frangar

Having gone through last week I think that the quick safety talk is a bit more than it was last time....also although we were in a convoy of 8 boats we were split into 2 groups of 4....although I'm not sure I've ever been through with so many boats. I do wonder if rather than hitting the roof the chap who died hit one of the places where either the stop planks sit or perhaps where the old towpath was and then fell overboard as the boat lurched?....especially if he was sitting on a seat next to the tiller. Given that it seems to be an unfortunate accident rather than a failing of tunnel design I do hope that common sense prevails and things can continue as they are....if this tunnel which is manned has to have new safety measures I wonder what will be made of all the unmanned tunnels? Boating as with most things in life has a risk but compared with other activities such as driving or walking up stairs it's safe! Cheers Gareth

Have you asked them what happened?....springers don't draw much.....or maybe we were very lucky! Cheers Gareth

It was!...didn't walk up towards you...doh!!..you went past early this morning...well early for us!...I have posted on your cruising diary thread!! Cheers Gareth

You have just gone past us!...I would have come out and said hello but didn't think the natives were ready for me this time in the morning.... According to my other half she saw you painting yesterday but didn't know it was anyone off the forum....think you were only a couple of boats down at stone!! If you find red bull is full the there are good moorings a few locks further down...deep and onto rings. Cheers Gareth

As the owner of a "Doris" I reckon it's a good boat name....nice and easy to say on VHF too!...there isn't too many of us on CRT waters anyhow.....although when walking in to a crowded pub it does go a bit quiet as someone shouts "Hello Doris" across the bar..... Btw...well done on the refloat....it looks a lovely boat. Cheers Gareth

Whoops!.....where abouts in the flash though?.....I know someone who went aground on the ship canal so if you are having a bad day anything is possible! Cheers Gareth

Well it would be interesting to know if the make up of both coatings is now identical. Having said that I have noticed that even comastic can vary from tin to tin..even with the same batch number. I now mix tins before applying Both Mainline and Spencer seem to have a very separate web presence...also the last time I checked amazingly it was cheaper to get Comastic from Midland Chandlers than direct from Spencer...I wanted 8 x 5 litre tins....however MC don't do the thinners for some reason! Cheers Gareth

Well the last time I used Coflex it didn't last half as well as comastic....admittedly that was a few years ago but I was less than impressed...gone back to Comastic ever since and it's stuck on much better! I must admit I didn't realise they were both made by spencer coatings....the last time I had any dealings with coflex they were supplied by mainline building supplies. Cheers Gareth

Why not just use the same two pack...it seems daft to use a lesser system than the exsisting coating. Oh and I disagree about comastic and coflex being the same....they have the same solvent base but in my experience comastic lasts much better...also comastic is made by spencer coatings and coflex is rylards. Cheers Gareth

Can't really help at all but was talking to some Aussies on the way up anderton boat lift who had hired for 5 months from Sheffield narrowboats...however they were looking for a similar share set up as you for future....so there is a call for such things. Cheers Gareth

Going thro stoke the other day swmbo jumped off with the centre line at a queue for a lock...as she was pulling the boat in a yoof going rather fast clipped her...she then taught him a few choice phrases....his excuse was he couldn't brake cos he was on his phone...I was rather surprised at that point that he didn't end up in the cut...I certainly don't think he expected a mere girl to have quite a go...I must say the rest of us in the lock queue looked on in awe! Everyone was very polite to my missus afterwards...think they were all rather scared....never mess with a feisty woman...something I have learnt over the last 20 years! Cheers Gareth

Given that it seems that the mechanic concerned is easily identifiable (although not by me and I have a JP!) might it be an idea if tiggers or someone else who knows him suggest that he might like to put his point of view on here? If he's as good as has been suggested then I for one would be interested....and it he's not then that would also be good to know! Cheers Gareth

I wonder what caused it to go down the first time....I'm thinking of doing the HNC next year...think I'm going to be taking a lot of care at locks! Cheers Gareth

