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Josephine- DIY replating and full fitout of a 70s Hancock and Lane narrowboat


harrybsmith

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Some more boat content! (No bikes this time, must try harder...) 

 

Had a very productive Bank Holiday last weekend and got loads done, however this thread is a few weeks behind reality so the following post contains not a huge amount happening. 

 

The purchase of the boat included a decent quantity (almost enough to complete the replating) of 6mm steel sheet, however it was over the other side of the yard. Job number 1 was to move it into my corner, this was achieved by lifting it with a crowbar onto some scaffold tubes and rolling it about Egyptian style. Sweaty work but not too strenuous. 

 

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Another thing the boat came with was a large hole pre-cut in the side, with a piece of plate beneath it that looked like it would fit, so I attached it to my jib cranes and hoisted it up. Of course it didn't fit, that would be far too simple. The hole that had been cut was too large (by about 25mm) at one end, but too small at the other. To get a decent fit up while working alone I tacked the piece on top of the excess steel to be chopped out, then used the fresh steel as a "Fence" to run the angle grinder down.

(Better photos of that next time)

 

 

20220507_163438.jpg.1c13a5f8ee4dd502a07892571fa3487c.jpg

 

 

This meant that the piece could then be removed, edges prepped and craned back in, to be tacked more thoroughly. Being used to working on cars I got the panel gap reasonable between the boat and the replacement sheet, then tacked it in place. What  didn't worry about initially is the parralelism/colinearity/not sticking out like a Hillbilly's tooth of the plate. This was a mistake, 6mm steel doesn't just flop into position with a gentle push.... 

 

20220601_193704.jpg.6325ef065f104fc499f7a010b6c739dd.jpg

 

 

It does go into place with a reasonably forceful pull though, so a chain hoist got it to where it needed to be. Lesson learned for next time- Get everything lined up properly before committing to weld.  

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All good stuff, just remember you’re the boss and the plate isn’t.  As well as pulling, I employed pushing.  In the photo you can see the use of a “ portapower “ ram, there was so much pressure on, that the solid tyres of the forklift were bending sideways.  
R-Tech welder, nice little machine...

 

 

F43B5C95-F6F5-4488-B643-DA46A72030AD.jpeg

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On 08/06/2022 at 07:10, Clodi said:

Fair do's I must say, I admire your efforts.

 

 

I bloomin love doing it so it's not that much effort tbf 

 

On 08/06/2022 at 07:20, NB Esk said:


All good stuff, just remember you’re the boss and the plate isn’t.  As well as pulling, I employed pushing.  In the photo you can see the use of a “ portapower “ ram, there was so much pressure on, that the solid tyres of the forklift were bending sideways.  
R-Tech welder, nice little machine...

 

 

F43B5C95-F6F5-4488-B643-DA46A72030AD.jpeg

 

Oh cool, nice to have you here, I've read your threads etc on your build, awesome work! 

 

Portapower gets featured in the next episode 

 

The RTech is a lovely bit of kit, was less than £100 new and so useful for tacking up etc. It's not got the duty cycle for the final weld up, but that's what the Oxford is for 

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48 minutes ago, harrybsmith said:

 

I bloomin love doing it so it's not that much effort tbf 

 

 

Oh cool, nice to have you here, I've read your threads etc on your build, awesome work! 

 

Portapower gets featured in the next episode 

 

The RTech is a lovely bit of kit, was less than £100 new and so useful for tacking up etc. It's not got the duty cycle for the final weld up, but that's what the Oxford is for 

I love the Oxford. Mine is 56 years old and perfect still.

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  • 2 weeks later...
4 hours ago, BWM said:

So nice to see a boat being repaired properly, well done for extending its life.

 

It'd be nice if it's still about in another 50 years, maybe then someone will put it back to "ex hire" condition and "deconvert" it 

 

To me overplating would make mo sense on this, it's hardly any more work to just cut a hole the right size and stick a panel in, get rid of the grot for good 

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7 hours ago, harrybsmith said:

To me overplating would make mo sense on this, it's hardly any more work to just cut a hole the right size and stick a panel in, get rid of the grot for good 

 

Agreed, and lovely to see it being done. I'm enjoying all your photos and commentary, much thanks!!

 

It would be a totally different kettle of fish if the boat was fully ballasted, insulated, fitted out etc and you wanted to retain the fitout......

