April 19, 2015 update. The Crane is fixed!
February 25, 2015. Here begins a new story, about the crane. We enjoyed using it to move concrete onto the island, but one day while doing so, the master cylinder broke, and the boom slowly came down, and is currently resting parallel to the shore. (on land luckily).
Fixing it, is going to be a big project. Subsequent updates show some progress if you keep reading.
March 9, 2015 update. Luck is on our side. They managed to raise the boom enough to diagnose the true problem, and it isn’t a metal crack. It was simply some bolts had naturally become loose and gradually unscrewed themselves, and fell out. The fix is to order replacement bolts and tighten everything up.
March 16, 2015 update. The bolts have arrived. Now awaiting the return of the mechanic, hoping sometime this week.
February 26, 2015.
Once we have a diagnosis and a plan, I think we can proceed with painting the crane with its camouflage, and landscaping and seeding around it. I’ve become very fond of this crane, and it’s going to be struggle to get it working, and costly.
April 3, 2015 update. I visited and took extra pictures. The longer new bolts have arrived, but we are waiting on a new “seal” of the correct size.
I noticed a metal chip beside one of the bolt holes.
The pictures I took of the rest of the plate, seem intact, including around the back of it.
