captain birdseye
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Posts posted by captain birdseye
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The Boatman stove we have works very well and the Back Boiler is very efficient. Available from Eddie at Northern Fabrication Services | (boatmanstove.co.uk)
(no connection to me, just a very satisfied customer)
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On the Peak Forest we are locked in both ways with Anderton and the Macclesfield Culvert Stoppage. Another summer wasted by the looks of things
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We tend to decide on a couple of places we want to go or a couple of events we would like to attend and then set off. The route and timings decided on our few destinations in mind. We do it this way as I like to have the odd target to aim for and it gives me an end point to aim at otherwise I just tend to bumble about.
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Great photos, with Crabtree lane when the swing bridge was over the lock. I don't remember the 1971 Rally but I was only 10 then and only remember Atilla converted into a trip boat. The one of the working party is just behind Guide Bridge Mill.
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That's lock 98 on the Rochdale probably a trip on the way back from one of the dale street rallies. I don't remember that trip down the nine. It would be interesting to me to see the Ashton ones as when I was a young lad I used to help Paul on those summer outings up the Ashton.
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1977 sounds about right for the demonstration dig at lock 1E I know I had left school. Pluto, just as an aside in 77 I helped Paul and Roger bring Atilla back from tripping on the Ashton ready for the silver jubilee celebrations at Worsley.
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The first time I went on a working party on the Huddersfield was to build a footpath through Slaithwaite thus maintaining the route of the canal, on both that occasion and the Huddersfield lock 1 working party we all stayed in a hall in Slaithwaite and I seem to remember dancing the night away in a club in the village to a rock and roll band, it would have been one of the political party clubs or a working mans club
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Yes Pluto, I was on both. The one at Huddersfield was part of a rally held in the basin on the broad canal, and the first lock officially opened up was Dungebooth in April 1981. The picture shows John Palmer Junior and myself as we installed the compressor to work the jack hammers to break up the concrete capping on said lock. There is a picture somewhere of me breaking through the concrete if I find it I will add it to the thread.
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41 minutes ago, Ex Brummie said:
Oxley Marine, between Autherly and Aldersley Junctions.
Orph@Oxleymarine.co.uk - 01902 789522
Very good all round service over all marine disciplines.
Only needed an engineer once whilst out boating in that area and called Oxley. Great service and at a good price. Sorted me out on the day
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Thanks Tim, it was great to see Dirty Weekend, I haven't seen it since the seventies. There are lots of familiar (to me) faces on it, lots of whom I still see, and takes me back to how working parties used to be.
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On 03/01/2021 at 21:15, Troyg said:
Thanks for your comments so far everyone. Interesting points about Kerridge, Bollington and Bullshead. I will certainly follow those up. I don’t recall a slipway or dry dock at Bollington though?
Bollington will however get a crane in to lift you out. Both Jason and Steve that work there are good welders. Both have done work for me
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I thought the OPwas hiring from Napton Narrowboats at Autherly Junction, which is nowhere near Napton
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29 minutes ago, John Wareing said:
Or for the 4 counties Black prince at Acton Bridge, ABC at Anderton or Andersen or Floating Holidays at Middlewich.... I'm pretty sure some of them will do pick-ups from Manchester Airport.
There are buses from Barbridge, or at least there were a few years ago when we used them. The train from Nantwich isn't very practical though, as you would have to get a train into Crewe to get one to Chester as well as the long walk (and a bit of one from Chester station into the city as well).
I only mentioned the companies on the Chester cut as these are just as easily reached from Manchester and have the advantage that should the OP wish to go down to Chester at the end of the trip they will know how long they have and it is only half a day each way. Also Chas is a good guy to hire from
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If opting for the four counties and you would like to go to chester you could opt to fly into Manchester and hire from either Chas Harden at Beeston or Anglo Welsh at Bunbury
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Going clockwise means you go up Cheshire locks which can be a bit vicious so people tend to be a bit cautious opening the paddles, and has you going down Audlem which can be easier if the by washes are running fast.
Personally I'd rather go down Cheshire locks which are easy to work and therefore a fast flight.
The Middlewich branch can take a while with long queues at the locks so its not the one to be doing at the end of a holiday if you need to get back to Middlewich to hand the boat back.
