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00:00A workshop full of wonders.
00:03I heard the word watch.
00:05Home to experts and time-honoured crafts.
00:09There you go, that's a good sound.
00:11Together repairing treasured pieces of the past.
00:15Oh, I like that. That is really good.
00:19Wow, look at that.
00:20Wow, look at that.
00:23Quite proud of that.
00:24And unlocking their stories.
00:27I'm completely blown away by this.
00:30Oh dear.
00:31Bringing the broken...
00:33I don't know where to start with this.
00:35...back to life.
00:36Wow.
00:38Stunning.
00:40Wow, fantastic!
00:43I think it's just amazing.
00:46Yeah!
00:47Welcome to the repair shop.
00:58What are we thinking? Is it going to rain?
01:00Well, if it doesn't, it'll be good for the plants.
01:09Hello there.
01:10Hello there.
01:11First to arrive with a project for bike restorer Tim Gunn is Gary Reid from Hastings.
01:18Look at this.
01:19His hefty heirloom tells of tradition and tragedy on England's south coast.
01:26Nice bike.
01:27This is my dad's old butcher's bike.
01:29A butcher's bike?
01:30Yeah.
01:31It used to have like an advertising board on here.
01:33And as you can see, it's got a carrier on the front.
01:35Oh, yes.
01:36And then you'd put a box on there with meat and everything.
01:38And then he would take it out and deliver it.
01:40He did it when he was a lad, back in the early 50s.
01:44In Hastings, that's where he was born.
01:46And what's your dad's name?
01:47Jimmy.
01:47How long was he a butcher's boy for?
01:49Only for a couple of years.
01:50Later on, he worked in the fishing industry.
01:52He became a fisherman.
01:54After a while, he then became a boy ashore,
01:56which he doesn't go out in the boat anymore,
01:58but he just stays ashore.
01:59He helps the boats up the beach with the winch and everything.
02:01And then he sells fish in the daytime on the stall
02:05until the boat's ready to come back in.
02:07Is your dad still with us?
02:08No, he passed away in the storm of 87.
02:10Oh, that's awesome.
02:11It was a very strong storm, that was.
02:13I remember it very well.
02:14Yeah, it affected Hastings in a big way.
02:16It was like a hurricane.
02:18In October 1987, winds topping 100 miles an hour
02:23battered the south of England
02:24in the worst storm to hit the country since 1703.
02:30Its widespread destruction caused 18 deaths.
02:35And, unfortunately, that's the day that your dad went out to work.
02:38He was on the beach then,
02:39trying to help some of the boats get further up past the waterline
02:43so they couldn't get battered and washed away
02:45because the sea was really rough.
02:47And a shed blew over and killed him.
02:50No way.
02:50Yeah.
02:51Wow.
02:51Yeah.
02:52Devastating, yeah.
02:53Because he was only 49 at that time.
02:54Was he really?
02:55Yeah.
02:55Well, what happened after the storm, a friend and my dad decided to have a bike race up at this
03:01place called Crown Lane,
03:02which is like a little steep hill in the old town.
03:05Because what happened with my dad in the 70s, he had the bike in the pub down there and a
03:10few of his friends said,
03:11oh, I bet you 10 bob, you can't ride up Crown Lane there sitting on the saddle.
03:15Because if you're usually going uphill, you tend to stand up and then try to put all your weight in
03:19it.
03:19So what one of his friends did, he put the 10 shillings on the back of the saddle.
03:24So he sat on it.
03:25Obviously, if he lifted off, it would have come out, but he went all up the hill and he won
03:30the 10 shillings, yeah.
03:31So his mate said, oh, let's have a bike race for charity to commemorate it.
03:35The first one was in 1988 and it's still going now.
03:38That's brilliant.
03:39You start at the bottom of the hill.
03:41Because you're sitting on the saddle and it's quite a heavy bike, a lot of people take quite a while
03:45to get going.
03:46Yeah.
03:47And everyone has a go and cheers everyone on.
03:50So how many people have actually ridden it?
03:52I suppose every year we get about 120 people riding it, so nearly 4,000 people.
03:56It looks like 4,000 people have ridden it. Look at the state of the tyres.
04:00Yeah, yeah.
04:01We decided to retire it because it was getting too difficult to use and dangerous.
04:06The crank down there has got loose, so it wobbles about a bit.
04:10You do get a bit wary of whether it could slip.
04:14And then also the steering has gone a bit shaky as well and the brakes are not 100%.
04:19We really want to get this bike back in the race.
04:22I've got a bit of a challenge in front of me, but we'll give it a go and I'm looking
04:27forward to it.
04:27Thanks a lot.
04:28We'll see you soon.
04:29Okay, thanks. Bye.
04:32It might look like an uphill challenge, but I'm sure you'll be able to get it done.
04:36We'll make it race ready.
04:37There you go.
04:38Good luck, Tim.
04:53What a story.
04:55I've seen quite a lot of these delivery bikes over the years and I've never heard of one being used
05:00for racing before.
