Rebuilding A Rarity
A Story About Turning An Old Ship Around
Story By Dawn and Paul Noury

It was not without lengthy deliberation and negotiation that we acquired Grand Times in March of 2003. She was a much larger undertaking than our previous boat—42 Classic, hull #58—but she offered a chance to reclaim some of the small luxuries of conventional life such as laundry facilities, a hot bath, a full-size refrigerator and a king-size Simmons Beautyrest. These things aside, we knew she was going to take us down that path every wooden boat owner knows is the life (and potentially the death) of him. For the 253 practical reasons we could think of in favor of walking away, it took only one com-pletely irrational, yet considerably valid reason not to: Love. But not just love. Love at first sight. Grand Times is one of only four 57-foot Grand Banks wooden trawlers made by American Marine. We know the boat was launched in November of 1969 from the original Grand Banks Kowloon Yard in Hong Kong. It traveled first to Detroit, Michigan, for the replacement of the two original Daytonas with two Detroit 671 engines, and then continued on to the west coast to live on the Pacific. She was brought to Santa Barbara, California, in 1999 from her previous home port in San Francisco. Although structurally sound when we found her, she had faded into a tired version of her former self. But we still saw a glimmer of her past, albeit faint, and that was enough to entirely captivate us. After uprooting the pigeons that had made homes in two of the guest staterooms, we forged ahead tackling the most critical task: keeping the boat from sinking. We pumped nearly 500 gallons of oil, diesel and water from the bilge (in addition to 23 screwdrivers). We replaced seven planks below the water line that had been burned by a faulty bonding system and several dry rotten planks above the waterlline between the transom and the starboard quarter. We then removed and replaced all five bilge pumps, none of which were operational.

The next problem was redirecting the fresh water that, for as long as we could tell, was taking the path of least resistance, starting from the flybridge deck, continuing to the closest stanchion it could find, trickling down the bulwark, meandering along the teak decks, and finally snaking down the topside; a perfect example of the Coanda Effect of the Motion of Fluids. We installed a scupper system at the low point of the upper bridge deck that now captures all fresh water in a free fall, to the ocean; no loitering along the way. We progressed through removal of superfluous weight and needless complexity in the form of seven nonfunctioning air-conditioning units, miles of severed, capped of, dead (or not) electrical wiring, ancient compressors floating in the bilge, and thirty or forty cans of old paint and varnish stored under the bridge sofas. As we undertook all of the life-safety issues, we also made considerable progress on the aesthetic front. We stripped the entire volume of exterior brightwork down to bare wood and systematically applied epoxy sealer and ten new coats of varnish. All of the original portholes, guardrail stanchions, vent cov-ers and gunwales had been replaced with high quality stainless steel which we easily brought back to a high shine. We reupholstered all of the exterior teak benches, installed brass oil lamps throughout, reconfigured the upper level bunks in two of the guest staterooms into two-part stowable systems, and added plantation-style wood blinds to all main level win-dows. Many of the cosmetic improvements were part of an aggressive plan to get our charter business up and running so that we could continue to pay for the ever-growing list of tasks—which brings us to today. Continuing to make our way through that list, we look forward to the next project and are always rewarded with the pleasure of caring for a truly jaw-dropping classic that just keeps getting better with age. Not too surprising considering it is, after all, a Grand Banks. Dawn and Paul Noury live in Santa Barbara, California, on Grand Times. They own and operate a 6 pack charter business that owners trips to the Channel Islands National Park. They can be reached at: www.SantaBarbaraYachtCharters.com

