Pat's Progress
We had the usual brief team meeting first thing to set our best intentions and priorities for the day.
Painting was one of them, but there was the threat of rain showers later in the day. Again, girl power stepped up to the challenge for what is a filthy job, grinding off the old paint on the cabins. 50% of the area was prepared by 3 o'clock, when we had to get on and start applying paint.
Shortly after filling the rollers, there was some rain. I counted 47 drops! All the prepared areas received a coat of red oxide before home time at 5 o'clock. If we can repeat the process on Wednesday, the top will be ready for SVCC purple.
At the stern, the rudder assembly was positioned to check how the flange connection and steering components were to fit. The flange had been cut off and now requires welding back to the post. The relationship to the hydraulic actuator all looks to be good. We need some gland packing before final assembly can take place.
The water tank is now fitted, together with its plumbing. There is a feed connection inside the engine room and the filler point to assemble before it is complete. This also permitted the re-assembly of the hydraulic motor pipes that run over the top of the tank.
Due to access limitations, the first of the new bilge pumps is now in place along side the tank (right of tank).
Finally, we took a look inside the hydraulic tank to check for sludge and perform a clean-out. A check of the level ensured that there would be no puddles when the side inspection hatch was removed. The plate had a baffle welded to it, but it also revealed a filter mounted on the outflow pipe. This was a metal gauze type and was removed and thoroughly cleaned.
Over tea break, it was suggested that we could use our new fresh water pump to lift the sludge from the tank! In the end, it was a syringe and fuel pipe combo that did the job. With the tank essentially empty, it was finally cleaned out with a cloth. (I think this has now been returned to the kitchen).
A great days work by all involved. A few more jobs to tick off the list Bob.
