| Lista Light |  |
Before the voyage there was a considerable amount of work to be done to get Lista Light up to scratch.
Lista is held together by big dowels of wood which go through the planks and into the frames inside, however 70 years on a lot had rotted and developed leaks. Plagued by lots of leaky rotted treenails on our previous voyage it was decided that it was priority to renew all treenails, which involved getting the boat out of the water and drilling and pegging some 1000 holes.
Lista Light on the slipway in Bristol Docks
First the treenails needed to be found under the paint
Then drill out to 32mm
Bash the peg in and use a wedge to open the end out
A completed treenail, ready to be sawn flush, sanded and painted
2/3 of one side done
But, a slight drilling error meant removal of the gearbox to get the engine exhaust box out to get a hole mended.
Meanwhile, all sorts of other things going on - new radar system
After the treenail holes were filled, lots of painting went on - 2 coats everywhere (above the waterline undercoat and topcoat, under the water a thick bitumen paint and anti-fouling paint to repel worms, barnacles and clingons.
Paint job complete, about to return to the water.
Click here to view an animation of the boat returning to the water down the slipway.
Only one or two leaky holes (which were bodged with half a tube of sticky stuff) - not bad out of 1000 holes.
The most important job - a touched up nameplate
Weeks of perpetual sanding and varnishing - here the cockpit is getting the treatment
..and all the floorboards taken out, sanded and varnished
Finishing touches to a new gaff
The 4.5 tonnes of lead ballast ingots neatly stowed in the bottom of the boat, (together with a lot of sweat)
Our posh new sails arrived - and fitted beautifully
Rob playing with his box of tricks
Then with only 3 weeks to go we decide that the foredeck really has to be replaced since it is rotten and leaks like a sieve
A big hole ….
And the slow process of putting it all back again
Then Jay caulked for hours and Merryn poured pitch on top to seal the seams
A last minute plank and a half replaced - here John is spileing the dimensions
And then we were off ! Everything chucked on deck and covered with a tarpaulin in the mad scramble to make it away….
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This is the Lista Light Website, for the travels of the sailing boat Lista Light
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