General Witterings -
Tips - and Visitors - on Rosy

I've just met up with ex-narrow-boaters Paul and Sally Belsey (late of the nb Reliance 2).  They are cruising around France in 'Nidd' - not the Sheffield keel 'Nidd' moored up in Veurne (Furnes) in Belgium, but the Leeds and Liverpool short boat 'Nidd'.  I gather that they are house hunting here, and, when they find one, will want to sell 'Nidd' for €40 - 50,000.  Could be a lovely boat for someone wanting to cruise France ...

I thought it might be a good time to review some of the tips 'n' tricks that have been mentioned in these newsletters over the past year or so.

Tile paint.

I used red tile on Rosy's stern deck last year, and put some down on the foredeck a month or so ago.  It looks a lot like red oxide (matt and red) but is (to my mind) a rather nicer shade of red.  I used it 'cos it was available at a good price.  It's lasted quite well on the stern deck, but I've had problems up front.  I dribbled some petrol on it, and then lay down on it (in order to reach into the bottom of the foredeck locker).  When I'd finished in the locker, I had difficulty standing up, as I was glued to the foredeck!!  The petrol had melted the tile paint, which then adhered to my trousers.  Most of the paint came off in the wash, and the incident hasn't actually spoiled the surface finish of the paint too much.

Captain Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure.

Brilliant stuff!!  It's like a very thin silicone sealant (it's THAT stuff again!) that effectively seals those tiny cracks that seep water.  It enters the cracks via capillary action, and then sets.  It's saved me €400!!  (The windows were leaking so badly that I was on the point of renewing them).

Screwfix drills.

Most d-i-y-ing involves drilling and screwing.  On steel boats, there are all sorts of reasons for wanting to drill holes into steel.  Screwfix sell drills up to about 4mm in packs of ten at extremely good prices.  Well worth it.  Unfortunately Screwfix aren't too happy about shipping goodies over to France.

Martex Drill Sharpener.

I bought one of these a couple of years ago, and have been collecting blunt drills over the past few years.  I got the Martex working the other day, and was very pleased with the results.  It attaches to an electric drill which needs to revolve at around 3000 rpm - but this didn't seem to be critical.  The sharpener is pretty easy to use, and seems to grind at the right angle - leastways, the sharpened drills worked a treat.

Taps.

Taps are simple hand tools that cut a screw thread into a smooth-sided hole drilled into steel.  I hadn't used taps before, and was a bit hesitant about them, but they are doddle to use.  I've bolted a gang-plank rest, and a side-step, onto the steel hull, without having to touch or remove the inner wall or roof linings.  Using taps is a simple skill, well worth acquiring.  The only difficulty is drilling the initial hole in the right place.

Hanging baskets.

It was Judy Voets who turned me on to 'use the cube'.  Space is limited on a boat, so make the best use of what there is.  Rosy has an empty mid-air space in the kitchen that is neatly filled by some wire hanging baskets - bought, incidentally, at a wonderful 'traditional' ironmongers by the Hillmorton Locks (just south of Rugby).

White paint, red paint.

The Dutch boaters always lay down a coat of white paint underneath a red topcoat.  This trick works a treat.  It lightens and brightens the red paint, giving it a real sparkle.  I've yet to try the other Dutch painting technique, which is to use round brushes instead of our favoured flat ones.

Rex, the Laird of Briare, had to visit the doctor again in London, so I've had Jess the Woof for a couple of days.  The adjacent tennis court produces a nice crop of balls floating in the canal basin.  I'd taken Jess for a walk with a tennis ball, and coming back to the boat, she was frothing at the mouth after all that running after the ball that I had taken care to kick and not to handle.  I kicked along the quay, Jess chased after it, and laid it down again for me to kick again.  Before I got to the ball, M. Froggy Frenchman sees the ball, and Jess lying a few yards from it.  Being helpful (?) he picked the ball up and rolled it along.  Jess said 'Ta, mate' and dashed off after it, I looked innocent, and M. Froggy Frenchman peered around wondering what to do with the doggy saliva dripping off his fingers.

Toodle pip!!

Bill