The Silly Season.

I have been writing the updates on my PC, but have been unable to upload them because I have had to get a new Internet Dongle thingy. Bloody technology, we never had this trouble when we used pen and paper...

Well, christmas came and went, yawn. For new year I decided to bugger off up to the Lakes. Good food, great beer, great atmosphere. Altogether a brilliant night. It was really odd, with the full moon and all of the snow, it was like daylight at 2 in the morning.

Yes this is 2:40 AM! No long exposure, this was taken on my phone!

And there is NOTHING WRONG WITH CAMPING IN JANUARY you bunch of soft gits! The place is far more peaceful without the hoards of tourists everywhere!

Anyway, returned via salterforth, where the canal was completely frozen over. I know you shouldn't, but you have to laugh at the ducks, trying to land on the ice, skidding, and knocking all the other ducks over! It was a bit like aviary 10 pin bowling!

Talking to the timber yard about this difference between Marine ply and ordinary. The one

thing I didn't know is that marine ply is guaranteed not to have any 'holes'. You know when you cut a piece of plywood, and, when you look at the edge of the cut, there seem to be gaps in the middle layers. Well, you (apparently) will not get these with marine ply.

So I got a few sheets of marine ply, and laid part of the floor at the front of the boat, and built a workbench. I thought, the front of the boat is going to be the last part finished, and it

will be so much easier to work with a decent sturdy workbench. The floorboards will help with clearing up.

I've battened a piece of plywood accross the front door to try and prevent the rain getting in while I'm (still) waiting for proper front doors. It didn't work.

It's January, and the engine has arrived (Yipee!).

I may be some time...

Second weekend in December and, yipee, sunshine and blue skies again. It is a bit cold though. No need to mop up the water in the engine bay this time, I just had to pick it up and throw it out of the window. I suppose the cold has some advantages.

I managed to get the first coat of white bilge paint in the engine bay. Is this the light at the end of the tunnel ?

VAT is going up at the end of the month, so I have ordered and paid for the engine. Isuzu 42 and a PRM 150 gearbox. This should arrive in the new year, so that gives me christmas to get the last coat of bilge paint on and get some doors built.

Handy Andy has never re-appeared with his price for the hardwood doors, so it is the usual case of, If you want a job doing, do it yourself.

Went to the timber yard and had a rummage through the hardwood sections to see what I could find. I will have a think over the next week about how to build the hatch and rear doors.

I read the instructions for the bilge paint (!) and it recommends that below 10 deg C allow at least five days between coats! Next weekend for the next coat then.

Sunday night went down to Telfords Warehouse on the canal at Chester to see the Family Mahone in Concert. Absolutely brilliant. They are by far the best band I have seen all week.

Sunshine (and a rainy day)

"Hey there Mr Blue,
We're so pleased to be with you,
Look around see what you do,
Everybody smiles at you.."

First weekend in December and the Sun has come out.

Saturday, and two coats of grey primer in the engine bay (plus water to be mopped out again).

Is it possible to get RSI from a sponge ?

Put a heavier tarp over the lightweight B&Q one. I want to get the engine before Christmas, so I need to get on with it...

Sunday morning there was still some water has got in through two tarpaulins, to be mopped up off the nice grey floor ready for a coat of red primer.

While the sun was out I decided to start on the hull fittings. I am using stainless fittings so I will be using stainless screws to hold them in place. Once the large hole had been cut for the water inlet, I could mark up for the fixings. Three 4.5mm Drill holes, and three M5 taps later and the first of the Skin fittings is bolted in place with stainless Screws.

Had to finish then because I was going to see a live recording of I'm Sorry I haven't a clue in Scarborough. Brilliant.

November rain

I would go on about the rain, but I don't want people to think I'm some kind of anorak.


But it's been raining.


I haven't got much painting done.




It has been raining though.


I still havent got the doors on.


It has been raining though.



I managed to get a tarp over the back of the boat, and to stop it blowing off. The rainwas still getting in though. I got the engine bay dry enough for one coat of zinc phosphate primer, but the following day the eninge room had "filled up" again.




