This last week started with a long drive up country from Essex to Lancashire

This last week started with a long drive up he country from Essex to Lancashire. This time I had to go and sort out my home from home,, the family touring caravan we are using  as our living accommodation while we are working on Chance to get Chance strong enough to transport down the country next spring to continue the work at my yard in Essex.  

Having not being able to get up to Chance at Woodplumpton for 14 weeks because of health reasons, it was good to make a fresh start on her, having missed such a long time and the good weather. 

However, this week the weather gods were on our side for the most part one damp day and one frosty day. So on the whole a good week. 

At the beginning of the week. my brother John got to work on cutting all the remain bits which held the engines in the boat, pipes, cables , linkages and nuts and bolts of many different sizes. Over the course of a day he successfully removed every single part that could hold the engines in place and then checked and re-checked just to make sure. 

While he was doing this, I was in the forecabin removing the chain locker bulkhead and any other bits in the forecabin which needed removing. Once that was done I turned my attention to the forecabin bilge which had not seen the light of day for many a year, if ever. So first job was to remove as much rubbish has possible out by hand, then pump as much water out with the mobile bilge pump and the wet vac out the rest. 


When that was done it was possible to see the condition of the planking for the first time from the inside of the hull. It appears tat the dirt in the bilge along with the oil and diesel that had made its way into the lower bilge had pickled the wood in such a way as to protect it.

So by Tuesday evening the forecabin bilge was for the first time in many years cleaner than it had been for a lot of week. 


By the  Wednesday evening  the engines were ready to come out and we had cut the section of the wheelhouse roof out ready for the engine lift and removal from the boat on Thursday morning by the owner of the yard where Chance is presently being stored. 

At the appointed time we lifted the wheelhouse roof off and laid it up against the wheelhouse aft face and Joh  the crane came along with his mini crane and got into position to lift the engines out. Sure enough they did not move as they did not to be parted from the boat they had serviced for the past 73 years. however, after a little help they broke free of the engine beds and cam out of the boat. The boat gave out a few noises as 1.3 tons of weight was removed from the engine bay. This being the combined weight of the two engines.

Now that they are out of the engine bay, the next time we go to the boat the water and fuel tanks can be removed along with the rest of the engine bits and pieces  which were not removed this time.

So the plan for next time is to continue in removing the remaining parts in the engine bay and continue to clean out the forward end of the boat to as far back as the forward engine bay bulkhead. Then turn our attention to the aft cabin an heads compartment and the engineering room,

At which point we will have got as far as we need to before making a start on making repairs to the planking. 


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