Honda BF5 service

This is not a definitive guide to servicing an outboard but only an account of my experiences. If you have any doubts or queries please consult a qualified Honda service engineer. No liability will be accepted for anything contained in this account.

I decided this year to extend my skills and service the outboard myself. I purchased on E-Bay a Honda Service kit without oil at a cost of £28.75 plus postage of £2.70 from a company called Marine Tech based in Norwich. Delivery was prompt and a small brown cardboard box arrived in the Royal Mail post. Marine Tech in their E-Bay ad offered to send an E-Mail with a copy of the workshop manual. This proved to be very useful as it gave simple explanations as to how to carry out the service. No special tools were required and the only spanner I used was a 10mm socket. A large flat tipped screwdriver was also useful to undo the gearbox filler and drainage screws.

I first of all drained the engine oil so that I would not have the problem of engine oil getting into parts of engine whilst tipping the motor about.

The biggest job was the renewal of the water pump which required the dismantling of the gearbox from the outboard leg.The first task was to undo the gear connecting rod which was accessed through a rubber plug in the side of the leg. The gearbox was secured by two bolts which came undone easily and the gearbox dropped easily off the outboard leg. I think I was lucky in that the motor had previously been well maintained and the bolts were lubricated and not seized. The next task was to dismantle the water pump housing and pull off the gearbox drive shaft. The shaft was loose and slightly spring loaded so that it would connect with the drive shaft in the leg. I removed the rubber pump vane which appeared to be in good condition after two seasons although the rubber vanes had adopted the shape of the pump housing and some of the arms were permanently bent.. I have been told that lack of use can also be a disadvantage to the life of pump impellers. The received thinking is that they should be replaced at the annual service. I then reassembled the impeller and the housing ensuring that the impeller vanes are pointing away from the direction of rotation. I replaced the gaskets with ones from the service kit. The manual gives torque settings for all the bolts and I took care to make sure they were tightened correctly.

Whilst I had the gearbox off the motor I took the opportunity to remove the propeller and take off some the worst burrs with a file. Grease the shaft and replace the prop and renew with the supplied split pin. I then drained the gearbox oil and refilled.

I apolgise for the lack of photographs but the next task was the most difficult. I laid the motor on it's side on the work bench with the aim of refitting the gearbox onto leg. There are three items which you need to connect all at once and they are the water feed pipe to the engine, the drive shaft and the gearbox connecting rod. The first thing to do is to ensure that the square drive shaft is aligned with the square socket of the drive shaft. I became concerned when the drive shaft dropped out of the leg. The upper end is a splined shaft which mates with motor at the top end of the shaft. I managed to reconnect the shaft with the motor unseen by carefully pushing the shaft up and locating the splined shaft of the motor. After about 15minutes of fiddling the gearbox and the 3 components slid together. Turning the prop rotated the flywheel and so they were properly connected. The sealing ring of the water feed pipe was properly in place. I tightened the gearbox linkage and ensured that the correct amount of travel was in place using a micrometer.

The next task was to move to the top of the engine and check the valve gap settings. Removed the spark plug. In line with the manual the valve gaps were in tolerance. I had removed the cover taking care not to break the gasket as no replacement was in the kit.

Replaced the spark plug wit a new one from the kit.

A gasket for the thermostat housing was included in the kit but no thermostat. There was little explanation as to why it needed to be checked other that how to check that it was operating properly. I removed the cover and got a bit of a shock. The exterior of the engine was in good condition as you can see. The removal of the cover revealed a corroded thermostat with accumulation of sale, corrosion and weed. The thermostat itself was in the open position and so was defective. I had not noticed that the engine was slow to warm up. This exercise did emphasize the value of flushing the motor at every opportunity with fresh water. A new thermostat cost £23.40 from a local chandlery.

I then greased the points as described in the manual.

Tested the motor today. good healthy flow from the tell tale, forward and reverse work. All in order. I have gained a greater understanding of the workings of the motor.

