SV Erica's travels: Delayed in Malaysia ( March 2012)

After 11 mths out of the water with Eric doing maintenance and improvements onboard we thought we would have some mths of cruising without the ongoing jobs and costs that go with it. We had visions of reading on deck, swimming, kayaking and exploring new places in Thailand. BUT our engine driven refridgeration hadn't been run for near a year and decided it wasn't going to function and the tachometer also went on strike. We decided that wouldn't stop us going to Penang ( a days sail Sth) to get our visa's for Indonesia. Little did we know that we needed our CAIT which is a permit for our boat to enter Indonesia first before our visa's could be issued. Our CAIT was in process but would take up to 21 days. So we enjoyed the festivities of Chinese New Year and the Hindu Thaipusam festival ,we had dental checks ,Cathy purchased new glasses and visited an Osteopath for back problems, all costing 1/3 of what we'd pay in Australia or NZ and feeling very happy with the service.
We were going to get our refridgeration serviced in Penang but the technician was delayed due to sickness so we sailed back to Langkawi Island and organised the technician there to service it. BUT on entering the Royal Langkawi marina our gearbox failed. Not a good thing to happen when one is surrounded by multi thousands or millions of dollars worth of boats!! Luckily the tide was slack and the wind was a light breeze. We managed to fend off with boat hooks and glide 20m into the nearest berth with the help of 2 men who took our lines. Phew!!

After a check of the simple reasons the gears could fail the diagnosis was made by Eric. A likely broken drive plate... That meant the gearbox had to be removed which also meant the motor had to be lifted!!
Yachts generally have very little room to manoevre around the engine and it was impossible to take the gearbox off without lifting the motor out.
That mean't buying a block and tackle (winch) and some heavy timber.

Cathy "on autopilot" stepped onto what she expected to be the stairs and fell a metre before collecting a bolt on the side of the engine with her shin and ending thigh deep between the engine and the bulkhead. Not a pretty sight!
After Eric's great first aid of iced water compresses and pressure to stop the flow of bleeding, Cathy got over the initial shock and pain and was able to put in 5 sutures, under anaesthetic of course!

The marina gets wash from the ferries coming in and out of the port so we had to have fenders ready as the motor swung off the chain of the winch..

Eric's diagnosis was confirmed after a phone call to James at Moon engines in Auckland, NZ where we bought the gearbox, the part was ordered. BUT this common Borg Warner drive plate which is normally on the shelf was out of stock and arriving in a shipment in a few days..

The back of the engine

drive plate

Rather than sit in the marina where it is hot and breezeless we decided to move out and anchor in the harbour...You may ask how we did this without an engine. This is where our trusted dinghy and 3.3hp motor played its part.. With the dinghy tied alongside and a nudge from fellow cruisers with their inflatable dinghy to get out of our berth and marina we hoisted the sails and chose an anchorage away from the ferries and fishing boats.

This is how many 90ft ferries you can hang off one mooring. We kept well clear of these as in a blow they drag with lots of shouting and yelling!

During this time of waiting Eric researched the logistics of getting a part in Malaysia but it had to be drilled and lathed and the gearbox had to go ashore..Not easy at 92kg to get in and out of the dinghy and to the workshop! For the next week Eric made some modifications in the engine bay, cleaned and painted and checked accesory parts. We lived with the stairs out and the motor semi hanging and resting on a plank of timber therefore having to climb over the engine to get out into the cockpit
We kept busy over the next week preparing for our passage to Sth Africa.. Pouring over charts and computer generated wind and weather programs, swapping information with fellow cruisers and reading reports of others who made the passage last year.
Cathy made numerous trips back and forwards on a motorbike to the duty free warehouse and grocer restocking and provisioning

With 3 slabs of beer up front, 2 on the seat behind and a back pack full of bottles she was looking like a local.. A slab of 24 cans costs 26MYR ($8.50AUD) and 1L of Johnny Walker red label 40MYR (13AUD)
We have been sun drying tomatoes and marinating beef which is also dried in the sun to make beef jerky. There are no flies out at anchor, infact very few anywhere except the open market.
The containers are full of homemade muesli and the stores are overflowing. Eric says we need to get away from the shops before the boat sinks!!
This activity is necessary for several reasons. It is nice on long passages to have food ready made incase of bad weather and difficult conditions in the galley. It will take around 2 wks to get to Chagos where we will spend 2 wks at the atolls. There are no shops so our fresh fruit and veges will be dwindling, followed by a wk to 10 days to get to Rodrigues island. Reprovisining is cheaper in Asia than where we are headed
We ferried diesel by motorbike, then dinghied to the boat as it is cheaper at the pump than on the water. Diesel is subsidised in Malaysia, paying 1.8MYR/L (58cAUD)