Leaderboard

I see your from Australia. So what are your plans, boat for a few month then return home for a few month, as this will determine the response to buy new build or secondhand. There was a couple from your way a few years ago who had major problems with the builder of their boat, just Google Narrow boat waiouru Ben Harp. They also did a Blog of their life aboard doing the canals. I honestly can’t see the point in having a boat built, you might not like it. Your better off buying second hand doing what you need to do and sell it afterwards. You will loose money if you buy new. Not as much if your sensible buying secondhand.

Yes, I also travel quite a lot, using about 100 litres a month so 1200 litres a year, but then how can I justify getting cheap diesel when those who need it for getting to and from work have to pay the full price? Whilst I have enjoyed the benefit of having cheap diesel over the years, justifying it is more difficult. By my reckoning it will cost me about 80p a day more (£109 per month v £85 a month), that isn't going to break the bank anytime soon. There is going to be a need to pay more tax to finance what is currently going on, am I bothered? nah.

At a wild guess, PD1964. Why so unpleasant guys? Bill, don't be put off, there are idiots and trolls on every forum. TD'

Everything was left too late including the start of any planning, unlike countries like South Korea and New Zealand and Australia to an extent who had it all well planned early on, testing, PPE ect ect in place.

2002. Vishny Volochek, halfway between Moscow and St Petersburg, where the Englishman Captain Perry built the first successful waterway link between the Volga and the Baltic circa 1710. The photo shows the northern end of the canal where it entered the river Tsna.

Seems like a win-win. Balance the Lithium and warm the water (slightly)

On this day in 2001 Top of Delph Dudley Canal No 1 BCN Compare #2029 (2002) #1131 (2011) #2236 (2018)

Maybe it was a 'Friday afternoon boat' but ............................... A big brand new fat-boat arrived in our marina, ugly, but beautiful finish. A couple of days later a van arrived and three guys got out, donned overalls and came down to the boat, they spent the day there and then disappeared, The next day a repeat performance, this went on all week. The following week the Van turned up with 2 guys and the process started again. I decided to have a chat with them and asked them what was happening. They explained that they were a team who went around doing 'rectification work' to new builds, I asked if the sort of time they were spending on this boat was typical and they said NO. This boat had far less problems that normally found as this was had been 'hand built and hand prepared' as a show boat for the Crick show. Weeks later and many more visits and they never did solve the water leak in the engine hole, just gave up and said 'its rainwater and we cannot stop rainwater getting in'. Two years later and the owner had enough and put it up for sale at 'offers over £200,000 Buy a boat that has all the problems resolved !

Ssshhhhh, if no body ever had a new boat built, there would be none for the rest of us to buy 2nd hand.

If you want to keep up with the project you will find it her

I was enjoying the exchange more than the content of the thread... but then am not much of a diy person... ?

http://www.mappery.com/map-of/UK-Broad-Beam-Canal-Map

Not sure about the rules but MC are selling these. https://www.midlandchandlers.co.uk/products/led-brass-tunnel-light-4-5-8-117mm-dia-vn-001 Looks like a posh shower head.

This was all planned several years ago when the Government (we) became the the first country in the world to set targets for zero emissions and the laws to achieve that were passed in 2019 In June 2019, the UK became the first major economy in the world to pass laws guaranteeing an end to its contribution to global warming by 2050. The target will require the UK to bring all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050, compared with the previous target of at least an 80% reduction from 1990 levels. I have many times posted the documents outlining how and when this will be achieved and the fact that ALL boats in UK waters (both inland and sea-going) will be zero emissions by 2050, and that no new boats can be built after 2035 unless the are Zero emissions. Of course - the replies are normally "it'll never happen", "by 2050 it won't worry me" etc

Ah right, makes sense now. I'll pm you when we get back home end of next week.

Going OK so far - 11A coming in from my solar. Cell 1: 3.362V Cell 2: 3.384V Cell 3: 3.403V (with the 15A load on it) Cell 4: 3.370V Water is verrrry mildly warm. Going to see how it goes and try to get all my cells up to 3.6V nice and balanced. Thanks for all the advice, appreciate having some handholding through this. EDIT: Still going 45 mins later, sun has come out a bit and producing 19A of current. Cell 1: 3.372V Cell 2: 3.407V Cell 3: 3.540V Cell 4: 3.387V Water is warm. Checking the voltage every minute or two. If Cell 3 gets to 3.6V I'll pull the plug.

So it doesn't need polishing so often. Plus it enhances the appearance of the shelf it is on! This too. There is something to keep it there, but not beyond someone "going equipped".

After 3 years with our 20 year old boat, we wanted something newer. 2-5 years old. We looked hard for 3 months and there was just nothing on the market that fitted our requirements. We reluctantly decided to go for a new one which has turned out great. Ordered end of Feb and delivered 2 weeks ago. Lovely boat and really glad we went new! Ok we loose the VAT and a bit more but this is a long term boat. We had concerns over the builder going bust with Colecraft saying the delivery was mid 2021!!!! We therefore went to Aqualine ( boats built in Poland). The are fully booked with fat boats but if you want a narrowboat they had an immediate slot. 12 weeks to build and deliver and it is quality. As the time is short there is less of an issue of going out of business. The contract gives you ownership of what you have paid for and we did our financial due diligence. You have access to their factory web site with images posted of the build process every week. At no stage did I feel worried that I could not see it being built. Poland didn't suffer as much from the virus as the U.K. did so little delay. The snagging list on the boat is short which is great compared with the last one we bought 15 years ago. Recommend the OP give Noel a call at Hanbury Wharf (New and used boats - Aqualine agents). However, if this is to be your first boat, I would buy a £40-50K one first to find out what you really want in a boat. That way when the new one arrives it will be what you want.

