Tuesday at Hinckley's

I think we have the smallest sailboat in the entire marina. Our mast height certainly doesn’t compare to the rest of the boats here. This marina is a bee-hive of activity. It’s clearly a repair and servicing facility for Hinckley. Given that, what are we doing here? Well they do more than just Hinckley boats and what they do they do well. When you see a Hinckley boat for sale, the by line is almost always, “Maintained by Hinckley”, such is their reputation.

So our little boat is in need of attention. It started out innocently enough, a replacement of the fresh water pump on the genset, the Panda. Then it started out, “While you’re at it, do a checkup on the genset in general and the Volvo main diesel while you’re at it”. Well, one thing led to another. They found the alignment to be out by 12 mils, far beyond the 3 mil limit recommended by Volvo. And, by the way, where did you get those spacers under the engine mounts? Wood are they? Might they absorb water and expand and ruin alignment? Perhaps they should be replaced with aluminum spacers, at a modest added cost? (nothing in a Hinckley yard is modest). And, while we’re at it, we found your fresh water pump on your Volvo to be leaking too. On the good side, your heat exchanger checks out as does your fuel injectors (all recommended by the engine manual for periodic checking, due now). All this adds up to an extended stay at the Hinckley Marina or should I say the Hinckley Repair Facility. By the way, the oak spacers under the engine mounts were added last year by Yardmouth Boat Works at a cost just slightly less than Hinckley's going rate.

Meanwhile the genset is waiting for parts to arrive,. Hopefully, that day will be Wednesday. On the other hand, we’re much happier that whatever needs to be done is done here and not out in the boonies down the line on the ICW after being towed to the nearest facility. The Volvo has almost 1000 hours on it and the Panda has 450 hours so they are due to checkups. Time sure flies.

The photo is of our small boat in among the giants (PS, can you even find our boat in the picture? Hint, look for the smallest mast) Our mast height is quite modest and we’re the only Beneteau in the marina. It’s dominated by Hinckleys and Little Harbors. Since we’re going to be here for awhile, we’re looking into renting a car and touring the area for a day or so. Might as well enjoy our lemonade.