Simon (Hawksmoor)

2 years ago one of our less experienced owners got "leaf bound" and did not recognise the symptoms so called out RCR. Two separate RCR mechanics diagnosed a gearbox problem. Only the third recognised the problem, bow hauled the boat clear of the autumn leaves and hey presto! But 3 call outs! (I think they only charged us for one)

Would RCR have been as efficient I wonder? That fault could have easily turned into a cancelled week for many boats.

Here is a reply I received on another forum from a shared boat owner. "Hi Simon, we've been in Cropredy with a shared boat for about 18 months. We find Tooleys really excellent. As in your case, they do our turnaround day checks and we've had no issues there. Just in the past couple of weeks, one of our owners reported a fault; Tooleys made an appointment to come out a few days later while we were on board. The engineer spent about 4 hours taking the engine apart and diagnosing the problem (drive plate needed replacing), ordered the part, came back next day as promised and repaired it (another 4 hour job). He was really friendly and polite, and even tightened our throttle while he was there - we were going to list that for next turnaround as it wasn't urgent. Tooleys did our winter maintenance last year (and will be doing it again in Feb). Again, an excellent job, they provided a diagnostic video for us to show what was working well, what needed tweaking, and anything that might need us to pay extra. All that aside, Cropredy is a beautiful marina, very peaceful and friendly, and with plenty to do around the locality if weather or winter stoppages prevent you from cruising. Highly recommended!!"

We are considering moving our home base to Cropredy Marina this winter. Looking for feedback from other shared boats, especially on the Maintenance, Engine Servicing, and Turnaround Day Trouble Fixing facilities offered by (I believe) Tooleys Boatyard.

My understanding is that "Hexagrip" and "Buffalo Board" are two brand names for the generic material which is phenolic plywood.

I need to find two 8' x 4' sheets of genuine Buffalo Board to replace the deck boards and locker covers on my narrowboat. Our boatyard has tried and failed twice to source good quality stuff. On both occasions he bought off EBay and the board delaminated in months. I suspect he did not receive GENUINE Buffalo Board I have been looking on-line and see a wide variance in price (and I suspect quality) Some at £160 per sheet (Chiltern Timber) Some as high as £250 per sheet (Ply Direct) Some as low as £95 per sheet (Sheet Materials Wholesale) I am looking for a recommendation for a reliable source of the real thing not a cheap imitation. How much should I be paying for this? Stafford / Stoke-on-Trent area

I pee over the side! (or into the sink and hence over the side)

We had a back to bare metal repaint done in 2016 at Tattenhall marina We were pleased with the job done and the sides are still in good condition. A couple of dozen spots require touch-up. But the roof is now looking the worse for wear. Hundreds of pinhole rust spots have broken through. Is it a practical option to have this ground back and repainted? I have heard that most paint-yards have over a year of backlog. Would this be true of a limited scope paintjob as I describe here? Any recommendations for paint-yards ideally within a couple of days from Great Haywood? Any feel for how much this might cost?

Unfortunately my fellow owners voted to stay at Great Haywood for a 13th successive year! I despair of ever getting out of the midlands. May have to consider selling my share and buying into another boat elsewhere. But with my luck they will immediately relocate to the midlands!

Yes I do mean the ABC Base - Anderton Marina Thanks for clarifying that.

We have narrowed our choice of home bases for next year down to two. We are looking at Overwater Marina and Anderton Marina. I am looking for customer feedback for these two marinas from shared ownership boats. Particularly their engineering and turnaround capabilities. Can anyone help us please?

Hi Peter, good suggestions (both the voting system and Gayton Marina). Thank you. Regarding remote handovers, we did manage very successfully a 3 way remote handover a few years back Owner 1 cruised from GH to Liverpool leaving his car at GH I drove to Liverpool and owner 1 drove my car back to GH where he picked up his car. I cruised to Leeds Owner 3 drove to GH, left his car there and drove my car to Leeds I drove directly home from Leeds Owner 3 cruised back to GH and picked up his car Insuring other drivers for a couple of days is usually pretty inexpensive. I tried but failed to arrange a similar journey onto the Lancaster Canal. The problem there was always the timings of the river transit One direction was easy to arrange, the return left no margin for error. Still waiting, still trying!

We had a similar experience. My wife and I walked much of the Eastern approach to the tunnel with one daughter steering and the second daughter poling off the shallows any time she veered from the exact centre!

With the AGM of our Shared Ownership boat Hawksmoor approaching, the annual trawl of possible home base marinas commences (with us inevitably staying at Great Haywood for the 13th year!). I am looking for a recommendation of a marina further East so that we might cruise the fenland waterways. Something on the Northampton Arm or the Nene perhaps? Needs to be a marina with engineering staff to carry out engine servicing and routine maintenance, and carry out running repairs as necessary during weekly/fortnightly handovers. Advantageous if they have facilities for winter maintenance (hull blacking). Any suggestions or good/bad experiences?

To me "affordable" means a house that two people on minimum wage can afford to buy. In the absence of any council housing these days.

I wonder how much of the housing will be "affordable"

Comfortable walking boots or walking shoes, in either case with a good quality 75% merino wool walking sock. The socks are the key if you are going to be 6 hours or more on your feet

Please please please RING YOUR BELL It is not rude. Ring it when you are about 20m away and then again when you are closer if the first ring was missed (as it frequently will be). Do not leave it to the last minute to ring because that will startle and upset some walkers. What I think some bikers do not appreciate is how silent an approaching bike is. The cyclist has wind in his ears and is close to his wheels so it all seems loud and obvious. But not to the walker. You are the whispering death. Two tings please. It is polite.

No need for knee-pads unless your deck is particularly high. I am 5ft 9 and was able to stand nearly all the way through even with a helmet on (that they provide)

We have an otter (or hopefully a pair) on the Basingstoke Canal.

Posting an update. Brian at Daventry Refrigeration fixed our freezer for about £100 It needed a new valve, a recharge of refrigerant and a general clean up (build up of crud around the heat exchanger) Brian looked to be in fine fettle looking fit and sun-bronzed and nowhere CLOSE to his 80 years Thanks to those who put us in contact ( @ditchcrawler, @Eldog, @CLAN1 )

You are right it is a drain on the batteries especially while getting down to temperature. But we are a shared ownership boat, And while most of us leave it turned off most of the time, some of our owners have children and it is important for them to be able to keep stocks of food. - the dreaded nuggets and chips! Meanwhile those of us who no longer have kids eat in the pub!

We have a Shoreline F35 freezer installed under the dinette in our narrowboat. It is 14 years old and recently we see it is only getting temperatures down to -5 deg C after running for 2 days The current model (CF39R) is significantly bigger so would need a bit of surgery to fit it as well as the pricetag of £635! My question is can anyone recommend someone who might be able to service and repair the F35?

Wilsons of Kinver have one - the "Thames" It will open across the boat - just about. The mattress needs to ride up the wall a little. It is a two person sofa - not the most comfortable to sit on but not bad Comfortable as a bed We have had one on Hawksmoor for 5 years http://www.wilsonsupholstery.co.uk/narrowboat-furniture/narrowboat-sofa-beds/ It is the only one we have found that will fit on a narrowboat and open crossways.

The whole eastern side is extremely difficult if not virtually impossible for a single handed boater. You cannot get ashore at most of the lock landings (unless they have done some serious dredging since I was on there 3 years ago.