05:01It's a robust bicycle, but with 4,000 people riding it, it's going to take its toll on the bike
05:06itself.
05:07It's fairly apt now and we've got thunderstorm going on at the moment and I feel a bit daunted by
05:13the whole project.
05:15The cranks have obviously got an issue.
05:17One of the cotter pins is loose or is broken.
05:19The handlebars and the brakes work, but they don't necessarily work very well.
05:25I can also see here the tubing for this carrier on the front here.
05:29It's come adrift.
05:31My task is to make sure that it's structurally sound and safe to ride.
05:37I've got to start actually taking it apart and see if we can get it back to where it should
05:42be.
05:42It would be lovely to be able to put a replacement advertising board inside here, so that needs making.
05:49Oh, there's some more thunder. Wow.
05:54It feels a bit ominous.
05:56I'm working on Jimmy's bike and hopefully he's happy with what I'm doing.
06:18From a traditional pushbike to international motorsports.
06:22Are you a bit of a petrol head? You like your cars, don't you?
06:25I like my cars. I love a bike to tinker with in garage, I think.
06:28Now you're talking.
06:29Counting on shoemaker Dean to save a much prized possession, Paddy Brockerton from Belfast, who's come with son Gary.
06:38Hi, welcome to the barn. Hello.
06:40Thank you. Hello. Great to be here.
06:43I've brought my father's motorcycle racing goggles.
06:47Wow.
06:48I like them.
06:49Such a nice shape. Yeah.
06:50Where did your father get them?
06:52Well, the British Motorcycle Road Racing Club held a meeting at Brooklands at Weybridge in 1935.
07:01Brooklands was a special track and it was a massive event.
07:05He won the race and lapped it over 100 miles an hour.
07:08Wow. In the 30s, that is quite an achievement.
07:12Yeah. So with that, he won the Brooklands Gold Star, which signified 100 miles an hour.
07:18Yeah.
07:19And as far as we know, he's maybe the only Irish rider ever to win a Gold Star.
07:24That's incredible.
07:26And these were provided by a sponsor.
07:29Wow.
07:30What was your dad's name?
07:31George Brockerton.
07:32So where did your dad's love of speed start then?
07:35Well, he went into the First World War as a 17-year-old, as a dispatch rider.
07:41And they had to run the gambit of bombs and gunfire, but that didn't bother my father.
07:48He enjoyed that. That was part of his make-up.
07:51So presumably, after the First World War, his life was still very motorbike heavy.
07:55Very much so. In 1928 and 1929, he won his class in the Ulster Grand Prix.
08:01And he rode in the Isle of Man TT in 1934, one of the world's most famous road races.
08:07The Isle of Man TT itself is a terrifying race.
08:10Well, it is. That's why you get the adrenaline, right?
08:12Oh, yes, yes.
08:13Growing up as a kid, though, did you used to go to these meets as a family?
08:16Yes, it was very much a family affair, and we knew lots of people.
08:19My dad was a big man, and I had an even bigger personality.
08:24He was great fun to be about. He knew everybody, and everybody knew him.
08:28He must be very proud.
08:30Oh, very. Very proud.
08:32And this gives me the opportunity to sort of show my pride in him.
08:36He passed away 60 years ago this year.
08:40OK. I guess you were quite young at the time then.
08:42Yes, well, it was early, 21, 22.
08:47Oh, bless you.
08:48I'm very sorry. The boys did?
08:50Yes, well, I never met him, so my memories of him are sort of photographs.
08:55My granny's house, the trophies.
08:58And I can just imagine him, you know, doing sort of those sort of crazy speeds with those goggles on.
09:02I think my father wore them on their forehead more than he did on the garage.
09:05Yeah, just to look cool.
09:07Of course he did.
09:08Yes.
09:09The Brooklyn's win for him was a star performance.
09:13It was his most cherished possession.
09:15I would like to have them in a presentable shape.
09:18I'll do my very best for them.
09:20It was good luck.
09:20Take care.
09:21Bye-bye.
09:22See you soon, guys.
09:26What a guy.
09:27Different breed of person to do that.
09:29Unbelievable, yeah.
09:30Where are you going to start?
09:32Yeah, I have no idea whatsoever.
09:33Well, let me know if you need a hand.
09:34Yeah, I will do.
09:35Definitely.
09:51Well, to be able to work on something with such history and beautifully crafted is quite a privilege, really.
09:58As with many repairs, things weren't as they first appeared.
10:04I really thought when I first looked at these that this red part was leather.
10:07And it's not.
10:09It's just what appears to be like a latex rubber pad that has been painted red.
10:15I'm a bit flummoxed, really, by how to go about this.
10:19As I look, I can see the iPads were stitched through.
10:23But the pad has gone really, really brittle.
10:27So there is no way, really, that I can put that back on there and work with it.
10:32So I need to think of a way to make a new eyepiece for the right goggle that is flexible
10:37and nice and soft,
10:40but can be stitched through as well.
