socrates

Could it be possible that he owns the land? Also, could it be possible that he has permission from the landowner? Some people are very quick to make a judgment without knowing the facts. Judging without knowing the facts is tantamount to prejudice. Clearly, this person is doing no harm to anyone. However, there are people who seem to find pleasure taking it upon themselves to make judgements about people who live a lifestyle different to their own. If someone is breaking the Law, it is up to the appropriate authorities to deal with it. The attitude of some people toward those who live aboard their boats on the Broads is shameful and reminds me of the unfortunate attitude we see toward travellers and Roma people.

We are certainly considering coming to Beccles wooden boat show for one day this year. Still got a fair bit to do on the inside in order to make BG acceptable to the purists. We are happy that the Judith M crew talked us into this adventure, we share your pain.

The old sliding roof sides were taken off and we carefully removed the windows, in order that the sides may be used as a basic template. The complexities of the job in hand required a high degree of skill in order that the new roof will actually work. Such as job has to be left to someone who knows what they are doing, with the cost of African mahogany, and time constraints for getting back in the water there was no room for error. Throughout the process it is a case of measure three times and cut once. The clearances involved are millimetres to ensure that the wheels run along the runners and the roof fits the front screen perfectly. Two brains are better than one when it comes to doing the sums, but cutting and fixing is left to Ricardo (who I hope will add some of the more technical descriptions) Basically, the sides were made up using the old sides as a pattern. A rough shape was biscuit jointed, glued using epoxy and clamped together over night on a flat bench. Once we had the rough shape, the correct angles and cut outs were accurately draw on taking measurements from the old sides and the boat front screen. Only when we were both certain that everything was perfect did Ricardo set about cutting the final shape.( See pictures for details) The sides were then sanded using 80 grit on a random orbital sander, and then checked against the boat in order to mark the exact place to fit the wheels. With the wheel holes cut out, the sides were sanded and prepared for varnishing with a final sand using 120 grit. Meanwhile, the wheels were removed from their housing, this was probably the first time in ages they had been greased. They were totally refurbished and greased in preparation for fitting when the sides have been varnished. As with much of the things on BG, the wheels of the sliding roof had been badly (never) maintained and neglected by previous owners. The result was that two wheels had seized and become badly worn. Little wonder that task of sliding the roof required two people and not an insignificant amount of force. Along with the wheels, the roof struts were also refurbished for re-fitting. The sides were then given a coat of 50% varnish and 50% white spirit using a Purdy brush. I know some people may disagree with our method of varnishing, but it is what we are doing. The ratio of varnish to white spirit will be increased to 80/20 for the next coat and then straight varnish for the next 4-6 coats with a light sand in between coats. The final coat being applied once the sides are fitted to the boat and the windows are in. It is certain that we will not make our launch date of 15th May, so we have now put this back to 28th May. There is still much to do and not a lot of time to do it in.

I was being polite as usual. Yes, Janet certainly needs a lot more work and will be a splendid example of a classic Broads boat when completed.

For those who are observant, you will notice that the boat next to us is also being restored. This particular boat is Janet 6 and she is a some way off completion.

Back in the day we found Sea Dart was a fairly effective method to deal with hostile aircraft. Whilst they no doubt serve some purpose, I find drones irritating and intrusive when flown over my boat. This happened several times at Somerleyton last summer. It seems a fair number of people are using them on the Broads.

This is just a quick up-date on the latest work on BG. Going back a few years there was a TV programme hosted by a rather eccentric and recently departed engineer by the name of Heinz Wolf, it was called the Great Egg Race. Well, I feel like I am now in one of those programmes trying to pull everything together in order to get BG on the water and cruising by 19th May. We now have one cabin side on, ready for varnishing and the deck is just about ready fro a scrim coat and painting. The Port side was removed to reveal two rotten frames which we did not know about. Anyone with a wooden boat will know that feeling. With help, these were replaced and a further two frames temporarily repaired in order that we can progress. Another job added to the list for next year. Ricardo did his magic with the hatches and finished the job with a rather fetching quadrant. Primed and undercoated, the hatches are now ready for top coat. The hull was also given two cats of undercoat and is ready for the white top-coat. Ricardo and I removed the old cabin sides in a few pieces as possible but due to our old friend rot, damp had crept up into the roof for a god 6 inches. We peeled back the roof covering in order to dry the wood out and noticed that at some point someone had covered this part of the roof with rather nasty plywood. Following a lengthy discussion, it was decided to let the roof dry out and aim to use fibreglass to make good the rotten areas. We measured the windows and ordered rubber seals for all the windows on the boat. The new rubber was locally sourced and very reasonably priced from Walker Rubber in Norwich. I had to return home to work, but have managed to get another week off next week in order to continue the refurbishment of the sliding roof and Port cabin sides. Unfortunately, I will now not be attending a certain Champions League semi-final! (Ticket sold to a friend) Ricardo has planed and cut the wood in preparation for making up the new sliding roof sides so there is some light at the end of that tunnel. It really feels like we are against the clock now with a load of painting and varnishing still to be done and just two weeks in which to do it. The first picture shows the new beam and carling fitted to the Port side. This was treated with Cupinol and then painted with Damboline. The other pictures show the extent of the rot in the sliding roof and the sides of the roof removed. If anyone is around Somerleyton next week, you are more than welcome to come and have a look at what is going on. Best to PM first. I will post further progress net week. In the meantime, enjoy your sunny days on the River!

I look forward to regular updates on the maintenance, refurbishment and modification of your new vessel. Take it we are having a play with it on the River tomorrow?

