[Drift Diary: An app for Continuous Cruisers to log and prove their distance travelled]

2 hours ago, Tony Brooks said:

 

Also, the name from vehicle body building for the metalwork where the roof of a box van meets the side, cant rail. I think it is term used for a part of a narrowboat.

Cants are the raised parts around the starn deck on a traditional style narrow Boat. Originally made of wood later versions and replacements are generally steel.

 

Also the box handrails are sometimes called cant handrails. Same thing applies with wood and steel. 

 

 

 

[Different sort of boat]

1 hour ago, Bacchus said:

 

 

He did have a short wide-beam, and also an indian canoe which he used to paddle around the island of an evening, serenading his Mrs (c:

 

The broads boat isn't Chuffalumps (not sure if Chuffalumps is still there), but is a Frank Wildes Caribbean with the roof raised and wheelhouse added! Literally took a circular saw to the sides, raised the roof about 18" on acrows, glassed steel supports in throughout the length of the boat, then patched in the sides. He built the wheelhouse from Iroko with a forward-slanting front window, and called it the world's first Broads-Trawler 🤣

 

 

I'm going past there in early April so will have a look. 

 

I believe Chuffalumps is still there. A friend of mine had a mother who lived on it in the early 90s. it was a Wildes carribbean but had been modified and had a shaft drive inboard rather than the rather dodgy side mounted unit with the hydraulic drive.

Yes it got sold and someone cut the top and raised it. Pretty sure it is the same Boat maybe the name changed. It was in the middle of the finger moorings bows pointing out into the River. 

 

I have a vivid memory of being on Chuffalumps in about 1990 a bit the worse for wear we had the Squirrel fire going it got too hot and James thought it might be clever to pour water down the flue from outside. 

 

It wasn't. First and only time I have seen what happens if one does this. 

 

Nobody injured but it made a bit of a mess. 

 

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Tonka said:

Whilst we are talking about celebs. Derek Thompson (Charlie Fairhead in Casualty) twin sister Elaine used to live on a boat moored at Parman Marine. 

Jenny Hanley from Magpie used to run the Swan at Thames Ditton

 

We were in Grove cottage. A few doors down there was apparently some bloke from The Who but we were generally far too aloof to be concerned with these sorts of issues. 

 

Photo from our jetty in about 1990. 

 

 

In 30 yars of living and travelling on Boats I still have not seen another pony or horse in a riverside garden. 

 

Needless to say the Grove suffered a fairly terrible side extension at some stage but that was before we had the cottage.

 

 

[Different sort of boat]

3 hours ago, Bacchus said:

So round past Glynn - "Dave the barman" from Minder 👍

 

We were on the mainstream side of the island -- the house with an Enfield 350 on the patio -- and an open 14' boat called the Donald Fettes which we'd take up into the town or over to Canbury Park. Happy days. The guy I shared with is still on the reach on a converted Broads boat below the railway bridge.

 

I think i remember Bertie, but it may just be the power of suggestion!

Yes I remember the Minder bloke he had a short wide beam canal Boat when they were very unusual. Canopy over the back deck made from a market stall tarpaulin. Red and white striped thing. I think the Boat was a springer but about 

10ft wide rather than being narrow. 

 

That broads Boat below the railway bridge wouldn't be the Chuffalumps by any chance would it ? An old Wildes Carribbean cruiser which at some point had the cabin top raised to improve headroom. 

 

 

[Different sort of boat]

47 minutes ago, Bacchus said:

 

We were neighbours for a while then. I lived on Trowlock Island from 87 to 90... probably saw you in the White Hart or the Tide End Cottage 🙂

I didn't go to pubs. We had a Broom Scorpio called Bertie which I was usually in. Went round the back of trowlock island regularly - a bit shallow towards the downstream end. 

[Different sort of boat]

I would not refuse it as an addition to the fleet. 

 

I found this float after the floods. It is going to be painted grey, have a conning tower on it, submerged a little bit and be kept alongside the light cruiser. 

 

Might even look at remote control. It is hollow rotomoulded with a drain plug no foam in it. 

 

[Different sort of boat]

10 minutes ago, Tonka said:

It arrived at Steadfast between the summer of 81 and 84. We were moored at Parman Marine and remember seeing it. We moved to Platts Ait 1984 ish.

I remember Parman Marine. We got a house in Lower Teddington Road below the trot moorings in 86. Left in 96. 

 

Parman marine did the Hardys and some Birchwood TS31/37. I remember they also had a good crane. All flats there now of course and Gridley Miskins is flats as well although there are still some moorings where Parman marine was. 

[Different sort of boat]

32 minutes ago, Tonka said:

The old navy sub is quite close to you and I am surprised you have not seen it. It was given to Steadfast Sea Cadets in Kingston upon Thames and they converted it back to a cruising narrowboat 

I hadn't noticed it. I remember Steadfast SC by the railway bridge when we lived there in the late 80s they had a nice wooden tug boat. 

 

 

[Different sort of boat]

24 minutes ago, Tony Brooks said:

 

 

The Navy one looked far more like a real sub than this one.

This grey one looks more realistic to me than the navy sub. The latter seems to just be a modified ordinary narrow hull. 

 

its even got a bow fender !

[Different sort of boat]

Yes see my post above. 

[Different sort of boat]

These ones were made for navy recruitment or something weren't they? 

 

some sort of marketing thing I can't remember the details. Someone will know..

