Malanka

Oh I forgot to mention that following our miraculous incident with the auto bilge pump, Malanka now has another float switch actuated bilge pump sited in the bow area, this now makes three electric ones (two float switches and a hugely efficient one with manual switch) plus the manual one which I reconnected last summer after finding it disconnected. This is a vintage cylinder pump affair of course made of brass which is about as easy to get to and to use as ground unicorn horn. Next seasons mods will include new wheelhouse boards so that will be easier, OMG what am I saying??? Oh yes I forgot this is the never ending story... Oh well. Interviews went very well, both companies wish to progress to second stage interviews. Wish me luck... M&F

Do they taste nice ? M

However there aren’t any Eagle Rays , or hammerhead sharks both of which were ticked off the list Feb 2017. M

They sell it at the Norfolk camping Centre. Either spray can or squirt plastic gun type bottles in 250 ml volumes. Refills at 500ml. Its brill stuff no naked flames . Lol M

Actually I spoke with Phil and @relatively speaking@ it's not that bad but at this moment I'm trying not to think about that part. Needless to say no holiday diving in the Maldives this year ..LOL M

Hello all you avid boat surgery pervs. Here is the aforementioned very large oak member fully installed. Doesn't it look rather magnificent? Martin

We quite often have two dangly heavy things, sometimes both at the pointy end, sometimes one at the pointy bit and one at the flat bit. Both have ropes on em! M

I have had a stern line round the prop, it dropped off when mooring after being casually tossed there when we departed the previous mooring. Cheesed every time for us now. Tripple braided lines don’t like being just left they get very kinked too. M

Didn’t you know Ray all broom owners have huge members. I believe Sunbird also qualifies by some reckoning as a huge member Broom. Thankyou for the best wishes M

We used to have ours deployed at all times, if folks remember they were huge round things good for fending the Queen Mary. We even retained the deployed chin balls of massahoosive proportions to protect us from the magnetic effects of wooden hulls. This meant that coming into moor stern on in a tight squeeze they usually fouled something or got caught up so weren't actually being used effectively. They were so big you couldn't move on the decks as they completely blocked it, so they stayed down. Now we have new slimline fenders and have removed the twin chin ball stations altogether we fit into smaller spaces. They do still sometimes catch another boats fenders (sorry Doug) * but not often. We have retained three huge white sausage fenders to deploy in the chin area to deflect the magnetically attracted bow and stern thruster equiped boats (Lodon Marina Broadlander 35 2018 spring holiday) that manage, despite all the modern aids available, to continue to helm in confined spaces using full forward and full reverse only. The usual excuses being, it's an accident mate therefore not my fault (go figure that one in a court), or it's OK its only a boat! Facepalm for that one

Hello again, Well of course the law of unintended consequences also exists in the boat maintenance field. Below are the latest manifestations of said law. In short, attaching the new chine the guys found the stern brace was ahem.... a little old and dry and rotten... Consequence the clamp disintegrated it when attached. So the guys removed it and replaced it with a lovely new oak member.. The video is interesting as it shows the dimensions of the oak frames used on old Wooden Brooms and they are HUGE... So we now have new chines both sides and new member in the stern. Phil did inform me today that they found a small section of the chine near the bow that had been replaced "donkeys years ago" which was made of PINE. Needless to say it was removed and we now have full length oak members. Makes me feel reassured for the future. So here are the latest installments of the never ending story. I have two interviews next week too so wish me luck. VIDEO-2019-01-25-14-06-37.mp4

PM sent Jeanie M

Done at home on kitchen table M

Hello, we we had the whole of Malankas decks replaced a couple of years ago. Half the cost over half actually was the time taken to chisel out the rotten members which at sub deck level were an integral part of the structure. We went from original 2 by 4 sections to buttressed inch marine plywood. If you’d like a taste of what that cost pls pm me. M

Ah Ray, No I don’t think about sinking at any time. Pretty sure that Nelson didn’t either , unless he was shooting at our French colleagues ( something he was rather good at I believe) Not absolutely convinced that Captain Cook didn’t consider it from time to time. I must admit crossing the Chanel in a moody 29 in the 80s was more of a worry. Lobster pots and container ships everywhere. ( Moody didn’t have radar) we avoided the ships ( just) but caught a pot which spun us round at 03:00 in a strong sea. Was a bit hairy, we had lines laid and harnesses on it was that bad. To be serious I am more concerned with wet shed security and access control issues. I have written to Clive with my concerns with no response as yet forthcoming. The near sinking sort of coalesced my thoughts, without friends in the shed she would be on the bottom at this moment. This cannot be all we can do! M

Quite Garry. Of quite some concern but my cup is always half full so we move onwards. I am effectively paid until August this year so not rushing into something not right. We see redundancy as an opportunity not an obstacle. Also means we get to return to the UK which Fiona and I now wish to do. I have been in similar situations three times before and taken the opportunity to grow so will do the same this time too. Thankyou for your best wishes M

Oh forgot to add can't help but notice that super paint job. Well done guys......