So it was for no other reason than to show off. Thanks for the clarification.

Does that mean it had to be done? I was asking why someone had to go through the Wroxham Bridge backwards. What conditions would make it necessary to go through Wroxham Bridge backwards? I am interested to know.

Didn't know you could take your boat through PH without a pilot. Could have saved £10 each way. Don't understand why someone would have to go through Wroxham Bridge backwards. Live and learn.

Yes, that is his name.

I hope you find a decent surveyor, go with recommendations. Before we bought BG, We had BG surveyed by a qualified surveyor and the report was not worth the paper it was written on. I found far more things wrong with the boat than the surveyor found, he should have gone to Specsavers. What concerned me most was that the survey did not report on what was nothing short of a deadly gas system and an engine with a cracked cylinder liner. Fortunately, I had noticed these things prior to purchase. I am still not sure how much depth a survey goes in to, but I would expect a lot for the money they charge. My advice to you would be to go over every inch of the boat yourself, then get an idea of the cost of making good the faults you have found.

There was a chap last year who was offering to take private boats through Wroxham Bridge, his name was David and he lived on a boat in the Wroxham area. We were going to take him up on his offer but did not end up going to the north rivers.

Sparklet is some machine, a bit like Madie which is still around. Force Four is also based at Somerleyton and owned by another of our friends. Well worth you coming down and having a look.

Yes, she is still part of the Green Wyvern fleet, as is Sparklet which is also in the same shed. I am friends with the owners of both boats and other members of the Green Wyvern club.

We regularly use the facilities at Beccles, at best they can be described as tired. This is no reflection on the dedication and hard work of the harbourmaster, who is nothing short of outstanding. Broken fittings, cracked tiles, and an accumulation of neglected defects result in a facility which falls far sort of an acceptable standard. However, some people making use of the facilities do not help by abusing them. Last year they were in a terrible state with regard to litter, urine on the floor and faecal contamination of the walls. Some people appear to have an inability to flush a toilet, or direct their bodily functions into the appropriate receptacle. Following many complaints, a local councillor visited the facilities and claimed that they were going to be refurbished. I take it that this refurbishment has yet to take place? It is probably too late to have any work done this year, no doubt we will have to wait another year for anything to be done.

Great stuff. The rot pictures are very familiar to us on BG. If you are ever around Somerleyton come and see us. The yacht Pan is being restored in the same shed as us and I am friends with owner, might be interesting for you to have a look. Best wishes, and keep the thread going.

Back to Plato and the Theory of the Forms. Excellent. A boat is only ever the "form" of a boat.

Now we are bringing Plato into the mix! It has been said: "All philosophy is a footnote to Plato." I would be inclined to say the essence of the boat is firmly within the whole, not just the constituent and replaced parts. Therefore, a restored boat would not be a replica but the restored boat.

https://www.boatpaint.co.uk/acatalog/Rylard-Standard-Black-Coal-Tar-Varnish.html Perhaps this is the stuff? Interesting to see that it is not actually "banned", despite so many people telling me that it is.

Aircrew on fast jets have a solution to this problem, I am sure Hockham Admiral can enlighten us.

Now this is interesting! I thought I was the only person concerned about the possible (sic probable) environmental impact of anti-foul. It is pretty nasty stuff, and if it was nice then the things it is meant to prevent living on the hull of the boat would be very happy to live on the hull. Get the drift? According to some people, the original tar varnish was so toxic that it got banned which is why we have ended up with the "black water" version. Allegedly creosote is very good but also banned. So, most of us go for the various brands of anti-foul, which is hopefully the fresh water version. In January, I met a bloke in a bar in Canada and we got talking about wooden boats because he had one. He told me that some people are starting to use chilli peppers as a form of anti-foul. Now I was not sure if this was the beer talking so I checked it out and, it seems he is right. In the Pacific a lot of people are using chili peppers to keep marine growth off their boats, it is far more eco friendly than the chemical products we all use. I would imagine the cost of using chili would be a lot higher than anti-foul, so I have decided not to go down that road. The question I would ask is this: do we need to put anti-foul on a wooden boat every year? When BG came out the water in November, there was not a lot of growth on the hull and a blast of the power wash removed the little that was there. I am seriously considering not putting any on this year and leaving it until next year. Anyone got thoughts on this?

Indeed, to what extent is the HMS Victory currently in Portsmouth Dockyard, the same as the HMS Victory in which Nelson died in 1805? A point worth considering with regard to wooden boats. Are we creating replicas containing a few of the original pieces, or are we restoring originals? This topic kept Madam Captain ( more of a theologian) and I busy for several hours on a recent visit to Cutty Sark. Of course, Cutty Sark had suffered catastrophic fire damage and has been re-built. Perhaps, we can conclude the vessel in London is a replica? Such questions are important when considering any form of conservation/restoration etc. For example: Do we up-grade a domestic water system from the original? Fit modern technology? or do we keep the water system the same as the original?

We have been using liberal amount of Damboline as well, it is not cheap. Although, some people have disagreed with this and suggested it is best not to paint at all. Like just about everything else to do with boats, there is more than one opinion. We also use Cupinol wood preserver on any bare wood. Interesting about the tar varnish, when we bought BG the previous owners claimed they had tar varnished the hull, it was evident that this had not happened for many years. On doing research about tar varnish, I was told that the tar varnish currently available is of poor quality compared the original. We now use just anti-foul every year and it seems to do the job. Nice work going on here, keep posting!