 

I might be thinking of something else. 

Interesting approach. Dark inside. Must be quite deep or it would tip over. 

 

 

It isn't one of the RN ones

 

 

Apparently the Boat in the OP was made using a modified gas tank which explains why it is circular in section. 

 

Interesting article maybe it has ballast tanks and can be flooded to lower air draft. The hole at the stern end which looks like an exhaust pipe is curious. 

 

 

 

[Cash for used Leisure Batteries?]

18 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Yes. That's why the colloquial expression for taking stuff to the scrapyard is "weighing it in".

 

3 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

Around here they dont weigh them, just price per battery and thats the one who gives the best price

 

In the scenario I was commenting on the story is that they do not weigh them. This is why I thought they might measure them. 

 

Or maybe it is based on the sticker which says how many amp hours they are. Curious. 

Maybe it is an East Anglia thing

 

 

Or maybe its just 'I will give ye 50p for de battery don't ya know whatever de size'. 

[Cash for used Leisure Batteries?]

Do they measure them? surely a 7Ah burglar alarm battery won't be worth the same as a Trojan. 

[Cash for used Leisure Batteries?]

Another approach is to take them to a battery wholesaler and they knock the scrap value off new batteries. 

 

Denka in Croxley Green is where I used to take them. 

Once took 600kg of old batteries in there and came out with some new ones. They paid more than the scrap man for a number of different reasons. 

[Cash for used Leisure Batteries?]

6 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Scrap battery prices are on the web. I get £13 for a 110ah battery at present.  Top them up before you weigh them in!

Deuterium !

I used to take the caps of and drop them in the canal on a rope. 

[Historic Boats for sale online]

Its a nice Boat. I wish them all the very best embarking on such a vessel with a small child in tow. 

 

Great fun. One hopes the entrance and exit from the cabin is sensibly arranged. 

 

I do hate seeing children on leads!

Both of my daughters lived on a barge from before they could walk until a couple of yars ago (now 12 and 14). We never used leads. 

 

I suppose its a bit of a personal thing and never criticise other peoples parenting !

 

 

If that is tiller steered it must be a bit of an adventure getting around. A good workout. 

 

Hopefully not a Boat bought with the cheap housing solution as a motivator ! 

 

CRT about to tighten up their enforcement I think. 

A bit dangerous to walk about on the back with the cabin there !  I can't see a ram on it. 

[White cabin ends]

Looking at it with google lens this one turns up

 

[Narrowboat stove flue, coming out of sidewall.]

10 minutes ago, beerbeerbeerbeerbeer said:

do you think Robin Hood would have stopped chopping down his neighbours’ trees to heat his own tree if the council had given him a grant for heat pump?

 

No. 

Heat pumps are a terrible scam.

 

[Narrowboat stove flue, coming out of sidewall.]

2 hours ago, Arthur Marshall said:

Which implies the world would be a cleaner and lovelier place if we cut down all the trees and burnt them, rainforests and all. But I'm still unconvinced...

If we cut down all the trees and burn them maybe this will accelerate global warming and one day the requirement to heat oneself will be history. 

 

They do have a habit of growing back. 

[Any pictures of motorised butties?]

5 hours ago, blackrose said:

If you put a motor on the end of a butty or joey is it still traditional? I thought they were both examples of traditional unpowered craft? I can't help thinking that if you want a motorised boat then you should buy a boat designed for an engine rather than bastardising traditional unpowered boats.

These days I would agree with that but back in the 60s when a lot of these craft were being converted they were so cheap the alternative would probably have been scrapping if worthwhile. 

 

Of course butties are still being cut which is a shame but there we are. 

 

 

[Any pictures of motorised butties?]

I really like the rocket powered Sinclair C5. 

 

It is interesting to observe how much effort is put in to water based propulsion systems on canal Boats when in reality the system was originally designed for towage by land based traction units. 

 

 

 

 

Someone needs to market a legless brushless horse. 

[Narrowboat stove flue, coming out of sidewall.]

All life that has ever existed on earth is and was solar powered. 

 

I'm sure I read somewhere about a solar powered diesel heater. 

 

 

My fire is currently burning wood. It is impossible to argue that this wood was not created by the sun. 

[Any pictures of motorised butties?]

Not a butty it was a horse Boat but this is a craft I once owned. Apparently one of the first conversions. 

 

 

 

https://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/register/2087/orianne

There was an anti ventilation plate kindly provided with a 'less likely to cut you in half if you fall in' flanged edge. 

 

 

 

 

I made that back cabin and under cloths conversion with my own hands. 

 

Never was a craftsman

 

 

[Narrowboat stove flue, coming out of sidewall.]

Just now, MtB said:

 

Looks like a narrowboat to me. You can see straight through the window and out of the window opposite on the far side. 

No I meant on the other Boat I was commenting on. 

 

This one in the OP seems to be narrow. 

[Narrowboat stove flue, coming out of sidewall.]

I think it is a terrible idea and would never consider or advocate this. 

As mentioned earlier it is slightly difficult to believe it exists but this does happen from time to time. 

[Narrowboat stove flue, coming out of sidewall.]

Just now, blackrose said:

 

Sounds like someone who's very confused about the priorities of living afloat.

Actually the person in question has been living on Boats since the early 80s. The latest craft doesn't move very often so it is quite a nice thing to have like a little summer house. 

 

That is a big Boat. It would be a bit odd on a narrow.