10:43Firstly, I'm going to tackle the metal work.
10:45It would be nice to remove some of that oxidation and tarnishing
10:49and really see that metal shine under me,
10:52all the while thinking about that elusive iPad that I need to make.
11:02As Dean ponders how to tackle the goggles' unexpected latex,
11:07Tim is still grappling to take apart the butcher's bike that's been ridden into the ground.
11:16Well, that was quite an effort to get those out.
11:19The bike has been dropped on its side and basically bent this side of the handlebar up.
11:24So if you look, this is the way they should be.
11:26That one's flat. That one's pointing upwards.
11:30The next stage now is to straighten it.
11:34I'm going to apply some gentle heat to this particular area here
11:39and then I'm hoping that I can bring this tube back round again.
12:03I'm hoping that that's got it nearly to where it should be.
12:10I'm very pleased with that actually.
12:13Just needs a few more tweaks and then I'm ready to work on the rest of the bike.
12:24Tim has asked me to make a board to fit inside the throne for the bike that he's working on
12:32to commemorate Jimmy. This type of carrier bike, it's a butcher, a baker or even a candlestick maker.
12:40Their company would have been advertised on this panel board.
12:45The bulk of the work is in this wooden template.
12:49This fits inside the bike perfectly.
12:52Now I've got my design drawn on there. I just need to cut it out and open my can of
12:57paint.
13:07Charlotte.
13:08Hello.
13:09I've got a bit of a problem with these motorcycle goggles.
13:12Oh wow.
13:13I thought there was leather, but they aren't.
13:16I think, given that this one's just so hard and brittle, it probably is latex because that's kind of what
13:21happens with age.
13:23I should be able to make you a whole new one and then you can sew it back on and
13:26they'll be good to go.
13:27Really? It sounds so simple.
13:28No, it's not simple.
13:29Of course it's not.
13:30That would be a life saver, thank you so much.
13:32No problem.
13:33Alright.
13:35With the dried up eyepiece of the motorcycle goggles safely in the hands of expert in plastics and rubber, Charlotte,
13:43paintings conservator Lucia is taking in some new scenery.
13:48A depiction of vanishing rural life, it's especially important to Amanda from Powys in Mid Wales.
13:57Hello.
13:58Hi.
13:58Hi.
13:59This is a very interesting painting.
14:01It's lovely, isn't it?
14:02Yes.
14:03Yeah.
14:03Really very tranquil.
14:05We think it's of a mountain called Epent, which is in Mid Wales.
14:09Epent.
14:10Epent.
14:11Epent means haunt of the horse because there always used to be lots of horses up there.
14:16We found it in an attic in a house that we bought on the outskirts of the Epent.
14:20What a thing to find in an attic.
14:22It says on the bottom, last of the gathering.
14:25So gathering is when livestock is gathered off a mountain, which is done four or five times a year by
14:31the farmers for lambing, for shearing and for selling as well, because it's their livelihood.
14:37And the last gathering could be the last time the stock was ever gathered off the mountain.
14:44Following the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, the War Office urgently required vast open areas to train
14:53the armed forces in artillery and gunfire.
14:57With land in Mid Wales fitting the bill, families from 54 farms in the Mount Epent area were given just
15:05months to leave their homes and way of life.
15:09The area remains under the control of the Ministry of Defence.
15:15I think there was about 200 people altogether who had to move their whole life really.
15:21And I'm guessing we're talking about generations of family in the same spot.
15:25Yeah, my father-in-law was a farmer. He would have known lots of families who had to be displaced,
15:31start their lives again in new communities.
15:33Yeah.
15:34Nobody was able to go back. The sheep are. There's about 90,000 sheep.
15:38So is it still cordoned off then by the MOD? It is, yeah. Farmers and the MOD, they've learnt to
15:44work together.
15:45My husband is the fourth generation of the farming family. He takes sheep back and forth from the Epent. My
15:52two sons do as well.
15:54They've got their own flock. And do you still participate in the gatherings?
15:58Not personally, but they do. They do. And that's why we're so interested in the painting, because there's history behind
16:05it.
16:05You're not kidding. This is fantastic. We don't know what's going on here.
16:10There's something underneath there. Could that be restored?
16:14Yeah, I can see that something's being painted out there, but that paint kind of looks like the same paint
16:19as here, so I'd have to look closely at it.
16:21That seems a curious thing to do, because I think it's like the link, isn't it, between that side of
16:26the stream and this side?
16:27Yes. It would be lovely to see what's going on under the fuzzy bit and to be able to share
16:32it, you know, with people.
16:34That know the story. That know the story and are still involved in the community.
16:38Fantastic. I'll see what I can do.
16:40That would be great. Thank you. Bye. Bye.
16:55This is an absolutely fascinating painting. It really has captured a moment in time. It's quite an amazing composition actually.
17:02You know, we're getting this movement of horses coming down the mountain. They obviously understood what was happening in this
17:08landscape and I think that's really thrilling.
