James Silver Western Isles Chance Restoration

 Update on the movement of Chance, Yesterday had a long drive to Woodplumpton to pick up the larger of the two trailers with the last of the bits from Chance The larger of the trailers had the last of the ballast weights we removed from the bilges earlier in the year before we cleaned out the bilges. This time it was about a ton in weight of iron weights . This with the three quarters  of ton of iron ballast weights we have already got back at the yard is quite a lot of weight we have removed from the boat. This is only a small amount of the weight we have removed, one a quarter tons of  which the engines weighted and the fuel and water tanks and the stern gear which as also been removed. Then a lot of furniture as come out of the interior of the cabins so all that is left is the bulkheads which are still in position keeping the boats shape.  So it is one final trip to Woodplumpton on Monday to pick up the smaller trailer and supervise the loading of Chance on to transport fro her trip

Over the past week my son Michael and myself have been at Woodplumpton finishing off loading the two box trailers with the last of the items from Chance. Now the trailers are loaded up to the gills with the last of the ballast weights from out of the bilges of Chance. The last of the furniture and old floorboards and other items from inside the cabins of Chance are now loaded all that is left to do is bring the trailers home to Walton on the Naze and empty the contents and label up the parts that are going to be used as patterns and what will be reused later on in the restoration project. That bit of the time we spent up at Woodplumpton in the yard where Chance is presently and waiting to be moved at the end of the month to come down to Walton on the Naze to continue the restoration where Chance will be close to my workshop and my home. This part of the operation when well enough apart from the weather was against us and it was showers and then rain for the time we were at the yard whe

  Tomorrow and for the next three days we are going back to Chance were Chance is presently laid up in Woodplumpton to get her safe and ready to go on transport at the end of the month. The main job will be to put the wood that when up to her last time in the boat, originally we were going to steam in some rib, however, thing got side tracked and that is not going to be the case. The wood is going to be put in the main cabin and the wheelhouse roof is going to be put in the cockpit so that it will not get damaged or lost on the trip down from Woodplumpton to Essex on the 1st of November. The masts will be put on the transport along with Chance, however, the booms will be able to come back with on the trailer on the set of high bars on the second trailer along with any of the parts that have not already been brought back to Essex before on previous trips. So part of this weeks trip is to going back a lot of the equipment that is in the boats interior and under her sides and make the

This was last year in May when we as a family could over ownership of Chance and made a start on the work to restore Chance back to her former glory. The task ahead we knew was going to be large and take a long time to achieve, we knew that as a family we could overcome the challenges ahead with a great deal of tenacity and patience and a large amount of luck along the way.  For the people who have been following us on our YouTube video blog, our Chance_1948 patreon page, on our Chance Restoration Facebook page and the other social media platforms which we regularly post on a weekly basis. So that followers can see the amount of work we have done over the past year.  Although, the progress has been slow until now, it should be quicker now that Chance will hopefully be coming south to Essex in a little over two weeks time and then the major restoration work can and will be underway as Chance will be every close to my own yard and workshop and therefore I will be close to my tools and la

The entrance to the Museum was impressive with a sailing vessel over the main gate and the building around the entrance in much the same way that they would have been when originally build.   The aft view of the HMS Trincomalee, She was a fighting ship build at the end of the Napoleonic period, however, it never saw action and became a training ship and other roles before finishing up at this museum. Michael misbehaving and being put in the stocks, before being let out after serving his punishment.  A side on view of the mighty ship  A photo of the many lifeboats that have served this port of Hartlepool over the past from rowing/sailing lifeboats to the modern all weather lifeboat it has today.  

We are as a family have just had a great day in Whitby, re-visiting many of the places that Simon visited as a young child with his parents and brother and sister when he lived in Yorkshire before moving south and eventually living in Essex with his wife Tricia and son Michael. Captain Cook a son of Whitby was one of Simon's hero's who sailed to many far off places around the globe. One thing that Simon did do was to make a life as a sailor and in his own way sailed to many a place himself, may not have sailed to as many far off places as Captain Cook. However Simon did have a number of adventures over the years and with the help of his wife Tricia and son Michael hopes to to have many more with his own family. This photo is of Captain Cook looking over the Whitby harbour where he learn to sail and where he left to go to the far reach's of the world on his voyages of discovery. The plinth this statue stands on is set upon as compass rose with pointers, pointing to the North

Just one more weeks work up at Woodplumpton on Chance to get some new steamed oak ribs in her before she is loaded on to transport and moved down to Essex to her new home and then the restoration project can gain speed and the work to get her Hull and decks and superstructure water and weathertight can begin a pace .Chance It is a large project and no mistaking that, however,broken down into smaller parts it is not so daunting a task. That is how I look at Chances' restoration. Get the Hull Deck and Superstructure water and weather tight. Which is the largest task ahead in the short term. then tackle each cabin one stage at a time until we can get her afloat once more.. It is going to take 4 to 6 years, Not the flexible 2 years that Leo Sampson keeps saying it is going to take him to get Tally Hoo done. The big difference between us is that he is starting from knowing a small amount of what takes to restore a vessel of Tally Hoo's size and his miscalculation on the time it is g

  This is Chance a year ago before I made a start on her full restoration The forecabin during the early stages of the restoration  Now with all the furniture removed and ready to get on with thew restoration of the cabin  Two early photos of the starboard hand side of the main cabin before this was all removed to get to the hull planking and the ribs so that they can be repaired. The whole of the main cabin removed and what was able to be removed in one piece is now in storage and other parts that were in not such good condition are being rebuild in the same method as when they were originally constructed in 1948 The galley area stripped down to the bare hull so that necessary repairs can be made to the bulkheads and planking and ribs before the galley is refitted back in place. The engines that were no longer serviceable were removed and the whole area was cleaned and the fuel and water tanks were removed as well The condition of the fuel and water tanks showed that they were beyond