Serendipity: Bowthruster installation

Lifting up the boat at Bullandö marina 29th of may 2015.
Work task to install bowthruster
see also
https://youtu.be/HszUeexU62g

Before lifting I had prepared the wiring from fore to steering module and that took some time but the result was ok. At the same time I pulled some more wiring thru and installed remote control of anchor both forward and aft and a horn was installed at starboard side of railing close to mast.

Next step was installation of an extra battery with box and shelf for that and also a electric switchboard for fuses, chargers etc etc . And two mainswitches in order to be able to run the thruster both from the new battery or from existing system for the anchors and vice versa.

Localization of tunnel took a long time with measuring up and down from left to right etc but finally I found where to place it.
20 cm under WL, 55 cm from bow line, 25 cm from bottom, 30 cm under tunnel and 55 cm toptunnel
I used very strong mini magnets to see on the outside where the hole should be drilled. Very neat method!!
A little bit too far astern in my taste but the V-shape of my bow forced me sternwise....But i think it will do fine.
But the toilet must be moved and it was just to disconnect. After that i had to cut up the "floor" where the toilet had been to open up for the tunnel..

Then the exiting job of cutting a hole for the tunnel and install the thruster inside.
With the special made tool it was very easy and fast. Cutting off sides was piece of cake with Fein tool.
Epoxy took some days, starting with 2 layers to fill up connection between tunnel an hull and then with 5 layers every time. Wait for epoxi to hardened overnight, grind up the surface and another 5 layers. total 15 layers on the inside and 5 on the outside. Used a mirror to see good under the tunnel. Boring job and the smell wasn´t funny either.
Drilling the 4 holes for the propeller mounting was really nervous. After all job with the tunnel i didnt like to drill wrong so I checked and double checked and measured 4 times before I with shaky hands finally drilled up the tunnel. But it was exactly in line and perfect. What a relief!!
Mounting the prop was quite easy but the drawing/instruction was not correct so I took some time to convince myself that I was right and the Vetus drawing was wrong. Also the translation text of the parts was mixed up and confusing. But by dismounting everything in pieces it was obvious how to install it properly. Place the gaskets, fill up with Sika and grease, screw the bolts and voila!
Now it will be interesting to see which way the bow will go when i press the Sb or Ps button... because it depends on how you place the motor. You can mount the propeller shaft either facing left or right but the installation manual doesn´t say which way it will go. So I have to find out when I run the motor and observe how it revs and then maybe switch the cables on the motor... Vetus,...You can better than that?
Today the 7th of June I connected the power, all adjustment checked, propeller fixed, and then.........pressing the ON button.......green light.........ok........then a swift touch on the Sb button........it runs!!!!! To starboard!!!!! Pressing the left button and it went port side. Absolutely great. After that reinstalling the toilet and some tidying up.
Painting with gelcoat both on outside and then two layers of epoxi primer on the outside. Finally two layers of antifouling. Inside just 1 layer of gelcoat with the same color as the bathroom.

Working time: Drill up hull, mount the tunnel, epoxi layers and mounting bowthruster connecting electricity = 25 manhours, Install manouverpanel and prepare cables= 10 hours, Painting and gelcoat etc 6 hours. All in all 40 manhours. But the cost was much more than the bowthruster!!
Vetus 5,5 Hp Bowthruster & tunnel= 900 Euro
Manouverpanel & fuses ect 200
Battery & Cables 350
Epoxi and paint, grease & chemicals = 400
Plus some good tools like the Fein Multimaster = 300 (but that one i had already)
Bosch Overhand cutter and special made tool for big hole 160 mm diam
And other small stuff around (just the 30 mm holecutter cost 40 Euro! for one hole only!!)
Then i had to lift the boat and stay on a yard for 2 weeks 400 Euro
A refit of toilet seat 40 Euro and some carpentry etc etc etc

If its worth it? I dont know yet but It was great fun to do it all by myself!
But if it save my day only once at some tricky windy arrival I probably will considered it ok?

Friday 12 th.of june back in water. Runned the thruster in wet environment and the result is very good. She moves instantly to starboard or port with just 1-2 seconds pressing the button. Im impressed!. Backing into my docking berth with just 10 cm on each side was a piece of cake today. No need for adjusting position with rudder and kicking with stern prop. just small adjustment with the bow and she steered perfectly into berth. Wonderful. So : It was worth it!