Aug 16-27, 2007 . . . Twelve Days of Excitement!!!!

The morning of the 16th of August, Thursday, we backed out of the slip in DeTour, Michigan, to start our journey to Mackinac Island. We had reservations at the marina, and they are hard to get. We were going despite the 20 knot winds, the 3-5 seas. Clearing the harbour we increased the speed of the engines to about 1700 rpm and set the course first South then West to Mackinac Island. There was a pull on SONATA and right rudder had to be applied for the trip; thought it was the rough seas. We arrived in the Mackinac Island harbor and when Bonnie started up the fairway to our slip, winds still out of the NNW at 20 . . . she called . . . "Charlie......" We did not have either reverse or forward on the port shaft!

We docked safely . . . toured the island, lunch at the Grand Hotel's Gatehouse, rode our bikes . . . and then met with the senior mechanic from Arnold Ferry Company, Ed McGreavy . . . and concluded the port transmission was shot!

Work on the phone, internet, determined there was only ONE place in the USA that could, would, work on the 1013 Velvet Drive transmission. That place was Hale Marine in Warsaw, Virginia. Ed and I pulled the transmission after SONATA was moved in 20-25 knot winds, 5-8 foot seas, from Mackinac Island to St. Ignace. We put the transmission in the trunk and off we went for 18 hours to Virginia in a rental car. To express ship the transmission was $2,500 each way . . . driving was the only way to go, plus it was to be Bonnie's week in Virginia Beach anyway.

We returned after the transmission was repaired, Friday the 24th, installed the transmission on the 25th and 26th, changed the engine oil, filters, diesel filters, and departed St. Ignace on the 27th. The picture that follows is the STARBOARD transmission . . . it has good teeth! Suspect the reason the transmission failed is that the engine/transmission was not properly aligned with the shaft and has been wearing away since I purchased SONATA. Check your shaft alignment each year.