Paull Williams, Old Alresford, Hamshire GBR asks:
Dear Scott, I have recently purchased a Nordhavn 46 - namely "Moby Dick" hull 55, which was delivered to the River Hamble - England a couple of weeks ago. The delivery trip from Antibes in France was circa 2000 nm and the worst problems were as follows:

1) Robertson AP35 autopilot servo motor bearing failed requiring a new motor (although the motor will & can be serviced to keep as a spare)

2) Naiad stabilizer pump drive block bearings failed (almost certainly through lack of grease) requiring new bearings new cross shaft (splines chewed up on cross-shaft and pump) requiring new V10 pump

3) The Twindisc gearbox which only had 1000 hours on it was leaking from the rear ol seal - circa 15 gallons over the passage.

4) Plus the stabilizer oil seawater cooling coil connections have leaked right over the stabilizer oil conditioning unit making a saltcaked (260 lb) mess of iron that has already started corroding quite dramatically.

However once the problems have been cleared up your example is showing what can be done with good preparation, willing family and friends & esp. a willing wife.

My question concerns the electronic update you installed on the Naiad stabilizers. How much did it cost, do you think it was worth it, and have the stabilizers been effective and reliable. (Remember to grease the bearing / pump mounting block - cosequences of failure are expensive - i'm sure you have it covered.)?

See you around the Pacific in the next couple of years.
Keep up the log - it really is very inspirational.

Regards,

Paull WIlliams
Southampton
England

Scott Flanders from Egret responds:
Paul, congratulations on your new Nord. Sorry about the issues but once their dealt with all should be well. The Naiad Multisea II electronic upgrade is expensive (about $20-22,000 US) but it is worth every shilling. When we upgraded Egret it was like we bought a new boat. We have had zero issues since it was installed in Mar del Plata, Argentina. The Naiads were VERY busy on the trip south. Friends on another 46 had bearing, then consequential pump failure on their belt driven Naiad pump. Obviously bearing grease is a necessity but also alignment is super critical. Make SURE yours is perfect and not even a little out. Egret's Naiad pump is gear driven off the motor (stbd side forward) with no issues.

Below is a picture of Egret's Naiad cooling pumps.



We have approximately 5000 hours on the 115V March cooling pump without failure. Centrifugal pumps are flow thru and must be installed below the waterline, no problem on a 46. We increased the inlet hose size to the first pump to 3/4". The first pump is an Oberdorfer 12V 172BA85 (a second choice would be a Groco CP2012). The second pump is a 115V March LC3CPMD115. If you have a long sitting spell or have just hauled without shutting off the seacocks, run the 12V pump first. There is also a pipe plug in the top of the 12V pump to bleed out the air. It is VERY important to use sweep elbows in the installation. DO NOT use street elbows or nipples and elbows. Both are turned on by circuit breakers in the pilothouse breaker panel. Either MUST be manually be turned or off. Our routine is turn on the stabilizer pump after starting the engine then checking the discharge flow out the port side BEFORE engaging the Naiad's.

It's a small world among cruisers. Yaneverno.