17:10There is some damage along the edges. I will consolidate them, but they're not the priority at the moment.
17:16This area, which Amanda pointed out, there's definitely something under there, because look, you see on this knee area, this
17:24green is going over onto his suit.
17:26So it is a later edition paint, but I have to work out if it's soluble.
17:30So first things first, I'm going to surface clean the whole painting with my cleaning solution here, which is basically
17:36distilled water with a drop of ammonia, which just breaks the surface tension and allows the water to lift the
17:43surface dirt off.
17:45Look at that. We've got a little flecks of yellow coming through. This is going to clean so fantastically well.
17:53Absolutely. The best surface dirt I've seen in a long time.
18:05It's a nice red. What are you looking for, Bev? I'm just admiring your pigments.
18:10Oh, they're gorgeous, aren't they? Amazing. I might borrow this green if that's right.
18:14Of course. Lovely. Thank you.
18:19Charlotte's nearly ready to start the complex process of creating the goggles replacement eyepiece.
18:26Latex isn't really a sculptable material. I can't really get a block of it and just kind of carve it
18:33and sand it.
18:34To capture all the detail that is in this eyepiece, I need to sculpt it out of something else.
18:39So I'm going to sculpt out of wax-based clay and then use that dummy eyepiece to make a mould
18:45and cast the final piece in latex.
18:48I've got my card template, so I just need to get it in the shape and then I can start
18:54sculpting it so that it conforms to the shape of the original eyepiece.
19:25I'm really happy with the shape of the new eyepiece.
19:28It matches the original really, really well. The only problem is at the moment it's a bit too smooth.
19:34So I'm going to be using a texture stamp that I made of some cracked paints so that it matches
19:40the original eyepiece.
19:42The clay is currently a little bit too hard to be able to take the texture from the stamp.
19:46So I'm just going to heat it up very briefly with a blow torch to get just the surface a
19:51little bit softer.
20:02I'm just pushing the texture stamp into the clay.
20:08That's imparted a really lovely texture.
20:11I'm going to continue that kind of all the way around the eyepiece.
20:15And once I'm happy with that, I can make my mould and then I'll be able to cast the final
20:19piece in latex.
20:20I'm going to be able to cast the final piece of the clay.
20:50broken down tim's about to employ a suitably old-school method for his next fix the front
20:57carrier was actually the structural bit of the bike that carried the meat for jimmy and his
21:02butchers round there's lots of joints that have come adrift and they need repairing but there's
21:07a big hole here which has opened up originally the bike was braised together all of these joints
21:13have actually been you know assembled with brass brass will actually flow really lovely and produce
21:19a nice clean joint so the first job is just to patch up the hole so what i'm going to
21:24do is i'm
21:25actually going to just braise a little washer which i've turned into a little curved patch it will
21:30hopefully look like it's always been there it's a way that i prefer because it's an old traditional
21:37way of doing it i'm just dipping my brass rod in some flux it's an acid effectively and basically
21:45once it's mixed with the flame and the brass it helps the brass flow it it helps it capillary into
21:50the joint you can start to see the brass seep underneath the washer and you end up with a nice
21:57joint i'm going to fill in the central hole now i'll basically turn it from being a washer
22:05to being a patch once that's cleaned up with a file now i want to know that there's a hole
22:12there
22:17doing traditional sign writing like this is a a bit of a love of mine i'm by no means a
22:23sign
22:23writer but i just enjoy doing this i really am quite envious of the craftspeople of yesterday who
22:30were to jump up the ladder be outside every shop front on every high street would have had their
22:35sign painted like this with a brush that's how things used to be done i think it's beautiful
22:41the race is on one day in the year which obviously will cause quite a stir there's going to be
22:46a busy
22:47time but for the rest of the year there's going to be a constant reminder to anybody that sees it
22:51about jimmy and his memorial race
23:10i've made the mold and having a look at it it's picked up all those fantastic details that i had
23:16on
23:17the sculpt kind of all those kind of creases and everything that will make it kind of in keeping
23:21with the original now i can bring the two parts of the mold together and just pour in the platex
23:26and
23:26that'll kind of bond everything together as one piece
23:45that's the mold all secure and ready to pour some latex in it
23:50when making molds it's really hard to tell whether you've captured all those details you don't really
23:56know until you've cast the parts so i won't know how good the mold is until this is dried
24:07with the surface dirt now lifted from the painting of the last gathering
24:12lucia started to tackle the areas that had been hidden
24:17i've taken off this over paint layer of this landscape at the back and it's just revealed
24:22more of the original landscape but i'm starting on this big shadowy lump of over paint by this figure
24:30i don't know what's going on under here i don't know why anybody would have blocked it out
24:33but hopefully i'll be able to open all that up and we'll find out what's hidden i'm just softening this
24:39paint there here i can see it's actually lifting up some of the paint if i go in with a
24:46scalpel
24:47i should be able to feel those edges
24:53and it it comes off just in small areas
24:59oh it's really great this is really starting to come out whatever's under here is slowly being revealed
