A Dartline Brass Plaque

Dartline Brass 

 When the old kitchen was removed there was an interesting find behind one of the kitchen units - A brass plaque from the Amo's builder, Dartline Boats. The plaque was nicely polished and is now fixed to the new front door.

Main Cabin Complete

The past two weeks, including the Easter break have been full of activity and the Amo renovation is almost complete. All structural work is done and all painting and varnishing is finished. Wood-doc oil was used on the new fixed furniture bringing out the natural grain of the mahogany. 

The legs for the table in the main cabin pop out easily. Three short legs go into
the receivers allowing it to drop down to the same level as the seating turning the ares into a double bed when required.

Windows Restored

Sink

 A few sunny days allowed for work on the exterior to progress. In addition to painting, several leaky windows were repaired. It's difficult to find the source of a leak on a barge window and several attempts over the years to seal them were evident. The only way to get it right is to take them out and re-fit them. The frames were in pretty bad condition with a mix of old paint, various sealers and dirt. Once they were out I applied elbow grease and brillo pads to bring them back to a shine! 

Bedroom

The bedroom is complete with a double and a single bed. The right-hand side of the double bed drops down on a long piano hinge bring it back to a single bed if the double isn't needed, or for extra space when cruising. 
This week will see the finishing of all aspects of the project. Upholstery, foam mattresses and curtains are on the way as we head into a week of fine finishing on the Amo Barge Renovation. 

More doors, interior lights and fine finishing

Preparing Bow Doors

Hung and Varnished

 Restoring the bow deck doors was a time consuming process that took 2 full days.

23 years of varnish and wood stain had to be removed using a sander. Old debris on the many corners and small edges were removed using a knife and chisel. 
The small double doors leading to the bow deck are made of teak. Unlike the main stern deck door, they were in very good condition and only needed some patience and TLC to bring them back to their former glory. They are now re-hung an had their first coat of yacht varnish. 

Interior lights

 Parts of the interior are now coming to a fine finish. The ceiling is trimmed and varnished, window frames cleaned and re-fitted, upper walls painted and a significant portion of varnishing is completed. 

A large delivery arrived this week from the projects main chandlery supplier, E.C. Smith Marine. The interior lights are in and we choose a classic design that has been around for a long time, but is now fitted with an 18 LED bulb. This will reduce electricity consumption by over 80% from the lighting. Other goodies in the delivery included exterior LED lights, fittings for the table in the main cabin area, stainless steel vents for the interior storage bins and a 2 meter long brass hinge to complete the extension to one of the bed frames in the bedroom to allow it to turn into a double bed when required.

Main Door

Roof and Hand-rail

Work is ongoing on the exterior and we will be ready for top coats of paint by next weekend, weather permitting! The roof received major attention 3 years ago when I spent the summer of 2011 grinding off layers and layers of paint and rust spots. It was brought back to the steel and given 4 coats of primer and a top coat. Is has been given a light sanding and will get a primer coat and new top-coat of International blue.
The new main door is hung and varnished thanks to Colm, joiner, student and skipper of the Misty Rivers in Sallins.