Update on the jib sheet track

After much head scratching and an attempt to fill the holes with epoxy filler with a view to re drilling and then screwing the fixings back in with a hope that a new thread would be cut. The problem with that solution was that you would never be able to fill the void with epoxy. The screw fixings were only fixed to the thickness of GRP and not for the full length of the machine screws. I then explored a suggestion made by Stewart Brown of Churchouse Boats to use a plug fixing. A search of the racks at B&Q failed to find a suitable plastic plug. I then made a search of my own stock and found a rawplug type fixing made by Fischer.

I found that these would accept the 5mm machine screw and that they would need a 6mm hole. So the existing 5mm hole needed to be drilled out by 1mm. This I felt was not too a drastic alteration. When the plugs were fitted they were a nice tight fit as I did not want the plug to rotate in the hole.

I used epoxy with filler to glue the track down and the machine screws tightened up well. The track now feels quite firm and I hope is now secure. I will let you know if there are any problems.

Jib Sheets

Took the cover off the boat as the weather was fine and warm.

The jamb cleat for the jib sheets was in efficient and had the annoying habit of un jambing at the most inconvenient time. So I have adopted the same solution as for the mizzen sheet and installed a Barton Cam Cleat. I have reduced the number of holes I had to drill by utilizing one of the existing ones and turning the cam cleat to the right angle. The one remaining hole I plan to fill with a bolt.

The other problem which was identified on the last trip out was that the starboard jib sheet track was loose at the forward end. When I removed the bolt I found that it was screwed directly into the GRP and that the thread had been ripped out. I also found that the second and third screw were loose. I have removed the screws and looking for a solution. I have not as yet removed the track completely as the remaining screws and bolts are fixed tight and they screw into a portion of the deck over a buoyancy chamber. The loose screws are over a locker in the bridge deck which is accessible from the cabin. I am looking for a solution, considering a plug of some kind or to drill right through into the locker and secure with a bolt with penny washers. I will keep you posted.

  

Laid up for Winter 20th October 2011

I recently uncovered the boat and found that the single sheet of plastic tarpaulin had not been keeping the damp from underneath the cover. The green tarpaulin although large is not of the best quality. I have now put in addition a better quality plastic sheet which is made up of several layers. It is not as large but it does cover the cockpit and the cabin. The damp had some damage although it may not be permanent. The damp had allwed mold to grow on a canvas hanging pockets in the cabin which is now going have to be replaced. Mold has also accumulated on the inflatable dinghy cover which was stored outside in the cockpit.

I have now a number of projects for the next season.

Replace and make set of canvas hanging pockets.
Replace the cleat for the jib sheets.
Complete the fittings for a foresail pole out.
Service outboard.

Ashlett Creek to Newtown River 18th - 19th October 2011

Having thought that the season had come to an end an opportunity arose for a final sail in the Solent. The opportunity  was created as a group of Drascombe enthusiasts were going to sail with Stewart Brown of Churchouse Boats to retrieve a Drifter 22 form it's mooring in Newtown Creek for it's annual refurbishment and winter storage at Stewart's boatyard near Andover.

There appeared to be a weather window in the succession of depressions coming in from the Atlantic and so we trailer ed the boat down from Bristol with our camping trailer so that we could spend some time ashore if the weather turned out bad. The sailing group was going to consist of myself and my crew Bill in Moksha, Martin in his Coaster Nonsuch and the converted Gig Hippo with Jim and Peter. Stewart was going to travel in Hippo for the outward journey. We all met at the Ashlett Sailing Club on Southampton Water and awaited for the tide to fill the muddy creek. At 1330 hours there was sufficient  water to launch and we all left promptly at 1400 hours. High Water was going to be at 1540 hours.

The wind was from the NW F4-5. The tidal stream was west going in the direction of our travel. We set off initally under jib and mizzen and we fell to the rear of our small fleet. We persisted until we passed the water intake of the Calshot Power Station. The conditions felt so benign that I decided to raise the mainsail with a reef and we picked up speed. Martin in "Nonsuch" seeing that we were gaining on him also decided to set a reefed main as well as his two other sails.