Diesel Fuel Filters Which Should You Choose?
Written By John Love

Using the proper micron rating for your primary and secondary fuel filters is key to keeping your diesel engine running smoothly. A micron rating indicates the ability of the filter to remove contaminants by the size of the particle. Diesel engines are equipped with a fuel transfer pump that sucks fuel from the fuel tank and supplies it under pressure to the fuel injection system. Between the fuel tank and the fuel transfer pump (vacuum side), boatbuilders or boaters fit a fuel filter/water separator (the primary). Between the fuel transfer pump and the fuel injection system (pressure side) the engine manufacturer fits a fuel filter (the secondary). A popular primary filter is Racor’s combination turbine series unit, which is both a fuel filter and a water separator. For these units, Racor orders a choice of three filtration eciencies: 2, 10 and 30 microns. This article will advise you on which filtration effciency you should choose for your engine. The engine-mounted secondary fuel filter has a filtration effciency appropriate for the engine, which ranges from 15 microns down to 2 microns. Any analysis begins with the engine manufacturer’s recommendations. For the legions of Yanmar owners, the choice is clear. Yanmar recommends 30-micron primary filters, since using a 20-micron or smaller as a prefilter can cause fuel flow starvation on some models, according to the company. The engine-mounted secondary filter supplied by Yanmar for its mechanically governed engines is 10 microns. You should never deviate from the engine manufacturer’s recommen-dations with respect to the secondary filter. The filtration eciency of the primary filter, on the other hand, may be somewhat increased if oversized filters are used to compen-sate for the loss of flow occasioned by an increase in captured contaminants. The new electronically controlled-diesel engines by Yanmar, Caterpillar and others have a 2 micron secondary filter. Racor recom-mends that a 2 micron filter only be used in final or secondary filters where the fuel is first filtered by a primary filter. Further, the company says a 30 micron filter should be used as a primary to filter raw or poor quality fuel before it is further filtered by finer media, such as a 10 or 2 micron. Racor says a 10 micron can be used as a primary filter for fuel that is known to be of good quality. Yanmar recommends a 30 micron primary filter regardless of fuel quality for use with the 2-micron secondary filter on its new electronic engines. Conceptually, think of the primary filter/water separator as providing filtration of raw fuel to extend the life of the secondary fuel filter, with the ultimate objective of protecting the fuel injection system while keeping the engine run-ning when there are contaminants in the fuel. Many boaters assume that using a 2-micron filter in the primary has to be better than using a 10 or 30 micron. But that conclusion ig-nores the fact that the 2 micron filter will clog quickly when there is contamination, causing fuel flow starvation and pos-sible engine shutdown. It also ignores the fact that the manufacturer supplied secondary filter on the engine is completely up to the task of protecting the engine, and will rarely need to be changed between mandatory maintenance intervals if protected by an appropriate primary filter. To analyze what is best for your boat you need to know how many gallons per hour your engine’s fuel transfer pump has to move at full rated rpm. On Maramor, my Grand Banks 42, the fuel transfer pump’s maximum flow at fullrated rpm is 65.5 gph. The actual fuel burned at full rated rpm is 23.2 gph, the rest being returned to the fuel tank through the fuel cooler. A primary filter/water separator should have a rated capacity of more than 1-1/2 times the delivery volume of the fuel transfer pump at full rated rpm, which in Maramor’s case is 98.25 gph. Maramor has a single Caterpillar 3126B 420-bhp engine with hydraulically activated, electronically controlled unit injectors. The fuel pressure generated by the HEUI injectors is about 23,500 psi, and Caterpillar supplies a 2 micron secondary filter to protect this system. The primary installed by Grand Banks is a Racor 75/900MAX turbine series fuel filter/water separator that has a flow rate of 180 gph. For the reasons discussed here, suitable filter media for Maramor’s primary Racors are either the 10 or 30 micron filters. Caterpillar mandates that the secondary 2 micron filter be changed after 200 service hours or 1,500 gallons of fuel. Maramor’s engine is operated at a load that consumes 6 gph, so the limit of 200 service hours applies. Since the primary filter has such a large capacity relative to actual fuel flow of about 18 gph, clogging to the extent of causing fuel starvation would have to be major. That means that with fuel known to be of good quality, the 10 micron Racor filter can be used on Maramor. However, the 30 micron filter also is adequate for the task, and best from the point of view of keeping the engine running when there is contamination, and necessary to deal with fuel that isn’t pristine. Fit a vacuum