...as the PROPELLER turns...
The propeller is a simple machine that dates back thousands of years. In 400 BC, a Greek apprentice to Pythagoras used an inclined plane on a cylinder. Archimedes followed a couple hundred years later and used a screw to lift water. DaVinci got into the act in the late 1400s and applied the concept of the propeller to an 'air screw'. Then Bernoulli suggested propelling boats using 'vanes set at a 60 degree angle to the water and the keel'.
'Green Ayes' uses a propeller to make way through the water when there is not enough wind to sail, or the wind is unfavorable, or for maneuvering in confined waters such as channels, harbors, docks, etc.
As I prepared for this trip my marine mechanic took a look at the existing prop and said, 'if it was me, i'd replace this old prop'. The prop is made of bronze and was chipped on the edges and brittle, and could fail at any time, or certainly if the prop were to hit something in the water.
Photo of old propeller...
So, when I left Miami at the start of the cruise, I did so with all the confidence a skipper can have in his new propeller.
I have cruised nearly 1,100 miles and pulled in to Cape May, NJ the other day. As I made my final approach to the dock I had the capable crew of Carolyn and Phil standing by on the mooring lines and there were two dock hands from the marina on the dock to assist with docking. I put the boat in reverse to slow our momentum and the boat slowed the way it should. We tossed lines to the dock and began to tie up. I put the boat in reverse again and something didn't feel quite right. I ignored it as we were secure at the dock. After we settled down I had a weird feeling so I followed up on my instinct. I turned the engine on and shifted into forward and reverse at the dock... nothing... Now a couple things could be wrong involving the transmission. I checked that out and all was fine. Next, I grabbed mask and went into the water and low and behold... the PROPELLER WAS GONE!!! If ever one was to lose a propeller it should happen as you are coasting in to an easy landing at the dock. The prop could have come off anywhere between Cape May and Miami. It could have come off when we were out in the ocean, when were in a ship channel dodging traffic, or in a narrow channel with shoal waters around us. But it came off somewhere nearby the dock in Cape May.
So, I called a local diver who said he could come out the next day and try to find the prop. He was not optimistic, but he said he'd give it a try. In the morning before the diver arrived I went in the water and floated on a life jacket. I took a piece of led weight and tied it to a string. The water around the boat was about 12 feet deep. I used the led-line I had made and 'sounded' the bottom. Tap-tap-tap, float a little, then tap-tap-tap.... I could feel the mucky/muddy bottom as I probed with the led. After about 20 minutes I felt something different... more like a click-clunk.. I hung over the spot and did it again. Could it be the prop? It could be a shell... a beer bottle... who knows... But I had a gut feel that I might be lucky. So, I marked the spot. When the diver arrived he asked me where I thought the prop might be. I told him the docking story and how I used a led-line and thought I might have located the prop on the bottom. So, he got suited up, jumped in the water, followed my line down, and came up with the prop in about a minute flat!!!!
Diver Down!!!
Got it!!!
All that remained was to find the proper nuts to secure the prop to the propeller shaft and I was back in business. All's well, that ends well.
Since the propeller incident Carolyn, Phil and I have been enjoying time in Cape May and also hanging out in nearby Wildwood with sister Sue, Bobby, Matt, Brennan, Lee and Rod.
Looks like I am faced with my first weather delay here in Cape May as some rain and heavy north winds are forecast for the next couple days. Hopefully, the weather clears by Sunday, then we're on to New York City.
There's a saying about fair winds and a following sea. But after this week I have a new one...
May your propeller always stay connected to your shaft!!!
'Green Ayes' uses a propeller to make way through the water when there is not enough wind to sail, or the wind is unfavorable, or for maneuvering in confined waters such as channels, harbors, docks, etc.
Photo of old propeller...
So, when I left Miami at the start of the cruise, I did so with all the confidence a skipper can have in his new propeller.
I have cruised nearly 1,100 miles and pulled in to Cape May, NJ the other day. As I made my final approach to the dock I had the capable crew of Carolyn and Phil standing by on the mooring lines and there were two dock hands from the marina on the dock to assist with docking. I put the boat in reverse to slow our momentum and the boat slowed the way it should. We tossed lines to the dock and began to tie up. I put the boat in reverse again and something didn't feel quite right. I ignored it as we were secure at the dock. After we settled down I had a weird feeling so I followed up on my instinct. I turned the engine on and shifted into forward and reverse at the dock... nothing... Now a couple things could be wrong involving the transmission. I checked that out and all was fine. Next, I grabbed mask and went into the water and low and behold... the PROPELLER WAS GONE!!! If ever one was to lose a propeller it should happen as you are coasting in to an easy landing at the dock. The prop could have come off anywhere between Cape May and Miami. It could have come off when we were out in the ocean, when were in a ship channel dodging traffic, or in a narrow channel with shoal waters around us. But it came off somewhere nearby the dock in Cape May.
So, I called a local diver who said he could come out the next day and try to find the prop. He was not optimistic, but he said he'd give it a try. In the morning before the diver arrived I went in the water and floated on a life jacket. I took a piece of led weight and tied it to a string. The water around the boat was about 12 feet deep. I used the led-line I had made and 'sounded' the bottom. Tap-tap-tap, float a little, then tap-tap-tap.... I could feel the mucky/muddy bottom as I probed with the led. After about 20 minutes I felt something different... more like a click-clunk.. I hung over the spot and did it again. Could it be the prop? It could be a shell... a beer bottle... who knows... But I had a gut feel that I might be lucky. So, I marked the spot. When the diver arrived he asked me where I thought the prop might be. I told him the docking story and how I used a led-line and thought I might have located the prop on the bottom. So, he got suited up, jumped in the water, followed my line down, and came up with the prop in about a minute flat!!!!
Diver Down!!!
Got it!!!
All that remained was to find the proper nuts to secure the prop to the propeller shaft and I was back in business. All's well, that ends well.
Since the propeller incident Carolyn, Phil and I have been enjoying time in Cape May and also hanging out in nearby Wildwood with sister Sue, Bobby, Matt, Brennan, Lee and Rod.
Looks like I am faced with my first weather delay here in Cape May as some rain and heavy north winds are forecast for the next couple days. Hopefully, the weather clears by Sunday, then we're on to New York City.
There's a saying about fair winds and a following sea. But after this week I have a new one...
May your propeller always stay connected to your shaft!!!
God, perhaps at Daddy's urging, is obviously looking out for you on this trip, otherwise the prop would have fallen off in a not-so-fortuitous locale, as you said. I say, "Amen!"
ReplyDeleteWhat a fascinating event. You are blessed.
ReplyDeleteDidn’t know you knew the old soaps— As the World Turns.