We were eager to find a machine shop to help with our repairs. A friend told us about a local electrical mechanic named Ram Pillai who might have a machine press. With sketchy directions in hand we started our hunt for his shop.
We found him, after a few wrong turns and many inquiries. For those of you who made need his services: +679.921.9777, rampillai090@gmail.com. Location: 16°46.783S / 179°20.207E. Unfortunately, his press was broken. However, he referred us to Vanua Engineering in Labasa. He even called the owner to confirm that he could help us before he gave us a hand drawn map and contact information.
Ram Pillai on the right with the blue shirt teaching his student.
Labasa Road Trip
The machine shop was locate in Labasa which is a 2.5 hour bus ride across the island. A new adventure. We arrived at the bus depot at 7:15am and the bus driver how we go about getting a ride.
A lady passed by us and heard our conversation. She said that we had to purchase a bus card but that the place that sells them doesn’t open until 8:00am. We would miss our bus if we waited for the shop to open. She did not hesitate. She reached into her purse and handed me her bus card. We exchanged numbers and thanked her profusely. Next, we headed to the little pop-up shop to get some water and to top up the bus card. It cost $9.72 per person each way. So, we loaded $60 Fijian ($24USD) thinking it will cover our fares and leave her with an extra $20 for her kindness.
The bus was super rickety and noisy but it made it up and down all of the hills and across the island. We had some gorgeous views as the students and locals filled the bus at each stop.
Reminder of What We Are Doing
Matt was able to remove 2 of the 4 bearings and seals, as you might remember from our last blog post. However, the last two were below the large gear which required a large machine press which can only be found in a machine shop.
Vanua Engineering
We showed the bus driver our map from Pillai and asked if he could drop us off near by. Vanua Engineering is located a mile before the main town of Labasa (16°25.983S / 179°21.779E). From the main street, we turned left, then an immediate right, and another immediate left.
The shop was a bit of a mess but it had an impressive array of equipment. This is a really large machine shop. They have multiple presses (manual and hydraulic), welding, mills, and lathes.
Matt explains what he needs done to the manager, Raul (+679.947.9270).
The first thing do is try to remove the gear. Matt thought a “key” prevented the gear from turning. However, the gear was welded to the shaft! This sucks.
They had to grind down the weld on the bottom to push the gear off the shaft. This gave them access to the two bearings below it.
Shoot! We realized the seals we bought were not the right size. So, Vanua Engineering made us new seals.
Miss the Bus or Finish the Work?
We had waited all day with the hopes of them finishing the work. However, Raul told us they wouldn’t be done in time. We had to catch the last bus back to Savusavu at 4:00p.
The manager said he would put the steering gear box on the bus the next day. Sounds reasonable. We paid for the work $250 Fijian ($111 USD).
We decided it was best to return to Labasa the next day. The thought of him putting it on a bus and us not finding the right bus was too much for us to handle.
Finishing the Work
Raul inserted the new seals into the bearings. Then both were placed inside the steering gear box. Next they had to weld the gear back to the shaft.
Matt rode the bus all the way back to the machine shop in Labasa to get our steering gear box.
I could not go with him as I was hosting the Island Cruising Pacific Rally Welcome Party. We had 17 boats and over 50 people attending and I had to prepare.
The Results
Matt got back to the boat to discover a few things. The most important thing is that it works and we can use it to get around Fiji and to New Zealand.
However, he noticed that the machine shop took out the seal from the small bearing that we brought. It was a brand new seal fitted inside the bearing. All they had to do was place it under the gear. But for some reason, the removed the seal and filled it with grease. Ugh!
Even though the weld will hold the gear to the shaft it was not welded to Matt’s standards.
What does this mean? It means we have to take it apart and fix it when we get to New Zealand.
All in all we are happy that we got our starboard steering working! Now, we can go explore and play across the Fiji Islands.
Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind live events. We went to Labasa around May 22, 2025.