Getting Rid of the Rot

Badger is currently in the wet dock at the Ashton Packet Boat Company in Droylsden.  The wooden trim around the edge of the cabin sides, which gives shape to the recessed panels, has been showing signs of rot.

This wooden trim is actually lengths of torus profile skirting board.  Unfortunately, everywhere you go to look at torus boards you see a different profile.  After much searching, I found a proper timber merchant who cut his own boards with a profiling machine and had hundreds of different profile cutters in racks on the wall.  He managed to match my profile and I took the precaution of buying enough timber to replace everything on Badger should that prove necessary.

I put Badger on the dock and Steve from the yard set to work removing the rotten wood.  I quickly found out that the extent of the rot was very limited.  The cabin had been very well made in the 1970s and epoxy coating to the main cabin sides meant that the damage was confined to the trim, and limited areas of that to boot.  This now means I have a lot of spare timber but it may be useful on another occasion.  I would rather be in that situation than finding out I needed to rebuild the cabin.

A week's work will see one complete side of the boat as good as new.  A return to the dock in either august or november will see the other side completed.

Badger Working

Another photo has surfaced showing Badger during her working days.  This shows her in British Waterways colours towing a butty.  The photo is courtesy of Lawrence Hogg and is copyright to LHP Productions.  He tells me this is the only photo he has ever seen of Badger in her working days so I sent him a copy of the one I published a few months ago.  Still only two photos, so if anyone out there knows of any others please let me know.

Ropes on Cratches

I don't know about you, but whenever I set up the fancy white ropes on the cratches (see main photo) I have trouble tensioning them due to the friction between the ropes as they pass through the eyes.  Nylon makes ideal thimbles for the ropes to pass through but commercial ones are either heart shaped, which look wrong, or very expensive.  I managed to source some from the USA at a dollar each.  Postage for six came in at $75 so I declined.

I ended up turning my own out of blank nylon rod which ended up at less than £1 each.  The ropes are off now for the winter so it will be next spring before they are fitted again.

Just coming to the end of a hard week in dry dock with Badger.  I worked out that a full length boat has about 700 square feet of side to be blacked.  Owners of modern boats have the luxury  of comparatively smooth sides which readily accept paint roller application.  Not so with the "patina" of an old boat. Try using a roller and the surface is covered but all the little (and large) dimples are still bare and that is just where the paint needs to be to do its job.  An old boat requires old techniques and I have found the best method of application is a "Turks Head" brush.  Admittedly not as economical on the paint as a roller but, then again, the best place for the paint is on the boat, not in the tin!

Today I waved goodbye to Sandbach for the last time as she descended Bosley Locks with her new owners en route to her new home on the River Wey.  Sad to see her go but I can hardly keep up with one boat let alone two.

I can now concentrate all my energies on Badger starting next week with a spell in Kerridge dry dock and an overdue blacking.

Old Boats and Boatmen

Looking at the two photos below reminds me of an interesting conversation I had with an old boatman a few months ago.

He noticed the lack of rivets around the counter wrapper plate and correctly deduced it had been replated in that area, no "washers" having been used.  He then went on to say words to the effect, "I thought as much.  They have lost a lot of the upswing in the counter in the rebuilding".

As I look at the photos and compare, my feeling if anything, is that she has gained a fraction MORE upswing.

The moral of this story to me is, listen carefully to old boatmen, they have a lot of useful knowledge to impart, but don't take it all as gospel.  Time plays tricks on old memories as I am finding out as I grow older.

George

Having mentioned BADGER I thought I would just put up a couple of photos of her for anyone who does  not know her.

The first photo is her present appearance and the second is how she looked when new.