Waterborne Wedneday: Tin Bath Racing

One of our Manx highlights was the Castletown Tin Bath races. It's one of those events that people on TV travel shows seem to find, and the rest of us never see. 

Taking place in the middle harbour, it's a big deal. OK the town isn't huge, but we found ourselves parking on a lane a good few minutes from the water. Not a problem, and when we arrived, it became obvious why. This is popular!

There are three main events. The first involves a rope strung across the water. Competitors take turns to ride along this, trying to drop into a giant rubber ring in the middle. 

Then there are more giant rings for the snake racing. Several are tied together in a line, and the competitors lie in them and backstroke their way along. Quite how the steering works is a mystery, but it's all good, splashy fun. 

Finally, the main event, which takes place in several heats during the afternoon - the tin bath races. 

These are real tin baths, some decorated, with a bit of wood across the back holding a couple of big plastic bottles or fuel cans for extra buoyancy. Competitors have to row from one end of the harbour, around a buoy, and back again. This looks fun, if you like close proximity to dark, wet and cold water, but it's also hard work.  Baths don't exactly sythe through the water!

Not all the competitors make it, and the local sub aqua club is on hand to pull people out of the drink, and just to be sure, the lifeboat is moored up with crews on board.  

We all loved it. I'm sure there is modelling potential here, but I'll be happy with a fun afternoon at the races and some nice beer. Mum would have been even happier if the lobster buttie stand hadn't sold out by the time we found it though!

Visit the official World Tin Batch Championships website. 

A few more photos on Flickr.  

Warehouse Wednesday: Swiss coal transhipment

An interesting view from a couple of years ago in Switzerland. Approaching Thun on the boat, we passed by this gantry for moving coal from ships to railway wagons. Via a great big pile, presumably a stockpile. 

A quick look on Google maps gives another angle, although oddly, the gantry itself hardly shows up. The gantry spans four tracks, and well as poking out over the water to unload ships. 

It strikes me that this would be quite a slow way to move coal, and I wonder why the stuff isn't moved all the way by rail. Or in a mountainous country, is this too hard? 

Also, what is the coal for? Switzerland is known for extensive use of clean power. Who is burning this stuff? 

Regardless, this would make a fantastic model. Good luck if you fancy making it work in HO, though, there's not much structure to hide the mechanical parts!

Warehouse Wednesday: City centre slipway

 

 

Right in the centre of York, there is a sizable boat slipway. It appears to be a private facility for City Cruises, as one of their boats is visible in the air in the photos, and I couldn't find any mention of it online. 

This must fit firmly in the "prototype for everything" box, as if you built something like this on a layout, people would think it made up. 

Google shows just how compact the site is, and it's hardly visible from the street. 

Useful for a model? Maybe. Stick a Kibri Ferry Boat kit on it, and you have a pretty good approximation. 

Saturday Film Club: How to build a Shannon class lifeboat

I've not done any model boat building this year. Maybe watching the pros doing it might inspire me? 

Warehouse Wednesday: Peel Engineering workshop

Another one from the Isle of Man, this time the workshops that used to produce the fibreglass parts for the famous Peel 500, Trident, and Viking cars, and are still to be found on the harbourside at Peel, even if the firm is long gone. 

It's a very modelable building. Not too big, and perfectly industrial. To be honest, I've always dreamed of building it on a layout, with a stream of Peel cars being driven out and loaded on a train. OK, this didn't happen, but if I even did it, I'd say, "It's my train set."

To find out more, watch this excellent, short documentary. 

Saturday Film Club: Then and now: RNLI lifeboats over the years

Lifeboats are brilliant, and this is a film about their development. Seriously, how brave did you have to be to go out in a rowing boat? I wouldn't fancy it much in a modern vessel!

Warehouse Wednesday: PS Waverley

 

One benefit of the Glasgow show is that the hotel and venue were a short walk apart. Better still, if I picked the right bridge to cross, I could see the PS Waverley tied up at the quayside. It's not every day you get to see the last ocean-going paddlesteamer at breakfast time!

I've never been on the Waverley. Really must make up for that ommission one day. 

For more information, visit the Waverley website.

Waterborne Wednesday: Magellan Delta

My parents have been on holiday in Cornwall, and return with some boat photos. The one that really caught my eye was the Magellan Delta - lovely sleek lines. 

A little digging took me to the builders website with more data.

This would make a terrific model, but calls for a couple of brushless motors, and it looks like it needs a bit of poke! 

 

Waterborne Wednesday: Liverpool workboat

A mystery from my Manx trip. Spotted in Liverpool, while we waited to board the ferry, was this boat with a crane on the end of it. Oddly, I didn't take many photos, mostly because the view was obscured by the plans you canjust see in shot. 

Had I managed to bag the name of the vessel, we could have looked it up, but in this case, Buddleia stopped play!

Waterbourne Wednesday: Dry dock for canal boats

Part way thorough the flight of locks at Hatton, and handy for the excellent cafe, is this dry-dock for narrow boats. 