25:08and i'll tell you something it's never not thrilling nerve-wracking but thrilling
25:22tim's also making progress in his quest to make the butcher's bike safe for riding
25:29so i've cleaned and repaired all of the things that were wrong with this bike now it's the exciting
25:37part of putting it all back together again the cranks that the pedals go on are held on with what's
25:43known as cotter pins and it's a very old-fashioned way of fitting cranks to a bicycle this is the
25:50original cotter pin as a comparison that's a brand new one so as you can see the difference eventually
25:57if someone is going to ride it particularly uphill that is going to break so a brand new one is
26:03going
26:03to solve the problem so to fit the cranks it basically attaches everything together so this little
26:09little fitting here is key so now the cotter pin is loosely fitted i'm going to use this lovely tool
26:16here which is very ancient it's actually a cotter pin press and the purpose of this basically is to
26:22push the cotter pin further in to allow me to get a nut and a washer on the other side
26:26so as i pull this
26:28lever you can see the cotter slowly move into the crank so that's as far as in as i can
26:37get it now i've
26:39got a lovely long piece of thread on this side and that allows me to fit this washer and nut
26:49on the end so that's now locked on solid it's not going anywhere now this is back on the bike
26:55i'm excited to continue on we're putting the rest of it back together
27:05this is great we're starting i'm starting to see something in here the little bit that i've uncovered
27:11seems to suggest we've got another one of these lovely welsh sheepdogs rather like the ones down
27:20here i mean it's got we've got a little paw here here and here and a black body but it's
27:26starting to
27:27look like a dog this is really exciting
27:44this has been an absolute labor of love and i am thrilled with the fact that we've got this
27:51little dog back on the scene i mean it's been hidden for many many decades right here we go oh
27:59oh look at that i think it's going to come off beautifully
28:05oh look it's got a little black nose
28:11honestly these little revelations in front of your very eyes it's absolutely a privilege to do this
28:19he's a very handsome dog and i think he's the leader of the pack apart from a few
28:27losses in this area i honestly don't know why this dog was painted out it's absolutely fantastic
28:35and it makes the picture as far as i'm concerned that is the dynamic center of the picture so it's
28:41really brilliant as lucia continues to reveal the hidden delights of the painting's welsh landscape
28:50tim's almost finished restoring the butcher's bike from the south coast of england
28:57so it feels brilliant to get these handlebars and these brakes back in the bike it has been an
29:02absolute privilege to work on this considering how many people have actually ridden it so that's
29:09the front brake working perfectly i'm really pleased with that the rear brake needs setting up there's a
29:15few more bits and pieces that need putting on the bike the saddle the pedals and then it's ready to
29:19go
29:20back to gary once ridden by a young butcher's hand as he delivered meat around town this carrier bike
29:30was then furiously pedaled by thousands of locals racing for charity over the years
29:38gary has returned to see if his dad's bike is safe to ride up the hill in hastings once again
29:49it's a little bit nervous maybe but hopefully delighted now this was a well-used bike and it's
29:59seen quite a lot of action yeah over 100 people have been on it every year so it's a lot
30:03of people
30:03over three thousand there's a lot of bent and broken bits on it that's why i've come here because we
30:07really wanted to get it back in good shape so we can carry on hopefully for another 37 years at
30:12least
30:13we'd like to see what tim's done yeah oh yeah definitely come on okay
30:21oh wow
30:25looks almost brand new can i touch the pedals yeah wow
30:32he's really inspecting it he's going for isn't he well that's good
30:38brakes are working wow it's really nice oh lovely bit of sign right now that's great yeah well that
30:45was dom that did that so yeah that's good thanks a lot it almost feels fast already
30:52yeah it's lovely fantastic now we don't have a hill but we do have a nice little area outside the
30:58barn so
30:59oh great i can give it a go you can give it a go i can't wait
31:05right let's get the door
31:12hey that is off look at that
31:22he's a racer up by heart isn't he he's quite quick as well yeah yeah yeah
31:26do you know what it's so rewarding to see
31:29all my hard work being used by someone yeah just being enjoyed
31:35the little bells ringing as well it's brilliant how's that uh it's great it feels nice and firm nice and
31:42safe just putting my hands on these bars now i just feel that rush of adrenaline it's going to be
31:46great to take it back now and uh get on with the race for next year fantastic you're gonna win
31:51i can
31:51feel it oh there he is oh hey
31:57that is off must be hard on that gravel yeah
32:04i'd never thought i'd see my dad's bike like this again and it looks really in top
32:08condition so hopefully it's going to last a few more years now
32:12it symbolizes my dad's legacy that he had of riding this carrier bike around in hastings and also the
32:17race just keeps his memory going i think there'll be a lot more people this year that are going to
32:22want
32:22to ride on it
32:33next a project in need of will's carpentry skills hi there hi hello oh lovely right let's get in the
32:44barn
32:47that's so cool come in come in this nautical treasure belongs to sisters lindsay skinner and
32:54karen price from breston in the east midlands wow look at this so this is puffin this is the boat