OK all you avid wood work fanatics, what follows are some pictures which quite clearly indicate why I don't or more reasonably can't do these jobs myself and leave them to folks that have way more skill, way more knowledge and aren't 1000 miles away from the old lady to do what they do best. New Oak chine three quarter length starboard side this year and now full length on the port side too. All original Chine is now removed and replaced with 100% new Oak bits. Roger checked and the rotten bit just kept growing and growing so here we are with new chine both sides of the old Lady. I'm sure the new boards we attach to it / them will now be much more stable than before. So our little maintenance without major expense has kind of been defenstrated a little. Oh well stuff happens. Wish me luck for new job interview set up for week after next.

Hi mate. I have a 6 inch diameter 12v aluminum bladed ambient fan. It came from an American RV it works brilliantly , hot or warm air is not required to demist the inside windscreen. Simple physics tells us that. The only reason to use warm or hot air is that warm air has the ability to contain more moisture and such works more quickly. However when removed the said screen then immediately mists over. Using cold or rather ambient air it doesn’t. SIMPLES... it works it’s as simple as that. End of, it works. I get up I use the blade to remove excess moisture then put fan on and bugger off to have breakfast. By the time I want to leave it’s clear and dry. Works when moving and raining too, both Easter and autumn cruising so yes it will work. M

When in new job we are going to buy a tree. Log or whatever. Should sort it. Many takers Charlie?? M .

Ok a quick update. Phils guys have sent me a video of the starboard side chine and chine boards which in the video can clearly be seen are the original ones, copper nails and all. Well needless to say the rotted nature of the now lightweight boards was amply demonstrated by the use of screwdriver and the shower of rotten wood shards hitting the floor. These boards planks or whatever you want to call them are now being replaced so our little maintenance break just became much more major. Phil is clearing out the old ( from 1952) boards and replacing them with 2019 boards. When these last until 2077 the old lady will be 125 years old and I will be kind of dead. Wish us us luck more in process pics to follow . Martin and Fiona

A huge number of assumptions here. Older traditional boats weigh double or even triple the weight of “modern boats” whatever that’s supposed to mean. Usually have bigger prop diameter deeper keel usually made of Iron and a much bigger rudder. All of these individual items contribute to not needing a bow thruster. The problem if that’s the phrase needed a solution and bow thrusters are it. The reason wooden boats aren’t in the majority is simply cost. Maintenance costs building costs and so on. Not innovation or anything else. Costs drove the problem and a solution was found. There will come a day when I can’t access our boats high freeboard. When that day comes I will go for the alternative “modern craft”. My children will then be custodians of the old lady. Until then I will continue to poke fun at those extolling the virtue that is a solution to progress caused issues. 😇

Termites are brilliant enigmatic creatures. Fantastic area of study, termite cities, wars, conflict. Environmental devastation you name it they do it. No nuclear weapons though lol M

What’s a bow thruster for ? Ooops couldn’t resist. M

Just some numbers to give perspective. Parts per per million in air we breathe in roughly 400PPM. Air we breathe out when exercising roughly 40,000PPM. So so no you’re going to suffer any ill effects from the very small volume of gas in a canister for a life jacket. Nuclear subs run at something over 3000 PPM all the time with no ill effects. Humans show ZERO response to elevated levels of CO2 lower than 5000 PPM. At elevated levels what you feel actually isn’t real at all it’s feels like an inability to breathe however the oxygen is still being absorbed effectively. The stress felt is due to the elevated level of co2 not a lack of oxygen. Carbon Monoxide is the one to worry about. Not Carbon Dioxide. Humans produce huge volumes of this gas just respiring , but the human amount from any and all sources is dwarved by that produced by termites by an order of magnitude in fact. Those pesky devils also produce the worlds largest input of methane too. Pesky little blighters.