If you need to you can get from Barbridge to Chester in a day but it's far better to take two and stop off at the Shady Oak and have a walk up to Beeston Castle
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if going anti clockwise you can stop at either Etrutia or Westport, so long as you have booked in for the 11:00 tunnel in advance you can be out and down at Wheelock for tea time. Going clockwise book the 10:00 and you can stop the night before at Red Bull get going in the morning and up the three locks in plenty of time. It is one of the advantages of having to book the tunnel that you can work out your timings without having to allow up to 2 hours waiting time at the tunnel
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Chester is a great place to stop and a lovely city. We usually have a night up near the Steam mill, and then run out to the zoo the next day. After the zoo visit we then come back to the moorings at the bottom of the staircase and have another night out in Chester, it is only about an hour and a half from the zoo back to Chester.
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Last time I bought a boat through a broker they arranged for the seller to come down and meet me and we went out for a mornings run and he went through all the systems showing me how they worked. he also went through with me what could be left on board if I wished and what would be taken off so we knew exactly what we were getting.
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5 hours ago, frangar said:
They are already charging for the Lift....you have to book so you have to pay....Ive made my thoughts on this known repeatedly to CRT management..I wont be surprised if they introduce charges for harecastle....Its sad the cut is becoming a theme park where you have to pay for the exciting bits rather than a navigation.
It is still less than they charged when it first opened. Standedge Tunnel was the same. It was £25 a passage when it first reopened CRT scrapped that charge and the charge for Anderton at the same time and now charge a booking fee. As far as I know, you can still turn up at Anderton and talk to the office and they will put you on the next free slot free of charge, but you may have to wait a while
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23 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:
I am not an early starter so going north I moor at the tunnel overnight, but going south I have no desire to moor at the tunnel mouth overnight so I have to allow time to do locks before I get to the tunnel, this means starting around 2 hours before my normal cruising hours, not something I enjoy doing.
Just book a passage two hours later, plenty of time to get p from say Bed Bull for the lunchtime passage
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On 07/08/2020 at 15:37, Capey_k said:
We are looking at the end of this month or the first few days of September. My husband is happy to go along as well, but we need a bit of help as he can't do the Rochdale etc on his own.
I am looking at howmuch it would cost me to either get a crew for it, or if someone was willing to come along and lend a hand.
Thanks so much for replying.
Also, if you contact C&RT there are volunteers who may be able to help you with the locks on the Rochdale, Ashton and also at Marple.
Also you could go the other way up cheshire locks and Bosley, ypou are climbing the same height either way but cheshire locks are much prettier
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2 minutes ago, ivan&alice said:
I don't know anything about using trad controls, I can't see that being a particularly difficult thing. I am perhaps harping too much on the difference in driving her, I just wonder if it makes sense to go from the simplicity of our current boat.
It's got a PRM gearbox on it so gear change will be easy, and if you wish to you could always put a morse control on it.
Yes servicing is cheap I always but my filters on line as they have a standard number on them. easy to change especially as they are right in front of you in the engine room. I put Morris 30s in mine as that is what it always had in it with the previous owners and it hasn't done it any harm. Spares may be a bit more expensive but the engine will outlast most modern ones, so you will have less outlay in the long term. As I said mine was a second hand boat and it had been well looked after, and has given me no trouble since I bought it. If you buy it, joining the RN Register is worth the fee for the amount of advice and help other owners can give you.
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18 minutes ago, Halsey said:
Small world. - I know that boat from MANY years ago when it moored on the driveway to a very posh house on the Birmingham and Worcester canal somewhere near Droitwich.
Yes, we bought it from the people there, they had it built but due to the fact that they were getting on a bit and couldn't carry on boating they decided they had to give up boating and so reluctantly put it up for sale.
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I have a DM2 in my boat it's over thirty years old and runs perfectly and starts first turn in all weathers. The newer ones, as in post 1960s have a standard screw on oil filter and a modern air filter and fuel filter fitted so are easy to service. Power wise you won't have any problem, as has been said they produce lots of torque and with a decent prop on will handle the boat well.
We have a calorifier on ours and it produces a full tank of hot water in about 45 minutes so if it doesn't already have one it can easily be fitted, ours sits in a cupboard in the corner of the engine room giving me a handy shelf to put the oil can and bits and bobs on.
I have only required one replacement item, a water pump in the last seven years and as I was passing Hillmorton I popped in and asked Dave Bixter for a new one and he went down to the works picked one up and dropped it off at the boat later that day at the place we had stopped for the night, that is the only experience of spares we have had and I couldn't fault the service.
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Multi-fuel stove
in New to Boating?
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Eddie that makes them is a really nice guy, but don't call him too early in the morning he's not an early riser.He will call you back if you leave a message. We picked ours up so no delivery costs. but there again he is only just around the M60 from me