Catching up: The mechanic again flew back to Pennsylvania. His mom's doctor called and he left. He's kept in touch. That said, I want a motor that runs, yesterday.
This week a neighbor boat has had a mechanic at his working on it. The mechanic (Sunrize in St. Pete) has not only shown up when he said, he's also returned phone calls and ... drumroll please: did the job to completion without issue. Even when stuff morphed.
Very impressive, for certain. Mechanic's name is Paul (owns company)
Of course Paul is busy. Today he stepped aboard Seaweed and took a look see at what I've got.
In the meantime, I'd taken that stainless box to a local welder and had it removed. The inside, well, that's a riser boys and girls. Yeah! A stainless one at that. The welder did a nice job and I'll have an article about that upcoming.
Picture of welder and what was inside that box. Also, he marked on the outside where the pipe (raw water) ends.
I am aware that ideally the riser would be one continuous piece of metal. For the record, the welds on the inside of the box were as good as those that showed outside. And yes, thanks to Stu (hi Stu) I have purchased 50' of the wrap for the pipe. The mechanic asked about that and I showed him the box.
Paul (Sunrize) believes he has the standard bolt-on heat exchanger that these Kubotas use. If so, we'll do a swap. If not, he'll have the hoses done in a day.
Paul has other jobs before me (including the boat right next to me) but I'm in his queue. And hopeful again.
And Off Duty, honest to Betsy, we will get together. I'd love to show your bride my home. Seaweed's not fancy and I like her just that way. You'll even get to take a gander at the newest solar panels. I tell you, my home is getting spiffier all the time.
Except for the gelcoat that looks 30+ years old. Seaweed's a boat, not a Yacht.