TS Dover.

Morning All,

The one time cross channel car ferry TS DOVER, more recently the 'Tuxedo Royale' night club, could now be following the route of the 'Manxman' and the 'Lincoln Castle' into oblivion.

However, there are discussions in Dover about a possible rescue mission :

http://www.doverforum.com/letters/viewtopic.php?id=5304

As a reminder, here's a picture of the 'Dover' when new :



Ckick on the picture to enlarge it.

 

Will be shaving my face soon then

 

Judging by comments like that I'm surprised you need a shave.

 

Good luck to anyone who get off their a--se and tries to do something to save what very little is left of Britains maritime history.
Thanks for posting this info.

Lets hope out of all the last few weeks of doom and gloom there is some good news.

And in the case of dear old Manxman lets hope that fat lady never does sing!

Stan

 

Good luck to them - I really hope that they will succeed, despite all the negative stuff that will doubtless be posted here!

Does anyone know the latest on the Ryde - I've not heard anything more since the scrapping was halted.

Nigel

 

Here here.

As for as Ryde is concerned she is in state of limbo although I fear its only a matter of time until we loose her. Lets just hope she is dismantled and parts saved rather than ripped apart and destroyed like Lincoln Castle.

The very sad thing is that when the powers that be decide that ship preservation is important there will not be a lot left to save.

Stan

 

I hope they succeed. However, it's a pity they seem to have considered the Manxman before they started cutting big holes in the side of it as the Manxman would have been IMHO a far better example of a classic steam turbine ferry.

Seem to remember reading in Sea Breezes or Ferry Scene once that the turbines in the Dover/ Tuxedo Royale were manually turned over for many years after it came out of service so it theoretically might make it in better condition than her years out of service would suggest (although I suspect that stopped many years ago!).

 

Nothing is quite like the Manxman but the SS Dover will be a close second.

Stan

 

Oh I don't know! When the present floating buses reach the end of their useful (useless?) lives, the preservationists of the future will be clamouring for someone to preserve one!

 

Sorry I meant a real ship with real engines! (steam).

Stan

 

Once again, people are on about saving the un savable any ship will cost millions to restore and then several million to keep in service the money just isnt there, if it was the Manxman and Ryde might have fared better i wish people would take off the rose tinted specs, Manxman might not be broken up yet, but the shipyard have cut several large holes in her, accept that she has gone, Ryde, she also is now clearly beyond saving, you will end up with a replica of it rather than saving it by the time youve replaced whats rusted away what in my view should be done is to try to start a fund to preserve a boat that is do able, one that could be purchased out of service not one thats been laid up for 20 odd years and stripped of the working parts

 

Martin - not sure what point exactly you are trying to make. However for my part, as I am employed on a heritage ship and help voluntarily with others, I know exactly what effort, money and complying with regulations are involved. That doesn't mean that others shouldn't have a crack at what would be a very large project - life would be very boring if we only attempted what we know will succeed!

Nigel

 

With reference to cutting large holes in ship's hulls, repair yards do this all the time- it's a routine job. The 'Manxman' was pretty intact machinery wise & despite what certain people say,could have been made fit for towing with a small amount of work needed to make her completely watertight to satisfy the surveyors.As for the two paddlers it is probably the best thing for them, as it means that funds which could have gone to those projects might possibly be diverted to realistic ones.
I'm pleased to see that 'City of Adelaide' is going to Australia as they care about their heritage and she will be restored far quicker than if she had gone to Sunderland.
If I had done this deal I would have swapped the ship for a couple of R.O.D. 2-8-0's.

Bob.

 

In the railway world all fury breaks loose when an engine comes out in the wrong bloody colour or has a set of smoke deflectors fitted but yet we are just supposed to sit back and watch another equally important part of our maritime heritage dissappear?

Its the same in the road steam world, if a roller gets converted to a traction engine all hell breaks loose, why doesnt this same passion apply for ships??