The short arm can be dammed, and then drained to allow access to the bottom of the boat for barnacle scraping and re-blacking, both horrible jobs for the boat owner, or anyone they can pay to do the work!

Being outside, with no cover whatsoever, must limit the work that can be done. There's nothing in the way of fascilities either, so you take your wate from the canal (there is drinking water reaonably near) and electricity comes from a generator. 

For modeller, there's potential here for a simple, and interesting addition to a canal scene.

Waterborne Wednesday: Money can't buy taste

Last week I showed you a very attractive super-yacht. This week, we look at what is moored in front of it.

Words fail me. I'm sure it is terribly luxurious  I'm sure, in a gold bathtaps sort of way, but my god, it's ugly. 

The back end isn't any better. 

However, behind it, is a much more interesting boat. 

Not a great photo as it's from my 'phone, but an interesting tug. Not a Bantam I think, and is that the hint of a front rudder for added manouverability I see?

Waterborne Wednesday: MV Pioneer

The day I find myself rich enough to own a super-yacht, I think I want it to look like the MV Pioneer. 

I spotted this stunning vessel in Grenwich last week, and what a beauty she is. Built in 1996 and 46m long, I would think she'll be big enough to rise large waves at sea, although I'll probably stick to the coast where one of the two smaller boats on deck can be used for landing when port fascilities are not available. 

Mind you, MarineTraffic shows she's been around - quite a lot of time in the USA as well as Europe. And in every location, she looks right at home. 

How much does one of these things cost? Probably some sort of unimaginable figure to someone like me, but what a floating home to have. 

Waterborne Wednesday: SD Bovisand

My parents have just returned from a holiday in Cornwall, and as well as bringing me back several bottles of cider, they also have some interesting photos of boats. 

First up, is the SD Bovisand. This 23m long supply vessel was built in 1997 for the Navy, but has since passed into private hands. 

You can track her here. And here.

 

 

As a modelling prospect, she'd be quite a challenge. Two hulls, lots of detail. And you are going to have to scratchbuild as I'm not aware of anything remotely similar in the kit world. 

Medway Queen

On a recent trip to Ramsgate, I headed toward the excellent Peters Fish Factory for tea, and what should be on the slipway opposite? Famous paddle steamer Medway Queen.

Obviously I couldn't resist taking a few photos - you don't see ships like this very often round my way! Medway Queen is well known to reailway modellers, as the preservation society often have stands at show raising money to keep her afloat.

Find out more at the Medway Queen Preservation Society website. 

Saturday Film Club: The river Thames in 1959

 

Time to don the rose tinted glasses and take a super-saturated trip with the Look at Life team, along the river Thames. In those days, the Port of London was still operating with cargo ships in sight of Tower Bridge.

Waterborne Wednesday: Canal workboats

 

A quick trip to Hatton Locks for some research allowed me to grab photos of a couple of the Canal & Waterways Trusts workboats. I know they aren't as glamorous as the pretty canal cruisers, but I like them. Definitely on the "one day" list for a model or two.

The wide-beam boat is new to me. I didn't know they were in use around here, although I have seen a wide liveaboard in the middle of Leamington. 

 

Waterborne Wednesday: Basil in a tight spot

 

Canal spotting in Birmingham, I found this bridge with a very narrow section of waterway underneath it. Modern canal boats are 6ft 10inches wide and there was, I estimate, less than a foot of space each side of the boat. 

That's probably not too challenging with a short vessel on a calm day, but a 70ft boat in the middle of a winter storm? I bet there was a lot of bouncing off the sides even allowing for a well practised captain and the shelter afforded by the railway embankment.

Waterborne Wednesday: Racing hovercraft

 

Other than this is in the Isle of Man motor museum, I can't tell you anything useful about this hovercraft - other than it is seriously cool*. 

Building a model hovercraft has always been on my radar, but they are horribly technical things. You spend more time worrying about weight distribution than details. After all, you want the model to work, not just looks good. 

Then there is the small matter of controlling the thing. Hovercraft don't work like boats, you have to plan your steering ahead of when you want to change direction. Despite this, I've always fancied having a go in a small one...

And yes, that is an Amphicar in the background. This place is amazing. 

*as if I would be any judge of this.

Waterborne Wednesday: Pl5 on a trailer

 

Taken on the Isle of Man couple of years ago, fishing dingy PL5 is berthed on its trailer on the beach. 

This is an interesting little prototype. The trailer is obviously pushed into the water, the boat sailed to hit the handrail, and then hauled out. That rail provides something for the skipper to aim and, and hang on to ensuring the boat is centred over the trailer bed. 

Scratchbuilding the trailer with some strip plastic shouldn't be too hard and it would make a nice piece of detail for a seaside scene. In larger scales, brass section and solder would probably be better. You could use it as a display base for a suitable radio controlled model.

How you make convincing, see-through lobster pots, I leave to someone else to work out...

Saturday Film club: London Docks

 

With all the tugboat work, I thought these films showing classic London docks would be interesting. It seems amazing to me that there used to be so much river activity in the capital.

The second is only half a minute long, but still worth a look.