Peter-Bullfinch

I originally bought it very cheaply as it was advertised as 'for spares'. In fact, with a very small amount of work it started and I've kept it complete. A couple of small ancillaries have found their to my narrow boat....an original alternator....an original Sabb tachometer etc. It's a quandary....of course as long as I have this running spare then my own engine will never break down....the moment I sell it I will surely need it for some difficult to acquire spare part!

Yes, We had run it briefly a few minutes before. Yes, there is a leak on the exhaust manifold. There is a stud here which will need to be removed. One of the rear engine mounts has two studs stuck in. I think salt water in the past has caused small amounts of corrosion on a couple of parts which has made them hard to remove. Liberal amounts of penetrating fluid have released most fittings now. These engines are wonderful starters in my limited experience and although only 22hp quite powerful enough for a 57' boat on canals, rivers and the tidal bits we venture onto.

You can moor in Halsal and get the bus directly into Liverpool. Also Haskayne.

If your batteries are in a relatively dry place rather than in a damper wetter location does this make a difference? We finally got our own oldish boat 12 years ago. The batteries are in the engine room under a ventilated floor cover. They smelt a bit ' rotten eggy ' so I replaced all four domestic ones then. With motorbikes and cars I have always used Vaseline but here I thought....It's a nice dry place so I won't bother. Six years on....in 2012 the same bad egg smell appeared and I thought they werent charging quite so well.....so...all four replaced again....no Vaseline applied this time either. Then we put solar panels on the boat and I sort of hoped the batteries might last a little longer. No, they haven't. Same vague bad smell eventually and so last month after another six years a new set of four have been installed. I didn't put Vaseline on again and the terminals looked reasonable on the ones I removed. I use cheap and cheerful batteries from the same large supplier ...Ribblesdale....in Preston. They supply to local authority vehicles with the same brand. One tip I was given as a youngster. When changing batteries use a spanner with electrical tape wrapped around it just in case! I add this to the discussion because I find this subject has views poles apart....

We use large wire brush (cup type) on angle grinders to prepare for blacking. A light weight grinder is easier on the wrist. Don't neglect the weed hatch and it's cover. Give the welder plenty of notice if you need new anodes welding on. Try to leave 24 hours between the last coat and relaunching if you possibly can. This isn't always possible if you're paying a yard to do the work.

What about a few pulleys.....lots of rope... Find a big old tree overhanging the canal. Hoist your boat up and let it dangle .. Let it drip dry . Brush all the cruddy rusty barnacles off. Black it in the shade on a nice sunny day. Maybe a crate of Guiness to help the job go well.

"Heres a few pics from a boat just down the Jetty from you Peter, RH 2YDA." Which boat are you on Andy?

Using over 20 cans of expanding grout foam successfully sealed the leak today. This was injected in. This point has had a small weeping leak into the tunnel under the road for years. Dollops of clay put in to seal here have worked over a long time. This is a windy stretch of the flat Lancashire plain and this winter has seen the clay slowly eroded by the constant small waves. Well done CRT for promptly sorting this and keeping disruption to a minimum for passing boats.

Steam engine boilers were riveted originally and they are high pressure steam vessels. After construction they were often left outside to rust for a few months which apparently helped the sealing process. Fred Dibnah made his own boiler for his traction engine Betsy. All done in his back garden in Bolton. All beautifully rivetted.

In 1986 Colecraft built the shell of our boat and fitted it out themselves. Len Beauchamp did the joinery. It's still in really good condition and has been carefully looked by it's two owners. (Roger Wickson for the first twenty years years). Colecraft boats are certainly worth considering. They 'swim' well and have sound fit outs for the in house versions.

What on earth do you do with all the extra space now you've crammed that lovely engine into that tiny box? Library...second parlour.....morning room?

I very much enjoy looking into other folks engine rooms. It's raining hard today so most boats have their side doors shut. It crossed my mind that some of you also indulge in this pastime of Engine 'ole gawping. Maybe a thread where you post a picture of an engine you admire or your own engine room could be of interest. Our own little motor is a Sabb 2g 22hp (1977).

Use a child's windmill to keep the ducks off pontoons or your boat. Probably won't stop aerial bombardment though....

Aldi have small luggage type electronic weigh devices on sale which weigh up to 40kg and cost £4.99 including a battery. They call them luggage scales.

Mike, I was told a lot more but I felt I shouldn't share the financial details in this public forum. I believe, but am unsure now, that this is private site and not leased and the charges are because the water the boat is lifted from and to belongs to C&RT . They are not making charges for lifting engines etc to and from boats.

Adam at the firm PB Mechanical in Adlington told me yesterday that he has decided to sell his large boat lift crane. This is because C&RT have imposed a huge fee to them per lift which now makes the whole exercise uneconomic. In addition they have now insisted on an outragously expensive ground survey on their old wharf. The crane has been happily lifting boats from here for years. Yet more boater facilities going!

Can anyone shed a little more light on this windlass I've been given? It has the lettering JHSGA and the number 1813. The size seems a normal one inch and one and a quarter inch. The handle is ten and a half inches and it's over fifteen inches long with a cranked bend. On the Rufford Branch some locks have windlasses this size mounted horizontally but attached permanently in situ. To use it on most locks these days I imagine your knuckles wouldnt last too long.

Other considerations are the times of the year you plan to use the boat. Living all year round and continously cruising is quite different to setting off in March and returning in October. Our 57 foot trad with a back cabin and engine room is perfect for the two of us for the warmer eight months. When the family descends to stop for a few days it's quite a conundrum . Seating everyone for a meal together isn't easy with our layout. We could use ours all year round but then I'd like maybe a washing machine or a dinette or maybe room for a big old comfy chair for the long winter evenings. Where could I put my woodturning lathe, bandsaw etc? Its all a compromise!

I have been reminded that the Aldi workbooks which are about £20 have Slip Resistant C rating (SRC). They are slightly lighter in weight than some of the more expensive workwear. My friend says they are really good on the farm. He hates slipping and falling in his slippery cow byres!

Look for shoes and boots with an SRC rating. There is slip resistant rating A, B and C. For slippery steps and canal sides and locks then SRC rating seems the most appropriate. These are mostly found on shoes and boots for industry and they tend to be more expensive but well made nonetheless. The testing seems to involve walking on shiny steel surfaces covered with glycerol if I remember! I buy mine from a shop for workshoes in Blackburn. I've forgotten it's name but it's near the icerink! They do an online service.

I have a beefy magnet and i go "fishing" with it around locks and regular mooring spots when I have a few quiet minutes. Regular finds are tools, windlasses, the odd chimney and mooring pins. They all clean up easily with a brass brush on the angle grinder. I give most away but i havent had to buy a mooring pin for years now. The magnet is a big round one with a screwed in eye bolt and a long length of old rope attached. Take care not to let it touch the boat though. It is extremely powerful.

I wonder if Lymm's demise is in any way linked to the recent re discovery of the Elsan point in the pub car park?

Welcome Take it all gently and steadily. You'll have a wonderful time there. When you are in Llangollen consider having a pint or two in the old mill overlooking the Dee; take the steam train to Corwen, wander up the hill if it's fine to the castle ruins overlooking the town and possibly stroll up to the Horseshoe falls along the feeder canal. As Mike now seems to have moved to the Seychelles i understand all lock fee payments can be passed to any pub landlord along your route but be aware that your receipt will be in the form of beer served at room temperature.