If SS Dover, Manxman, Ryde or Lincoln Castle, had have been a Duchess or an A4 imagine the stink that would have been kicked up.

Lets not give up on anything and if some folk want to have ago at saving one of these ships then good luck to them.


Stan

 

Well I have to confess that I am responsible for launching the TS Dover rescue plan. This can't keep happening! Manxman seems to be lost ,now Lincoln Castle has been vandalised (the only word for it)-not to even mention the fiasco surrounding City of Adelaide-and she ain't even steam! Look at it this way guys-if railway preservation can do it with locomotives -steam, diesel and new builds-why can't the maritime fraternity dig deep just for one or two ships.A couple of weeks ago I went to visit P S Ryde-it can be restored! It's a real dog but it can be repaired-it's only a matter of getting the cash together. Unfortunately Manxman and Lincoln Castle are political hijackings -if you study the 2 stories they have essential elements which are similar. Ratbag individuals seem to surface in both cases. Thankfully I can recall only one or two cases of 'Dog in thge Manger' attitudes in the railway preservation scene.
It can be done-colleagues and myself will be visiting 'Dover'(the ship!) soon and before I even set foot on her I know she needs loads doing. The 'A' word(albeit sealed in) is still extant -so that will need doing first whatever happens. Her hull will need serious repair obviously. As for her machinery ,she was withdrawn owing to turbine problems so big money there. I have some 'Big Society' ideas so hopefully we can get in early and pool the necessary millions!

 

May good fortune shine upon you. I had always assumed, not having set foot upon the Dover, that her nightclub conversion would have included the removal of engines and boilers.

I have always thought that the UK felt itself to be a maritime nation and indeed when something special happens on Tyneside such as Tall Ships Races or a visit by QE2 then tens, if not hundreds, of thousands would turn out, but when this is compared to a more regular level of support the picture is much more alarming. Even a national body such as the PSPS has a membership level which appears minute compared to those supporting railway preservation but unfortunately on the other side of the equation the money required to complete a maritime project to the satisfaction of the various regulators is usually far greater than for land based transport. If only we could galvanise the latent interest of the populace in maritime projects in the way in which the Tornado group has attracted support. Let us hope that a workhorse ferry such as the Dover can be such a project I rather fancy the idea of a Tyne turbine vessel being presered!

 

May good fortune shine upon you. I had always assumed, not having set foot upon the Dover, that her nightclub conversion would have included the removal of engines and boilers.

I have always thought that the UK felt itself to be a maritime nation and indeed when something special happens on Tyneside such as Tall Ships Races or a visit by QE2 then tens, if not hundreds, of thousands would turn out, but when this is compared to a more regular level of support the picture is much more alarming. Even a national body such as the PSPS has a membership level which appears minute compared to those supporting railway preservation but unfortunately on the other side of the equation the money required to complete a maritime project to the satisfaction of the various regulators is usually far greater than for land based transport. If only we could galvanise the latent interest of the populace in maritime projects in the way in which the Tornado group has attracted support. Let us hope that a workhorse ferry such as the Dover can be such a project I rather fancy the idea of a Tyne turbine vessel being preserved!

 

I really do you wish you all the very best of luck.

Please keep us updated on these pages and let us know when we can do anything to help this project.

Well done.

Stan

 

Thanks Turbine. When you consider the number of steam locos that have been preserved that have involved many people putting a little into many projects-this must compute into a few ships needing the same attention from a vast international supply of supporters-who seem frightened of the multi million funding bracket-Why? It's only money-the main problem is getting the work done professionally when you've got the cash. Sure, with ships it's a different funding league with flag registration ,solas etc etc. I cut my teeth raising money for Barry wrecks-the late Robert Adley worked it for Barry Scrapyard and the maritime world too with the SS Great Britain-so it can be done-yes it can be done! All it needs is conviction and courage.So when someone tells you that the money is not available-don't believe them.

 

So? What you describe is every steam loco rescued from Barry Scrapyard! Want a good example of a 'project impossible-'Duke of Glouscester'