When we reached the entrance of the Bealieu River the wind had turned more westerly and was beginning to kick up a chop against the west going tide. The shallow Solent can produce a steep chop to the waves and for the next hour we began increasingly to fight heavy sea conditions. The wind speed increased and I was glad of the extra weight of my crew. In order to minimize the heeling effect I turned the boat towards the wind and bore away when I could to maintain progress. I was also glad that I had taken the precaution of putting in the bottom washboard and the top hatch in the companionway. The sea started to break over the top of the boat and on three occasions the boat heeled so much that we took water over the gunwale. The seawater was caught on the side bench and seemed to take an age to drain away through the scupper. On one occasion we shipped a couple of gallons onto the cockpit floor. Bill quickly pumped out all he could.

At one point we caught in irons head to wind and we started to be blown backwards. Bill had the presence of mind to release the mizzen sheet as that sail was keeping us head to wind. We continued to make progress to windward although at times we were spilling wind out of the sails as we were probably over canvassed. The conditions did not make it easy for us to reduce sail and we carried on. The sea conditions did moderate and we put in a couple of tacks to reach the outer marker of the Newtown Creek at about 1700 hours. The marker shot by at great speed and we were glad to reach the shelter of the river. Martin in "Nonsuch" came in shortly afterwards having experienced the same conditions but without the benefit of extra ballast from his crew. He had to heave to in order to reduce sail.

A trip which had given me greater confidence in the boat and the need to ensure that you match the sail area to the conditions. Also the need to keep the inside of the boat as water tight as possible.

That evening we stayed against the quayside and we made sure the boats came down safely onto the mud. We then walked to the local pub at Shalfleet for a good meal. We returned down the pitch black lane to find the boats 5 foot down against the wall.
http://www.thenew-inn.co.uk/index.htm

The return the next day was far simpler although the weather conditions were the same. The tide was with us and with the wind. The sea was smooth and we sailed with a reefed main. we returned to Ashlett in about 2 hours arriving back at about 1430 hours. 

Drifter 22 "Smackerel"

Converted Gig "Hippo"

We recovered the boats back onto our trailers and we left for home. An excellent trip.

Southampton Boat Show 23rd Sept

We attended the Southampton Boat Show with a complimentary ticket from Premier Marinas. They charged £12 per head to park the car at Bursledon marina and for a minibus to take us to the show. I know they want to sell me a berth in one of their marinas but I am still impressed with their service. I have already explored the possibility but it is too far expensive. I will probably continue to use their facilities on a day by day basis and get the most out of the boat trailer I bought last year.

The show seemed to be less well attended and from speaking to stand holders sales were poor. The first stand I visited was the Churchouse Boats stand with a Drifter 22 and a Lugger. We had a closer look at the Drifter 22 which was well thought out and spacious. The twin lifting keels and no bridge deck provide spacious living quarters and easy access to the cabin. The boat received the approval of my wife. The cockpit seats are comfortable and the higher freeboard gives a feeling of security. The disadvantages are a towing weight of 1800kg which would require a larger towing vehicle.



The second boat I looked at was the Baycruiser 23 on the Swallow Boats stand. Matt Newland spotted me straight away as a potential time waster but I do admire these boats a great deal. The 23 is a definite 4 berth boat with a cabin table on top of the centre keel box. There is ample room under the bridge deck for my inflatable dinghy. No lavatory was displayed on the show boat there was space in the middle of the V berth. Matt told me there were a number of other options which included a plumbed in sea toilet. Access into the cabin is not as easy as you have to negotiate the keel box. Your access is also obstructed by the height of the sprayhood when it is raised. The sprayhood is ample and provides a lot of cockpit cover. With a tarpaulin over the boom there would be no requirement for a cockpit tent at all. There would be no need for anybody to sleep in the cockpit as you have 4 berths in the cabin. The Drifter 22 can only sleep 2 in the cabin. The 23 has a comfortable cockpit with an outboard well in the floor. I would like to know how intrusive the engine noise would be in comparison with the Drifter 22 where the outboard is in a well at the stern. The 23 with it's water ballast would be lighter tow with I believe an all up weight of 750kgs . The 23 is a more sophisticated sailer with a fully battened main, areofoil centre board and water ballast which can be removed for faster sailing.



