Saturday 6 June 2015

LIGHTSHIP CORMORANT / LADY DIXON - Chapter 99



Simon has taken himself off on a short holiday – well deserved I must say. Before he left he found time to smarten up the repairs he has been doing on the stern bulwark (Photo 991). 
 

Of course painting at deck level is easy, but the hull needs some TLC as well. He can only do what is within reach from above (Photo 992).

    Eventually of course he will have to take to the water – hopefully not to the mud like the chap I showed up to his hips in it (April).
   The stern and the port side are accessible and there is good news about the starboard side access, currently blocked by not one, but two ‘hangers on’. After two years of asking, the marine owners have finally agreed to park these vessels elsewhere.  One actually belongs to them and the other is an abandoned restoration project – no sign of the owner (or mooring fees) for a year or more. It will be interesting to see the condition of that side of Simon’s ship.
   The other excitement to look forward to  is the de-rusting below deck – something which is badly needed (Photo 993).   


We are hoping that this will be by dry-ice blasting, which leaves no residue apart from rust dust. However, it is not going to be cheap, so if any of my readers know of a charitable person/trust/organisation which would like to help preserve one of the very few ‘composite’ ships still afloat, do get in touch!
   If we can get this work done it will mark the start of the below deck preservation. As long-term readers will remember, downstairs does need a great deal of work (Photo 994).   


When the rust has gone (well most of it anyway), the interior will be painted and/or sealed with sprayed insulating foam. Simon does not want a bland, smooth box, so we will have to devise some way of keeping the character, perhaps be leaving those frames partially exposed?
David

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