33:02that our dad made for us when we were little so it's my birthday i was two years old um
33:07and he was
33:08there waiting for me in the garden and i immediately went and got my favorite teddies and sat with them
33:13on
33:14on the seat a little seat lifts up oh that's really sweet so we could put little things in
33:18there and we put our teddies in there and we'd sit in there and we'd go off on our adventures
33:23i'd fill it with grass cuttings as well and make nests and stuff when dad built puffin he worked at
33:30the bus repair works and that's where he made puffin on his lunch hour using bits of scrap that he
33:37found
33:37around that's really clever so would this be like the panel from the side of a bus then quite possibly
33:43like bus flooring on the inside yes it could be what was his name he was jeffrey but he hated
33:49that
33:50so he was only ever known as jeff sadly he passed away uh 12 years ago i'm sorry to hear
33:57that he was
33:57always there for us wasn't he always dependable he was so capable so able of of of making and fixing
34:05things dad built us other things so we built us a sandpit a slide swing i'm so jealous i cannot
34:14believe we were the luckiest kids puffins just a real key part of our childhood and yeah then he was
34:20kept safe in a shed until we had our children and then he's he's come back out again and they've
34:25been
34:25playing with puffin as well which is lovely to see and as much as we've tried to look after him
34:30and
34:30take care of him another 10 years of being played on and the weather have now taken their toll so
34:37he's
34:37just had to stop in our mum's garage for now the kids can't really play on him what would you
34:43like
34:43me to do with this all the the seat the bottom the top it's all a bit spongy in places
34:49well that's
34:51spongy this is spongy and creaky should have wheels right so you've got one there well i've got two one
35:01and a half lovely to see it restored to a point that you know it can be played on just
35:07the same
35:08as as we did when we were kids and see all the bits back on it as it should be
35:12puffing his granddad's
35:14boat to the children yeah he never met his grandchildren and it's that tangible link to him
35:19yeah that they wouldn't otherwise have had my little boy is three he loves playing on it
35:24he keeps saying why don't we have puffing anymore and he's like well we need to get him fixed i
35:31will
35:31do my very best to keep as much of your dad's signature work there but also make it uh strong
35:37and sturdy enough for kids to play with brilliant thank you will i'll see you soon thank you bye
36:00bye bye this is such a great boat i wish i had something like this as a child
36:05at some point damp's got an end and i think that's where the majority of the damage has taken place
36:11the bow this is not salvageable at all that's delaminating the dashboard is broken and crumbling
36:21away the seats panel here is breaking away at the hinge on the back thankfully the majority of the
36:29solid wood can be saved all the metal looks like it's in pretty good condition but the bow the floor
36:36and the seats are going to have to be replaced charlotte's removed the latex eyepiece from the
36:53mould she made to help dean with his repair of the motorcycle goggles charlotte are we getting on yeah
37:01it's all done incredible it's a nice and nice and bendy this one so clever so you think that'll
37:06sew in okay yeah the second needle and thread right it's nice and strong a flex should go in nicely
37:12everything thanks so much for your help oh you're welcome all right see you later see you in a bit
37:22it's kind of blowing my mind actually how accurate it is to the original i need to
37:27uh now paint it red to match the other one i will paint the original as well there's a lot
37:33of cracking
37:34on there where it's worn away so if you can paint that back red that what that's going to do
37:39is
37:39consolidate everything and just stop it deteriorating further now i'm going to do the new one first the
37:46good thing about latex is it will take acrylic paint quite well that's actually going on really
37:52nicely now charlotte's done an incredible job with this texture and as i'm putting the paint on it's
37:58really showcasing that and once it's dry i can get on with the tricky task of sewing it back into
38:05the frame
38:29though he's had to rebuild the rotten parts of little boat puffin will is making sure her character
38:36won't be lost well i've replaced the bow of the boat and the base of the boat with new plywood
38:42and it's so
38:42much stronger i have also managed to retain a panel on the inside where the seat is that must have
38:51been
38:51the flooring of the inside of the bus or something like that and i really want to keep this because
38:56it's a great nod to jeff's work this is where they would spend so much time sitting down letting
39:01their imagination run wild so i'm going to pop this back in
39:11that slotted into place i'm pleased i managed to save that
39:15i like the original top of the seat that is breaking away and i know that lindsay and karen
39:21want their children to play with this so i've used that as a template and i've cut out a new
39:27seat
39:28now i've got two kids and this is really going to inspire me to make something quite similar
39:34and just fixing it up kind of gives me that same bit of excitement that jeff must have had
39:39when he bought this home oh yes very smooth that's very nice and there's enough space to put all your
39:47teddies in i just need to add on the last bits of trim that i can turn my attention to
39:51the dashboard
39:59to reattach the eyepieces to the motorcycle goggles shoemaker dean is about to take a needle
40:06to latex now although i am sewing which is a very familiar technique to me i do it almost daily
40:13shallot has only made one eye piece for me to go with so i really have to get this right
