The Cratch

A while ago, well two years ago actually. Doesn't time fly! I made a Deck board and Cratch so we could get some sheets on, just keep the weather out. After my efforts were scrutinized and basically pulled to pieces by them that know. I took advice from the same and had a second and may I say, last bash. Below is the final result barring a coat of paint.
Its all turned out a weird shape, we'll see what it's like with the cloths on.

I've had to reshape the Deck board to suit the new cappings and make new False cratch

The top plank, for reasons I cannot see, have wedges fixed on either side, tapering out from the false cratch towards the deck board, then the Top plank is dove tailed into the deck board

All this work will be soon covered up with cloths and white strings, never to be seen again. This seems to be the thing with old boats, you do a load of work that nobody ever sees.

The sun is out...

and so am I. Had a very pleasant day making and fitting new capping's at the front end.
For quite a while, I've wanted to replace the capping's at the front of Dove. The first ones I made were not very good and soon split and looked a bit tatty.

I recently found a supplier of green oak, just up the road as it happens! He gets full trees in and will cut to size. Why didn't I know about the place before?

Working with green oak is a new experience for me, it's a good job all my power tools are industrial, I don't think regular DIY tools would cope.

After all the faffing about last time, steaming and pulling and riving the timber round compound curves. This time I decided to buy wide planks and just bend one way then cut to shape and put up with the waste. Sounds easy doesn't it, well...it was. You thought I was going to give you a list of cock ups then, didn't you. The only thing that did happen is, I dropped a plank in the cut. Not too concerned at first, then the bloody thing sank. What!!!! I fished around for a while but couldn't find it. I finally had to go and get "Rigsby" that's the Fradley dingy and go hunting further a field. I eventually found it yards away from where it went in. From now on it had a line tied round it until bolted in positions. I didn't know that green oak sank, you learn something new every day.

No oil painting

With the cabin side rails being of Oriko, a very oily wood, painting seems to be an annual task. After taking advice from Jim off Chertsey this could be the last time for a while, fingers crossed!
Jim recommended washing down with an Acetone base fluid immediately before applying a Sikkens special primer.
After hours of rubbing down then cleaning with acetone base panel wipe I applied a coat of the primer. It's like painting on glue, but you could see it soaking into the grain, unlike the other stuff that just sat there then peeled off.

After a second coat it looks more like a good base for further coats of under coat and top coat. We will see!