Sailing SV Cordeliavideo
We Nearly Came To Blows (There's Too Much Left To Do)
17 April 2026 · 21 min · 2K views · Livingston, Guatemala
Man in blue shirt inspects wooden drawer inside sailboat cabin
What this video covers
Steve and Annette are refitting their Venus Ketch in Río Dulce, Guatemala, four weeks before a planned blue-water departure, with lithium battery parts still two weeks out.▶ 0:00 Rather than wait idle, they work through a backlog of smaller jobs to preserve time for the electrical install.▶ 0:10 The worst job is a long-neglected portlight in the saloon: Steve grinds out the hardened, leaking rubber seal, uses masking-tape-and-superglue spacers as thickness guides while backfilling with filler, then routers and paints before fitting the new glass.▶ 3:38 Annette wire-brushes, rust-treats, and spray-paints two propane gas canisters, overshooting the intended paint area due to unclear instructions — a recurring friction point between the two.▶ 8:59 Steve repairs damaged interior veneer using salvaged wood rather than replacement sheet.▶ 12:08 A helper named Oscar sands companionway components while Annette varnishes teak drawers, saloon table, and cockpit trim in 35-degree heat, disappointed that clear varnish pulls the teak darker than expected.▶ 14:14 Steve services the Honda generator, fills diesel tanks and four jerry cans with petrol, fits the headsail, and climbs the mast for a full rig check, finding no broken strands.▶ 16:55 By the end, the lithium install looks likely to be deferred until after the voyage rather than rushed before a three-month offshore passage.▶ 19:08
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