Signwriting the butty

As I have two weeks before we sail, I decided to have a go at signwriting the butty!  I have made a start as below, first with the BW logo and the number in white and then pencilling in the lettering for the main name.

Then I painted 2 coats of cream on the lettering

the next part is the shadowing in dark green, but I'll have a look at that tomorrow! Looks ok so far though so I'll keep going I think.  

But Richard wasn't impressed with blending the shadow so the other side I did more traditionally..

Bit more impact I have to agree.  Just the 'Chamberlain Carrying Co' and scrolls to add when I have more time.

IT FLOATS!!!!!!!

Well the day came for the crane to come and swing the old girl back into the water.  I couldn't take any photos as I was at work and Richard was on his own so he didn't either.  The operation went well, but Richard spent the next few hours going back and forth checking for leaks, 'o ye of little faith!'

The paintwork would be finished when we have time as would the back cabin, but she is starting to look something like.  Now we were going to have to learn some new skills on the best way to move two boats around.  Breasting up is fine (tying them side by side) but we won't be able to do that on the narrow canals, so we might have to do a bit of long lining.....

This is fine but it means Richard can't get his drinks brought to him every 15 mins like normal!
I think we will cross strap it most of the time (tying behind the motor tightly)  He's used to shifting artic lorries about so I'm sure we will manage.

The Butty isn't so ugly

Well the butty came on leaps and bounds,well sort of anyway, we did what we could when not working.

I tried to make the front look the same as Numb, so they would look like they belonged together. Why does it always take longer than you think to do these things, but we think it looked fine in the end.

One more job off the list only 3 million more to do!
Like any long term project it was never going to be a five minute job, but if we could get it to a stage of water tight, the rest could be done on the cut. Winter would soon be coming and Richard was hoping to go back to British Sugar at Bardney.  I was getting really fed up with my place of work, Martin's fees were paid up and the pressure was off.  The butty was going to need a name and the great debate began! Some how I think it will have a Floyd reference.

Building the Butty

We are always looking at old boats out in the cut and often thought about having a Butty to sell my painted bits and bobs and Richard's ropework, but never found one at the right price. So why not build one!

"Richard can do it" I told him, so we brought the 'Ugly Butty' as he called it from Lichfield.
This was a new ball game and the first set of locks on the way back was Fradley Junction, on a Saturday morning 'o joy'!  Onlookers thought we'd negotiated locks before, no, first lock and no incidents!
Back to Chapel Hill near Boston and lift out with a crane and then the fun begins. Our friend Andy gave Richard a ton of help to get started.

Richard hired a big welder and ordered lots of steel and set to work. 

No fancy plasma cutters, jigs, years of boat building or fancy design, just a big welder and an angle grinder! Richard was not that happy with his welding as he says he's not a welder but a grease monkey, but it started to take shape. It was beginning to look like proper butty.  He constructed a stern with cabin above complete with rudder.  Not a bad job!

2011 Things can only get better

The end of 2010 saw us with a mooring at Chapel Hill, Lincolnshire.  It was not what we wanted, but it was very quiet and gave us time to regroup and get our thoughts back together as well as catch up with friends and family locally.
The River Slea at Chapel Hill is a lovely little river, which would have carried goods from Sleaford to the Witham and off into the big wide world.  Grain was it's  main cargo, but latter Beet, for the sugar factory at Bardney and then sadly, like most of the waterways, in fell in to disrepair.

There was a big problem with weed later in the year and where it is shallow in places. when you need 3 foot to move, can cause problems.We decided to stay for a year as Martin had mest up a bit at uni and was going to have to sit another year. This was not in the big budget and so we both needed to go back to work.(kids don't you love'um).


May Bank Holiday
Every May Day, the village of South Kyme has a village fete and boat gathering.  This has gone from strength to strength and 2011 was no exception. The weather was kind and was on during the Royal wedding and the whole place came alive. The villagers really make everyone feel welcome with offers of water and even electric.

More boats this year and the field that the fete was on was really well supported.