A Victor Meldrew Moment

Well it has been a busy old week again. Down to T-A fitting a few more parts to the control panel and wiring in the new negative bus bar. I have decided I need a bit more room down there to work to speed the job up a bit – things are just taking too long. To this end some of the furniture is being brought home bit by bit on each visit. A gathering with old friends in Leicester on Wednesday. On Thursday it was out with the GCS again with contractors dropping trees that were growing into a culvert.

Phone BW - the canals blocked.

Soon had it clear though and dropped another one in its place but that was cleared as well – not a bad days work and got some firewood out of it to boot.

Party in Derby on Friday for old friend ‘Pinky’ Salmon after clocking up 49 years on the railway.

Down to Trudy again yesterday to clear things out and took down the bathroom and bedroom doors  As none of the doors fit they are being removed for trimming on the table saw. To dismount each door there are three hinges meaning 9 screws a 5 minute job you would think, but no, several screws have the heads chewed up so the have to be drilled out, they are of different sizes meaning having to change bits and several are broken off.

I somehow think the numpty that fitted this boat out has not figured out why there are different torque settings on modern drill/drivers nor the advantage of drilling pilot holes when working in hardwood.

Tip. Try these pilot drills.

The outer sleeve centres the drill in a hinge hole and slides back when the drill penetrates giving a centred hole every time.

Today doors duly mounted on the table saw to trim top and bottom, but the bedroom door jammed half way up because the door had been trimmed to fit top and bottom but not where the ball catch was. Only one screw in the ball catch, that’s nothing new. On removal broken screw found which is perhaps why the door had not been trimmed at this point.

Woodwork duly cut back and screw removed

and afterwards the rebate re-cut for catch. It’s no wonder jobs are taking so long when each five minute job takes half an hour because of poor workmanship in the initial build.

This door also has a scratch on one of the panels so I wondered if I could replace it. Well a mallet and a softwood drift had it reduced to its component parts in less than three minutes.

That’s when I couldn’t believe it. The whole thing appears to have been stuck together with the foam used to line the boat.

Anyway – Panel replaced and the whole thing has been stuck together again.

This time I am experimenting with a product called Gorilla Glue as the wood has been contaminated by the expansion foam I doubt that normal wood glue will take. This Gorilla Glue sound like good stuff and the fact that they give you gloves with the pack makes me think they mean business.

Let you know how it turns out.