Bosun
From ICCC
Contents |
How To Be The Bosun
You fix broken kit and keep the stores tidy(!) Probably do the inventory as well...
If you need to get past the post in the enterance to wilson house, it's controlled by wilson house staff, and there should be a key in reception. You might like to phone the front lodge a couple hours before on 020 7594 9925 to make sure they have the key at hand. The correct key no. is 111. Be very careful with the post. When the top handle is turned it slides very easily into the ground. Don't drop the bloody thing.
Fixing Boats
Useful links on welding plastics can be found here:
- Excellent pictorial guide to welding boats
- Hot gas welding of plastics: Part 1 - the basics
- Hot gas welding of plastics: Part 2 - welding techniques
Words of wisdom from Jon
For a simple crack I would do the following:
- Drill out the ends of the crack to prevent propogation (If you don't have a drill, making a hole with the most suitable bit on the soldering iron would do).
- Using the spade bit (like small screwdriver) on the soldering iron you want to attach the two sides of the crack by running the bit down the crack. You want to run the bit quite deep, leaving yourself a v shaped slot to fill.
- Put the air gun attachment on to the soldering iron (a pair of pliers are useful to prevent burning your hands). Place the welding rod at 90 degrees to the crack at one end, and the soldering at 45 degrees between the crack and the rod. Aiming the airjet slightly more at the rod than the crack, and putting slight pressure on the rod it should start to bend and weld into the crack. Keep going until the rod has just passed the end of the crack.
- Do not worry if your repair is proud of the side of the boat, this is easy to remove with a plane (or sharp knife).
- If you can get to the inside of the crack (unlikely) it is a good idea to weld some rod along the inside as well.
One thing I would not do is use the heat gun to smooth over the weld when it is finished, as though this will help cosmetically it will only be detrimental to the strength of the weld.
Getting hold of some welding rod is useful, and nice long strips are much better than bits and pieces shaved off the inside of the cockpit. If you can find an old boat that you can cut 5mm strips from that would be good, though not all boats use the same plastic, having said which most companies will claim their plastic to be novel and inovative when it is identical to what everyone else is using. I have also in the past managed to get both pyranha and riot to send me welding rods for their boats free of charge, though the welding rods were just strips of plastic.
Previous Bosuns
2009-2010 Jonathan Pritchard
2008-2009 Joseph Rumer
2007-2008 Oli Carson
2006-2007 Alistair Cott
2005-2006 Jim Pullen
2004-2005 Nick Farren
The Big Bang-2004 Jon Lovell
