Ditch Crawler

The one thing that has been over looked is this, you are buying something that is as yet unseen, its a second hand engine, you need to see it, and more importantly see it running, I would not pay a penny for a second hand item until then.Once they have removed your old engine then they have you by the short and currlies! Where about in the country are you, there is a massive choice of very good yards that have a good stock of second hand engines with very good reputations that will show you and engine running, give you written quotes and even give you a guarantee!

We sold a boat through the brokerage service that Norbury Wharf Limited offer. They are very professional and offer a good service. Their brokerage fee is only 4% with free moorings, which we considered to be very reasonable. They advertise their boats For Sale widely. This includes on the world wide database "Apollo duck" their own website and Waterways World to name but a few. I also understand that they purchase boats for cash. Give Simon or David a call on 01785 284292 for more details - they are both more than helpful or you can visit their website www.norburywharfltd.co.uk. I understand that their after sales care is excellent too and they offer all boats with a long term mooring at Norbury Junction. Regards, DC

Norbury Wharf have three very nice semi trads, they are based on the Shropshire Union canal http://www.norburyhire.co.uk/

saw him this week at Norbury Junction.

Read Norbury Wharf's blog, that will give you a good idea http://norburywharfltd.blogspot.com/

No I just didn't want to appear to be advertising!

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try Norbury wharf we have two 50 foot trads with modern engines and stoves and a 38 foot trad

we use boat movers a lot in our business and have found them all to be very profesional, i cant speak for all of them.

Hi there i have an 8hp Seffle with reversing box sat in my workshop just waiting for a boat to put in in from memory it came out of a claytons boat owned by Edwin Fasham then ended up in a tug called Parry two owned out Hugh McNight from there it went in to Starling after she was cut down, when starling was rebuilt it passed to my ownership about five years ago. I dont know any more history of the engine or where it came from prior to being fitted in to the Claytons boat. This information is what has been given to me so it may not be 100%correct.

I think that in reality if you had boats mooring outside your property most evenings, running there engine/generator and as you say having coal smoke wafting in, you might just get a bit fed up. It is always the case that the minority spoil it for the majority, i would welcome most folks outside my property if they all behaved in considerate manner towards others. as for if people have the right to put up the notice, i think you will find they dont as it is BWB,s property! unless sanctioned by BW of course.

Having done both canals i still love the Caldon very much, as already said though, make sure you go all the way to the end and if you do do the Caldon stop of at the Black Lion at Consal Forge, cracking pub, cracking location to while away some time over a beer or two!

They have a very nice boat on a proper residential mooring at Norbury, check it out http://www.norburywharfltd.co.uk/index_files/Page1175.htm

As i know Richard i can tell you that The reason for the sale is down to personal circumstances! i also know that the price quoted by NWL was put as an indication as to what the price might be as they hadnt had confirmation by Richard prior to placing the adverts! The adverts will be updated in the next week and the correct price of £72,000 will be put on the boat. It is a superb boat with a very high specifacition list and lovely engine and once finished it will make someone a very proud owner!

current price at Norbury wharf is 48.9p per litre

I take your point on the costings, but what has failed to be mentioned is that the price paid is the pre increase price not the actual price now As we all know fuels are shooting up in price week on week and the current prices (even on a delivered ton) are more or less the same as from boat yards and canal suppliers!

Its is very true you can buy cheaper coal and smokless products in quantity direct from main suppliers, but the small amount that you will save doesnt seem worth the effort! what next the supply of diesel in bulk? I am all for saving money with the least amount of effort but having half a ton of coal sat on my roof with the temptation to thieves (in this current climate) begs the question is it worth it plus also the potential damage to paint work! As stated there isnt a lot of profit involved with the supply of solid fuels and most boat yards stock it more as a service to the boaters rather than a big profit earner! At what point do you cut out the boat yards and for that matter the coal boats for the supply of goods, when they have all disappeared?

there is a slip at dennis coopers yard at the end of the cannock extension canal, there is also a slip at Birchills on the walsall canal, and there use to be one at Aldridge marina, not sure weather its still there though

Norbury wharf ltd at Norbury junction on the Shropshire union canal has 3 excellent day boats on a 17 mile pound with no locks and 7 pubs www.norburywharf.co.uk i have used both boats before and it was superb

Its been for sale for about the last six months, and has appeared on Appoloduck before, still it is a nice boat, but not sure its worth 90k

Beautiful marine engine yes i know of one in a narrow boat, don't know to much about it but it does run very sloooooooow. 8L3 and 8L3B, have you ever stood next to one when its running, immense felling of power and torque, they did produce a 3L3, as well, now that is a rare beast, I've never seen one in the flesh. Sorry meant to say that they did 3L3, 4L3,5L3,6L3 and the 8 And dont forget the the 8LW and the 8LX and 8LXB, or the 6LYCT with its turbo

( Yes LW stands for light weight and you don't want one landing on your foot, there is a lifting eye that screws in through the rocker covers (that's why it has a 2p size alloy washer on one of the studs)but not many people have the lifting eyes, they just use straps around the engine, hence i reckon the pipes got squashed. Some of the LW engines built around the second world war time had cast crank cases as well, because of the shortage of materials, so i am to believe, and also if the engine was built for direct water cooling in a sea going vessel(salt corrosion and all that) the cast ones didn't have alloy water pipes either they were cast as well as for the L2 and the gorgeous L3 (this has got my memory working over time) yes i think they were all cast crank cases.

It does look better with the other injector pipes on and i see you have the ratchet type decompression mechanism, i like the lift pump blanking mod, i see that it is also missing the nice little bracket that should be mounted on rubber washers on the bell housing for the oil pressure gauge. On the oil filler housing there is a curious hole, it used to have a pipe running in to it which ran down to the water pump so you could remote grease the water pump. Hows that for being a saddo

Why dont you post a picture of the other side of the engine as well, so i can be really sad.

I also notice that it doesn't have the ram type bilge pump or the over head starting equipment, and someone has replaced the alloy water pipes on the side with copper ones, some of the marine engines had a nice alloy water header tank on the front of the engine and they also had a hydraulic ram to operate the gear lever, i could keep on going, but that's just being sad. SL nice 2L2