Ouch!

[Nereussailor]

I just got my quote for repairs to my Hunter 30 Transmission etc. $3000. They are replacing the transmission, shaft log, motor mounts, and adding a dripless seal. It sucks to have to dump that much money into my boat right now, But I can't wait to be out on the water in a few months knowing that everything is going to be in good working order.

 

[Ross]

Wow! the labor charge on that must

be a large percentage of the total.

 

[Rodger]

I guess I have something to learn

What is wrong with your transmission? I just don't here that too many transmissions have to be replaced. In a boat it is a simple affair with a forward and reverse and not much else. Even if the gears have been stripped they should be replaceable. I am just a backyard mechanic. But I can't help wondering if there isn't another way. Same with the shaft log, are they not glassed into most sailboats? What would damage it?

 

[CalebD]

Are they pulling the motor/tranny out

of the boat to do the repairs? If so, that adds a bit to the labor/equipment charges. I know you have a 30 footer but engine compartments can be notoriously awkward spaces to work in. If I were a mechanic I would prefer to work on a sophisticated piece of machinery on my work table or shed or even outside in broad daylight instead of bent in the shape of a pretzel in the darker confines of an engine compartment. They are going to have to do some of that kind of work anyway when they put it back in after replacing the motor mounts, shaft log and dripless seal. The more I think about it the cost doesnt seem so high.Even so, Ouch!

 

[Nereussailor]

Transmission

The rear seal in the trans went out and drive cones and all needed to be replaced. It was cheaper to buy a rebuilt trans. than to have them rebuild it.The PO didn't take care of the boat at all. We purchased it as a project boat so we expected problems.Everything started with worn out motor mounts. That caused excessive vibration in the motor which caused the motor,trans,and shaft to move around. This ruined the rear seal in the trans which caused all the trans fluid to come out when we were in the middle of Lake Michigan. We had replaced the cutlass bearing which was worn also causing vibration to the trans. The stern tube is coroded from the boat being in salt water and being neglected. Also we found a bunch of bad wiring that we replaced last year that could have caused corrosion in the stern tube. The mechanic said that he was going to use a deflated basketball to lift the motor up enough to get the new motormounts in. (motor mounts are $130 each x 4)He 's going to put the basketball under the motor and inflate it to lift it enough to change the mounts. Sounds pretty ingenious to me. The engine compartment is under the cockpit and it's a pain to get into. It was cheaper to buy a rebuilt transmission than to have mine rebuilt. $1200 vs $1400. $1500+ for a new one but they didn't have one Labor is a little more than 1/3 of the cost. I don't think they are out of the ball park for the cost. The stern tube and dripless seal aren't really necessary but will be soon.( I don't want to have to lift my boat off of the bottom of the lake) I'd rather have them replace everything now while the trans. is out than to have them have to go back and fix it in the middle of the season. Then it's another haulout and more labor. I'm looking at it like, as long as it's apart fix it all.

 

[Daryl]

CaChing!

You certainly don't need a new shaft log and pricey dripless seal in your boat. Ten dollars worth of teflon flax will do you fine. Pull the transmission yourself and send it out. Changing the motor mounts is an eary do it yourself task especially on a fresh water vessel. Save two grand and get your hands dirty

 

[Rich Stidger]

As a confirmed DIYer, I concur with Daryl

This doesn't sound like a "can't do it because..." type of project.I would make sure that I had a factory shop manual for the engine and transmission and review it for any special tools or surprises in the job.Since you have at least 2 months to splash, the time available shouldn't impact your sailing season.Just think of the knowledge gained and satisfaction achieved with the completion.AND as a bonus, you get to spend the leftover two grand on the potential next issue on your 'project boat'.Seriously, unless you don't know which end of a wrench to hold, just go for it.

