Kieron G

I had no luck with 'Classic engines & spares' so for the £4.70 it cost I sent an old gasket over to Thailand two days ago. Hope to get a quote for new ones from 'Gaskets to go' in a week or so. Thanks.

Mick , have sent you a personal message re bump & valve clearances. Thanks.

Thanks Mick & Richard. Yes the Coventry victor site hasn't been live for some years now unfortunately. I guess if I went some where with a selection of seals I might find a match for the synthetic ring type 'modification' or as Richard suggests a replacement. String caulking is a good description of what appears to be in there now. I didn't know that these engines were fitted in life boats. I think that's where mine might have come from because it has official looking insurance inspection stamps on the casings.

Hi, hope some one can help. I've removed the valves from the cylinder heads on my flat twin to try and sort a problem I've got with worn valve stem seals. The seals are retained in a kind of removable steel 'top hat' which is held down by the inner valve spring. The cylinder head which I think has been passing oil has synthetic plastic rings as seals inside this top hat. But the other head has what looks like hemp / string packed in. I don't know if any other engines share this system. I can't find any parts or literature for this engine and was wondering if it is possible to buy this 'string', pack it in to the retainers and create my own seals ? Thanks.

Hi, i'm just dealing with a similar situation . Have just two days ago taken my prop to A&E Woodward at Hull. At their request provided them with boat length at waterline , hull design , approx weight , gearbox ratio , engine power at RPM. Like you I can't increase diameter from 17 inch. They have balanced , polished and increased pitch from 11 to 15 inch. All for £70 + VAT. Predicted speed is 8 knots. It's ready for collection.

Hi, I have to use a linked belt on my engine for the alternator ( 35 amp ) and have no problems. I use a small alternator pulley size because with a larger diameter it drops out of charge when engine is at tick over. Also there is a correct direction of travel with the thin end of the wedge shape indicating way the belt should go as I was advised by East yorks engineering.

Hi Ian, thanks for that. I'll give them a try.

I've got the barrels and heads off my Cov victor . I can't find a supplier in the UK for gaskets I think I've tried most places, but I've noticed while looking on a stationary engine forum that there is a company called 'Gaskets2go' in Thailand who make new gaskets from the old ones which you send them. the work looks good. Has anyone experience of them ? Thanks, Kieron.

Speaking from my limited experience of the tidal Trent i wouldn't want to rely on something which can go flat and can easily be dropped in the water. Also not sure about all providers but i found i had between 1 bar and zero signal in the area around Trent falls at anchor when i checked my 10 year old nokia. Maybe owners of boats with an enclosed wheelhouse with a handy charging point would benefit more. Just my thoughts.

Nice one. Next time i'm in Goole or Selby i'll take a tape measure and have a look at what's on offer.

The tiller boss or in my case the yoke for steering cables is clamped to the post so I can alter the gap between that and the top of the tube to suit the drive shaft gaiter / seal.

Ok, so I can sort the problem when everything reassembled. Thanks for that.

Sounds like a plan , with having the post out I could use a universal gaiter which doesn't need gluing . I think I've seen such a thing where you cut it to get the right diameter at each end.

Thanks, would it be able to flex enough or do you mean leave the top unclipped and let the post move inside ?

Hi, After suggestions really. I've had an on going problem with water making it's way up the rudder tube and into the boat in certain conditions, ie when full of diesel and more than one person on the back deck area. The rudder post tube comes up a fair way but not quite far enough, extending it isn't an option because the yoke for the steering cable is attached to the rudder post not much higher. I'm about to drop the rudder assembly out to access the prop so now is a good time to sort this problem. I have done some research and found out that a company called Jefa make neoprene gaiters which can stretch through 90' of the rudder arc for this job but they don't make a small enough dia ( Tube 48mm and post 25mm ) so am trying to come up with an alternative . The best I can think is to use a neoprene cuff from a dry suit cut down and glued into a conical tube and jubilee clipped at either end or a cycle inner tube but I don't think the tube would last. Any possible solutions would be welcome.

Rawcliffe Bridge ( near Goole ) has moorings at reasonable rate I've been told. I think the pub is called the Black horse. I've just brought my boat home from the Yorks Derwent at the Breighton ferry for repairs which i'll be going back to later this year but I don't think the landlord allows narrowboats to moor there in case they pull the pontoon stakes out , but might be worth a try if your boat is short.

Thanks for posting notice N/C , can alter plans around that.

Hi. Yes just touched connections on pump with wires from a spare battery, Thanks.

I'm off to work now , but will log on again first thing to respond if there are any posts on this . Thanks.

Hi , not strictly boat related but i suppose could be . I've recently fitted a used Eber D2 in my Land rover 90, it's a very simple installation in the passenger foot well. It ran fine for 10 mins but has gone into a slow speed self check and then shuts down when operated now. I've checked the battery voltage , live and earth and the fuel pump gives a single pulse and pumps fuel with a supply from battery to it so that's ok. The controller is only a dial and switch type so can not read faults. Was wondering if any one in Yorks , N Lincs area has a diagnostic reader which i could plug into and read from to point me in the right direction. ( or any suggestions to some thing i might have missed ) . The intake and exhaust pipes are short and not blocked and there is no ducting on the heater itself. Many thanks, Kieron.

Hi , was at DS metals at Old Goole today and noticed a Single cylinder Lister engine with a starter fitted under a loose car bonnet. Not sure which model it is but it doesn't look old or in bad condition, was told that it's a good runner & hasn't been there long. Just thought it might be of interest for someone in the area in need of such a thing. Didn't occur to me to ask for a price at the time.

I made my first trip on the Trent in June , Went from Barmby barrage via Trent falls to Keadby and then again at the end of the month made the journey in reverse. I worked out my times from the ABP tide tables for Goole and followed the channels marked on the ' Boating Association ' charts. I also found the ' Richlow ' guide for the Trent really informative.

Could be the narrow boat mentioned earlier called ' Ferrous ' i saw this at Selby lock maybe four weeks ago . I often have a look there when cycling home after work. Was a bit tired from nights but from what i remember there are large windows where a big vintage engine can be viewed in the centre of the boat and an engineers plate of manufacture on the stern from the 1970's i think and then a later date of refurbishment. It's on my list of boats to make an offer on when i win the lottery.

Ok, getting the existing prop repitched it is . Thanks for input everyone & links, has saved me wasting £230 on something that wouldn't have worked. Re the clearances on Dalslandia's link , i think that it has been written with sea going fishing boats in mind ( if that makes a difference ).

The reason i wouldn't run the engine myself is that oil leaked into the intake side of the engine from a leaking turbo can cause a run-away especially if it is allowed accumulate in the pipes etc. This happened at power station when a Volvo loading shovel had turbo replaced with out intercooler and pipes being drained / cleaned out & when engine was started it ran away on the oil it was sucking in.