Sabrina Swan

Saturday, 5 November 2011

5th November 2011

After nearly 21 months of hard work, she was put back on the water where she belonged. It was a nervous time, had I repaired her hull correctly, had I fixed the support timbers enough so she wouldn't buckle.

If you are looking for a mooring near Chester or somewhere to do your boat up then I'd recommend Golden Nook, although the hard standing is essentially a farmers field it has power and water and plenty of helpful people that have worked on boats for many years. I wouldn't have been able to complete Sabrina without their help and support.

Golden Nooks details:

Golden Nook Moorings
Long Lane
Hargrave
Chester
Cheshire
CH3 7RG

Telephone: 01829 781 272

I guess only time would tell and show if the estimated 900 hours of work had been worth it.

I think everyone was pleased to finally see her afloat. I started the engine and off we went, the water pump on the engine didn't work to start with, but after a little fettling it was pumping away nicely.

We cruised to the other side of Beeston before the light finally gave out.

Sunday, 18 September 2011

18th September 2011

I've been busy with the paint and varnish as you can see, she's looking like a proper boat again.

I can't believe how much proper boat paint costs, but the difference in quality is amazing. Below the rubbing strake in the pictures are three coats of International Pricom primer with three coats of International Navigator anti fouling, total cost £300. Plus two coats of epoxy resin.

However she looks amazing for a bit of paint and varnish, even if I do say so myself!

Sunday, 28 August 2011

28th August 2011

Its looks like its been snowing on Sabrina at the moment as I've been cutting the foam to size that will make the mattresses and also the seating in the saloon.

People offered lots of advice on the best way to do it, ranging from a bread knife to an electric carving knife, I used a pad saw in the end and it worked fine, I suspect you can use anything you want.

The pad saw left a rough edge in places when I got a little over excited while trimming it, the best thing to do if this happens is to use some rough sandpaper, I used 60 grit to smooth the edge and shape it.