September 2019

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September is usually a hive of activity as the crew prepare the vessel for what some of us consider to be the highlight of the steaming calendar – The Leigh Arms Steam Party at Acton Bridge. Sadly the ongoing boiler tube project meant it was a no-show for the Kerne, but that didn’t mean the month could pass idly by.

A slight improvement in the weather enabled the deck team to do a little more painting on deck. The new coat of buff paint to the sides of the boiler casing has been enhanced with the black edging now applied which really does smarten up the old girl’s appearance. Some further deck painting could be the last this year which should see us through to the spring. The forward hatch has been temporarily replaced with a piece of marine plywood whilst the former has taken up residence in the Mate’s garage for stripping, staining and re-varnishing which will enhance our newly restored Captain’s Cabin.  A further enhancement to the cabin has been the acquisition of a 1914 Eli Griffiths Wardroom oil lamp. When built, Kerne relied on oil lighting as there was no electrical power aboard, and this remained the case until the 1960’s when a small generator was installed. Sadly, none of the original oil lamps survived, so now, polished and refurbished, the Griffiths lamp adds a real period feel to the Cabin.

Work in the Wheelhouse is moving along; the replacement trims to the drop-down windows have been manufactured and await fitting, and various jobs such as the rigging of the whistle pull wire, hooks, brackets and the restoration of the wheelhouse mounted lifebelt brackets have been carried out. One major job is the installation of the wooden wheelhouse deck. The height of this is critical, so that there is an air-gap, that the ships’ wheel does not foul the deck, nor should the floor be to low so that the helmsman’s foot can be trapped beneath the wheel. The deck also has to be capable of easy removal so we can clean and paint the top of the boiler casing periodically. We propose to install an angle iron frame onto which the decking will sit, but in order to calculate the correct height of the frame it was necessary to refit the ship’s wheel and Engine Room voice pipe. To fit the voice pipe we also had to refit the compass and supporting shelf. This work had the additional benefit of returning the Wheelhouse to something like its working appearance rather than as a storage shed!

Down below in the Boiler Room, the tube project continues. The somewhat laborious process has now been speeded up by the completion of a new bit of ‘kit’, namely a hydraulic drive which is attached to the tap as it re-cuts the treads in the tubeplates. This takes a lot of effort out of the job, which we had been performed using hand operated ratchet gear. This will now hopefully speed things up and we can move on to treading the tubes.

For the last 6 years or so, we have shared our quay with the mv Altea II, an HM Border Force Rummage Training Vessel. She has been sold for re-commissioning into commercial service in Rotterdam, leaving under tow by the tug MTS Viscount. This marked the end of an era for Rummage Crew Training as facilities have now been moved ashore.

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