Ouch....doesn't bear thinking about...hope he gets it sorted.....who raised the boat the first time? Cheers Gareth

Right...just moored up and everyone seems to have covered what I was going to ask including a link to the manual.....so once we have a few questions answered we can probably help more! Cheers Gareth

Just noticed you will need 5 posts before you can send a personal message....so reply to this and we will be getting there!....also you might want to disguise your phone number a bit to stop spambots getting hold of it! Cheers

Firstly that doesn't sound good! Where are you/the engine in the country? I'm about to have a longish day here but will sort out a longer reply this eve if it's helpful? JPs aren't that tricky just big & heavy. What was the problem with it to start with? Feel free to send me a PM if you don't want details in public. Cheers Gareth

I always run in low...loads less stress on cranks at any load....and doesn't smoke apart from when cold or been left idling for a long while Cheers Gareth

Starrett do adaptors for holesaws for just this very job. Called the oops arbor! http://www.starrett.co.uk/shop/hs_accessories/oopsarbor/ I keep meaning to get one! Cheers Gareth

The sailing club were out in force on Sunday....I think I might have got shouted at if I had tried to go through all the dingies! It's good to know that I might have been able to go in further though....next time! Cheers Gareth

I would much rather be changing a belt on a cold engine tucked up somewhere safe than removing bits of belt where it has taken the water pump belt off on a fast flowing river.....I personally change stuff like belts and pump impellers at least every couple of years even if no signs of wear....peace of mind is worth a lot. Cheers Gareth Edited to add..... Why don't you consider a piece of missing rib wear??....I'm glad I don't fly in your aircraft!

I have fitted an auto bleed to my JP mainly to sort problems I was having with head gaskets...they are ok now (touch wood!) but I have left it on. I just went to my local plumber supplies and asked for an auto bleed valve and got this... I had to fit a couple of adaptors to fit the fitting on the expansion box which probably could have been tidier but I really didn't fancy disturbing the fitting that was tight into the casting. The type of valve shown allows it to be sealed unless you unscrew the red cap which means I can keep a check if any air is developing or just leave it off if I have a problem. You can also unscrew the body of the valve if it needs cleaning. Another advantage is when I change the antifreeze any trapped air will go without making a mess. Cheers Gareth Edited to add....apologies for the big pic...was doing it all straight from phone! Found the manufacturer details https://www.flamcogroup.com/uk-en/catalog/expansion-systems-and-accessories/air-and-dirt-separation/flexvent-floatvents/flexvent Hope that helps

Today for the first time we went under the road bridge and onto Winsford Flash.....with hindsight a Sunday might not have been the best day but I'm sure all the fishermans blood pressure will reduce over time.... I must admit we didn't go far into the flash itself as we were on our own and didn't fancy getting stuck...however we went past a small mooring with a couple of narrowboats and some plastic on it without touching the bottom...there could be some very nice moorings on there for visitors without much stress at all. Does anyone know if the water space belongs to anyone?....we did toy with the idea of dropping anchor and sitting in the middle for the night but thought that might be pushing our luck...we also heard from one of the lockies that there is going to be a boat rally on it in September which sounded fun. Anyway I would recommend anyone doing the Weaver not to turn by the pub but be brave and wind on the flash...just take it steady! Cheers Gareth Edited to add. Found the details of the rally....shame we didn't know about earlier or we would be attending. http://www.rwns.co.uk/news/winsford-regatta/ Cheers

There was 3 lockies on duty when we came down last week...I don't even think they were volunteers....one of them was helping bring a single handed boat up who wasn't paired and the other two were helping the pair of boats behind our boat. We had two crew on our boat and were sharing with a guy on his own....we still left them way behind tho...it's amazing what three people who work as a team can do....3 3/4 hours top to bottom resetting quite a few of them. It really wasn't as hard as everyone said it would be....the boat with us was 57ft..we are 50ft. Cheers Gareth