Michael Shirley's Page

My AGM batteries are getting a bit tired and I am swapping them out for 400ah of lithium, 2 - 200ah 'drop in' replacements.My system has the 3000 watt inverter and Truecharge 40+ shore power charger which the boat came with and  I have verified with the battery manufacturer that these will work with the lithium (they said to set the shore power charger to GEL - WARM to get the right charging characteristics). I have also installed solar a few years back so will need to adjust the charging…See More

I have to replace my pitted drive shaft and I am trying to find out a few details..Does anyone know who made the original drive shaft (non sail-drive) for a Beneteau 40/2009Or is there is a company online that makes replacement shafts?I seem to remember it was Vetus? and I see they sell shafts that are similar but not quite the same as the original.Or does anyone have access to the engineering diagrams for a Beneteau 40 drive shaft ?The engineering firm I will to use to machine a new shaft want…See More

Anybody here know of a B43 named ASTRAEA? Found it listed for sale on-line and located in Gulfport, Ms.Regards,WayneSee More

Hey Gang,   I've been spending quite a bit of time taking the old varnish off of my boom and interior cabin. Being based in Alaska, we have big temp swings (-10 to 75 F), and I'm debating just teaking all the wood and holding back on varnishing it. The thought would be that I would just have to apply more teak oil to it every time I went out, but I wouldn't have to deal with the varnish peeling so bad again like it's doing now. Maybe this is just part of the regular upkeep on any boat…See More