Middletown’s of Manchester do lovely replica old style headlamps. They used to advertise in WW, maybe still do

Or, you could say that C&RT conned the Government into thinking they would be competent as a 'stand-alone' charity.

Why would anyone buy new? You have to wait for a year or two; you worry whether it will happen, (you are already worrying and you haven't even started yet); once you have it, there will be lots of things you want to add or change or finish off; and so on. Buy second hand, almost new, and you'll get more boat for the same money, and it will have been sorted by the owner, (or you will have some money in the budget to sort it, and you get it a few weeks/days after you see it. No brainer!!

We were on the Thames for 2 weeks in July/August 2017. My records show that we moored at East Street where I met the skipper of a boat called Nightwatch. After that we went down to Abingdon and moored for 3 nights just below the lock. We then headed back upstream and stopped at the following overnight moorings between Oxford and Lechlade. Lechlade was the only place we paid to moor. GOING UPSTREAM Eynsham - up through the lock, past the moorings on the left chargeable at £10 and moored free by the meadow on the left. Lovely view. Newbridge - on the right just before The Rose Revived pub. Very high bank so getting on and off was not easy. Rushey Lock - moored by the meadow on the left just above the lock. Kelmscott - moored on the right hand side just after a left hand bend if I remember correctly. Looks like it was where the upstream orange line is located on magnetman 's map. Lechlade - left hand side just before the bridge. Paid the farmer £5 in the morning. No cows while we were there. GOING DOWNSTREAM Radcot - moored on the right just downstream from the bridge. Babcock Hyth - moored on the left hand side just before the pub. Back to East Street for the final night. All were very nice moorings. All were easy to get on and off other than the one at Newbridge. Regarding Newbridge - there were better moorings on the left hand side, going upstream, just after the Maybush pub. We stopped there for lunch (not in the pub) on the way back downstream but I think there were signs for a (£5?) charge for overnight mooring.

i’d sack your cat and get a proper one

Murderer!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It may have helped on cast iron as some is porous, would chase out any moisture and burn off any contaminants on the surface.

Once a matelot, always a matelot.

Shot blast and powdercoat. I had 2 cast iron park bench frames done about 8 years ago. They are outside in all weathers and still perfect. Cost about 20 quid for cash if I remember correctly.

July 2009, just slightly upstream of Dav and Pen’s Marne photos - at Dizy, where the Lateral Canal goes off towards Reims among other places, and the Marne continues upstream at the top of the second photo to Épernay. The CEVNI rules which govern navigation on continental waterways allow for an uphill travelling vessel to cross starboard-to-starboard with one travelling downstream under certain circumstances, and it displays a blue board and/or flashing white light if it does so. The lock mechanism here for the lock up onto the canal is on your port side when going upstream, which means you have to cross over to operate it, putting you notionally on the ‘wrong’ side of the river. However the CEVNI rules have a further exception which says a vessel travelling upstream and turning into a side arm of any kind has priority over any craft coming downstream. Despite these two rules within the CEVNI code I have three times had a cruiser coming down the river from Épernay trying to pass port-to-port here even though I have also made my intentions clear by announcing what I was doing on VHF, and each of these sadly was flying a red ensign. Tam

Take it out and get it shotblasted. Saves load of time.

I was right wasn't I?

This - and I'm a long-time cycle commuter. The petition calls the towpath a 'safe, fast route'; if anyone is riding fast down a towpath, they need chucking off it. Towpaths are too narrow for riding fast.

Did someone mention RECKLESS?

Not this time of year but we went to Limerick in 2010 to watch Northampton Saints play Munster. The Shannon here is tidal but the lock takes the navigation to the big lock at the power station. When we had the narrow boat in Ireland never fancied doing this bit.

We sanitise our hands at each lock or flight, just before getting off the boat and just before getting back on. That said I think the biggest risk is from gongoozlers peering over the edge of the lock and trying to talk you as the boat rises or falls. A sharp poke in the eye with a boat hook seems effective at moving them away from the edge of the lock.?

If it helps our boat was done at debdale, zinc and two pack two years ago. Last month it was out of the water to change the prop and the surface still looked in mint condition. I know it is only two years in, but we do cruise 500/600 miles a year so we are happy with it.

IT WORKS. A very detailed process to ensure that your boat isn't rotting from the outside like more and more boats are due to increased galvanic corrosion. Debdale are long established and arent going to guarantee this process if they didnt think it was going to stand the test of time. I see boats coming in every two years with the same spots of orange blanketing their sides, black it and hope for the best(that nobody spills diesel in the cut near their boat). every two years those pits get ever deeper blasting and two packing/comastic/zinga-ing etc gives so much more protection to hulls than the best bitumen blacking can. I havn't had Old Friends zingered as I have a Comastic coating - it went 8 years before a good recoat in 2014 and was added to again with a single coat in 2016. - no galvanic corrosion whatsoever. I would get her Zingered if it was just bitumen blacking.

I would find the internal space of a narrow boat really restrictive.