Welcome to the Britannia Heritage Shipyard Society Blog
Saturday, 7 August 2010
The Photo Competition crew, still awaiting the first entry for the 2010 competiion, reluctantly decides to cancel the event for this year.
Saturday, 29 May 2010
Bob allows himself an entirely justified smile as he inspects the newly fabricated bulkhead in Iona's fish hold. The heavy 4" fir
beam will provide crucial rigidity to the hull, especially critical in rough seas. As Iona's use changed throughout her career so was
her underlying structure altered. Eventually the original bulkheads became hopelessly compromised due to rework & rot.
This newly built, low-profile bulkhead will provide strength without obstructing access to the hold.
Bob used a templating technique from the professional boatright's bag of tricks to mark the profile of the beam's component parts. (Hint: it involved a straight edge, a number of thin battens and a glue gun.) The parts were then cut from 4 inch thick planks on the big band saw. The resulting fit was sufficiently tight that at no point could one slip a piece of ordinary writing paper between the bulkhead and the hull. You earned the right to that big grin, Bob!
Here Bob uses the big band saw ("Bandosaurus") to cut another structural member. This specially shaped piece is known as a "knee;"
it adds strength where two structural members come together.
The machine sat unused and out of commission for several years, it's platen serving as a shelf to keep small tools, cans, and containers of nuts, bolts and screws off the floor. Don & Jerry's recent efforts to fit a blade and do a general tune-up have brought the grand old relic back to life. As there are few straight lines on the hull of a vessel this tool is a shipyard essential.
Saturday, 22 May 2010
Brenda uses the 30" disk sander to put the finishing touches on a model boat hull. These little model boat kits are a huge and enduring hit with
the 10 and under crowd. Designed using the "LearnTo Do By Doing" principle a child able to hold a hammer can accurately assemble the hull
cabin & cabin roof of the model by driving a single 2 1/2" nail into the pre-drilled holes. Three additional finishing nails and 3 coloured
beads (1 red, 1 green & 1 white) complete the requisite compliment of nav lights.
We go through a staggering number of these great little kits each year. The job lot Brenda is completing here is an even thousand. We expect to require several hundred more before the season is out. The process has been substantially improved over the past two years by the efforts of Brenda, Phil and Jerry. Better tooling, wheeled storage bins and assembly line techniques that would bring a smile to Henry Ford's face have improved the quality of the models and reduced the time to manufacture them. The Society derives a small but vital stream of revenue from the sale of the kits
Note on nomenclature: The 30" designation of this disk sander refers to the diameter of the sanding disk. It is one of two at either end of the motor shaft. An abrasive sheet cut to the correct size is glued to the steel disk to make the sanding surface. You don't buy these sanding disks at your corner hardware store.
Saturday, 15 May 2010
A spectacular day and a spectacular success! The 'Second Annual Great Garage Sale' was brilliant. Hundreds of visitors
snapped up incredible bargains from the huge array of offerings. We had plants,
paintings, books, lathe work, tools, boats, hardware, birdhouses, an amazing collection of tools and more.
Here Wes, a founding member of the Society is hunting for treasure; Erling, a recent conscript, is in the background.
We were particulary thrilled and gratified by the support we received from both the Society membership and the community. People donated time and sale items with astonishing generosity. The dozen or so sale workers were fuelled by an amazing array of pot luck contributions: Morrocan Beef Stew, baked beans, chili, gourmet mac & cheese, muffins, biscuits, potato salad - too many more to list. The big problem was trying to get a taste of everything without becoming stuffed.
A black BMW SUV dropped in, literally. When I first saw it it had all four wheels in the air and was headed generally
south south west at a good clip. Apparently the 10x10 timbers which surround the parking lot were merely a challange
to this feisty machine.
The ditch, however, slowed it down some.
I don't think they bought anything.
Scores of people made contributions to the effort. During the weeks before the sale donations were continually showing up at door: a set of antique maritime charts (we kept those for the permanent collection), a large set of delightful bird houses, some remarkable botanicals for the plant sale, pictures and books, usuallly with a maritime theme. Some were truly overwhelming. A very special thanks to those who went way above & beyond:
- Philip J. Oldham, Marine Surveyor Ltd.
- M&M Meat Shops
- MacDonalds
I 'm sure there are others I've missed. Thanks again to all.
We had planned to offer hotdogs & drinks but realised, too late to react, that there are a number of regulatory bases to be touched. Life is a learning experience - we'll be ready next year.
The Society grew a in strength and in stature this day.
Work on Iona is proceding rapidly. The crew is working feverishly to get her back in the water in July and is puttting in an heroic three days a week. The project has taken on a life of its own: there are reports of an enthusiastic new member, Terry, who've I've yet to meet. Hope to fix that soon.
Here is a look insdie the Iona's stern. Jim is inspecting the new knee on the port quarter. The old one had literally disappeared.
Starboard paint is mostly complete, port side is well advanced. Effort is now focussed on rebuilding the stern area. This has been a problem area for the Iona. She was built in the 30s as a 'double ender,' meaning her stern was pointed rather than blunt. This is a common design feature for boats built to work in rougher water - they handle following seas well. Trouble was, when table seining technology was developed in the 40s it was discovered the pointed stern interferred with the equipment and nets. Most of the double enders on this coast were converted to a blunt stern in the 50s. The conversion, frequently done hastily and with less care than one might wish, consisted of lopping of the pointed stern with a chain saw and installing a 'picket fence." In addition to being a bit unlovely, the fix became a chronic source of weakness.
Iona was refurbished when she first came to the Society in the early 90s. With scant time and resource the original work was not done
as well as we could wish. Once we hauled her and began 'excavating' the rot we found many places where structural members
were less than adequate. This has all been addressed. The current crew is doing exemplary work. There's no doubt she'll last,
with proper care and maintenance, another half century.
Here Jerry is inspecting new deck boards on the vessel stern. The old ones had rotted and the underlying beams were not properly attached. "The deck sank two full inches when I stepped on it," he remarked
Well done, Gang!