New Boat and Reducing Airdraft.

[oldgit]

Need to access all the Thames so the fixed radar mast on the new boat needed minor surgery. Did consider getting somebody to do the job...but what the heck...what could possibly go wrong !
Used angle grinder to cut through the outer glassfibre shell of the mast and then used a wood saw to slice the internal foam until tubes carrying the radar and lighting cables were detected.
Fitted stainless hinges and locking latches.
Then cut the wiring tubes very very gently indeed.
Sealed both open bits of mast with glass fibre.
Took around a morning in all.
Total cost £75.00 for materials.
Observations.
Ordered two more latches to make assembly more rigid when upright.

Bought back from Brighton to Medway last week.


8 hours @ 15 knots. Quessimate 500 Litres.
Had lots of fun with the Princees 35. but time for change, sold within a few days with ads on Ebay and Apollo Duck.
Looking forward to spending few days on the Thames soon and wearing out the bowthruster.

 

[Parabordi]

Need to access all the Thames so the fixed radar mast on the new boat needed minor surgery. Did consider getting somebody to do the job...but what the heck...what could possibly go wrong !
Used angle grinder to cut through the outer glassfibre shell of the mast and then used a wood saw to slice the internal foam until tubes carrying the radar and lighting cables were detected.
Fitted stainless hinges and locking latches.
Then cut the wiring tubes very very gently indeed.
Sealed both open bits of mast with glass fibre.
Took around a morning in all.
Total cost £75.00 for materials.
Observations.
Ordered two more latches to make assembly more rigid when upright.
View attachment 137688
Bought back from Brighton to Medway last week.
View attachment 137691

8 hours @ 15 knots. Quessimate 500 Litres.
Had lots of fun with the Princees 35. but time for change, sold within a few days with ads on Ebay and Apollo Duck.
Looking forward to spending few days on the Thames soon and wearing out the bowthruster.

Oh come on are you not going to mention fixing the bog?

 

[Chris_d]

Congratulations, that ACM has really nice lines.

 

[oldgit]

Oh come on are you not going to mention fixing the bog?

Now that you mnetion it , Actually the bog door needs sorting as well !

 

[Wavey]

Nice boat that ACM. Very underrated. It was on my short list when I was changing boats recently so you’re lucky I changed my mind ?.

 

[Brayman]

Probably the best looking boat you have ever had, Fred. Very nice indeed.

 

[oldgit]

Had given up trying to find a UK based Princess/ Fairline/ Other at a sensible pre staycation/Covid price.
Had been everywhere from Hartlepool to Penarth and most of the Brokerages inbetween.
Not to difficult to discover what the asking price of a boat pre and ante Covid was , many of the brokers files usually unwittingly revealed how much the asking price was , merely a year or two before.
In some cases it appeared that £20-30 K had been added too some pretty dire and dreadfully neglected examples.
The most outrageous was a Thames based boat that had been purchased at around (offers on ) £120.000 and was intially up for sale at £160.000 subsequently reduced to a bargain £150.000 when it curiously failed to find a buyer.

A trip to Spain suggested that the the situation in EU was little better in the 11-12 metre sweet spot.
The real killer is the 20% Brexit Tax on top of any boat imported into UK.

It was a wet windy June Sunday and we were supposed to be out boating , it turned into yet another session on the Web.
Rang the broker + had to promise the wife a decent lunch in Brighton.
Walked up the pontoon and after that it was merely a case of making the offer on condition the previous owner paid the import duty.
The Princess 35 was sold privately in a week.
The rest is now history.

 

[oldgit]

Bog fixed.
Vacuum restored, previous repair bodge rectified with proper lasting bodge.
Discharge pump cleaned out and working, scale preventing piston moving removed and both joker valves unblocked

Radar mast cut.
Worked out how to turn chart plotter on and off.
Current task working out what switches do what. Why a red light on the dash keeps flashing at me and making sense of the holding tank indicators....

 

[Mark26]

Grim!
I just replaced the pump on mine having broken the plastic screw beds after replacing the joker valve.

OG. I’m heading your way next weekend, I’m booked into Chatham Marina for two weeks. Can one buy a short term visitors licence if passing Allington Lock? I have a sister in Maidstone and was thinking of heading there for one night. Not sure it’s worth the bother really. She can always drive to Chatham.

 

[Parabordi]

Grim!
I just replaced the pump on mine having broken the plastic screw beds after replacing the joker valve.

OG. I’m heading your way next weekend, I’m booked into Chatham Marina for two weeks. Can one buy a short term visitors licence if passing Allington Lock? I have a sister in Maidstone and was thinking of heading there for one night. Not sure it’s worth the bother really. She can always drive to Chatham.

If you have an annual thames registration i think you can get a reciprocal on upper medway for 2 weeks as its EA.

 

[Parabordi]

Bog fixed.
Vacuum restored, previous repair bodge rectified with proper lasting bodge.
Discharge pump cleaned out and working, scale preventing piston moving removed and both joker valves unblocked

Radar mast cut.
Worked out how to turn chart plotter on and off.
Current task working out what switches do what. Why a red light on the dash keeps flashing at me and making sense of the holding tank indicators....

Have you measured your air draft with mast down? Dont want you to have an excuse to turn back at windsor!!!?

 

[Mark26]

If you have an annual thames registration i think you can get a reciprocal on upper medway for 2 weeks as its EA.

Thanks, didn’t know that ?

 

[oldgit]

Parabordi is correct you do get some free days on the Medway if your boat is registered on the Thames.

Some folks regard the 12 miles from Rochester to Allington as a challenge , some cynics might suggest that this indicates more about their boating capabilities than the difficultly of the trip.
Just case of timing.
Need to arrive at Aylesford bridge in order to get sufficent water under your keel and sufficient air draft between you and the bridge arch.
Any flybridge that can get under Henley really should not have any problems with Allington.
A Rough guide.

Get HW from Easy Tide for Allington.
ie. lets say HW 12.00 Noon. BST.
Lock opens 2 Hours prior to HW at Allington.
Depart around 1 Hour before Lock opens from Rochester Pier, just above Rochester Bridge.
A steady 5-6 knots should get you to the bridge with water under your keel and the airdraft .
Once Through the bridge 3-4 knots will get you the final leg up to the lock,which should now be functioning.
There is a traffic light system to let you know when to enter to lock.
Caveats watch out fo debris and for small craft exiting the lock early.
If you do decide to have go , can provide a Bluffers guide to the trip.
This is simply how much water should be under your keel at certain spots to carry on up stream, not enough slow down, more then speed up.
The Bridge at LW.

The Princess going though with everything up.

 

[Mark26]

Many thanks for that.
Very helpful.
Mark.

 

[ROBMH]

I've been admiring that boat from my Pelican mooring I thought it was an ACM very nice.

 

[oldgit]

I've been admiring that boat from my Pelican mooring I thought it was an ACM very nice.

Very pleased with it, never heard of ACM until walking down the sales pontoon.
They originally used to build small customs and port vessels.
Main reason for changing boats was to get away from the rat cage ladder to the fly which Princess obviously regarded as a keep fit bonus for prospective buyers.
Lost count of the number spinal bruises going up and the tumbles down.
Unfortunately UK built boats were very late to the game regards proper stairs, which the rest of Europe had been installing for years.