David Schweizer

Genuine Beech Butchers Block work surface is a completely different (and superior) product from modern rain forest timber work tops. We had them in the dairy on the farm where I was Saturdy boy, and you don't need to treat it in the same way. I agree that some most modern laminate work tops a less than impressive, but if you are prepared to pay for decent quality, it is available, and if low maintenance is an issue, it is worth paying more for a better product. I am not able to recommend anyone in Lincoln, but what you need to do is earch out a local company which specialises in good quality produxts and discuss your requirements with them. the first thing is to ensure that the laminate is a decent thicknes and not like paper.

If you buy them from B & Q then that is what you will get, but you can get much better laminates these days which are virtually indistinguishavble from real wood, but you have to go to specialist suppliers, and be prepared to pay for them.

I am not a fan of Vactan, never ever having had much luck with it. When I painted my engine bilges, I cleaned as much old paint and rust off, and after de - greasing gave it two good thick coats of what was called Finnegans Smoothrite in those days. Finnegans had assured me that providing I let it cure completely, the paint was both heat and oil resistant, after ten years there was no sign of deterioration. Smoothrite is still made, but under a new name of Hammerite Smooth.

For what it is worth I think wooden worktops are a future problem waiting to happen. They always look lovely for the first few months, but no mattwer how much oil is rubbed into them, they eventually start to stain and darken, requiring a complete re-furbishment, and just hope that a tap does not start to leak whilst you are away from the boat! I settled for decent quality laminate covered tops, which are minimum maintenance, and always look the same as when they were installed.

I bolted a 7.5mm thick round steel plate to the bottom of the bilge pump which held it down by weight. This did mean that the pump would not completely drain the bilges, but as my bilges were always dry it was not really an issue, but it would have worked if there was an ingress of water.

It was my interest in old tools and Agricultural History which led me to describe what I know as Pole Axe. My complerte lack of enthusiasm for Military History led to me not being aware of the term Pole Axe being more commonly used to describe a Medieval instument of war. Your item may have been a Military Pole Axe, however, I feel it is more probably a loggers tootl used for the moving of unprepared timber. Below is a photo of an Agricultural Pole Axe used for the slaughter of cattle:-

I did a quick search in my dictionary of old tools (yes, there is one!) but could not find your hook illustrated. I will have a word with my friend, who is a real expert. One thing I can confirm is that it is not a pole axe, which is quite different with a double head, one side has a triangular axe head, and the other has a long tube about 4" long and an inch diameter, sharpened at the end. This is the end used to kill a bull or cow, there is also a small hole at the handle end of the tube, which enables the blood to shoot out when it is used to strike the beast's head. Outlawed many years ago, although the slaughtering process was apparently both effective and quick.

I noticed, but as the modification bore no resemblence to Yarwoods handrails, I chose not to comment.

Do you actually know of anyone who has got their hand trapped in a Yarwoods handrail? I worked on Pisces for seven years, and no one on our crew suffered such a fate, in fact it was the design of the handrail which enabled me to get a firm grip when I slipped off the gunwhale.

Back in my early boating days I slipped off the gunwhale on Pisces, and the "knuckle cracker" handrails stopped me from taking an unplanned swim in the Nene !

Vesta is presumably a shortend Harland and Wolfe Motor, originally built for the G.U.C.C.C. Is there any reason why it has Yarwoods style handrails on the cabin roof?

I am not sure how effective the pneumonia jab actually is. I had mine some years ago, but it didnt stop me being rushed into hospital with a very serious pneumonia infection four months ago. I am much better now but still suffering some of the consequences. I asked about a pneumonia booster when I had my Flu/Covid booster, but apparently it is a once only vaccination.

Easy and straight forward isn't it? Of course you may have to travel a few miles to find the locations, but some people just want to make everything difficult. Living on a boat, out in the sticks requires compromises.

The Surveyor's observations clearly demonstrate that he does not have an engineering background. PaulC is correct, Spot welding is a process used to weld sheet material between two electriodes.

When I worked in the furniture trade we used what was known as Solid Crumb Foam, to reinforce the edges of foam seat pads for heavy duty Contract seating. It is still available today but by different descriptions which all imply some form of re-constitution but, as Ditchcrawler suggests, it is not really suitable for matresses.

The bed settee I made had 2" wide slats wth 2" gaps, and it was fine, but you need a minimum of 4" thick foam for a bed on slats.

If your sofa is also going to be used as a bed, I would recommend High Density (blue) foam 4"deep. If it is for sitting only, Medium Density (grey) 4" deep will probably suffice. You also need to have the foam covered in stockinette, which will prolong the life of the main fabric covering.

My wide brim trilby is very similar, except that it is made from traditional felt, which drains very quickly. I bought it from the hat dealer who used to attend the Braunston show, and cost a fraction of the cost of a Tilley hat

I used to have a long waxed jacked, but it was too heavy, and cumbersome for doing locks.

I have never understood what is wrong with a good wide brimmed Trilby and a lightweight waterproof coat, standing inside the hatches to keep the rain off.

No, Technical Colleges still exist, and still offer a wide range of Vocational courses. It was the Polytechnics and those Colleges of Education which were not already part of a University, plus Specialist Colleges, such as Agricultural Colleges, and Colleges of Advanced Technology which all converted to Universities.

Isn't that what Monet did, and David Hockney still does?