Steve Corbett

The company must have got their work wear from different sources as the years went by possibly by tender and going for the cheapest. I have another set of bib and brace with plastic clip in fastenings for the shoulder straps a short length of elasticated material in the straps and a horizontal front pocket. These would be from about 1985 same as Ernie's. I very rarely (never) wore a tie to work like Ernie. The logo is embroidered onto the white strip and then stitched on. This is starting to get a bit like a fashion magazine, who would have thought there would be such interest in a pair of overalls.

Asset number is definitely the correct term. As promised here are a couple of pictures of the bits of BWB 1980's gear that I've kept. The bib and brace were the last ones I got before I left. They've never been worn and were still in the bag they came in. On the very rare occasions I get to go boating I still wear the donkey jacket.

Yes. That's it. The boat name on a red and white plate and the logo was a stick on vinyl type thing. The workwear logo was just the same. The chap in Sickle's hold seems to be wearing the company orange waterproof. The number on the fore end will be the plant number. In Waterways eyes boats were just another piece of plant like an excavator or dumper truck. Wigan yard used to put a builders plate on everything they made, lockgates and boats. Oval like a railway builders plate. I've got the one off my last tug, Aspull built at Wigan in 1985.

No, this is the old Transport logo from before 1963. I've just done a Google search and the BWB logo is notably absent. All I can find is the "Bridge behind the Reeds" logo that came in in 1991 the CRT Swan logo and the new CRT logo. I'll have a root in the shed and see if I can find the old BWB stuff and take a few pictures. In the meantime, here is a picture of me and a mate (me in the white shirt) on Bantam tug 69 with Lumb Lane bridge in the background about 1985/86. We are both wearing standard issue Bib and Brace. I think the Bantam is now displayed in a garden in Wigan. The tug is in the BWB shade of pale blue.

When I worked for the Board as it was then in the mid to late 1980's on the old Manchester section we were issued with quite a lot of gear. We had steel toe cap walking boots with a natty blue stripe up the back. Every year you could pick two items from a choice of boiler suit, jacket and trousers and bib and brace. All these were in blue a shade darker than the colour on the boats, plant and vehicles. The bib and brace had the BWB wavy logo sewn on the front. If I remember correctly the other stuff had WATERWAYS in white capitals on the back. Every two years you could have a donkey jacket again with WATERWAYS on the back. We also had bright orange waterproofs which quickly became filthy and although waterproof they didn't breathe so you just got wet from the inside out. One year we were given a nice dark blue holdall/shoulder bag in a plastic type material to keep stuff in. This also had the company logo on it. I don't think anyone ever used it. I've still got mine, it must be quite a rare item now. I also still have a few sets of the bib and brace. A couple of these are unworn and still in the bag they came in. Donald the old foreman at Marsden gave me a rather nice BWB enamel cap badge which I still have. I can't say much about other areas but Wigan area lads always wore the company gear at work. It was issued to everyone from foremen down. Hope this is some help to cheshire rose.

I remember Belmont coming to Bedford Basin at Leigh in the very early eighties. Towed up from Gayton (I think) by Euan Corrie with the Gainsborough. Externally she looked alright but closer inspection revealed a much sadder state of affairs. The hold had been roughly lined out with plywood and when this was removed it revealed holes in the platework. When you walked on the boats bottom you could feel the metal flex under foot. In short, she was in a bit of a state even then. The back cabin was reasonably good (I think Mr and Mrs Collins had lived in it recently). I salvaged a few small cabin fittings, turnbuttons and the like, for use in Albion's cabin. I don't know where she went after leaving Leigh. Paul Lorenz or Tim Young might remember.

Yes I think it is. If I remember correctly it had a big rubbing band on one side only but that might be my memory playing tricks on me. Tim Young might remember. The ferroconcrete yacht at the back was always just known as the Concrete Boat. Bedford Basin was home to a wonderful assortment of interesting boats.

The Bedford Basin picture was taken in 1980 and does indeed show Scales/Powis Princess. Ex FMC Venice is tied next to Viktoria, ex Grand Union Glossor is tied in the back corner and the boat in the foreground is the Leo which came from BWB as it then was. Leo is better known on the Bridgewater as the Water Womble and has been used as the rubbish collection boat for the last 34 years.

First picture is one of Roger's taken near the East Lancs Road bridge on launch day. Second picture is one of mine. Other boats in the picture are Venice tied alongside Viktoria. Leo, now the Water Womble. The Ricky butty Glossor tied in the left corner of the basin and Powis Princess/Scales. The concrete yacht in the backgroud was always referred to as "The Concrete Boat"

These things are all relative but when you get to Manchester you might consider yourself in the Southern end of the North.

PM sent.

Martin, Your photo shows the counter out of the water just about as much as when I had her. I used to run around quite happily with the counter a couple of inches out and she would tuck down no trouble at all. Try her as she is and if she goes alright you've saved yourself the cost of ballast, the effort of lugging it into the boat and you've still got the space. If she doesn't pull down you've lost nothing by trying. See you when you get a bit closer to Manchester. Steve C

Saw Gateing. This is part of the process of fitting mitred lock gates. The term was in use when I worked on the old BW Manchester section and also when I worked for the old Rochdale Canal Co. I don't know if they use the same name in other parts of the country. When you have a pair of gates hung, the collars fitted and and the collar wedges driven home the gates should touch at the top and have a gap at the bottom. When the water pressure comes on as you fill the lock the gates are forced into the hollow quoins and they should make a tight seal down the length of the mitre. Part of the fitting process is to wedge the newly hung gates tight up against the cill to check they do make a good seal.You check for high spots on the mitre by putting red raddle on one gate and seeing where it transfers to the other gate when the are wedged up. You get the perfect (hopefully) seal by running a hand saw down the mitre whilst the gates are wedged shut and then checking again for high spots. This is Saw Gateing. If it is done right the gates should make a perfect watertight seal with no widdly leaks. Ashton Lock 10 bottom gates are about 18 feet high so getting them right is no mean feat.

Albion is turning out to be a proper little time capsule. The receipts may be from the Rochdale rubbish collection contract. I used to have two cabin chimneys. One, with no brass for winter and wet days and another with three bands when we wanted to look a bit flash. I still have the short exhaust pipe. That's even older and came off Asterope when it belonged to Ray Kearns (a present when he sold the boat). There used to be two tiller extensions as well. One brass and one painted.

That is Albion's original tall pipe lovingly hand made by Tim Young who posts on this forum. The brass cutter is missing but it's more than likely in one of your cupboards! It only ever had one brass band as we don't like too much fancy stuff down the North. Brown sauce is quite good for getting the worst off the brass, then Brasso and elbow grease. I wonder if my duffel coat is still in the front deck locker?