Fully rebuilt, and it stays with the boat
The engines, gearboxes, V-drives, shafts and running gear, and why the driveline was re-engineered rather than reassembled.
This is where the money went, and it is the reason she is worth taking on. The engines, gearboxes, V-drives, shafts and running gear are all part of the boat the syndicate owns, with the receipts.
Why petrol, and why it works
She was built around twin turbocharged Perkins diesels: slow-revving, heavy, and full of torque down low, which is what a displacement hull of this weight wants. The Volvo Penta 5.7s are a different animal. They make their power higher up the rev range and they have less to give at the bottom.
So the reduction was changed to suit them. The Velvet Drive 71C boxes are 1.52:1, turning through Walter V-drives at 1.56:1, which brings the shaft speed back down to something a displacement hull can use. The propellers were then sized and pitched against that reduction, the engines' working rev range and the weight of the boat: Michigan Dyna-Jets at 21 inches by 21, a handed pair, shipped from the United States. The shaft tapers were cut to suit them.
None of that is accidental, and none of it was the cheap way round. It is the part of the job a co-owner cannot see and would otherwise have to take on trust, so it is worth saying plainly: the driveline was engineered as a whole, not assembled from whatever fitted.
Engines
- Two 2005 Volvo Penta 5.7 GI-FF petrol V8s, Volvo part 3869312
- Closed circuit cooled through a heat exchanger, so the blocks never see salt water
- Hi-Tek stainless steel exhaust risers, in serviceable order rather than new
- Heat exchangers likewise sound, not replaced
- New anodes throughout: four exhaust manifolds and both heat exchangers
- Acquired May 2025
- New starter motor
- New damper plates, REC 97596, 26 spline
- 14" flywheels, 44186-C bellhousings
Also included
- Capelli hardtop from a 44-footer, stored loose, ready to be cut in
- Two custom stainless fuel tanks, roughly 230 L each, and two stainless water tanks
- Nav mast, stainless bow rail, teak steering wheel, teak decking
- SeaStar twin-lever engine controls with damper, with mounting and connection kits
- Two plastic deck hatches
- A box of new, unused stainless and brass: hinges, brackets, inspection ports, filler caps, saddle clips and the rest