Waiting for spare parts…

Dismounting 40 stainless steel bolts from aluminum after 30 years, not my favourite work…

Because of the extensive maintenance projects the winter of 2013/14, until now we have not had any serious issues with critical systems on the boat. Since we left mainland Spain though, we have had a leak of oil from the mast furling motor/gearbox. Not much leak but obviously annoying and clearly a serious problem if the furling broke down completely. So, Las Palmas Marina will be a longer stay than planned. Even though we are in a place well served by authorized dealers and chandlers, hydraulic spare parts of equipment, designed 30 years ago is not very easy to get. Our rig manufacturer is Reckman and the advice given by their service team was to send the complete, 20 kg, furling kit, to Hamburg. Knowing the hassle with cross boarder transports in Spain, last time we had to wait 4 weeks for customs release, we opted to try a local company used to service hydraulics systems used by trawlers etc. The hydraulic components are all based on standard Danfoss components so, fingers crossed, we have the gear fixed by tomorrow. Meanwhile we are enjoying the surroundings using our Fiat Panda rental car, great deal by the way of 4 Euros/day.