Both these boats are beyond my reach but if I was to win the lottery which one would I go for.

The Bayraider Expedition made it's first showing at the Southampton Boat Show. I did not take any pictures myself of the boat and my first impressions were that the accommodation was rather basic and less than the Drascombe Coaster. Matt has compromised in placing something between the Coaster and the Bayraider 20. I have posted a link to a French site with some photographs.
http://www.nauticaltrek.com/12633-presentation-du-bayraider-20-expedition

I purchased a new lifejacket at a good discount. Included is a spray hood, light and full harness. For the price it is well finished with a zip enclosure to the jacket. The jacket fits well with the jacket sitting higher on your chest. The crotch straps are standard and fit well as they are the right length for me. It may look a little OTT for Drascombe use but what price for personal safety.




http://www.nauticaltrek.com/12633-presentation-du-bayraider-20-expedition

Solent Cruise 22nd to 31st August 2011

I was planning to attend the Marchwood Drascombe Rally on the 26^th August and wished to extend my sailing experienceby sailing to the rally rather than just launching there. My planwas to launch at Chichester Marina and sail to Marchwood at the top of Southampton Water. Having attended othersouth coast rallies I had been included on an E-Mail list of those interested in sailing in the Solent. I contacted Dick who I knew would be sailing from Chichester. He told me of his plans to go on an extended Solent Cruise starting on Monday 22^nd August. He knew of a number of other owners who wereplanning to cruise also. The plan was to sail independently but in company to Christchurch in Dorset and then to Marchwood. I jumped at this opportunity and quickly changed my plans for that week.

Sunday 21st August.

I took the 3 hour drive from Bristol to Chichester in thelate afternoon in order to make an early start on the Monday. The plan was toset sail about 1200hours to catch the west going tide at the mouth ofChichester Harbour. The drive down from Bristol was not trouble free with heavytraffic on the M4 and the M3 due to an accident and the usual heavy traffic atthe weekend. I arrived at the marina atabout 1930 hours and slept aboard the boat in the car park. One of the reasonsfor using Chichester Marina was the secure car park and the excellentfacilties. I felt the price was justified in knowing your car and trailer weregoing to be safe whilst you were away. The slip is of a modest gradient andwith the tide controlled in the Marina launching is trouble free.

Monday 22^nd August

I did not have a good night’s sleep aboard the boat due tothe bright security lights and the change in environment. I launched with noproblem and moored on an adjacent pontoon. Departed the marina and was joinedby an another Coaster and a Cornish Shrimper. The entrance was calm and we tooka short cut over the sands at East Head. The wind was from the North East F2-3.We motored and turned west towards the main passageway through the submarinebarrier. We motor-sailed and after a while I was able to turn the outboard off andmaintain a good speed of about 5 knots.

Initially I put a reef into themainsail but found this was unnecessaryand took it out again. The time taken in sail handling left me at theback of the fleet. Langstone and Portsmouth Harbour entrances passed by and weapproached the Isle of Wight with the intention of spending our first night atCowes. On entering Osborne Bay I became aware of a large tanker approachingfrom the stern and steaming west in the main shipping channel to wardsSouthampton. I kept a bearing on the ship and found that it’s bearing wasconstant and so altered my course to the north hoping that it would overtake meon my port side at a good distance. The ship did slowly overtake me and thenwhen it was abeam it gave a single blast on it’s horn. This indicated that thevessel was going to turn to starboard and I presume into the Thorn Channel forSouthampton.

