Some progress at last.

Finally got back working on the boat after too long decorating the Lounge. First job is to paint the starboard fuel tank bay. But there's an exhaust system in the way, so first-first job is to remove the exhaust system, remaining wires and fuel pipes.

Due to the torque tube steering system on the port side, the Aft Cabin Huntsman 31 has a single exhaust on the Starboard side, so somewhere there needs to be something to join the two engine exhausts into one pipe: Here is the beast. Removing it, is one of the few two man jobs so far encountered. Well, one man with screwdriver and one wife to hold the spanner on the nut buried inside a bit of wood.

Made of brass or bronze or copper (still haven't found out) and brazed together. Mine was plastic coated (till I took it all the plastic off) it also appears to be zinc painted or something. Perhaps AVB can remember what they were constructed of.

The plastic on one input pipe was badly melted which would suggest that an engine had been run for a while without the sea-water cooling sea-cock turned on. Which all goes to show that boat restoration is equal parts engineering; woodwork; boatbuilding and archeology. With some gynaecology thrown in - you try getting the plastic coating off the inside of a 4 inch pipe!

(Now playing: Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells)