside on the sole leaning against the coaming to make a steep 'ramp' and lowered the engine into the cockpit, the plywood saving the coaming from being torn up as the engine slid down. I then disconnected and rehung to the trolley, lifted the motor several inches and moved it the last few feet to directly over the engine beds. It lowered into place without any difficulty. Note in these pics that the cabin side has been painted, but the rear walls and the coamings are still unfinished except for epoxy coatings.

The engine needed to be lifted and reset several times, as I found out my ply and 'poxy drip pan interfered with the underside of the transmission. I also played with the motor mount location and was able to move the engine several inches forward of the original position, so had to take the motor out to re-drill the beds for the mounts.

The more-or-less completed installation is shown at left. By 'completed' I mean the engine is in and secured, there's no plumbing, wiring, fuel stuff etc. yet. The section of prop shaft coming out of the shaft log isn't the actual shaft, but a used one for rough alignment and to get a measurement for the real shaft. Note the former solid bulkhead aft of the engine that has now been cut away to form a ring frame; this supports the cockpit sole and the engine box framing. The 'engine room' as seen here is six feet long overall and four feet wide, about two feet deep at the forward end. In the extreme upper left corner of the pic a white deck hatch in the sole is visible, this for access to the aft end of the fuel tank, and storage.

The rest of the job was in framing for the coaming around the engine hatch, building the coaming, and fitting the sole. This shown to the right. The hole in the sole to clear the tank plumbing is visible. The white triangular object at top center is the vent that brings fresh air to the engine, thru ducting in the battery box /dinette seat inside tha cabin at right (the red battery switch is visible). I'll add additional engine room ventilation. I've already installed some vent hoses and a blower (in the lazarette), tied to the cowl vents located on the lazarette doghouse aft.

That's about it for this update. Work has pretty much come to a stop due to winter and other obligations and projects. Since many of you write and express interest, support and comments, I'm starting an email notification list. If you wish to be notified of future updates, click here and I'll add you. Thanx again for your continued interst--and patience!