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This restoration is the kind of thing that I think a YouTube vlog could cover really well. I for one would love to watch it. However, I suspect harrybsmith is far too busy getting on with the actual work to bother with blogging 😀

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10 hours ago, MtB said:

 

Agreed, and lovely to see it being done. I'm enjoying all your photos and commentary, much thanks!!

 

It would be a totally different kettle of fish if the boat was fully ballasted, insulated, fitted out etc and you wanted to retain the fitout......

 

It's a pleasure doing the work and quite good fun to write about it too, pleased it's well received

 

Exactly yes. I looked at buying a historic boat, that I think is still on brokerage in Staffordshire* that needs 3/4 of a baseplate fitting to it. Lovely thing, gorgeous lines and vintage engine but 10x what I paid for this, and would basically have to be taken back to a bare shell (naff insulation too), at which point I elected to just buy a bare shell and save the extra pennies for doing the work

 

*Just checked, it's sold

 

5 minutes ago, MrsM said:

This restoration is the kind of thing that I think a YouTube vlog could cover really well. I for one would love to watch it. However, I suspect harrybsmith is far too busy getting on with the actual work to bother with blogging 😀

 

I really did consider it, I was on telly doing up my current boat, but even with other people filming and editing and directing everything took 3x as long as it otherwise would. That said, if anyone with a channel wants to come along and document it then I'm happy to feature on your channel and don't want anything for it, but don't want the work of filming it! 

Edited by harrybsmith
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  • 5 weeks later...

Has it actually been a month since I updated this thread? Standards are slipping... 

 

I knew when I took the project on that the occasional weekend would be consumed by actual bill paying work, and 2 over the last month have disappeared in that way. Another disappeared in the form of the stag do of a notable forum member which gave rise to this graffiti, by a boatbuilder who wears a hat... 

 

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Anyway, some actual work has been done, including some that I filmed, link below.

 

 

Which leaves it looking something like this 

 

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Lots of the above going on, goal is by the end of July to have the other side done to the same standard as the side detailed above. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, it's the end of July*, did I do what I said I would? 

 

 

1593945896_Stbdsidereplated.PNG.eb0d7626f438df7bc4504c7ed9a463f9.PNG

 

Yeah, that'll do. 

 

Another thing that got done was the removal of the "floaty floor". The scantlings were not attached to the baseplate and sat 2" above it, which seemed daft. I believe this had been done when the new baseplate was put on. They will be replaced, but actually attached to the baseplate with proper struts between them, not just random bits of angle iron or Dexion shelving or whatever else was hanging around when it was built. 

 

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Still need to replate the pointy and roundy bits, but next will be work on the cabin, I'd like the cabin to be dry before winter ideally. There's plans for the cabin, bits being chopped out and bits being put in here and there, you'll have to wait and see exactly how... 

 

Oh, and just because i've got some more space on this post, here's some more pics of work 

 

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Edited by harrybsmith
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4 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Coming together well, I am enjoying watching progress.

 

How many shirts have you set on fire so far?  Love the welding mask as a spark shield, grand idea. One bit of steel in an eye can stop the job for weeks.

 

1 pair of trousers, 1 set of overalls (comprehensively, a proper "stop drop and roll" job), my hair x2. Sparks off a 9" grinder when concentrated onto one area really do set things on fire very readily

 

Welding mask has a grinding mode where it's fully clear, you just have to remember to turn it off grinding mode when you begin welding... 

 

Thanks for your interest! 

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52 minutes ago, merline said:

Fantastic work! Keep it up!

Speaking from experience, it is essential to get cabin weather proof before winter sets in.....


You’re right.  I’ve noticed over the years that boats especially don’t seem to like water.......

 

 

 

 

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First time I've seen this thread. Brilliant stuff and good to see someone who can see the potential in an old boat and then get on with the job. It is amazing what you can do with wedges and levers and stuff like that (plus determination and skill of course)

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1 hour ago, Bee said:

First time I've seen this thread. Brilliant stuff and good to see someone who can see the potential in an old boat and then get on with the job. It is amazing what you can do with wedges and levers and stuff like that (plus determination and skill of course)

 

 

I agree, wonderful to see it being done. 

 

One other big thing is needed though apart from the skills, is a place to do it. One needs to press on with the work as places with hard standing to work on, electricity and crane access to bring the boat and take it away don't generally come free, so there is alway time pressure to get on with it. Every week passing is another 100 (or whatever) in rent shelled out.... 

 

 

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