Techy-Ben

Just posting to say I'm looking to join and find info. I have a (possibly) Rover as it's around 30 odd foot, rear cockpit. There is about 4 other Dawncraft here too. One mid, one rear and a couple of Dandys. Will post more updated photos soon (the existing picture is old and already up on here), as hoping to repaint the roof in the next week or two (may have to totally resurface it as I hat the textured non slip surface ). Picture is of the bottom repaint, before I had to get someone in to rebuild the engine. 🤢 All her windows were erplaced in a refit at some time. But I do like them.

Yep. The website has the correct link. But their forms have a typo. So if you download the form and click the email from in there then it will never reach them. Public service announcement or similar. My name? No idea. Whatever is on the keyboard. But as I'm not taking import registrations or payments I don't mind if no one can get hold of me. If they want me to pay then even better if they cannot! Oh, but if anyone wants to pay me...

Thank you for the very precise and helpful advice. As I'm also from the Croydon area, I was able to translate your accent and lingo immediately. I do though worry that others in this forum would have difficulty deciphering your advice, and may end up accidentally using a bag of cats instead of a horse.

I will look out for her on my (currently roadbound ) travels!

Oh. That reminds me. I really should check out my engine and Z-drive if the threads are imperial... As the bolt heads are (I know, stupid question to ask!). I'll have to get some re tapping kits in imperial.

Just found out that the reason my boat registration has been delayed by 3 months is because, the link provided on the online forms was incorrect. So if you are trying to email in your boat registration to the Environment Agency, click the website link or type it in by hand. Do not click the link inside their PDF forms. It might be a typo, autocorrect or using a strange font, but it does not go through, and also does not give a failed attempt response either. I could have found out earlier if they had not lied and said "yes we have it here, and will process it" when I first called them. Also if they did not use ambiguous characters or symbols in their email addresses, as who here can tell the difference between these to email addresses? (There is one, and it's super hard to detect it!) A short dash "boatreg@environment‐agency.gov.uk" and a full dash "boatreg@environment-agency.gov.uk". Yep, most email clients, web pages etc all show them as identical. But copy/paste into notepad and they are very different. I have emailed them to ask them to correct it, but no idea if they will.

Hahahahha! Yeah, most of the Dawncraft have square windows, and this one, at least on the sides, has had a new set of windows as they moved things around. I might get rid of one side porthole each side, as one is in a cupboard, so not needed IMO. But on the front, it kinda gives her a unique feature. Those little triangle windows need to go though IMO and are a complete waste.

Nah they seem to use the minus/dash. As said I cannot even type the shortened version so wondering if the Waterways own link was wrong for a while? I must have got the link with the typo from somewhere. As soon as they give the go ahead... I'll try for my thirdish day boating. As last time the Morse cable end snapped off I seem to hit a snag every time I get a bit of confidence. Thankfully even at 30 foot the boat is so light I could just get out and paddle... [Edit] Found the error!!! It was not me. It's their own forms! They must have autocorrect or an EU keyboard because the email address on their form has the typo. I will email them to get it corrected (I'd already noticed typos else where in the form...) And possibly post a PSA here later in one of the forums as it's probably not just me getting silence from them because of this.

I've yet to do the windows and roof... but this is it so far: Unrecognisable under the waterline now. But don't ask how it's gone, or what needed to be done. The less said the better. But I'm pleased with how it's turning out so far. Hoping she is still afloat when I next go see her! I may post a new thread once I start on the roof, and if I do any modifications, as I like the idea of a solid roof at the rear or the front.

I'm here to post late to the party with Jack Bracken: Also, thanks to the Environment[dash]Agency having a very nicely formatted for email name, my registration is rather delayed. Somehow the "-" got swapped for a "‐". See the difference? Nope, me neither till I double checked carefully on the computer. One is slightly shorter than the other, so the email was getting sent to a nonexistent place. I've no idea where the short dash even is on my keyboard, and only the long dash even types on this PC!!! So, new to boating, and *very much* learning the hard way... I'll not even go into the repairs/failures/bolt heads snapping off I've had to deal with. But all the more fun!

Still trying to figure it out. She is 29.5 foot from top to toe, not including the Zdrive. She does not seem to be blacked to the gunwhale as far as I can see. Got green, red and blue underneath her, but the bottom is coming up white gelcoat once I scrape the dirt off (paint/antifoul coming clean off in most parts that are not stubborn, so will try the buffing option you mentioned before recoating her with something).

I mean if the stairs go over the drive. My current boat my stairs are in front of the engine (it's a Z drive setup). But if it was a lower down engine, I could just step up it. I'm basically getting at, different engine/gearbox setups are different sizes. So some take up the whole cabin (some offset narrowboats I've seen have them on one side of the rear cabin, and not even shelf space above them), others are lower down, and have a panel/decking above them, and others might be so low or hidden away (hydraulic/shaft transmission etc), that you don't have to worry about them. As said, with the center cockpit Sea Otter, the engine was in the middle of the boat, and the hydraulic link up to the prop meant it took up a little bigger than a shoe box in the room the prop was connected to, but nearly the entire deck area in the center of the boat (for the hydraulic fluid tank and the transmission pump). Meant you lost space in the center, but got a big double bed with no engine in it's way.

That helps for the positioning problems. I looked at a wonderful Sea Otter that did this to allow for easy access to the bedroom and a bathroom where the engine normally would be, with the engine under the centre cockpit (thus step up/down between the front and rear of the boat). Alas, I've not got myself mobile quickly enough to snap up that one. So a hydraulic system would allow the engine to be in relatively the same place on a Dawncraft while putting the prop else where. But you'd still need to cut a hole for the prop, right? A V drive might work, if you had the stairs non-removable, and put the v drive gearbox under the stairs of the dawncraft, as their entrance is very high (IMO compared to other narrowboats).

Ah, so similar to the Z-drives that were (in mine at least) Einfields. Ah, by that picture, it is a Z-drive.

Seems she was light blue atop, and brown underneath? But that makes no sense! Will see if the light blue is an overcoat of a brown or similar, or not. So might be a Rover, not a Highbridge, whichever was the 30 foot model. She has had the windows changed, so that also makes it harder to guess.