One off the bucket list

Horseshoe falls feeder from the river dee 

We went over the pontcysylite aqueduct on Saturday - not with our own boat - an organised trip from Llangollen wharf. They also do horse drawn trips to the horseshoe falls - the source of the canal. Most informative and a free bus back from Trevor. More to follow 

Rear cover

Poor attempt really but the tarp is not in good condition due to critter munching over the last year or so. The dodger works ok but the cap needs work - will tidy it up next week. 

Failed attempt at rear cover

Due to the impending tsunami - I decided to try and fit a temporary rear cover on the boat. Unfortunately having left it to midday on Sunday I ran out of time to complete it. I managed to fit cleats to the top and side of the boat to tie the cap and dodger to. My battery drill gave up half way through and my drill bits struggled to get through the steel - credit to springer for using quality steel! I will try and fit the dodger and cap next week weather permitting. Luckily I had my corded drill and generator handy to complete the holes. I decided to paint the wood added to the hatch to screw the cleats to - I could have screwed the cleats onto the hatch directly but wanted the flexibility of chosing the spacing and to create a barrier for the water which always runs over the edge of the hatch into the cabin. The roof has a camber so the water drains to the side. The temporary material will be a large tarp cut into two sections - I already have the eyes done and elastic ball ties to secure it.

Back deck undercoat

Managed to take advantage of the unseasonal weather to finish painting the back deck. The hatch cover is not in bad condition so left for now.

Taking advantage of the good weather

I quite like the blobby effect only had time to do part of the deck and ran out of paint doing the back deck - hope the weather holds so I can finishe the undercoat.

Finished blacking and welding

The rear anode proved more difficult than I hoped but after a good clean I managed to get the weld to stick. I finished the blacking this morning and the boat is now ready to go back into the water tomorrow - lucky with the weather and the wind has helped the drying process.

Anodes

Unfortunately my welding skills leave much to be desired so I aborted the first attempt at attaching the front starboard anode Until I got help. My errors summarised - didn't clean off the surface of the anodes or receiving metal enough - note that the anode strip is galvanised to stop rust in the chandlers and this needs to be cleaned off/ground off before attaching -it also gives off a noxious gas when heated! I also earthed the anode on the hull using the magnet I bought - bad idea I could have made a hole in the hull - luckily I noticed the small indentation forming and lack of welding rod melt. The front anode was done in the end by Eddie at the boat club when he got home from work. I decided to have a go myself at the rear one port side and after several attempts I managed to attach the anode. I will have another go in the morning to improve the weld. As noted earlier I will only replace two anodes this time. The painting is almost done so the boat should be ready to go back on the water  Saturday.

Boat out

Managed to get the boat out ok despite the damaged rail. On inspection the hull looks good on the port side but the pitting on the starboard side is a bit of a concern. Will probably have it plated next time. For now put rust primer on it before the blacking. I have some time off work this week to do the anodes - the original ones are still ok so I might just put two on this time. The weather forecast is poor so hope I am able to get all of the jobs done.

Overnight trip to shardlow

Boat ran ok but we had a slow journey down as we got stuck behind a pair of Shakespeare boats being taken to Nottingham. The company went bust recently and presume have been skimping on maintenance as the family on this one had a non functioning engine. The two boats were lashed together and made a slow passage - the family on board appeared to be less than useless in assisting the pilot of the remaining boat. Stenson lock is normally slow but took over an hour to get through. The volunteer lock keepers were good in parts at stenson, swarkestone, Weston and Aston. They didn't turn up in numbers on Sunday with only stenson being manned. We had a basic meal at the clock warehouse - a building with more dead spiders than my boat which is unusual. The boat ran ok if a little noisy - I would love a quiet slow revving engine - but probably unlikely now as my income is no longer high enough to support boat ownership. I will probably sell up when I have finished the next round of maintenance. The slipway at swarkestone has a damaged rail at the moment but may be useable with caution so we may take the boats out this month if allowed for blacking and new anodes.

A bit of a rub down

Chipped the loose paint off and rust treated the fore and aft decks - will primer on the week - the rear lockers are rusted through at the base - need a rear cover ASAP 

Boat ready for trip out

Got the boat ready for a trip out next week. Topped up anti freeze, topped up water and stern grease and added fuel cleaner to diesel. The engine started ok and ran ok. Will probably take it to shardlow next weekend. The spare mooring at Findern went for £2,500 per annum for 3 years in the auction - a premium of £3000 over the next three years! No sign of the new neighbours yet. The local swans have got 5 cygnets - felt guilty today with no food for them - I think the male lost his mate a couple of years ago - so glad to see him fixed up again.

Midland chandlers

Visited midland chandlers to get the anodes and blacking this morning - saved around £23 on the retail prices. 

Also won a welder and mask on eBay for the anodes - only cost £16 - a bit tatty but working. Also bought a magnetic earth connector for the hull - £8 - will make it easier to get a good earth. Just need welding rods and we are good to go. 

Will book the boat in at swarkestone boat club for next month - anode welding and blacking.

Despite the outlay will save around £200 on blacking and the same on anode fitting.