Preparation for the deadwood bolts

Well I have started to attack another one of the big jobs. This is that two of the deadwood bolts that needs replacing. There is quite a lot to prep for a job like this. For starters I managed to mark the wrong bolts, and one of them is under a railway sleeper that is propping the boat up, so I cant use that. The next problem is making sure that the bolt has as much assistance as possible in getting loose. I have been advised that Coca-Cola is the best freeing oil for such jobs so I have periodically being emptying coke into the bilges. I have also has a look under keel to see what the bolt looks like there. It looks pretty jammed in, is I reckon I might try to heat it up and chisel a bit around it. I need to make sure that when I bang this bolt through with a lump hammer, that it does not sheer half way through.

The metal pin is the drift that I will use. Actually it is an old mooring pin, but it is exactly the same size as the bolt which is the important bit.

The other picture is of a mahogany saloon table that I am building – many thanks from Ben for that one. After much cleaning off contact glue with scrapers and petrol, I have got these solid mahogany Victorian stair treads looking OK.