My boat has sunk in Kingston (1939 ww2 wooden motor cruiser)

[gazza]

Not easy to tell from my workshop in the Midlands, Marcus says yes

 

Richard

Ah, didn't realise you were not on Fairstar.

Thank you for all your amazing help!!!

 

The stern glad has been raised by a few as one of the likely causes of water intake, and you can see some seepage...

 

I'll clean it up a bit prior to Richard's arrival on site... All that dirt is river silt basically!

 

Mx

You will get there.

 

All the best :-)

[RLWP]

There's a less silty, greasy, grotty stern gland here: http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=40867&p=746036

 

Richard

[gazza]

BTW Marcus.

 

Keep the name Fairstar, its a great name for a boat.

 

Ours - Fairlight, is back to its original name (minus number) from its days with Herbert Woods of potter heigham. She was one of the original batches of Elysian 27's Harry Lincoln sold to the broads hire boat operators.

[magnetman]

Someone early on in the thread mentioned that the boat had run aground

 

 

There is a chance this could have actually dislodged the stern gear quite badly. I hope not because that would be quite serious.

 

Trypo edit

 

 

And the gearbox failure. Ok so it was nackered but it took a bit 'extra' to break it, I would have thought.

Edited September 11, 2014 by magnetman

[RLWP]

And the gearbox failure. Ok so it was nackered but it took a bit 'extra' to break it, I would have thought.

 

When we have got to the end of the sinking saga, I'll do a 'what's in the box' for the Perkins S6M - including the space where the disintegrated ball race used to live. That is as in 'totally disappeared' disintegrated, only one of the tracks and a handful of balls and fragments of cage left

 

Richard

Edited September 11, 2014 by RLWP

[The Ents]

Tat nipple greaser for your grease gun on ebay

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SLIDE-ON-GREASE-GUN-NIPPLE-CONNECTOR-FOR-HEX-TECALEMIT-TAT-NIPPLES-/281436803286?pt=UK_BOI_FarmingEquipment_RL&hash=item4186f0d0d6

 

Easier than guessing the thread size..

 

Good luck,

 

Mike.

[junior]

Richard, don't try and stick your magnetic Primrose Engineering signs to the boat when you get there, you might never see them again :-p

[Marcus Warry]

Hi richard,

 

It's hard to measure super accurately.. But it's very close to being 2 inches & 3 inches... Given her age, I figure it makes sense to give you the diameters in inches...

 

Hope that helps?!

 

Or do I need I get a proper measuring device involved, that will clasp the propshaft and give a super accurate reading? I just used a tape measure...

 

Mx

[RLWP]

Nope, that will do - I needed those to work out the packing size.

 

So, 3" - 2" is 1". 1" is for two pieces of packing so we need some 1/2". The shaft is 2" diameter, Pi is approximately 3 so each ring is a bit over 6" long. Three of them would be 18" so to be safe we need a couple of foot of 1/2" packing, half a metre would do at a pinch

 

Richard

[Mr Badger]

A 1922 magazine article about a pair of Vosper built boats, Albatross and Osprey. I don't think Fairstar actually is one of these but there seems (to me) to be some similarity in the overall look and the length and beam.

 

[David Mack]

Hi richard,

 

It's hard to measure super accurately.. But it's very close to being 2 inches & 3 inches... Given her age, I figure it makes sense to give you the diameters in inches...

 

Hope that helps?!

 

Or do I need I get a proper measuring device involved, that will clasp the propshaft and give a super accurate reading? I just used a tape measure...

 

Mx

Or for a more accurate measurement clean off the areas to be measured, then wrap a strip of paper right round and mark off the circumference. Flatten out the paper and measure. Divide by pi to get the diameter.

[the barnacle]

good to see her raised, i have followed this thread but was in no position to help you at this time.

[Arthur Brown]

Interesting magazine article. Richard's observations that the current engine is not the first could indicate towards the Kelvin mentioned in the write up. Fairstar has a plate indicating that it is a launch in a series, so these (Albatross and Osprey) could be of the same series, and the earlier name of Fairstar apparently being Kingfisher lends some support to a series of boats named after birds. Only surmisings and musings, Marcus will need real evidence to find a place in the register of historic ships and all the contacts and responsibilities that may offer.

 

Does anyone know whether Thorneycroft as currently embodied in a naval constructor maintains any researchable records?

[RLWP]

This is the rear grease point, and the sleeve off the front one:

 

 

Both are 1/4" BSP.

 

Naturally, Fairstar manages to make a simple problem complicated...