 

[CalebD]

Interesting idea about using a deflated

basketball to raise up the motor in order to get at and replace the motor mounts. This is one aspect of my 37 year old Tartan 27' that worries me. We have the original gas powered Atomic 4 and it is pretty heavy but the slightly newer diesels are more compact I guess and could be raised by inflating a basketball underneath with a compressor. Clever.I half heartedly agree with the DIY cheerleading section. You want to know that your boats systems (all of them) are working and you will ultimately have to learn about them when (not if) they give you problems in the future. The trouble can come where you try to tackle something that you only halfway know how to do it can take you a lot longer to accomplish whereas a paid "professional" can do it in a shorter time span if you have the money to pay them. The variables are always time, quality and money. The best compromise I could imagine is if your "professional" would allow you to help (watch, participate, apprentice, learn) you might not need him the next time you have a to look at any of these systems. This would take less time, cost the same as you are willing to spend and help ensure quality of work (if you dont hassle your contractor to death about every little detail). You might even find that you know more than you think and find a few little things you will want to go back over with your own fine toothed comb.I also agree that once you have opened up this whole can of worms you should fix everything instead of trying to piecemeal all the various problems you have mentioned. Sometimes your time is best spent making money to pay other people to do work that they know how to do. Me? I have plenty of time, little money, and can do a bunch of things to help my engine but I am not looking forward to replacing the engine mounts. I have also found that sometimes jobs that I think will be difficult turn out to be quite easy and jobs I think should be really easy end up being a royal pain in the a$$.In your face, you type "A" DIY guys! Oh, thats right, I do most of my own work myself - sorry. I guess I am not type "A" but "B", so ha-ha?

 

[Nereussailor]

It comes down to this, I have done frame off restorations on vehicles. One was a rebuild from a fire in a Jeep that left everything from the dashboard forward in a pile of ashes. I can fix anything from a pen to a commercial convection oven. The problem is time, distance, and weather. My boat is 1.5 hours from my house and it's the middle of winter. Time is the problem. I am in the process of starting a new company and work 12+ hours a day 6-7 days a week right now. If all goes well, by summer I'll be down to 8-10 hrs a day 5 days a week. I really enjoy working on anything mechanical, but right now it's not going to happen. As for the money, It's mostly tied up in the business, but it's there in the boat fund for things like this. Like CalebD said, "The trouble can come where you try to tackle something that you only halfway know how to do it can take you a lot longer to accomplish whereas a paid "professional" can do it in a shorter time span if you have the money to pay them. The variables are always time, quality and money." and he's right. I have the Yanmar factory manuals needed for the project, and the ability to do the project, but time isn't in the cards.Daryl, you're right I don't need a pricey shaft log and dripless seal. But guess what, while it's apart, it's going to get one. I want a dry bilge and don't want the hassle of having to adjust and replace the packing. I want to spend the short time I have available during the season sailing, not fixing my boat so I can go sailing next time I get to it.Everyone has a different scenerio when it comes to sailing. We all love to sail, but sailing to me isn't going to my boat and doing all of the necessary repairs, it's being able to get out on the water and enjoy the freedom of the wind. If I wanted to fix boats, I'd buy a marina. A good friend of mine is 53 years old , retired and lives on his boat. he does 99% of the repairs to his boat himself. That's me in 12 years if I play my cards right now.

 

[Fred]

Don't let them sell you a dripless shaft seal

unless you are sure you want one. The old fashioned stuffing box works well and it's well proven. Teflon packing is a great idea. A real modern improvement at a very reasonable price. Just because a lot of people buy dripless seals is no reason for you to spend extra money.Can you do some of the work? Take out the transmission, put the new one in, and have them do the alignment if you're not comfortable with that? Replacing motor mounts is not rocket science. The basketball is a cool idea, but so is a short hydraulic jack or just lever up one side (or one end if that's easier) of the engine at a time and block it with two by fours, especially if the transmission is removed. The engine isn't very heavy. It's not hard to block it up so it's safe to remove the mounts.The tricky part is alignment after it's all back together. With modern motor mounts alignment isn't that tough either, but it may be worth using a pro.Good Luck with it!

 

[Nereussailor]

My time

Thanks guys for trying to talk me into doing the repairs on my boat myself. Labor is less than $1000. My time is worth $100 an hour so that means there's less than ten hours of labor going into my boat. It's 3 hours round trip to my boat...you do the math. I know that everyone, including myself, would like me to know my boat systems inside and out. I understand the logic of that and want to do the work myself, but like I said, Time isn't on my side right now. Thanks for the support.

 

[Ross]

Makingthyme, I have always said that if you have

more time than money then you spend time. I also say that what you don't spend you don't have to earn. I hire some things done and somethings I do myself. I work for many people that can make more money in the time it takes me to do a job for them than it costs for my labor.