Boaty Jo

Try bedazzled or the fitout pontoon They are (or used to be) boaty suppliers I think.

No expert but these Victroms have mega fuses inside the cover. Could that be it?

http://gb.sparex.com/round-countersunk-square-hex-bolt-nut-m11-x-50mm-tensile-strength-8-8-78818.html

Boats (Barges), their transport and many other things are HERE I see your partner already has a thread running!

You'll find an answer here I would think.

Helped move an old boat a few years ago which had an unusual propulsion system. The prop was attached to the big rudder. Known, I think, as a bouteur in french (type of sculling propeller in English?) I've just come acrross these photos which may be of interest

Overplating or re-plating an old tjalk, that may well be iron, is a pretty specialist business. To consider: A lot of overplating adds extra weight and some consider removing the old plate better so moisture is not trapped between the skins. Tjalks have a soft-chine and flat bottom so getting the profile of the steel right is important. I saw them bend metre-long sections in a big press then offer them up to be welded. In France where I saw it they charged by the metre but can't remember the price - not cheap. I suggest you get specialist advice, perhaps start by joining the Dutch Barge Association

+ fitting!? Our beta was green and slightly underpowered for our 57 footer (unless the prop was all wrong)

May I suggest yo get an expert in to look at your set up before you set the boat on fire.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009404195247&__tn__=%2CdC-R-R&eid=ARAsS04FNGYTnuzNAJNQyOBrmB6ncWjTmsMIrmviINtriWKtJ6B2vvModzpluZL-36_zVH6t5laKua36&hc_ref=ARQwwI31d_-TbhlGho8h5uhb4st4EIoVGfNsrAboY2muNamK9Xw-q6WYVu9I2k9fn6c&fref=nf This guy posts on Facebook, looks to be very good.

Best sell it with a disclaimer... 'If this boat blows up and destroys neighbouring boats on the over-crowded Regents Canal because the doer upper didn't know what he was doing, it's your own fault.'

They are tried and tested as holiday boats but like many GRP and steel cruisers are not really geared up for winter living. They'll probably have a heater of some sort but unlikely man enough for 24/7. And is the insulation up to it? We experienced minus double figures in Burgundy and saw some boats with so much condensation they looked to be drowning fron the inside.

I put this together a few years ago for someone. Pretty much up to date but it may give you food for thought... http://abargeatlarge.co.uk/articles/Looking for a barge/index.html

The history of our royal family makes better reading than watching the current shambles.

Install a multi-fuel

One thing to be aware of is that some of the northern French waterways are commercial and pretty large, some say not ideally suited to narrowboats. This is partly because on-boat bollards are not ideally situated and gunwales and fore decks are not easy to walk around, particularly if you're in a panic. With this in mind it's worth considering being dropped in mid-France, Migennes or St. Jean de Losne for example where there is access to smaller (and lovely) waterways. The other point is that there is debate about how long these smaller waterways will be open due to funding. There are mutterings about closures so don't hang about too long.

Perhaps it's time for someone in the know to check out your electrics.