This morning, as I opened the door to Docs Den, the workshop was filled with the resinous smell of freshly cut pine … wonderful!
Last week, I decided to make some saw horses/trestles. I will need them for the boat building, and possibly the renewal of Buccaneer’s centre plate pivot pin. So, I bought some PAR (Planed All Round) softwood to make a couple of pairs.
Today, after a couple of days’ work, I only needed to cut the legs to the lines I had marked last evening in order to get them all level and flat to the floor.
They’re getting a bit awkward to work on now!Aiming for an accurate cut – means less planing afterwards.Just a small chamfer at each edge to prevent the ends splitting.
The design is traditional – they’re very similar to the ones my Dad had. No doubt, he had made them, and I have fond memories of he and I using them. They become a little rickety after fifty years or more use, and I seem to remember that they got thrown out after he died, when we were clearing the double garage, … and the three sheds … and the greenhouse … and the additional metal garage in the garden!
Very strong and sturdy.Hardly fine woodworking, but some interesting joinery here.And there we are: a stack of saw horses.
I shall give them a protective coat of water-based varnish. They should outlast me.
One of the additional tasks one can do at IBTC Portsmouth on the joinery course if you have time, is to make a Dorade box. I had got as far as cutting and fitting the dovetails for the box sides, when we moved on to the boatbuilding course. The pieces have been sitting on my workbench for several months, while I have wondered how to make it into something more useful than a baffle ventilator box for a yacht I don’t have – I know, I could make the Dorade box and then build a yacht to fit, but that ain’t likely to happen!
So, here it is: a treasure chest, memory box, jewellery box, or what you will.
The bevelled escutcheon is made from ebony.Hand tool construction. Finished with shellac and Alfie Shine wax.The lift out tray has “handles” on the inner side faces, and drops in with a satisfying air-cushion/piston fit.
It is made out of mahogany, and when the light is right, the grain contains lovely copper-coloured highlights. There’s a secret compartment too, just for a bit of fun!!
We have kept Buccaneer on a pontoon mooring at Fareham Creek for the last year. Although we have had a few short sails, there is limited scope for different outings. So, I have decided to move her to Chichester harbour.
Three weeks ago, on a pleasant Tuesday afternoon, I got her out and onto the trailer with the help of a friend, Gavin. While getting her ready a paddle boarder came up by my berth, clearly very confident, as he was in ordinary clothes! So it was, that I met and had a super chat with Simon Payne, a local Consultant Vascular Surgeon, who lives nearby, and regularly gets out on the water, on his SUP (Stand Up Paddleboard).
Fareham Creek is a lovely spot, especially when the tide is “in.”I really must sort out a way to fit a rowlock to the transom, so I can scull her, facing forwards!
She doesn’t weigh a tonne, but she does weigh half a tonne, so I was very glad for Gavin’s help. There are a lot of ropes on a gaffer, and it takes (me, at least) a while to get everything secured. Eventually, we were “ready to roll.”
Ready for the road and a thorough jet washing of the hull.
The anti-foul has coped fairly well with her drying out twice a day on the mud. There were a few barnacles and a coat of muddy slime. After jet washing, there remained some residual fouling of the lower part of the undersides. This would probably have come off with a good scrubbing, but I managed to arrange for the multiple layers of old antifouling paint to be removed, down to the gel coat, by Paul, who runs a company called Symblast. I had expected to need to do this once I had trailed her round to Thornham Marina in Emsworth, but Paul was doing a job in Gosport this week, so he fitted her in that Thursday.
The removal of the old anti-foul paint left/created a fair amount of pitting to the surface of the gelcoat. I decided that, rather than fill these myself and have a go with paint/epoxy, I would get Paul (Symblast) to prep the undersides and apply a couple of coats of epoxy and (might as well, while they’re there) put on a couple of coats of anti-foul.
Ready for her undersides to be coated.
With her upturned, I took a good look at the pivot pin for the centre plate. Not-surprisingly, there has been significant wear of this pin, and it’s time to replace it. After managing to pass a message her now-retired builder, Greg Dalrymple, he rang me and we had a good catch up and also discussed the best way to replace the pin (the original was galvanised steel but A316 Stainless steel would be an option).
In the meantime, while I wait to get her back with her “new” bottom, I have varnished the mast and bowsprit, and I am looking forward to completing the refurbishments so I can get her in the water. I have booked a pontoon berth in Emsworth, and hope that there will be some good sailing to be had in the huge and sheltered Chichester Harbour area, where there are lot of interesting nooks and crannies to explore.