Last weekend we went up to the lakes, yes, the weekend of the floods - it was very quiet. Had to go up anyway to scatter Troggs' ashes. And drink some beer of course.



I've just bought a generator off ebay for £160 theat will give me mains 2.8kW and 12v for battery charging. I will find a wet vac to clear out the rain, and I can rig up some lighting. Hopefully I will then be able to get some painting done.




Tempting though it is to get the engine in, I want to get plenty of coats of white paint in the engine bay beforehand.

Time only goes backwards on the last Sunday in October...

Spent sunday covering all the battens with Parcel tape, so that they would be easier to clean up after the spray foaming. I also covered where the rear hatch is going with a tarpaulin to try and keep some of the weather out.
When I tried cutting the holes in the shell for the water filler, I found all the teeth snapped of the cheap and nasty B&Q hole saw. Went to Screwfix & got a decent couple of holesaw blades and they are just the job.
The weather is really taking the *!**. The Sun came out, so I removed the windows from one side of the boat. Got the sander ready and - it started raining. By the time I had put the windows back in the sun came out again.
The engine bay had dried out reasonably well, so I managed to get a coat of Vactan on the areas that had started to rust. Hopefully if the tarp can keep the weather out, I can get the engine bay painted, then get the engine in soon, and I will have power and light.

The spray foaming was done during the week, so I could start cleaning up inside. What a huge difference, the inside seems so much bigger and lighter now the spray foam is done. Cleaned up one side of the boat before it started getting dark. Now the clocks have gone back I have to finish earlier.

Who knows, where the time goes...

Forwards is apparently a good direction.

....much swearing later, the Stainless water tank is at the front end of the boat, where it should be. Tight squeeze.

I have some stainless fillers and stainless fittings to plumb it up. I thought, for the small price difference, I may as well get stainless rather than brass to go with the nice stainless tank.

I have been looking at the gauges from MSC on t'internet, and worked out how to fit these now. When finished I should have an LCD readout for Fresh & waste tank level in the living accomodation, and Deisel, fresh & waste in the back cabin. If you are sailing past a watering hole, it is nice to see the tank levels from the "driving seat".

Well, just a bit more tidying up and I'm ready for the spray foam. In the mean time I need to get on with the painting. Decided I am going to have an entire weekend at the boat. Get the windows out, and have a weekend long painting marathon.

However...

Following a quick phone call, and many long ones, a business idea has appeared on the (very near) horizon. I am from a very working class family, and don't generally have money, so this sort of idea has to take priority.

Bugger!

There may be a large pause in the progress, while I earn some money...

Captains Dog September 2009

The plan is this...

1. Give the shell 2 full coats of Phosphate primer. This will help protect the metal and is quite good active anti-rust.
2. Give the shell another couple of coats of blacking. Easier to do now, while it is out of the water.
3. Once happy with the grey shell, and all holes etc are cut, and primed, give the whole shell a coat of Red Oxide. This is a coarser primer, and will give a better key to the top coats.
4. Start with 2 coats of undercoat. I have decided on a two colour scheme, so the undercoats will be the first stage where I decide where the different colours are.
5. Seal the windows, and get on with the remaining fit-out.
6. Once most of the major work is out of the way, two coats of top coat, piping and lettering.
7. Dump it in the water, and its launch party time...
   
   

There, I have a plan, We are heading into winter, what could possibly go wrong...

Last week in September Lady P found a sunny day and (with the help of the puppies) put a coat of grey primer on the roof. The problem then is, when all of one area is the same colour you can see just how bad all the welds are finished. So, I waited until she left, and got the grinder out. Oops, made a mess of the nice shiny roof. A quick lick of paint and she'll never know.

Handy Andy finally turned up to measure up for a set of Hardwood front doors. Decided to go for a hardwood hatch as well. I got these "ball bearing transfer units" from t'internet which will make the hatch slide beautifully.