Tony Brooks

Don't worry, let's see if RCR have solved it. They were on site, the rest of us are not. Ignoring the 13V you mentioned, there is still every chance it was a faulty start battery, especially as I don't recall getting the cranking voltages or how you measured it, so there is no way we can be sure about anything.

In fact I think it would make for a very gloomy, stuffy boat, so it would probably fetch less than a comparable conventional boat.

Ian D answered that pretty fully. If he wants a sustained 10 knots, especially in adverse conditions, then he is going to need a big diesel generator to provide the power when is batteries run out, and at present that won't take very long at all. However, he does seem t be altering his wants to be a bit more realistic.

If they do, do that, then they are very bad engineers. It just needs a suitable energise to run stop solenoid, like the majority of cars, vans and probably trucks. That is not to say Barrus have not done so, but the only complicated system I have actually come across is the Lister one that converts an earth return engine to insulated return when running. I still don't see how a faulty stop solenoid can make the starter with a GOOD battery can ever make the starter click. A solenoid on the Lister system probably could though, but then it is not a stop solenoid.

Ditto from me.

I don't think any of that apart from the last is beyond a conventional narrowboat. the reason the last is iffy, is that it is a long costal passage with little, if any, shelter along the way, so it would be very vulnerable to changes in the weather. it is also shallow in sea terms, so is likely to build up larger swells with wind. My own personal views, others will differ.# With the comparatively large weight of ballast, most narrowboats carry they tend, to roll less than the narrow beam suggests but are still likely to be uncomfortable. They tend to cut through waves rather than ride over them, so large waves may well swamp an open well deck. If one did roll onto its side the as long as the ballast did not move it would probably right itself like RNLI lifeboats do. So, a thick (possibly 25mm or thicker) to avoid the need for loose ballast and any further ballast needed being steel and welded to the baseplate. Properly calculated ribs, stringers and possibly a keelson to ensure the hull can stand the extra stresses it is likely to suffer in a bad sea. No windows. but use proper marine portholes, so they are unlikely to blow in if a wave hit them. Trad stern with stern doors that can be close while boating to avoid a following wave flooding the boat. No well deck or a well deck with a removable watertight cover. Large bilge pumps for all bilges and the well deck. Folding or removable mast(s) to mount navigation lights to meet the regulations, also the VHF aerial. Valves on all the hull piercings. High (roof) level air supply vent for the engine. Exhaust with a proper high level swan neck so following waves can't flood the engine internals. But most of all, experience and knowledge so you don't put yourself and boat into danger. The design would need experience, hence a couple of us mentioning the need for a naval architect for the design and calculations.

That question shows that you seem not to have even looked at any of the online maps, guides or bought a guide book for the area. A guide book like Nicholsons will show where the marinas are located and TEMPORARY moorings are. They will also show that there are NO other canals/rivers available for power boating within 25km of Oxford apart from the Thames, its backwaters, and the Oxford canal. There is a short disused anal above Oxford, but it has not been navigable for years, and the last time I went pas the riier banks around its mouth were full of what looked like squatter boats. Your biggest problem is the 25km distance limit, if you ignore that you get the Kennet and Avon navigations so, as said, Reading and Newbury. I would mention that Thames and Kennet marina is on the non-towpath side of the river so you can't walk along the towpath into town. It is at the end of a long track at the outskirts of Caversham (south Reading) which is then a bus ride or cycle ride to the station. All day car parking at the station is expensive, so just adds to your costs. If you ignore the 25km limit the Burghfield Moorings operator was on here last year saying they had spaces for live-aboards, that is on the river Kennet so subject to flood flows. No such a long walk to a bus stop for a probably hourly service into Reading. Two marinas in Newbury, I think, and walkable to the station, but that means a change at Reading for Oxford if a car is not to be used. I fear that you have picked an area which is very popular with live-aboards, with all the problems that causes.

Water and pump out facilities are adequate on the Thames. The EA provide water points at a number of locks, while pump outs are at some locks and various boatyards and marinas. Those places where there is no riparian owner or the riparian owner does not enforce their rights are few, and those that there are seem to be full of "squatter boats" for much of the time. This includes some of the backwaters around Oxford. There are official EA moorings but they are for 24 hours only and some allow a longer stay but at £x a night (I have no up-to-date figures). I would suggest £10 would not be too far out except in places like Henley who charge more, especially during the regatta and festival. So you need to be within 15 miles of Oxford so there may be moorings at Abingdon Bridge Marina or Abingdon Marina. That would be a bus commute. Oxford seems to hate cars, so make driving into the city diffcult.

I think on the statements that you have given us that diagnosis has a number of inconsistencies UNLESS the battery had problems right from the start. Explanation: A lead acid battery in good condition and a good state of charge can probably provide thousands of amps for a while, a starter draws a few hundred amps rapidly dropping as the motor speeds up to perhaps something over 100 amps. Now, for a faulty stop solenoid to prevent the starter working it would have to draw many hundreds of amps so it robs the starter of the current it needs and all those amps would have to run down a small cable. That means the cable would get very hot, the insulation start to burn, and then the copper strands would melt so the cable would disconnect itself, then the solenoid could not draw any current so the starter could draw all it needed.