 

 

The grease tube was screwed into the stern tube. From memory, it is positioned under some poorly supported floorboards, I suspect it had become the floor support. As you can see, it's broken off

 

Fortunately, there is one turn of thread left, measuring that gives 3/8" BSF. I can turn this part down and rethread it, hopefully I can get the broken off bit out of the stern tube...

 

Richard

[Marcus Warry]

Thanks for all you input and help everyone!

Very interesting article!! I'm going to spend a day in the maritime museum one day and see what I can dig up...

 

Having a few drinks in the boaters inn on Wednesday if any of you locals fancy a pint... They are laying on a bit of a party for local types... So Gould be fun!

 

I'm hijacking it as a mini boat raising party!

 

Marcus

X

 

Boaters inn, canbury gdns, lower ham road, kt2 5au (kingston!)

[Marcus Warry]

Richard came and weaved his legendary magic again.

 

The best news is that the engine turns over... And hasn't seized... Richard has taken the injectors away to have a proper gander at them... And my job is to turn the engine over from time to time to make sure it doesn't seize up...

 

Next step... If the injectors are ok... Is to look at the starter motor... & electrics... And see if we can fire her up!!!

 

Hope you're all well!

 

Marcus

X

[craftycarper]

Richard came and weaved his legendary magic again.

The best news is that the engine turns over... And hasn't seized... Richard has taken the injectors away to have a proper gander at them... And my job is to turn the engine over from time to time to make sure it doesn't seize up...

Next step... If the injectors are ok... Is to look at the starter motor... & electrics... And see if we can fire her up!!!

Hope you're all well!

Marcus

X

. Keep the updates coming Marcus this is becoming like a TV soap I can't wait to see her up and running again

[RLWP]

I have now managed to wash the interesting combination of river Thames, WD40 and used engine oil out of my hair...

 

Richard

. Keep the updates coming Marcus this is becoming like a TV soap I can't wait to see her up and running again

 

I should have taken a photo, Fairstar is looking very nice at the moment, perhaps better than before her sinking. No mice left on board either

 

Richard

[Marcus Warry]

Thanks Richard!

 

Yes, sinking a boat is a great if not rather extreme way to tackle a mouse problem... It also removes the ingrained diesel smell she used to have... Admittedly replacing it with a river silt odour instead.... Which whilst preferable is gradually dissipating with each bag of sludge I remove from the bilges... Oh and my 'Brecon beacons' air freshener will have her smelling of home in no time at all I'm sure!!

 

Thanks again for coming today! Very relieved indeed to know the engine turns over and has every chance of purring once more in the foreseeable future...

 

Marcus

X

[RLWP]

Don't forget to do your home work!

 

I'd love to see that front deck sorted, it will be fantastic

 

Richard

[Swallowman]

Tat nipple greaser for your grease gun on ebay

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SLIDE-ON-GREASE-GUN-NIPPLE-CONNECTOR-FOR-HEX-TECALEMIT-TAT-NIPPLES-/281436803286?pt=UK_BOI_FarmingEquipment_RL&hash=item4186f0d0d6

 

Easier than guessing the thread size..

 

Good luck,

 

Mike.

 

When I bought my first car (1947 Series E Morris 8) in 1969, I bought a Swiss-made Wanner 315 grease gun which I still use on my 1937 Morris 8 and Rover 3 litre cars. There were a few nipples that were difficult to get at with the rigid steel tube from the pump to the nipple connector and I found that by using a flexible rubber brake hose instead of the steel tube, I could get at the awkward nipples much more easily. It strikes me that the TAT nipples need the grease gun to be applied at an almost exact right angle to ensure a tight fit so the brake hose idea may allow a little more leeway if the space is tight.

Good luck with all the work, with all Marcus's enthusiasm it will happen.

[RLWP]

Fortunately, the access to the Tat nipples is good. There are a couple of grease points on the rudder tube that have the other kind of nipple. I'm going to swap them for the Tat type so a single gun will do all the necessary greasing

 

Richard

[Hair Bear Bunch]

All quiet so I guess it's still floating then, how's it progressing?

[Peter X]

I'm guessing we haven't heard much lately because Marcus is busy doing a lot of work to get the leak(s) fixed and make sure they stay fixed. He probably needs to do some accountancy work to pay for it all, and devote some time to other things in life having used up a lot of time over the summer on the boat. I admire his determination, it's nice that some people want to make the effort to keep attractive older boats going, when from a hard-headed financial point of view a modern boat is the easier option.

[Hair Bear Bunch]

Fair point. We'll assume no news is good news!