Sea Dog

Well, I have to say I rather enjoyed that. After quite a long seafaring career I confess there's much of it I'd not even contemplate doing in my narrowboat and, even if I did have such notions, I suspect that the Long Haired Admiral would very quickly countermand any such intentions! An impressive collection - thanks for sharing it DC.

A lovely little boat now destined to become steadily more lovely. Good luck with your new project.

I've just redone my roof collar on a similarly angled roof. I looked at it this way and that way and, finally, the way I got over it was - I just got over it and kept the jaunty chimney! It had, in truth, never really been an issue.

To be fair, I think it was rather more than simply 'annoying him on camera' - some bloke threw a egg which hit him in the face. It was perhaps not self defence to the letter of the law, but maybe it was close enough for Government work. If such action always resulted in a smack in the gob, perhaps fewer eggs would be wasted in such a cavalier fashion?

Exactly. Allowing sales of things which are illegal to use seems bonkers, but the genie ain't going back in the bottle. Ironically, the only folk who won't be able to ride a scooter on the towpath are now boaters who, because they are on a boat, are both the only folk readily identifiable and the only ones who can't say 'up yours' and speed off.

Confirmed. I've tried February - it's about as cold as it gets.

So that's maybe 50% of modern society - perhaps CRT are aware of this? Some warning signs are genuinely warning signs, others are anti-litigation signs: they just protect different parties.

I think I paid just over £40 for my first one inc courier. However, that included awesome service identifying both the alternator and the correct regulator so I was happy to reward such a service.

Further to @nicknorman 's very helpful post above, when I was eventually able to identify and buy at rrp (and subsequently replace) the Mahle regulator on my Iskra 150a alternator, I was then able to buy an additional identical genuine Mahle unit off eBay for £9. If you need a sacrificial unit, it doesn't necessarily have to be a huge sacrifice.

Hylomar red is the water one - although if your engine needs something else I'd defer to superior BMC knowledge.

Fair enough, although if we could discount the "why electric cars will now take over 5 years later than you thought" thread, it might still qualify for the 1 millionth...

I'd like to nominate the one above yours!

Hmm, 14 years. Is this a record?

Betty, when you call me, you can call me Al. (Or, if I'm computer generated, you can put full stops in and call me A.I.)

Ha! Tis indeed! Ok, let's go for 2500va or 2.5kva. Fair question - 440Ah.

When my Mastervolt Combi (2500kva inverter and 100 amp charger) packed up, I used a Ctek Mxs5 as a stopgap as I tried in vain to get support from Mastervolt and eventually fitted a Victron Inverter and separate Victron charger. As the batteries start fully charged (eg by the engine) it had no issues keeping them topped up whilst coping with my usual 12v load - lights, toilet, fridge, fresh water pump. On its own it may not have managed those loads, but the batteries fully charged batteries can and the Ctek happily topped them back up.

Blue Sea Systems.

They are on the second hand market. Sounds like yours was done at original fit out though, doesn't it? In which case, it really ought to be a marine unit. 🤞

My Eberspacher is fed directly from the batteries (through an inline fuse). Pretty sure this is in the installation instructions (along with minimising the cable length) and is based on removing any additional resistance being imposed by having any switches, fuse panels, isolators in the circuit. Even the marine versions are voltage sensitive, so if yours is also an automotive version you're really up against it!

Well I probably wouldn't go quite that far...

Hmm, anyone unable to manage that probably shouldn't really be fiddling with anything mechanical.

So, you removed 1.4L, filled with 1.3, removed 1.3 and are still measuring it as overfilled? Theoretically at least, it should be pretty much empty but the oil cooler does need accounting for if you're trying to do it by capacity. Did you check the dipstick beforehand? Personally, I'd press the reset button by draining down using the sump plug, then you'd know it was truly empty before you start. Next, it's an absolute b'stard to read the dipstick, with or without the blue roll, and it doesn't help that new oil hardly shows when the right level is achieved. My early issues stemmed from filling the box with the right amount, not allowing for the cooler circuit. The dipstick always came out with some oil on it, making it look like it was somewhere near when in reality it was a fair bit short, so I was adding a tiny amount at a time. Eventually, it became a tiny bit more obvious that I'd started dipping oil, not just getting the dipstick damp. Once you're past this, you'll be a bit more confident next time. Iirc, mine takes 1.9L. Lastly, use the dipstick lower mark to check as you fill - that way you can sit it in to test the level rather than screw and unscrew every time. Further to @Machpoint005 point above, I use a 4pt milk bottle with a hole cut out - on my boat, nothing larger will come out once the old oil goes in!@Machpoint005

Which is a shame, as I never had a sextant tell me about a "useful shop" or a pub serving food that closed down a year before publication.

Well, you also need a fair bit of canalside land, considerable groundworks and CRT permission (and fees) to make it accessible from the canal. Once you've got that in place, see how you get on getting "scrap railway stuff" and "an old winch" over the H&S hurdle and the regular load testing. These things ain't as cheap or easy as those with a few miles on the clock remember from the good old days.