Launch Day at last

I woke quite early at the sound of yard machinery in motion, and after a cup of tea I got dressed and down the ladder to see that another yacht was being launched on the morning tide. She got off without problems, and it was interesting to see the procedure before doing it ourselves. Every yard we have been in has a different way of getting boats into the water and it is impossible to know what to expect.

It took a while for the yard to clear the machines out of the shed entrance so Robinetta could be loaded onto the trailer and pulled out. The first thing to leave the shed once the way was clear was the mast, and then there was a pause while Tim cut back the bulwark so we could get the bowsprit in place without damaging it. The bowsprit has lost quite a lot of varnish over last season and this winter, and the wood is also damaged. We will have to make this good as soon as possible.

Robinetta was out of the shed by half ten, and I made good the anti-fouling where the props had been. We had used up all of out Teamac D last Friday, so Tim found us the tail end of a tin of red antifouling he had left over. This was a hard anti-fouling, rather than an eroding one, and we will have to have a look at the end of the season to see what a difference it makes.

Once the mast went in Julian and I got on with untangling the ropes and tying the shrouds to their dead eyes. Mast dressing errors became apparent, as always, but this time we had the luxury of Julian being lifted up on a pallet by a forklift to sort things out. Tim also came on board and put in the mast wedges, which was very helpful.

When rigging the boom with its roller reefing we realised we were missing an eye bolt in the deck fittings. Julian trawled though his pictures to find evidence of its existence, and Tim found where the old bolt went, then fitted it. A quick job for him, but a problem for us if we had delayed working on the rigging.

Rain rolled in at lunch time, so we ate in the cabin rather than going for a picnic, but the sun soon came back out and I headed outside to fit the mast boot while Julian got on with wiring up the radio and AIS receiver.

By mid afternoon we had had enough, and went to Ullapool for a cup of tea and cake, and to use the toilet. Unfortunately the public toilets are out of action due to vandalism, but there are enough eateries with their own facilities that the lack of toilets at the yard does not matter too much.

We were back in the yard by half four, and carried on getting Robinetta ready to go back in the water until 7pm. By then the tide was high enough to launch, and since Robinetta was ready there was no point waiting.

Tim came aboard as we went into the water, and checked that the seacocks that he had fettled were not leaking. He was impressed with how tight her planking was after a winter in the shed, with no obvious leaks along the seams. I will have a good look in the morning in case there are any slow seeps, which sometimes happens.

The engine started on the first push of the button. Hurrah! We had the fuel tank switched one in, one out, as I had forgotten which let the fuel through. I will have to look it up again.

Worm was also launched for us, with her painter being passed over the bow before she was pushed in. She was actually needed today, as Tim sculled himself ashore in her, after he finished his checks. I then pulled Worm back to Robinetta, as the trailer was pushed deeper, then Robinetta floated off, and Julian put her into reverse. The gear controller is very stiff, so we need to grease it.

A short motor to Ullapool harbour in the evening sun shine had both Julian and me smiling. Being on the water was lovely. We called up the harbour on the main radio, and got no answer, but they responded to the handheld. We could hear them on the main radio, but they could only hear us on the handheld. Something to investigate for the morning.

Once we were moored up we went out for a curry, accompanied by a bottle of celebratory Cava bought from Tesco.

Today was a good day.

Working on Robinetta, Day 7

First job of the day was going into Ullapool for a cooked breakfast. We had a leisurely one at The Bothy, before heading back to Robinetta, where we got the anchor and its chain back on board.

Julian spent the rest of the morning sorting out the stern light and tiller pilot power sockets in the cockpit, then after lunch he refashioned the bulkhead mounting that originally held the Seafarer depth gauge. Last season this held a 12v car socket, together with 4 USB charging sockets, and a voltmeter for the batteries. This has now been replaced with a much smaller installation, that does not have the 12V car socket which we never used. This required Julian to cover the hole in the mounting, but luckily there were plenty of bits of spare wood lying around. The navigation lights were also reconnected.

In comparison I did not feel like I did much. Lots of miscellaneous tidying up, getting the blocks sorted out to go on the horse, and setting up the bowsprit. In the course of doing this I realised that the hole in the bulwarks that Tim had mended fouled the bowsprit as it went through, making it very difficult to bring in. I need to ask him to free this up tomorrow when he gets back from holiday. The wind got up a bit late afternoon, so I closed the shed doors to stop them banging.

Julian and I decided to go to film night held at the ferry terminal in the evening. We miscalculated the timing, arriving before the venue opened, so went to the Ferry Inn and had a pleasant light meal of a starter portion of mussels each, with a single portion of chips. We shared a table with an Australian couple on a car tour of Scotland and had a pleasant conversation about good places to visit, before we headed over to see the film.