40:19and hope
40:20that nothing goes wrong i'm going to do a saddle stitch on this which is one piece of thread and
40:28two
40:28needles and they pass each other through the same hole creates a very very strong stitch
40:40so far it's going well i've got five stitches in but they're nice and secure and there's a pull it
40:47tight it's not cutting through the latex which is really quite a relief
40:53so it's just a case of being really patient and really slow i'm not trying to rush a result
41:16i'm at the point now when i finish the cleaning and removing all the over paint i'm now going to
41:21concentrate on the crack in the paint here and that was completely covered over with over paint and then
41:26there's a real really bad ding in the bottom which i will also treat and i'm going to do that
41:32by flowing
41:33in some of this special adhesive it's an acrylic this is actually a really tough adhesive as well so it
41:40should hold it in place really quite nicely the moisture in this adhesive will soften all the fibers
41:48shrink them a little bit the whole thing will pull together and it will go nice and flat when it's
41:54underweights okay so let's get things in place i need the release paper
42:02line it up at the edge put this piece on top
42:09okay so i can leave that to dry i'm going to turn it round and do the same on the
42:13bottom part and once
42:14everything's in place when it's dried the next phase is going to be a a brush coat of varnish and
42:19retouching the little areas of scuffs and dings that are across the painting so yeah it's good
42:34to replace the next rotten part of puffins will's taking inspiration from the original maker
42:42well i've tried to separate the steering wheel from the dashboard and everything's just started to
42:49break away in my hands ah there we are beautiful jeff was so resourceful when it came to making this
42:57i love the fact that this steering wheel is actually it looks like kind of like an old fire extinguisher
43:02something like that but to a child it is a steering wheel well now that i've got that off it's
43:08time
43:09to make a new dashboard now i've got a bit of a plan up my sleeve not only am i
43:15going to make the new dash
43:16out of solid wood so it doesn't delaminate i was kind of thinking i could add like a compass to
43:22the left
43:23and a speedometer to the right i'm going to use my trusty laser engraving machine to laser that detail
43:30in place i've been working out a couple of designs here i'm going with like an old school compass
43:37design for the left and for the right hand side i've got a speedometer pop that in there
43:48here i go
44:13hey tim did you ever used to have a toy like this when you're growing up i didn't have a
44:17boat
44:17but i actually had a pedal car that my dad found in the scrap bin really yeah my dad did
44:22it out for
44:23christmas and i came down christmas morning and it was there sitting with a little dashboard just like
44:28you've printed off there and it was the best toy that i've ever had and my girls now use it
44:34oh amazing
44:37thanks to the artistry of both charlotte and dean the repair of the motorcycle goggles is nearly
44:44sewn up the goggles have gone back together really really well so fulfilling to see them come to this
44:50stage now moving on to the strap it's kept its elasticity which i'm really happy about so now i can
44:58get these back on the goggles and they are ready to collect i've really really enjoyed working on
45:05these it's so different to what i would normally do that's hooked in there really nicely and they look
45:14fantastic
45:20champion motorcyclist george brockerton wore these goggles at the peak of his racing career
45:26but time saw them hit the skids looking good you pleased yeah really he looks so smart well done thank
45:35you george's son paddy has returned with his son gary to see if this precious memento of his day
45:44is back to its glory days hello welcome back guys hi guys how you doing back to the bar yeah
45:51nice to see
45:51again yeah how are you feeling well excited uh excited because um i have such a connection with my
45:58father's um achievements and uh these are always the most important thing to him yeah do you want to
46:07take a look well you ready i suppose we have to don't we i think i'm ready
46:27oh that's amazing wow thank you it's brilliant you're very welcome
46:39that's just the way they were isn't it that's just the way they were
46:45thank you thank you so welcome i thought actually these were leather yes on first look and then
46:52realized they were kind of a latex rubber yeah yeah so i had to call the lovely charlotte in to
46:57help me
46:58that's a great job well it's brilliant job that's wonderful it's quite clear to us how proud of your
47:04father you really are yes he left a real uh legacy that we're very proud of i can see how
47:11emotional
47:12my dad is because obviously he was so proud of his dad but i have to say i mean i'm
47:19just as proud of
47:19my dad uh as uh as you were of yours so um you know it's it's just such a great
47:24thing that we have
47:25these are fantastic well i have no goggles to leave you well well you do now you do now thank
47:33you
47:34you're welcome thank you both so much enjoy thanks bye-bye
47:40i was very proud of my father and his achievements and uh they'll be passed over to gary and his
47:48brother stephen and they'll cherish these in the future i have no doubt yeah
48:03will is on a roll restoring puffin the homemade boat i'm now looking at the wheels one of them has
48:11broken into pieces and the other one is still together but incredibly brittle now i could buy
48:17new plastic wheels but i think in the spirit of jeff i thought be really nice to turn some out
48:25of wood
48:26i found a nice bit of teak here teak's great because it has lots of natural oils in it
