Bluebell
August 2004 update.
During August, the boarding up was mostly replaced with doors being put on front and rear. Sail loft, who are making a new canopy for Roseann, kindly donated clear vinyl off cuts which we put over the window apertures. This will enable us to work in daylight and also will keep most of the rain out - a big improvement. Water was pumped out of the cabin several times (it came in through the boarded up windows) and the engine area was pressure washed. Work started on the engine which looked a lot better when it was not covered in sand and oil. We can now see what is missing! A slot in the dry dock became available and the boat was towed down to Ratho by BW and floated into the dock with a BW work boat. She had her hull surveyed and to our relief it is sound and should be good for many years to come. Ronnie Rusack of the Bridge Inn not only allowed us free use of the dry dock but he donated the paint and labour to pressure wash and black her hull. This was a big help. While the boat was in dry dock, work started to remove the old side panelling etc from the inside and this revealed that the sides are in pristine condition apart form some bits near the stern.
September 2004 update.
After her stay in dry dock, Bluebell was brought back to Drumshoreland by BW and we set to work clearing out the inside. The hull below the gunwale was lined with thick heavy sheets which had absorbed water when she was sunk. They had to go! Fortunately that day we had a bigger work party and all that lining was removed to the skip. This gave us much more room inside. In fact, it is amazing just how much space had been taken up with odd wooden constructions inside! Sanding the inside of the hull where it showed signs of rust was the next task and we then started removing the plywood which lined the roof to see what was underneath it. The centre panels were OK but the ones at the bow and stern will need sanding and painting. However, we had a find when we removed the roof lining as we found that cabling (which looks fairly new) has been put in for roof lights. On the engine front, the starter motor turned the engine after it's spell in the Street workshop. Drainage holes were drilled to let the water which gathered on the stern deck boards drain overboard and the drain holes under the hatch were discovered and all the Wester Hailes sand was removed. That should stop water coming in under the hatch! The windows are on order and before they arrive we need to finish the internal sanding and rust proofing.
There are a few photos of her in dry dock on the pix page.