Woodstock

Thanks everyone- As usual- I've been pointed in the right direction and had a giggle- got a really funny vision of a diesel thief receiving justice!!!!!

This isn't related to boats- but a really thoughtful gift To cut a long story short- there are 3 pregnant ladies in a team that I work closely with-Last week, their old boss bought them all a leaving present- which was a set of 3 books that were her childrens favourite books that she used to read to them and they learnt to read with. 2 of the books were out of print so she had trawled through amazon finding old copies. One of them she apologised that the spine was worn because somebody else had obviously loved it. She then told us stories of why her kids had loved them. All of them were expecting their first child and a few tears were on the verge It just struck me as a really thoughtful present. I'm adapting it slightly as I'm trying to find out what my pregnant friends favourite books were, so that she can re-live them with her new baby- due next month. Also thought it a great idea for grandparents to give their childrens favourite books when their children have a baby.

We do have a pump out- great idea- just need to tell the other half and hope he remembers!! !!!

Hi- After hearing a recent tale of fuel theft in Willington- and the high price of diesel making theft more attractive- I'm thinking it wise to invest in a locakable diesel cap. I've had a trawl through google and on this site- some of the articles are a year or so old and one mentioned having to adapt to size for a narrowboat. Are there any lockable caps available for an NB which are simple to fit? Thanks Jackie

Thank you so much- will have a good look at these

We saw them on the one show- and my niece who lives in Liverpool went to find them Saturday- They weren't hard to find given the size of them!!!! She said they were amazing and put photos on Facebook which were indeed amazing. The crew who control them were as fascinating to watch- they had to do a relay of jumping off the vehicle behind to control the legs etc. There's a story linked to the titanic about the girl meeting with her uncle to receive a letter- I think from her father- Does anyone know if this is true or fiction. I kept a lookout on the news over the weekend hoping to see more, but didnt see anything that told me anymore

Hi- we've got a BMC 1.5 engine- but dont have the manual for it (1990 NB but dont know if its the original engine). We dont know when the oil was last changed- so keen to do this soon-not sure what parts will need replacing on it. Any idea where we can get a manual from- will there be lots of different engine models and is it easy to identify the right one- any numbers that we should look for on the engine? It seems the easiest way to remove the oil is through the dipstick channel- we've seen a number of syphon type pumps that do this-Again- any advice on which one to choose. We could take it to a boatyard but we're keen to learn how to do this Thanks- Jackie

Hi-Collars with the cats name and a contact number as you say are a must- Our dogs tag also says "Scan Me" on the back of the tag hilighting that he's been chipped. There's a young couple on the trent and mersey and they have two wooden signposts saying "cats aboard" that they put on the towbath away from each end of the boat- if they moor near a bend- I thought they were a good idea- prompted me to put my dog on the lead as he will chase cats (I do try to stop him)- but the lady said some dog owners had a go at her- I thought it a good idea and I'm a dog owner

Great pun!!

This is a problem- We've struggled to find recycling areas during hire holidays and our marina doesn't have any recycling facilities- not even for glass and cans which are commonly recycled. At home,we're lucky to have good recycling facilities including plastics which is still quite rare and we compost. I'm going to talk to the marina about recycling- Is our marina an exception- do marinas generally provide recycling facilities?

Thank you everyone. Tiggy is chipped but no collar will check with the local vets and associations that haven't been contacted great suggestions-thank you all

Hi friends of ours lost their cat off their nb 3weeks ago in the handsacre area. She's quite nervous very fluffy head mainly dark Gray in colour and terribly missed. If anyone has seen her please let me know Many thanks Jackie

You forgot: Burton

It's happening again- somebody has a rant, we look at it, then we reply and then everyone looks at it,replies and on it goes. Can somebody please start an interesting thread- rather than all this twaddle

We saw it, but didnt realise that's what it was called- was just flicking through channels- we've had a number of boat holidays on the broads- great place to start without any locks. It bought back many good memories. We have seen the Albion wherry before- now that is a proper boat- Had to smile though when they grounded it, with the broads boats watching

What a load of condescending rubbish these marketeers come out with- there's obviously no working class skilled people or retired people on boats- blinking hell - Is a senior manager going to service my engine!!!- oh and I'm not quite 45 Definitions are: social grade social status occupation A upper middle class higher managerial, administrative or professional B middle class intermediate managerial, administrative or professional C1 lower middle class supervisory or clerical, junior managerial, administrative or professional C2 skilled working class skilled manual workers D working class semi and unskilled manual workers E those at lowest level of subsistence state pensioners or widows (no other earner), casual or lowest grade workers

It's at Shardlow marina now- we looked at it last year- but it needed too much internal refurbishment for us (we wouldnt know where to start), but somebody with the right skills would make it a nice boat. The office in the marina might know more specific details about blacking etc. It had a beautiful old stove on it- and we did feel very sad- you could see someones life and love of the water on that boat. I hope it goes to someone who can restore it well.

Hi If you do Mercia at Willington- you could also see BWML at Sawley. Get one of the canal mags- there's loads of adverts at the back and it'll introduce you to a number of brokers.Look at lots of boats- and dont believe what you see on the internet will be what you find- we found 2 beautiful boats on the internet- went to have a look and they were frightening- neglected, dirty, lack of maintenance etc and one I discounted from a broker on the internet was the one we bought (nicer when we saw it) Shardlow have residential moorings- not sure if there's any spare- It's close to M1 / M42 so within your timing to Birmingham if you dont get anywhere closer. Mercia at Willington, Barton Marina and Streethay at Lichfield are marinas my side of Birmingham. Shardlow have a residential mobile home park around the marina- would that be any use to your grandparents- they have the odd mobile home for sale? 0ur boat is 37foot- used for weekends and the odd week away-fixed bed at the back etc- I dont think a couple could live on it- but my OH says he could. The shorter length is great though as its a cheaper licence, mooring, painting, easier turning around etc and we thought it would be good to start with a smaller first time boat. Our budget was similar to yours and even with the boat, marina and a paint job- we're within the initial budget- so it is do-able. We bought ours last year so the experience is still fresh- and this site is great for advice (although it will differ) You'll get to a point where you look so much, you cant take anymore- but you will find the right boat. Have fun and good luck Jackie

Never seen it used on boats- but saw it recently used to clean stainless steel surfaces in a food factory- and couldn't believe the amount of dried up crud it removed-it turned everything into a thin film of "crisp", that could then be vacuumed away- so it could be possible. It does pose safety risks- use good gloves and a visor and be careful of those around you. The factory I saw- treated it like a welding operation in terms of safety procedures. There's a few suppliers now on the internet- might be worth discussing with an industrial supplier- they might even be interested to see a new use.

Thanks everyone- really good advice which is appreciated. It is a cruiser stern. The drill will be out this weekend

Hi- We've got an older NB (1990), It doesn't have any drainage on the stern. Is this a common thing with older boats? The cratch cover admittedly keeps most of the rainwater out, but any that does get through puddles on the bottom step (we've got 3 steps built into the stern that go down to the boat door (rather than internal steps). We're thinking of drilling an hole in the bottom step to allow the water to drain into the bilge and then pumped out by the bilge pump- Would this be a problem?? Any other thoughts on how to resolve?? Bizarrely the front has two lovely drainage holes and a bilge pump- so can't understand why there isnt anything on the back