Topic starter
28/12/2009 11:02 pm
We are getting ready to cut out a a large portion of the steel on the Bow of the Belle, due to it falling below .200 thickness, in the attached photo the area chalked in is all the steel we'll be cutting out. We'll be cutting it out in one piece so that the steel can be formed around the old piece, and then hopefully only have to make small adjustments with the winches pulling it into place.
We're wondering if we should weld a flat piece of half inch steel about 4 inches wide onto the center of the bow keel running back to act as a running pad for when we beach, the inspectors are not very enthusiastic of us putting another doubler plate on the bow and this was our idea. Is this something you imagine would be practical? In my ship construction classes we only briefly talked about vessels that run aground on purpose, and the Captain teaching made it more of a joke then anything.
30/01/2010 3:29 pm
Questions
Matt-- Has this work been completed yet? As the proprietor of the largest shipyard in Rabbit Hash, Kentucky, I'm always interested in such stuff. Who's doing the work, your own people or a boatyard? What "inspectors" aren't very supportive about the idea of adding a doubler-plate? Though surely not a marine architect, I cannot see where it would be detrimental to add a steel plate to protect the bow when making bank landings; it seems a rather practical idea. This has been done before.
As far as your captain-teacher's take on "vessels that run aground on purpose", that's what you get when you go to Blue Water U.
30/01/2010 5:02 pm
Yep. Outside the world of riverboats, running aground, intentionally or otherwise, is a deadly sin.
We beefed up the wooden bow of the Graceful Ghost at one point in time. There was some leakage to address, so while we were at it, we applied several more layers of fiberglass and epoxy. Do it now so you won't wish you had done it later.