Saturday 28-November-2017 is Sculptor's 82nd birthday

Sculptor - a boat built by boat builders rather than a boat built by ship builders - and so much more elegant for that.

Sculptor is a 'Star' class boat named for the Sculptor Constellation
Sculptor on ITV Anglia - 22-September-2014
Sculptor on BBC Look East 16-October-2014
Sculptor on Narrowboatworld

Tuesday 24 June 2014

Getting ready for Braunston

May 30th          
DB repacked stern gland with one new packing ring, stopping persistent drip. To be checked after next few trips and tightened as necessary.
May 31st          
KD and Steve D left 11.00 to wind boat above A508 bridge. Weather dry for once. Engine ran 2 hours.
June 9th            
Fuel tanks topped up from NB Towcester with 147 litres Diesel.
June 11th          
During the previous day a passing boater had managed to pull out a staple holding the rearmost white strings over the cratch, leaving the fore end looking like a dog’s breakfast. At the end of the Stoke Bruerne Volunteer day DB, KD and Rob W managed to replace the missing staple and to restring the drooping ones, returning the fore end to some semblance of order for next weekend.
June 13th          
Tom Stewart arrived to take charge over the period of the Stoke Bruerne Family Festival.
June 14th          
Tom drove to Braunston and returned with sufficient 7mm rope to replace all the breeching strings and also rings and hooks for top and other strings. He and Richard Cox removed the cages in which the plastic tanks had arrived. These have now been taken over by the Friends of the Museum site management team for storing some of their tentage. Tom and DB discussed a plan to tidy up the back end of the hold using tension straps and planks to prevent the tanks from bowing out under water pressure. The tanks can then be covered with a black tarpaulin and form the basis of a small deck for visitors at shows etc.
June 15th          
The boat was taken for a short trip to the winding hole, then down the locks and back up under Tom’s captaincy. Crew included Louise Stockwin and Miriam Tedder (both CRT) and Lorna York. Engine ran 2 hours.
June 21st          
Tom Stewart and Richard Cox continued with preparations for the Braunston Gathering. The white strings over the cratch were tightened, Rob W brought back two shutts which he had repaired and these were replaced, the boat was completely pumped out, and the two steel cages were transferred to the Friends of the Museum’s Site Management team. Other jobs including rolling the side cloths so that they looked properly trim, blacking the cabin range, adjusting the exhaust chimney collar, freeing and oiling the swivel hook at the stern, and making up a covering platform at the back end of the hold and covering all with tarpaulin. Finally, all the brasses were polished. The boat now looks ready for trade.
It might not seem a lot but the boys did spend quite a bit of time on this.

Volunteer hours 42 (total 292 to date).

Tom and David are taking Sculptor to Gayton on Thursday evening and Tom and Steve Dean will take her on to Braunston on the Friday.

Monday 2 June 2014

A bit more fettling

Mike Gardner and Steve Dean came over today.  Mike continued with the electrics and Steve tackled the stern gland by making sure that the greaser worked and delivered grease to the seal in the stern gland.

We now have a new seal (thanks to David's work on Friday) and Steve's disassembly and reassembly of the greasing mechanism and cleaning the copper pipe it means that the stern gland can be greased easily so - we must all remember to wind the greaser down at the end of cruising each day.

Mike's work on the electrics continues as expected.

There was some discussion as to how best to cover the two big IBC ballast tanks at the rear of the hold - a bit of design/development work was undertaken by Steve and Mike who hope, with help from Rob, to do something before too long.  I will leave it up to them to explain what they have in mind.

Volunteer hours 27 (total 250 to date)