Life's a Gamble, so lets take a Chance Restoration Project

Making a good start on removing old loose paint on the planking in the forecabin on the starboard side, Once the paint is removed and the repairs are done in the forecabin then this whole area will be repainted. The main problem with removing paint and varnish in this part of the boat are the angles of frames and bulkheads so having to use a number of different types of sander to get into all the spaces. The first of the forward hanging locker bulkhead panels scraped of old varnish and ready to sand back to expose the fixings holding the panel in placed. The hull is not very flat on the inside so having to use different sanders to get into place where other sanders can not fit. I will have to make a platform in the forward end of the cabin to to stand on as the original floor ends before this part of the boat.  A good start in the forecabin just got to work out how best to remove these bulkhead panels without splitting them  

The skylights are now covered with plywood while we work on the rest of the boat. The skylight hatches are now varnished and in storage until it is time for them to go back on once the base part as been restored to its original condition and varnished again. The sliding doors will have to be removed and repaired as necessary and new glass made and fitted once more. There is also some work to be done on the wheelhouse side where it as been damaged and not repaired very well in the past.  The aft cabin hatch top section as been repaired however, the bottom part needs a bit of TLC and rubbing down re-varnishing   

At last I have a galley work top to put the kettle on and make a brew while working on Chance. I just need to get the Microwave from my workshop and I will be able to heat up food while working on the boat without having to leave Chance. I do have a camping fridge onboard so I can keep food onboard over night when needed.   I do have my mug from my son onboard a present from a couple of years ago on father's day The window is blanked off as is the chimney hole which is one of the holes which as to be filled in as the cooker is going back in its original position in the galley space. I just have to build a new framework to sit it on after the other work in that area of the boat is done.  The port side window as been blanked off as well and so as the vent for the diesel heater which was fitted to the main bulkhead at the front of the main cabin. The diesel heater was originally fitted on this bulkhead below the restoration project sheets on the bulkhead and will be going ba...

The aft heads compartment appears to have faired reasonable okay . The main job in here will be to fill the hole on the cabin side and start to remove the loose paint and inspect the area for rot and sort out any holes in the deckhead where vents have been removed over the years and blanks need to be put over the holes. The engineering room needs a lot more work as there are a lot more holes to cover both on the deck which is missing and the hull planking as well The port side cabin side may be able to be sorted out with grading pieces in some areas as much of the cabin side is not badly rotten. Unlike the starboard side which is going to be needing to be replaced completely  I may well be able to save the aft cabin side as well just need to inspect more to see if this is the case. This port hand side of the hull is in reasonable condition and will need the paint removing and the gaps in the planks covering over until funds become available to re-plank this area of the hull Chance ...

This is the original Baby Blake toilet out of Chance completely dismantled and ready to be check over to see what parts are needed to restore the toilet back to a working toilet once more This is the second toilet which we got a few years ago and are now in the process of dismantling and doing the same checks on this toilet to see which parts are needed to restore this toilet back into a working toilet again. The design of this second toilet differs in that this part is different to the original toilet, We may have to change this part for a modern part which the company who own the Baby Blakes now have as a replacement part. This part needed a bit of tapping with a mallet and a piece of wood to come out of the pump housing. It is likely it as not been apart since it was build over 50 years ago. The original toilet as been clean and soda blasted and is now ready to go back together once the parts as ordered and the body of the toilet have been repainted. The bowl as got the original fac...

  https://youtu.be/F6xkAPTKnnU .After a long while doing other jobs on Chance. I thought it time to deep dive into the ship's toilets and show the inner working of these classic marine toilets. The one in bits is the original toilet out of Chance's aft heads compartment and the other two toilets are toilets that I have collected over the past few years in or=der to rebuild the original toilet. However there appears to be enough parts that stripping down the two other toilets there is going to be enough parts to make a second toilet for the toilet missing out of the forecabin of Chance. I am going to do a series of video's showing the dismantling of the two spare toilets and the rebuild of two of the toilets in toilets that will be back in working order once more. That's the plan !!!