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alan_fincher

By alan_fincher
in History & Heritage

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DShK Rising Star

DShK

Posted
Posted

Cedar was similar! Long handled scraper + pressure washer and wet&dry vac will deal with all the loose stuff. Any idea how old the bottom is?

alan_fincher Veteran II

alan_fincher

Posted
  • Author
Posted
2 hours ago, David Mack said:

I hope that plug isn't there to block a hole in the bottom!

 

Of course not!   It is designed so that you can remove it to drain out the water, wherever it is coming in from.

Francis Herne Experienced

Francis Herne

Posted
Posted (edited)
18 hours ago, DShK said:

Any idea how old the bottom is?

In the hold it's the original or at least pretty old - riveted lap joints every few feet, riveted onto the chine angles and keelson (but no rivets on the bottom of the knees...?)

Most of that has been overplated; the weird plug is a Keith Ball idea to fill any void above the overplate with old engine oil!

Under the cabin is entirely new bottom plate and welded footings, not very much original boat at that end really.

Edited by Francis Herne
  • Greenie 1
David Mack Veteran II

David Mack

Posted
Posted
9 minutes ago, Francis Herne said:

In the hold it's the original or at least pretty old - riveted lap joints every few feet, riveted onto the chine angles (but no rivets on the bottom of the knees...?)

Odd that there's no rivets to the knees. Are there welds? Or how is the bottom plate attached to the knees?

From the lack of rivets I assumed that must be a replacement bottom, albeit of some age.

11 minutes ago, Francis Herne said:

Under the cabin is entirely new bottom plate and welded footings, not very much original boat at that end really.

I assume that's the Martin Fuller new back end.

I see you have edited out the reference to the original cast sternpost. I assume that went when the boat was shortened.

Francis Herne Experienced

Francis Herne

Posted
Posted (edited)
23 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Odd that there's no rivets to the knees. Are there welds? Or how is the bottom plate attached to the knees?

From the lack of rivets I assumed that must be a replacement bottom, albeit of some age.

I assume that's the Martin Fuller new back end.

I see you have edited out the reference to the original cast sternpost. I assume that went when the boat was shortened.

I think what Keith's done is remove the rivets and use the resulting holes to plug-weld from the knees through the holes in the original plate onto the doubler. Couldn't get under the boat to see if there were corresponding weld marks underneath though.

 

The stern post (and skeg etc.) casting is original - if you look at photos of her as a workboat, only the very back of the counter was taken off. The new counter band goes all the way around almost to the engine room though. The swim sides are original (except the bottom 3") and the lower halves of both bulkheads, but the bottom and uxter plate are new and welded on without retaining the original angle sections.

 

I have a bad habit of editing posts in an "oh, actually this reads better" way for several minutes after deciding they're finished. As again this time...

Edited by Francis Herne
roland elsdon Influencer

roland elsdon

Posted
Posted

Depending on when Keith ‘did the work’ you might find it was done by Dave Linney or Simon Wain both of whom worked at Stretton many years ago and both of whom are still around.

cant see either fitting an oil filled overplate section with a sump plug. For a start the plates have to be plug welded together so minimal voids. Oil wouldnt go far.

when we had fenny overplated underneath we cut sections out of the new plate,welded new plate to old bottom and then put the cutout sections back in.

And drilled and plug welded the inner to the outer bottom.

Very little room for oil, you would have to force it in.

Mind you if you had a leak between plates you and all the wildlife would soon know

  • Greenie 1
Francis Herne Experienced

Francis Herne

Posted
Posted (edited)

I will have to ask Dave Linney if he knows about it.

 

There are a few of them consistently placed, so intended for some purpose - Paul Barber and the previous owners say oil and I can't think of an alternative reason.

I certainly hope there's not much space - on Atlas the original bottom has holes and so part of the hold looks a bit like a padded jacket which will be a horrible job to sort out. That was plug welded in the same way you described. Couldn't find any evidence from above of such on Southall; as mentioned I couldn't get underneath.

 

More on the subject when I get stuck into cleaning things up and can see clearly what's going on! I'm aware there's some uncertainty and made my offer accordingly.

Edited by Francis Herne
David Mack Veteran II

David Mack

Posted
Posted
56 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

For a start the plates have to be plug welded together so minimal voids. Oil wouldnt go far.

Depends. If you first screwed pipe stubs into the threaded holes you could apply a pressure head of oil at one end and wait for it percolate through. Once oil appears at a hole replace the pipe stub with a plug. Should obtain fairly good filling, and better than having water in there.

roland elsdon Influencer

roland elsdon

Posted
Posted

Immediately fenny was overplated on the bottom we very carefully cleaned off the hold floor and protected it. To prevent rust through from the top.

luckily we had overplated early so she wasnt too bad, but the rivetted keelson literally came apart in my hands.

Funny we lusted after Atlas in the 1980s but she was in bwb hands . She was the notional pair with our butty Atalanta. By the time she was available we had Thaxted. 

  • Greenie 1
Paul H Rising Star

Paul H

Posted
Posted (edited)

It’s hard to understand why you would overplate the bottom of a bare hull when it would be a simpler and better job to simply cut out and replace.

 

Southall at Keith’s yard March 2006.

 

Paul

 

 

IMG_0316.jpeg

Edited by Paul H
  • Greenie 2
Francis Herne Experienced

Francis Herne

Posted
Posted (edited)
13 hours ago, Paul H said:

It’s hard to understand why you would overplate the bottom of a bare hull when it would be a simpler and better job to simply cut out and replace.

 Because the bottom is a rather nice bit of riveted construction that's original to the boat? The simplest and 'best' option for many purposes would be to not buy a 90-year-old boat in the first place!

 

I have seen many photos of Southall in strange orientations at Baddesley and Stretton. Compo also described some rather unorthodox methods of moving her around.

Edited by Francis Herne
  • 5 weeks later...
Paul H Rising Star

Paul H

Posted
Posted

I believe this boat was formed from the stern of the LMS boat “Dart” and was at one time the British Waterways hire cruiser “Water Ivy.”

 

Paul

  • Greenie 2
MtB Veteran II

MtB

Posted
Posted
14 hours ago, Speedwheel said:

Price reduced. 

 

Please someone buy it! 

 

It looks a bargain, but everyone is scared to spend anything given the stonking tax rises Saint Rachel will be rolling out in the forthcoming budget.

  • Greenie 2
James Owen Collaborator

James Owen

Posted
Posted
On 18/11/2025 at 10:25, MtB said:

 

It looks a bargain, but everyone is scared to spend anything given the stonking tax rises Saint Rachel will be rolling out in the forthcoming budget.

At 56k?

Naughty Cal Veteran II

Naughty Cal

Posted
Posted
On 18/11/2025 at 10:25, MtB said:

 

It looks a bargain, but everyone is scared to spend anything given the stonking tax rises Saint Rachel will be rolling out in the forthcoming budget.

Agreed.

 

The uncertainty surrounding the budget is affecting everything. No one is buying anything!

  • 2 weeks later...

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