Thanks, that makes much more sense as far as the smoke is concerned, but unless the battery was in a poor condition or state of charge at the start of this saga, I go along with Paul C's scepticism. If the solenoid was drawing enough current to prevent the starter working, I think it's relatively thin cable would have caught fire and melted. Once the cable parted, the starts should be able to spin the engine, but possibly it would not actually start. I have my fingers crossed for you.

In my view that would make far more sense than trying to CC or get a large wide beam mooring on the Thames. However, there may still be a commute from a fair distance like Lower Heyford, but at least that has a railway station. It all depends upon how much time is available to get a mooring where you can live-aboard and keep your head down.

Be aware that the vast majority of the Thames banks and river bed are owned by the adjacent property owners and they may not allow mooring or charge for it. If you don't know how to look after yourself and boat when rivers go into flood, then my advice would be get a berth in a marina, and the only ones close to Oxford that I can think of are Oxford Cruisers near Eynsham or the marinas at Osney. I don't think Bossoms Boatyard accept bats as large as yours.

I wonder if it is an electric fuel pump. The only other solenoid I would expect would be a stop solenoid, but neither should be under the engine. Still, lets hope RCR are correct this time.

Basically, you adjust the valve clearances when the cam follower is on the back of the cam. Cams are normally shaped like a section cut down through the centre of an egg. The back of the cam is the end with the larger diameter. In this position, the valve clearance will be ta its maximum. Whatever method of setting the engine to the correct position you use, it will be designed to set the cam follower on the back of the cam. Note, there are cams that are more rounded than egg shaped, and these are normally adjusted with the engine running. As far as I know, it is mainly General Motors companies that do/did this, so certainly not most UK engines. My method works because the heel of the cam is 180 degrees of rotation around from the peak, so set the valve fully down means the cam follower is on the peak. The question then is, "how do you know when the cam shaft has turned through 180 degrees". That is easy because the cam shaft turns at half engine speed so if the crankshaft is turned through 360 degrees (one full turn) the cam shaft will have turned through 180 degrees, so the cam follower will now be on the back of the cam. Although I will always say follow the manufacturer's instructions, the Gardner method seems a bit complicated, but it seems clear enough to me. It is still designed to get the cam follower on the back of the cam. Don't worry about which stroke, just get the follower on the back of the cam. Both valves will be closed around TDC compression As both are at a very similar position and the back of the cams have a number of degrees of rotation where they do not lift the follower, it allows you to use piston pairs on an engine with an even number of cylinders and this is what I think is confusing you. Using piston pairs that is not possible on your engine, you would set the non-adjusting piston pair to be around TDC between exhaust and inlet stroke. That puts the adjusting cylinder at BDC

As there are specific instructions, then I agree, but I am still unclear where the 0.254 something came from, certainly not your manual extract, and it is about a quarter of an inch. Not likely for setting valve clearances. The method I described will meet the Gardner requirement of having the piston at the top of the compression stroke, almost certainly within the TDC ineffective crank angle.

Totally agree. I understand that the crew on I Frances (the "narrowboat" that crossed the Atlantic) said never again because of the discomfort and the fact they went backwards for much of the time.

What are you asking, because I can't see where you tell us what you are trying to do. Adjust the valve clearances? Set the injector pump timing? But why you would need to do that for just a head change, I don't know. Something else? Assuming you mean valve clearances, the way I would do it on any three-cylinder engine is: Turn the engine until one valve is fully down, and use a bot of chalk or crayon to put a witness mark on the front pulley or flywheel. Align it with any engine feature that is convenient. Turn the engine one complete turn until the witness mark realigns. Adjust the clearance on that valve. Rub out mark and repeat for the other valves.

I know roping together is not the same, but did that chap who took a full length pair to the Black Sea by water all the way get into a spot of trouble doing this. Not sure if it was in the channel, but I know he sunk one on the Rhine. I suspect the stresses in the bolts and struts if needed would be very great in a side swell, so again he needs a naval architect.

I think the only one that comes close is a specific model of the Freeman 23 (not sure about the 23) but that is only 23ft long with a beam of 7 feet so may jam in some narrow locks. Typically, they had a small Ford petrol engine. I doubt it would do 10 knots, and I would not fancy being in a rough sea with it.

Be aware a boat built to narrowboat dimensions crossed the Atlantic (I Francis, I think) so have a Google for that. A slightly modified boat destined for a GU hire fleet did a number of seagoing voyages, one to the Scilly Isles I think. (Ocean Princess, I think) The owner of Lee Sanitation had a modified narrowboat that did a number of costal and cross channel voyages.(NB Progress) It has been reported here that pilots on the Severn and Wash have expressed surprise at how well standard narrowboats ride the sea. None of this is intended to say any old narrowboat will do, but it shows it is perfectly possible in narrowboat dimensions. I am not sure current battery technology is up to an electrically powered sea boat, especially as the power required tends to increase by the square of the speed. I think that you need to consult a Naval Architect and work out how you will get the documentation for the Recreational Craft Regulations. Since about 1998 there are rules about building and fitting out new boats. If I were planning this, I would want to ensure that the ballast is securely held in place because with a narrow beam it is likely to roll badly and the last thing you want is the ballast shifting.

Yes, but I am sure that you can find a non-Bukh switch to do the job. It is likely to be cheaper, but note few have a "turn anticlockwise to stop" position and no glow plug position between ignition on and start. However, if all you can get is one with a glow plug position, there is no reason not to use it and ignore the glow position. If needs must you could even fit a separate stop button, but it all depends upon costs.