On approaching Cowes the wind strength increased and I madegood progress to Cowes. In Cowes Road off the Shrape Mud I furled the sails andmotored into the Medina River where we moored in East Cowes Marina on one oftheir pontoons. I arrived at approx 20:30 hours having left Chichester at approx. 15:00hours. The longest time I had helmed Moksha on a passage.

Tuesday 23^rd August

The planned destination was the Newtown River and we leftCowes at approximately 1000 hours. The wind was still from the NE F2-3 and sowe were able to sail the whole distance with jib, mainsail and mizzen. The tripwas straightforward and we arrived at about 1200 hours. We motored into theriver and turned to starboard and as it was midweek and the end of the season,the anchorage was quiet. We met another two Drascombe Coasters who whereanchored in the entrance to the Western Haven arm of the harbour. We rafted upand had some lunch.

The tide was rising and so it was decided to explore the harbour. We all motored slowly up the Clamerkin Lake where there were a lot of birdlife, Canada Geese, Curlew, Oystercatchers and a Seal. The National Trust do a wonderful job of preserving the tranquillity and beauty of this place. We latersailed up the Western Haven on the now full tide and going as far as we couldgo, to a road bridge. The channel was narrow and shallow with sunken stakescoming out of the water. Some of us landed on a small beach and took a shortwalk in the woodland.

We later moored against the wall of a small boatyard afterthe National Trust warden had finished work. The plan was to get ashore to goto the pub and not to be neaped in the morning by the tide. A good dinnerat the New Inn at Shalfleet which specialises in seafood., after which we all returned to our boats in completedarkness along the track, using the light on my mobile phone to find the way!The boats were dried out when we returned and we found that they were five feet downfrom where we had left them!

During the quiet periods of the wet night I heard the clinkof the anchor chain as Moksha rose and fell on the tide. The tranquillity was onlydisturbed by the plop of jumping fish andthe calling of geese and oystercatchers.

Wednesday 24^th August

At about 0700 hours we moved the boats back to the WesternHaven anchorage, before the boatyard and the National Trust Warden returned towork. We had a leisurely breakfastbefore departing at about 11:00 hours to catch the tide at Hurst narrows atslack water. The intended destination was Christchurch Harbour. The wind wasagain from the South West about F3-4 initially. We motor sailed to the narrows andcould see that the Needles Channel was still disturbed with the tide and a fewof the leaders decided to divert to Keyhaven. I and one other pressed on into theNorth Channel and could see that the sea was less disturbed. We pressed on andthe others decided to follow. My mainsail was not furled properly and wasflapping in the wind, so I released the gaff and laid the mainsail and gaffin the cockpit where I could keep it under control.

It became apparentthat the wind was a great deal stronger than had been forecast and was morelike a F6. There was a swell of about 3-4 feet and the waves were breaking,producing white horses. The Coaster coped with the conditions well and took little water on board. The waveswere being taken on the front port quarter. There was only one wave which threw a large amount of water onto the cabinroof. I foolishly had not put on my waterproof trousers and my bottom half wassoaked through by the end of the trip! I kept the engine running to maintainprogress against the south west wind.

We arrived at about 14:30 hours at Christchurch and passedthrough the narrow entrance called “The Gap”. I rapidly found that the harbourwas quite shallow as I had to raise the centreplate. We found a place to anchorin the south west corner of the harbour under Warren Hill. Initial attempts toanchor were difficult as the holding was not very good. We all stayed on board forrest of the day, later cooking dinner and retiring to bed.

Thursday 25^th August

Again we planned our departure late in order to time ourarrival at the Hurst Narrows at the optimum time. Our departure was planned tobe about 14:00 hours. In the meantime Dick blew up his inflatable and we all took awalk on shore up to Hengitsbury Head. The heathland was in full bloom with thegorse and the heather providing a wealth of colour. Hengitsbury Head was minedextensively for iron ore, so much in fact that it threatened the coastline. Welater returned to the boats and set off and we took a trip up to Christchurchon the rising tide. The Priory and the riverside houses looked fine in thebright sunshine.

