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Bolger's Defender possibly.

English Elm (Ulmos procera), was used for timbers below the waterline because if kept wet it will resist rot for centuries- there are still pipes buried under towns made of Elm by the Romans that are...

Used for about the last 120 years on Lakeland launches, but end grain loves to harbour rot- transom would be the last place to use it! Used with teak or mahogany on bulkhead doors, cabin trim etc. it...

Our new livery on SY Gondola;

http://i1246.photobucket.com/albums/gg619/gondolier88/gondolaatparkamoored.jpg

Before it was bottle green waterline, brown hull(!!!), white draft marks, red...

Hi Haabet,

For the portholes you should try a wirebrush fitting for a angle-grinder, a small one (60mm?) on a 4" (100mm) grinder is fantastic for cleaning burrs off bronze and polishing at the...

Research museum grade metal polishes, there are a number out there that contain waxes that prolong the shine for longer, but you have to accept that a polished piece of brass will need the same...

Local term round our way is 'loose off', pronounced 'louse off', 'louse' as in 'house', not 'louse' as in 'booze'.

'Let go' is also used.

However, at work on SY Gondola, as on Royal Yacht...

A taper is a locking device and should be a tight metal to metal fit. Grease should not be present, unless the prop and shaft are of badly matched dissimilar metals (in which case there should be an...

I'm afraid the 'fake' date on the stern was a little too much for me, but no two ways about it, she is a stunning yacht. I'm a massive fan of Stirling's dinghies, I'd love to own a 120ft steam yacht...

Instead of using fractions, convert the fractions into decimal- so 1/32" is 0.03125, 1/16" is 0.0625, 1/8" is 0.125, 1/4" is 0.25, 1/2" is 0.5.

Knowing that 1"= 25.4mm you can simply multiply...

1) When you get a bag of firewood, and stop your wife about to throw a lovely piece of beech in that'll make a fantastic chisel handle one day.

2) When you wake up in a morning and wish that...

I can't say I know the answer for definite, but Zinc (the galv'!) is less noble than Copper- the traditional material for the cathode in electrolysis- so potentially the rust would just stay where it...

If you have a friendly machine shop nearby you could get them to machine a new sealing ring in PTFE- as long as the bore of the pump is clean and concentric it will give years of no hassle use.
...

So, Ti rigged and fastened boats with Kevlar hulls and Tantalum keels are round the corner...?

Smaller heeling moments, shallower keels, bigger sail area?

As far as wooden boats go, Ti would be...

Size of boat? Is the launch varnished? Where is the plank? What condition are the frames in? Are the fixings bare-headed or recessed and plugged? Have you got some pictures?

Greg

PS; answer the...

Hi,

Beautiful tub you have there!

Red lead putty is not caulking, the putty is applied over the caulking, which will be either cotton or oakum.

I haven't any experience on keel stepped...

12" square ply, 3/8" thick, sand to smooth all sides, paint and take to local foundry, unfinished casting probably around £60 ($80?) or so.

Greg

This is becoming a tad annoying now- people see this ban as the end of the world as far as painting in a marine environment goes- hang on a minute, let's just look at this from a point of view of...

A bit of practical, and a bit of 'bling' work this week. The second half frame is fitted, but not shaped to match it's partner. I have also painted up the nameboard, or bow sheets brace. It's a long...

You will have to very very carefully caulk the joint between the covering board and the sheer- as I understood it the 'covering' described exactly what you have removed from your 'board' by faying up...

Wasn't it Uffa Fox that designed the Shannon...?

Greg

Edit- nope, Morgan Giles!

Try finding where MG's plans repository is. I would contact the SODA secretary for details though.

You...

Good luck with your venture, but I would caution that where you are based would greatly bias myself, in your situation, to look at FRP for your bread and butter- drive around...

I didn't say she wouldn't last longer in a museum- in fact I entirely agree with that notion- but last as what; a working rowing gig taking a crew on fast skilled rowing exercises- doubtful, this...

Working for the National Trust and volunteering for an internationally renowned museum that houses steamboats I would suggest that there wouldn't be many museums that would thank you for a boat like...

Isn't circa usually abbreviated to ' C. '?