Climbing the ladder in the shed to get into Robinetta’s cabin when we got back in the dark is something I will be glad not to have to do again, but not really a problem.

Working on Robinetta, Day 6

Julian declared that I would stay as the project manager, so after we arrived in the yard at half nine I put him in charge of dressing the mast while I got on with sorting out the cabin. He occasionally called me to have a look at what he was doing and this seems to have worked well as a way to make sure things are in the right place. Monday, when the mast goes in will be the proof of the approach! It would be good not to have to go up the mast this year. We had a picnic lunch, then headed back to Ullapool mid afternoon for a cup of tea to celebrate the mast dressing being complete.

mast head with additional AIS reciever

The cabin is now ready for reoccupation, just as well since we are sleeping aboard tonight.

The only electrics that got completed before we stopped for the night were the reconnecting of the port and starboard navigation lights, so we went to bed by the light of battery lanterns rather than Robinetta’s own lights. Not a problem.

Working on Robinetta, Day 5

 Alex's last day working on Robinetta. He used the rollers to paint on a full coat of antifoul on Thursday. That took three quarters of a 2.5 litre tin, so this morning he just put a second coat on the rudder, before using the remainder just below the water line, where more weed grows. He also covered the patchwork of prepared areas above the water line with blue paint. Robinetta is not getting a complete paint job this year, and the fresh paint is slightly darker than what is already there, but the difference is invisible from a couple of metres away, and will be gone by the time the sun has been on the hull for half a season. He also patched the white paint where it needed it.

The mast varnish needs time to harden, so no more coats went on there after Thursday, but the tiller did get a layer. Alex then passed up the fully painted toilet bowl and support, and that completed his part on the fit out and I drove him to Inverness, and put him on a train to go home.

I had planned to go to the chandlers while in Inverness, but failed to check when they closed; Gaelforce Marine close an hour earlier on a Friday, at 4pm instead of 5pm, so they were closed by the time Julian and I met up there. Very annoying, but my own fault.

Julian and I then drove back to Ullapool. We have one night in the cottage, then will move on to Robinetta; in the shed before her launch, then properly aboard.

Working on Robinetta, Day 4

Tim had removed the heads pump to get access to refix the bits, and when I went to put it back I realised that a couple of the screws had failed, and would need replacing. This gave me the impetus to resited the heads pump by about an inch. This should stop the pump handle from fouling on the edge of the storage shelf as it had been doing for a couple of years. Alex has been repainting the floor support for the toilet bowl, and once this is dry I will be able to put the whole of the forepeak back in working order.

Rebuilding the galley is not going so well. I had real problems reconnecting the sink drain with the thru hull. Once I put the storage shelves in place access will get even worse, so I needed to get the drain fixed ASAP. Hopefully it is now done, and won't leak. We rarely use the sink, and always keep the thru hull closed, so I refuse to worry if I can't use the plug hole.

I also needed to refit the gimbals for the stove. I thought it was done, then tried  to fit the stove in place, and the gimbal supports pulled out. I need longer screws! The  rest of the galley went back with a little cutting needed on the crockery shelving, due to the doubled rib behind it.

The anti fouling is mostly done, just needing a second coat to the areas that get most heavily infested which will happen tomorrow.  The mast varnishing has has a lick and a promise, while the tiller may get up to five coats before we need to use it.

I have installed the cabin cushions, so everything feels a lot more comfortable.

You will notice a lack of any mention of electrics. That will be Julian's task once he gets here tomorrow evening.

Working on Robinetta, day 3

 This set of posts is mostly to keep a record of what we have done to get Robinetta ready to go back in the water, and how long it took, so I suspect it is not of general interest!

The cabin ceiling is now painted, and the cabin sides washed down. They will not be getting painted this year. The galley is ready to refit. The mast has had one coat of varnish, and the tiller 2.

The underseat locker lids have had a new coat of white paint. They look lovely, but really show up the rest of the installation. However everything will be hidden beneath the seat cushions when in use.

The last thing Alex and I did before leaving for the evening was putting on a full coat of metaclor primer. Tomorrow is antifouling day.

Working on Robinetta, day 2

 There comes a time in every project when there is a feeling that it will never be done on time. That was today.

Alex has made good progress on the hull, but it is all prep work. By the end of the day the bare wood on the lower hull has a coat of primer, but the patches needs another coat before the full tie coat goes no. The same is true for the patches on blue hull, so it still feels like there is a long way to go. The wooden plinth for the heads has one coat of primer, so needs another before it gets its final coat before being installed.

I had been working on the interior, washing, filling, and painting. The floor boards are now clean, and sitting outside so they do not get paint on them. Nowhere is ready to be put back together, although there is some progress on the galley.