On leaving Christchurch Harbour we passed the crowds crabfishing off the harbour wall. The wind had reduced although there was still aswell. The wind was still from the SW as best as I can remember and we had agood sail to Hurst. The passage through the narrows was without incident andthere was only a large popple on the water from the overfalls. As we entered the Solent the sea became muchcalmer and the wind strength reduced a little.

We sailed to Yarmouth and the Harbourmaster placed us on apontoon against the quay. Everyone took the opportunity to have a shower, replace oursupplies and top up our water. We left within an hour and a half and theharbourmaster did not charge us.

We sailed on the east going tide and calm water maintaininga steady 3 knots to Newtown, a most pleasurable sail. We moored again at theentrance to Western Haven and cooked dinner.Here we met up with another six Drascombeswho were on their way to the Marchwood Rally There was gentle rain and so we all sheltered under atarpaulin in the cockpit with a gas lantern, passing the time drinking beerand put the world to rights!

Friday 26^th August

We left on the first of the east - going tide with a westerlyF3 wind. I gibed across the Solent in order to make best use of the foresailand to keep it out of the wind shadow of the main. The journey passed withoutincident and we turned to starboard to travel up Southampton Water. I soon foundthat I should have shortened sail as I was now over pressed, but still maintaineda speed of about 7 knots past Calshot and approached the moored oiltankers at Fawley oil refinery. I waspassed by another Coaster whose main was reefed and a couple of rolls in theforesail was making just as good progress as myself. I was spilling the wind andtrying to control a large angle of heel - I later discovered he had reefed earlyat Newtown and so was well prepared for Southampton Water.

I sailed past Southampton Town Quay where preparations werebeing made for the Southampton Boat Show, later arriving at Marchwood SailingYC and mooring on the pontoon.

A barbecue was later held on the quayside. The sailing club isa short distance from a large container port and the passing ships provide alot of interest.

Saturday 27^th August

First day of the rally and there are a total of about adozen boats who have either sailed to the Club or who have launched there. Theplanned sail is down to Warsash Harbourmasters' pontoon for lunch in the RisingSun PH. Sail with a northerly past theliners and the tugs.

Sunday 28^th August

A beat up the river to Eling where we anchored for lunch.There were some short sharp showers and gusty winds around the container ships.

Monday 29^th August

A sail down Southampton Water to Ashlett Creek where we metfor a barbecue at the Yacht Club Social Club. Ashlett is very tidal with accessonly possible for 3 hours at High Water. The Creek dries out completely withacres of deep mud. We moored alongside a pontoon and settled into the deep mudat low water.

Teusday 30^th August

Dick and I left Ashlett to make way back to Chichester with a possibility of stopping off at either Langstone or Portsmouth. Nick left to return to his mooring at Warsash. Conditions were not good with no wind and an adverse tide. After a few miles I attempted to sail and could barely maintain a knot. I started the engine again and we pressed on to Portsmouth. I then decided that it was going to be possible to reach Chichester that day and so pressed on for the passage through the submarine barrier. The tide was going to be slack at about 19:30 hours in Chichester Harbour entrance, so there was no hurry to arrive early.
Once through the barrier I again set the sails and was more successful in sailing, maintaining a steady 3 knots. We arrived at the harbour entrance at about and the last of the ebb was still flowing. As it was Springs I still needed a great deal of throttle to get through the entrance.

Dick and I now parted company as he found a mooring for the night and I was anxious to get to Chichester Marina in order to be ready to haul out on to the trailer in the morning. I arrived at the marina channel at about 19:30 hours to find there was not enough depth to get into the Marina! I put out an anchor and made a coffee. At 20:30 hours there was sufficient water in the channel to get into the marina. Sunset was at 20:00 hours and I entered the lock in the last of the dusk.

And so ended a very enjoyable 10 days sailing in which I learnt a lot about both the boat and myself. I had covered 130 nautical miles and visited a lot of different anchorages and ports. It has given me greater confidence to attempt similar passages in the future.

Total Distance 134.9 nm