Greg

I recommend you get a copy of John Leather's 'Oar and Sail' book. It has the kind of information you say you are after, as well as a fantastic description of John sailing his own 30ft gig.

The...

And:

http://i1246.photobucket.com/albums/gg619/gondolier88/Sawnhalfframes2_zps8606ff7a.jpg

http://i1246.photobucket.com/albums/gg619/gondolier88/Bowsheetsbearer2_zps60d08073.jpg

Greg

It's been a long time since I wrote an update, for which I apologise, we currently have a camera that doesn't work and really really should get round to fixing!

So I've taken to begging photos off...

While oil-based varnishes are banned in your states, is it possible to buy the constituent parts and make your own? Linseed oil, tung oil, carnauba wax, pine tar, danish oil, they all have...

Second cabinet scraper! For me, a flat block of wood and a piece of sandpaper can take off .005" or 1/16", leaves a completely flat, glue-ready surface and can be used for all sorts of work that...

At work on SY Gondola we have had a couple of decks in the last 35 years (they don't last long in the English Lake District- lots of rain, freshwater lake etc.). The first deck she had was 40mm thick...

When moving out of our house a couple of weeks ago, we had a repair job to do on the kitchen floor after our old fridge blew up a couple of years ago. Problem is, the floor is a 150 year old polished...

Make plywood boards to a template for each of your bare metal machine beds, when finished with the machine place the plywood onto the bed. Instead of ply you could use perspex etc., as long as the...

It's about time they invented a screw with a plain head, no thread to be inserted with a hammer....

Personally I love slotted heads- having grown up with my dad's workshop full of all sorts of...

Of course another option available is a variable pitch propeller with a conventional rudder- another device used by non-reversing marine plant in the past.

Greg

Oh dear ARW, I had been wondering whether to introduce (something else into my smorgasboard (good name for a boat that!)) nibbed scarfs onto my boat where replacing planks- it appears that you have...

Pure Lanolin, or Lanolin based greases are fantastic. Just a small smear will protect a tool for ages, even after use. A thick covering will preserve bare steel for weeks outside. I use WooLube from...

In this picture there are three methods used to scarf the planks- to the mid left turned tacks have been used (one of the very old repairs on the boat), bottom right a short scarf- about 1:5, with 8...

Couldn't you veneer the DF deck planking with Mahogany one side only before cutting the planks? Or even use Mahogany veneered plywood to cut the planks out of? There is absolutely no way you're going...

if you've ever watched Scrapheap Challenge (Channel 4, UK TV), one episode always stuck in my mind- the teams had been challenged to build a speedboat out of scrap, and one team took the roof (GRP)...

A word of caution on Kitchen rudders at 1:1 scale- to make emergency stops, and to make fast astern manoeuvres a LOT of force is put on the keel and transom knee. This was found out to the cost of...

Just out of interest, with the skills on here, has anyone galvanised their own fiittings? Anyone with a decent burner, a block of Zinc (old anodes?), some flux and metal container for the molten Zinc...

Used Makita's throughout my apprenticship, and aspire to being able to afford my own someday. We used NiMh 18V 3Ah cordless drill for four years solidly, from drilling masonry, metals, wood, driving...

A thread is only as good as the die cutting it, if you do want to make your own, spend once on a decent set of UNC taps and dies, and you will save a fortune on bolts. Spend a few pennies on a cheap...

1896 27ft Steam Launch 'Morning Star'. Pitch Pine on Oak.

http://i1246.photobucket.com/albums/gg619/gondolier88/morningstar4.jpg

That hull looks far more like a steam launch in profile and underwater shape, especially with Vosper's building her, it could also be a very early motorboat with a transom that full, however.

Teak...

Well, we can't all be blessed with one of those! (more's the pity says the Mrs....)

Greg

Depending on the size of it, you could take it off and get it copper electroplated, a decent thickness- 1/32" or more- will last years.

Greg

Pencil, sharpie, 6" rule, tape measure and a cigarette lighter (I don't smoke, never have, but it comes in handy for all sorts- tidying rope ends, blowlamp ignition etc.), and a packet of...

Perhaps not tidy, but definitely very interesting- please don't assume that we find each plank repetitive, it is fascinating to see carvel oak planking taking shape, keep up the good work!

Is...