James Silver Western Isles Chance Restoration

  We were going to go down to Chance this morning, however, the weather is against us working on Chance itself today as it is very damp and wet on the boat especially the decks, which are like an ice staking rink as it would be not good to work on even if it was dried later on in the day.  So it was decided to do some work around the workshop instead. Since we had been working on the deck of Chance removing the butterfly hatch lids  and the aft hatch lid and bring them back to the workshop. Simon has had a chance to dismantle the butterfly hatch lids and remove the glass out of the hatches and start to sand down the hatches removing the moss and other discolouration on the outside faces of the hatches to get back to the clean teak under the discolouration on the surface of the lids and remove all the old putty and sealant holding in the glass into the frames.  The butterfly hatch lids are in good condition given the fact they have been neglected for the past 20 years without any mainte

This certificate shows that the National Historic  Ships UK see Chance as meriting inclusion on their register of Historic ships has Chance is of merit as Chance is a historic ship of note and as such needs to be restored to her original condition and preserved and restored.  To this end we are in the process of trying get funding for funding bodies in the maritime sector to help us achieve Chances' restoration and have her once again sailing the high seas. 

Having removed these lids off the butterfly hatch bases at the weekend it was time to dismantle the lids so the extent of the damage if any was present in the lids  The surface needed to be given a heavy sanding to get rid of the grey surface oxidation and the moss that had grown on the surface after years of neglect.   Once the splines and putty was removed from around the glass it just needed a little pressure and light tapping with a leather hammer and the glass came out of the frames  Then it was a matter of cleaning out the old putty from the frames to let the frames start to dry out after years of  neglect and lack of varnish and a lot of TLC that they need them to keep looking good  The four lids now sanded down and ready to put on the selves in the workshop to dry out until they are ready to be restored along with the bases which are still on the deck of Chance. Once we have got the bases removed they will get the same treatment as the lids and then left to dry out until they a

It has been a busy week at Chance Restoration HQ, because the last few days the weather as been not so good for working outside, we took the chance to sort out the parts of Chance we brought back from Woodplumpton when Chance was transported down to Essex. There was a large amount of parts that were loaded in the two box trailers, some of it is little more than firewood, however, there are a number of important bits which can be used as patterns and others that need cleaning with degreaser and then cleaning down to get rid of any oil and grease before drying off in the workshop before being repaired and re-painting and putting away or putting back in the boat. Such items such as floorboards which need to go back so we can walk around the inside safely. One of the items that was brought back was the over a ton of scrap iron which made up Chances internal ballast. This will need sandblasting and then coating with epoxy tar and then stored and when the time is right re-fitted to the boat

 It has been a busy week at Chance Restoration HQ, because the last few days the weather as been not so good for working outside, we took the chance to sort out the parts of Chance we brought back from Woodplumpton when Chance was transported down to Essex.  There was a large amount of parts that were loaded in the two box trailers, some of it is little more than firewood, however, there are a number of important bits which can be used as patterns and others that need cleaning with degreaser and then cleaning down to get rid of any oil and grease before drying off in the workshop before being repaired and re-painting and putting away or putting back in the boat. Such items such as floorboards which need to go back so we can walk around the inside safely. One of the items that was brought back was the over a ton of scrap iron which made up Chances internal ballast. This will need sandblasting and then coating with epoxy tar and then stored and when the time is right re-fitted to the boa

The first job will be to sort out the transom and the starboard side deck which has been poorly repaired in the past and as caused a lot of damage to this part of the boats' hull and deck. The first part of this job is to take out the parts of the repair which are holding the starboard side down in the position it is at the moment. Then carefully prop and shore up the starboard side until it returns to its original shape and then re-fix the planking to the new oak framework once this is made and shaped to be the correct shape. The good part of this job is that although the port side framework is rotten there is enough of it remaining that patterns can be taken from it. Then make mirror images of the port side and fix in the starboard framework before renewing the port side parts. Once this is done and the transom framework is once more sound and the correct shape we can tackle the beam shelf and short deck beams along the starboard side deck and also the aft deck planking which nee

  We have at long last been able to get to Chance and start working on her. Last week was a wash out as it did not stop raining long enough to get any work done on her. So it was a matter of doing planning instead and getting things sorted for this weekend.  As you can see if you become a patreon @  https://www.patreon.com/Chance_1948 in that video the amount of work on the first day was not a lot, just removing bits and pieces out of Chance, also removing some of the rain that got in the boat as we have not had chance or the money to get a large cover for her yet. I have got a number of trestles and boards which I had spare in and around my workshop and yard. These are just the right height to work on the beam shelf and the deck. Now they are in place we can get on with the major repairs on the beam shelf and the sides decks.  One job we will have to do is to shore up the aft deck and support it while we repair and replace the the whole deck structure over the coming months and also t

 It has been just over a week since Chance made her way down to Walton on the Naze and little in the way of work has been done on Chance. The weather has been against us with it raining most of the time since Chance arrived in Walton on the Naze. Hopefully now the forecast is for a few days of dry weather we should be able to get on to Chance and empty out the bits that came down from Woodplumpton on the boat.  The wood that was put in the aft cabin and the tools and tool boxes we had in Chance when she was in Woodplumpton which now have to come out the wood to go under the boat  and the tools returned to my workshop so they can be used to continue the restoration of Chance.  So I will continue to sort out the transom framework and put the correct shape back into the starboard side and so it mirrors the port side which is still in its original shape and what the starboard side will be after the old framework on the starboard is removed and the Hull is aloud to move freely back into the

Chance now safely chocked up in her home for the duration of her restoration.  Now it is time to build a framework over her to keep the weather.  At least now we can get all the way round Chance to work on her at any angle Another boat that looks like a James Silver in the same yard  I have been informed it was built by another boatyard near to Silvers boatyard   

Chance arrived at midday and was offloaded at the local marina boatyard where is in now laid up ready for the major works to start in the coming weeks and months to come.  Now Chance is near to my workshop work should be easier and be able to be done at a faster rate than before. She will be well protected from the elements as she is low down with high banks around her  Chance is going to be supported a lot better now with many more supports under her in better places and keep her in the correct shape This part of the stem is going to need some attention when we get round to this part of the restoration and may have to do a bit of investigation into why this as happened and sort this problem out The once proud boat is once more looking to the future with  renewed hope and a second chance of making the high seas once more   

Getting the crane and lorry set up to get Chance loaded on to the low loader so she can make her road trip down to Essex from Woodplumpton  Getting the slings set upo to lift Chance for the first time in 2 years  Making final adjustments to the slings before making the lift  Taking the weight and ensuring Chance lift level so it can be moved over the loader trailer  Finally the crane operator feels it is okay and is ready to make the lift  There Chance is in the air and over the low loader and being moved into position  Finally on the low loader trailer and just needs the props putting into position  The company I use for any of the big boats I need moving round the country and always give a first class service  There Chance goes out of the yard which has been her home for the past 2 years and now on her way to her new home in Walton on the Naze in Essex