Do you ever have on of those jobs where afterwards you really wish someone was there videoing the goings on?....
Long post, sorry. It is lockdown after all!
In Summer I thought I lost a valve cap, went around the local chandleries (as restrictions allowed) and all of them said that the valves were too specialist a thing for them to carry. Went online and discovered, as I suspected, that they are both fairly generic and commonplace. Bought a whole valve and used the cap, then in Winter the old one turned up in some odd corner of the boat. Happy days
Anyway. A week or so ago I was checking the pressures and as I undid the new cap the spring from the valve shot out and various bits fell inside. "Oh bugger" says I
This is a 12 year old RIB, so not too surprising that parts like this are failing from time to time. I did after all have an entire valve sat waiting to be purposed
Tried to undo the outer part and it turned ok, luckily I had a wrench that fits (generic remember). But all too soon I realised that the inner part was not glued in, or the glue had failed with time. Either way facing the inevitable - the inner part was going to fall into the tube.
The boat is on the water, but even so I deflated that side fully in the hope that I could catch the inner part and fit the new valve body. Sadly I was once again reminded that my engine is too heavy for the hull and started to sink, quite quickly as it turned out! So hastily I pumped up the aft section, so I could continue my battle with the forward portion
As you will have guessed the inner valve dropped into the tube's interior. "Bugger" I said with no great surprise with with growing annoyance at the cold wind and wet surfaces to rest myself on.
Luckily I have a cheap eBay endoscope thingy, so got that dusted off and caught sight of the valve. Thenst I cut down an aluminium carbine clip and taped that to the smaller VHF antenna to make a good looking hook!
With one hand controlling the tiny illuminated camera head and the other twiddling the hooky thing I was impressed and delighted to catch my first ever captive valve inner
A bit of fat-fingered fumbling in a small hole later, I had the new valve body in place and was pumping away like a porn star on an LA beach
Was anyone there to record my success, or even to tell the tale when the yacht club bars reopen???? Were they bugger, so you lot have had to suffer my story
Thanks for reading to the end
