Overview
Main description
“Anyone who contemplates any onboard do-it-yourself work should have this book at his or her elbow.”--Cruising World
“This book reduces a boat to its most rudimentary parts in simple drawings and clear explanations. Fascinating to read, it’s a perfect teaching tool.”--Ocean Navigator
Whether you’re a new mariner or a lifetime veteran, How Boat Things Work is a resource you can’t afford to be without. With intricate two-color cutaway drawings of eighty different systems and devices, as well as detailed explanations of how they’re assembled, how they work, and how they can go wrong, this book covers every primary component of your boat's inner workings.
This guided tour “under the hood” of your sailboat or powerboat includes:
- Engines, transmissions, bearings, stuffing boxes, propellers
- Steering systems, autopilots, windvanes, compasses
- Rigging, splicing, line handling, block and tackle, sail controls
- Anchors and windlasses
- DC and AC electrical systems
- Pumps, toilets, seacocks, freshwater systems
Table of contents
IntroductionChapter 1. PropulsionDrivetrainPrinciple of the Diesel EngineFour-Stroke Diesel CycleYanmar 2GMCylinder BlockPistonCrankshaftCamshaftCylinder HeadTiming Gear HousingFlywheel HousingValve CoverAir Intake and BreatherFuel SystemPrimary Fuel FilterFuel Lift PumpSecondary Fuel FilterFuel Injection PumpFuel MeteringFuel InjectorsLubrication SystemLubricating PumpSeawater Cooling SystemFreshwater Cooling SystemFreshwater ThermostatSeawater PumpFreshwater PumpHeat ExchangerStarter MotorTransmissionsYanmar KM2-A Two-Shaft Reduction and Reverse GearPlanetary-Type TransmissionCutless BearingsShaft CouplingsDrivesaverStuffing BoxesRigid Stuffing BoxFlexible Stuffing BoxShaft SealsPropellersFixed PropellersFolding PropellersTwo-Blade, Feathering Max-PropThree-Blade, Feathering Max-PropAutomatic, Variable-Pitch AutopropChapter 2. Steering and ControlsCables and ControlsPowerboat ControlsOutboard Mechanical SteeringSingle-Station HydraulicDual-Station HydraulicOutboard Hydraulic SteeringSailboat SteeringPedestalsRack-and-Pinion Pedestal LinkageTwin-Rudder Rack-and-Pinion Pedestal LinkageChain-and-Wire DrivesRadial and Quadrant DrivesForward-Mounted Rack-and-Pinion SteeringAutopilotsServopendulum WindvaneMagnetic CompassChapter 3. Standing RiggingWire and FittingsWire RopeSwaged FittingsSwageless FittingsRigging TerminologyMasthead RigFractional RigRig TuningChapter 4. Line HandlingRopeSplicesLong SpliceShort SpliceEnd SpliceEye SpliceWire Rope EyesEye Splice in Double-BraidCoiling and CleatingKnotsReef (Square) KnotSheet BendBowlineBowline on a BightClove HitchTwo Half HitchesTautline HitchRolling HitchTrucker's HitchBecket HitchesStopper Knot and Heaving Line KnotAnchor BendBlock and TackleSail Control SystemsCunninghamsSelf-Tacking Jibs and StaysailsMainsheetsOuthaulsMainsail Jiffy ReefingSpinnaker ControlsTravelersBoom VangsWinchesRoller FurlingChapter 5. Ground TackleMooringsAnchor WindlassAnchorsLightweightPlowBruceKedgeGrapnelSnubbers and Shock AbsorbersAnchoringSingle AnchorTwo Anchors off the BowBahamian MoorMediterranean MoorRetrieving the AnchorChapter 6. ElectricalDC CircuitsA Common DC CircuitDC GroundingBatteriesBattery ConstructionSeries and Parallel ConnectionsMeasurement UnitsOptimal Fast Charging of BatteriesGalvanic CorrosionCathodic Protection and BondingStray-Current CorrosionBondingBonding or Grounding?To Bond or Not to Bond?AC CircuitsGrounding and SafetyGround Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI)AlternatorsA Rotary-Current GeneratorIncreasing Current OutputThree-Phase OutputConverting AC to DCControlling the AlternatorThe RotorA Real RotorVolvo MD31A AlternatorChapter 7. PlumbingPumpsCentrifugal PumpFlexible Impeller PumpVane PumpsDiaphragm PumpsWhale Flipper Pump Mk. 4Whale V Pump Mk. 6Whale Babyfoot Pump Mk. 2Whale Gusher Galley Mk. 3Jabsco Par-Mate Electric Diaphragm PumpWater SystemsRaritan GMPT Galley Mate Pump AssemblyMarine ToiletsThe LectraSan MCRaritan PHII Marine ToiletPHII Electric Conversion KitValvesTapered-Plug SeacocksExpanding-Plug SeacocksBall-Valve SeacocksY-ValvesRefrigerationCondenserEvaporatorControlsAdler Barbour Cold MachineDiesel Stove and HeaterDickinson Fuel Metering ValveLP Gas InstallationsIndex
Author comments
Charlie Wing is the author/illustrator of a number
of top-selling home maintenance and remodeling books, as well as six
other boating titles.
Back cover copy
“Anyone who contemplates any onboard do-it-yourself work should have this book at his or her elbow.”--Cruising World
“This book reduces a boat to its most rudimentary parts in simple drawings and clear explanations. Fascinating to read, it’s a perfect teaching tool.”--Ocean Navigator
Whether you’re a new mariner or a lifetime veteran, How Boat Things Work is a resource you can’t afford to be without. With intricate two-color cutaway drawings of eighty different systems and devices, as well as detailed explanations of how they’re assembled, how they work, and how they can go wrong, this book covers every primary component of your boat's inner workings.
This guided tour “under the hood” of your sailboat or powerboat includes:
- Engines, transmissions, bearings, stuffing boxes, propellers
- Steering systems, autopilots, windvanes, compasses
- Rigging, splicing, line handling, block and tackle, sail controls
- Anchors and windlasses
- DC and AC electrical systems
- Pumps, toilets, seacocks, freshwater systems
Charlie Wing earned a Ph.D. in oceanography from MIT. Wing lived aboard a cruising sailboat for six years, during which he obtained his U.S. Coast Guard Captain’s license. He is also the author of Get Your Captain's License, Boatowner's Illustrated Electrical Handbook, The One-Minute Guide to the Nautical Rules of the Road, and other boating titles.