restriction gauge on your primary filter. Used fuel filters are toxic waste, so be a responsible boater and only change your filters before the limits specified by the manufacturer when the vacuum gauge shows hey are clogged, not because they appear discolored or dirty. Among other criteria, Racor recommends that the primary fuel filter be changed after one year or 500 hours, which is considerably beyond a typical one year’s running hours for a pleasure boat. So for the typical boat, unless the vacuum gauge on the primary filter indicates a restriction, the 30 micron Racor filter in the primary normally needs to be changed only once a season. The Racor MAX primary filter/water separator is two complete filter/water separator units connected by a manifold with a valve control allowing the isolation of one filter at a time for servicing, even during engine operation. The MAX can be used in two ways. With both filters in use the maximum flow rate is 180 gph. With only one filter in use the flow rate is 90 gph, and the other is a “spare,” ready for use in an instant should the on-line filter clog or its separator bowl fill with water. For Maramor, the latter is the preferred method. Maramor is never run anywhere near full rated rpm and, therefore, the 90 gph flow rate is in practice five times the delivery volume. The MAX is readily accessible so the filter manifold’s inlet valve handle can be quickly and safely reached in an emergency. The Racor 75/900MAX fits nicely in Maramor’s spacious engine room but is unsuitably large for many boats. Remember, you also need room above the filter unit so you can change the filters, and below so you can drain the water and sediment from the bowls. If the primary filter/water separator that is fitted in your boat is in the minimum recommended capacity range of 1-1/2 times the fuel transfer pump’s maximum delivery volume at full-rated rpm, a 30 micron filter is the best choice. Diesel engines are more ecient and safer than gasoline engines. Diesel fuel has a higher density than gasoline and contains more energy per gallon. Most engines are designed to operate on ASTM No. 2-D grade, which specifies such requirements as cetane number, cloud point, flash point, gravity, pour point, lubricity, sulfur and the like. Kerosene and home heating oil are similar to diesel fuel, but they aren’t formulated to meet the needs of your engine. During the transportation and distribution process — not to mention on your boat — there are many opportunities for the fuel to become contaminated with water and particulates that can plug filters. Once in the fuel injection system, these will cause severe damage because of the close tolerances within fuel pumps and injectors. I have observed that many boaters automatically add chemicals to their diesel fuel to deal with the possibility of degradation during storage, microbial growth, water contamination and so forth. However, diesel fuel can be stored in a clean, full tank for six months to a year without significant quality degradation; these chemicals may or may not be benign to your fuel and your engine, and should be used with caution. If the cause of a fuel problem isn’t patently obvious, the best course of action is to take a fuel sample and test it yourself with commercially available kits or, better, have it tested by a lab. If filtration isn’t a viable solution to the problem, it is a very good idea to ask the engine manufacturer for additive recommendations to make sure you aren’t solving one problem while causing another. The bottom line is: Use additives only when you have to, but always filter your diesel fuel through a water separator, and high-quality primary and secondary filters. A word about filter quality. Fuel filters are rated by filtration effciency. Racor’s 2, 10 and 30 micron filter elements have an effciency rating of 98 percent, 95 percent and 90 percent, respectively, meaning that when tested to SAE or ISO test methods the filter will retain that percentage of the micron size and larger particles. The new high-pressure common rail and hydraulically activated fuel injection systems require that the filter remove 95 percent of 3 micron particles. The secondary fuel filter fitted by Caterpillar on Maramor’s electronic engine is rated at 98 percent of 2 micron particles. This filter is fitted on the front of the engine, is cool to the touch even when the engine is running, and can be changed quickly with a strap wrench. A simple precaution would prevent one of the most common causes of water contaminated fuel: Inspect the gasket on the fill-pipe cover every time you fuel, and replace it as necessary. In summary, higher filtration effciency in the primary filter isn’t necessarily the best strategy. Fuel filtration should be staged first through a coarse filter medium before the fuel transfer pump, then through a finer filter medium after the transfer pump. The filtration eciency appropriate for your engine’s primary filter is the one that achieves both adequate protection of the secondary filter and the fuel injection system, while minimizing the possibility of fuel starvation.

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