A replacement tiller for Christina's elum.

While we were bringing Freyja & Christina down from Nantwich, Christina's very rickety plywood tiller gave up and snapped into several pieces. 

Joe had to use the boat hook as a tiller.

I've been trying to get hold of a replacement tiller or an ash bough that I can shave down to a traditional tiller, so far, no luck.

So I decided to make another from laminated marine ply, I'll still make an ash tiller and keep this one as a spare.

The roughed out tiller still needs fettling and a steel strengthening collar fitted over the end that plugs into the elum (butty rudder)

We've started to spruce Christina up a bit, sealing a lot of leaks in her wooden cabin's roof and giving her a coat of enamel. we'll try to paint one side of each boat before we swap them over on our pontoon.

A final sand down

Offering up the metal collar that strengthens the the end that plugs into the elum's socket

Adding roses, diamonds and coloured bands using water-based leather dye

Here I've dyed in some roses, diamonds and added some coloured bands prior to treating it with some Le Tonkinois lacquer

I re-painted the elum, removed and re-painted the metal stays and strengtheners, washed and bleached the decorative ropework and treated the tiller with the first two coats of Tonkinois lacquer. Getting there ;o)