Ok so I did make a mistake when installing the batteries. Instead of hooking them in series to get 48V I mistakenly connected them in a loop. This will cause a major spark and basically scare the crap out of you. One quick call to Electric Yacht and they sent me a schematic of what I did wrong and what I need to do to fix it. Response time from them 20 min. Great customer service.

Motor shown with Electric Yacht cowling installed.

Installed Electric Yacht Motor

It is so nice to see how clean and roomy this engine compartment is now. Everything is so easy to get to. The engine can be removed to get to the stuffing box in about 15 minutes. The batteries are located directly behind the motor bulkhead.

Boat is in the Water

After installing the proper shaft coupler and repacking the stuffing box, we're off to Olympia in the morning.

Batteries Installed

Barrett built a wooden tray and mounted and installed the batteries directly behind where the old motor used to be, where the new electric motor will be. Together they are 48 volts. We can motor up to 4 hours on a charge, and we're adding a backup generator to add another 9 hours on a gallon of gas.

New Throttle

Forward, reverse, neutral...all yer basics.

Thruholes and new water hoses

Cutting out the old crusty thruholes (instead of being able to unscrew them) cost us several hours we hadn't planned on. We also replaced all the tubing from the water supply to the sink because the clear hoses were all brown with filth.

Restored Companionway Door

Aaah....shiny. This is more of Barrett's handiwork.

Old Muffler

We also won't be needing a muffler on an electric boat. This was removed along with 5 bags of garbage of random stuff.

Old gas tank removal

What with this being an electric boat n' all, one of our tasks was to remove the
old gas tank, which had a completely rusted through hole on the top. Apparently the hole was smaller at one point. This old credit card was glued to the top of the tank.

So the previous owners decided to cut a huge hole in the top of the engine hatch. I really don't know why because the engine did not seem to need a hole in the hatch. But I digress. Here is the new built from scratch engine hatch with the first of three coats of varnish applied. Now it just needs a home on the boat.

New Prop for New Electric Motor

Pretty, huh? We got a killer deal on this prop from Prop Shop Sales & Repairs in Mukilteo.

Basic Keelboat Class

I took my first sailing class over the weekend with Island Sailing club in Olympia. We spent most of the weekend sailing around Budd Inlet, learning stuff. I now have my first class out of the way and my ASA test passed. Next up: Basic Coastal Cruising.

Wish list 1

Below is a picture taken from this website featuring the faux teak material I want to use in place of the trashy carpeting below deck. I wonder if they'd consider bartering some of this material in exchange for a redesigned logo? Hmmmm...

Drawer Project - After

These should have been easy but they had never been cleaned in 37 years since the boat was built.  Sand, Sand, Sand.  Varnish, Varnish, Varnish...

After sanding the companionway doors down to bare wood.  I clear coated with MAS Epoxy and then two coats of varnish.  Under theory provided by the marketing guys as MAS Epoxy I should never have to sand down to bare wood again.  We will see about that...

I'm Learning Stuff Part 1

Must know pages 1-134 by March 5th.
That is all.

Before

I took this picture after I bought her in Bellingham. We found the boat from a nice guy named Craig via Craigslist. My siblings and I will be going in on the cost of moorage and make it the Blakesley family boat. We always wanted a “Crane Family Cabin” like Frasier, Niles, and their dad, but I think this is way better. The plan is as follows:

• I take sailing classes (Barrett already knows what he’s doing for some reason)
• Get the electric motor, batteries, and prop
• Go to Bellingham and install all that stuff+the new hatch
• Sail it to Olympia and moor it at Swantown Marina

Meanwhile, Barrett is slaving away on building the new hatch, since the old one crumbled in his hands when he tried to remove it. We found a killer deal on teak, so he's probably going to build two extra hatches. Any other Ericson owners out there need a new teak hatch?