48:30so it'll be better in the elements outside
48:50i'm using my turning tools here to start to get that nice wheel profile it's quite a simple shape but
48:59i
48:59think once it's all turned in it's going to look really quite sweet
49:19will's asked me to make a cushion and a flag for the puffin boat so
49:25i've sourced this really fun puffin fabric of course keeping in with the theme and what i've
49:33done is i've also sourced an orange which is what i'm going to pipe the edges of the cushion with
49:39the fabric's going to complement the boat perfectly and it's going to look super fun
49:53well that's my first wheel done and i have to say it looks really smart so much better than the
50:00plastic wheel and actually more in keeping with the boat that jeff made that's one down one more to go
50:20it's time for lucia to make her final retouches to the welsh landscape painting
50:26i'm going to start on the dog this area is the most damaged area there's a lot of little abrasions
50:33where the dog has been partly rubbed out the little bit of retouching is going to hopefully
50:39really reconstruct that whole figure of the dog i'm mixing dry pigments with synthetic resins i'm
50:46going to go straight into the body of the dog and just start dotting in the losses and try and
50:54bring
50:55the dog to life i've loved working on this painting it's always a delight to find a missing part of
51:04it
51:04and it really sort of makes the composition complete
51:10once all that's done and i've done all the rest of the damage be ready to hand back to amanda
51:15i'm very excited about that
51:21this artwork immortalizes a ritual that was carried out by a thriving farming community
51:27before they had to give up their land but painted over and left in a loft it was only telling
51:35part of
51:35its tale from a farming family herself amanda hopes it can continue to honor those who came before her
51:45how great to see you again and you how are you feeling amanda excited it had this patch that was
51:52covered over i'm hoping we'll find out what was underneath it are you ready to see it definitely yeah
52:12oh wow oh and another dog
52:18that was that was underneath another oh look at the colors of it
52:25it's lovely thank you so much it's it's wonderful
52:30yeah so detailed isn't it i know i know i'm just pleased to be able to share it with people
52:37and
52:38the the wonder for me is that you're actually following in the footsteps of these guys in the
52:41modern world our boys are in their 20s now they're going to be gathering again this weekend so uh so
52:48it's a really rich heritage really proud of it it's just lovely it's brilliant thank you so much
52:55it's been a pleasure really has good i'm thrilled to bits with it brilliant thank you i'll get the
53:01door for you thank you okay
53:06luci has done just an amazing job of the painting so excited to be able to show it to to
53:12people and
53:13you know what it represents to our family and our community the local people who who gather the hill
53:21we can keep the legacy of the eppence and and of the gathering for a long time to come
53:34the restoration of the good ship puffin is almost complete well i've just finished putting the wheels
53:42on and the woodwork looks very light here everything that i have replaced looks very light
53:48so i'm going to pretty much rag some stain onto the surface and it's going to help tone it down
53:58now i always love this part of any job
54:01the finishing and this really shows off all the hard work
54:05it's been a pleasure to inject fresh life into this boat
54:09and sort of preserve those memories for lindsay and karen once this is dried i'm going to seal
54:17everything with an external varnish which is going to protect the wood then it's ready to go back to
54:22lindsay and current exposure to the dam meant this much-loved boat fashioned from scraps arrived more
54:34shipwreck than ship shape sisters lindsay and karen have returned with their children toby quinn josh and
54:43charlotte to see if their dad's clever creation is fit for more pint-sized play
54:50hello hi come in come in
54:55who's excited me me yes what are we hoping to see today puffin oh so you know what's underneath
55:04there oh yeah right okay who's ready to see puffin well i am yeah kids you ready yeah three two
55:16one
55:18oh wow that feels amazing oh i feel quite overwhelmed oh my goodness look at this oh it's already
55:29getting in i like it yeah he likes it i can actually climb up it yeah oh dad would have
55:42loved it yeah
55:43to see it stick back like that dad would be blown away you really would the hinges back on the
55:50cart
55:50oh the seat opens again the secret compartment my treasure again yeah oh that's an amazing cushion
55:58with the puffins on as well sonaz has done a great job at making the cushion and the flag as
56:03well
56:03and it was my pleasure i had great fun oh thank you thank you so much it's beautiful north east
56:09and
56:09himself oh look at this josh what do you think of the boat all right good job i think it's
56:18amazing
56:19it's puffin but better do you know what it's been a pleasure to work on it thank you so much
56:24for
56:24bringing it in thank you so much well it means so much to our family what you've done if you
56:29grab the
56:30door i'll wheel it out okay dad never got to meet his grandchildren and it's so amazing to see that
56:41something he built for me and karen can be now be part of their childhood they've got memories now
56:49that are to do with granddad it's granddad's boat it's our puffin boat
56:54i'm looking forward to playing on it and we can play pirates with josh i love it
57:07if you have a treasured possession that's seen better days and you think the team can help
57:12please get in touch at bbc.co.uk slash tech power and join us in the repair shop
57:20you
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