Baralacha

You can't beat the classics.

I'm neither a twit nor a big boy, thanks. I'm a puffling. Why are we becoming sensitive about causing offence to someone whose English is inadequate? When I lived in Europe and was learning German I had plenty of people ridiculing my attempts at the language. It was a spur to work on the words or pronunciation that caused hilarity. Is this a consequence of wokeism? There are plenty of good online language translation tools out there which would have produced better copy than what's above. But more importantly, how does such a person cope buying shoes or groceries, or getting to see a doctor in this country? They probably ask a friend or relative to do the translation work for them. I find it hard to believe that - even if the OP's partner really has died as they claim - they don't have another contact through whom they can pose an intelligible request on an English-speaking forum. No, my money is on a bot, until proved otherwise.

Yay, back on the map! Thanks, @RichM

Think it's a misspelling of "My horse won't start". Feed the poor bugger a bag of oats, then. If it won't start then, lead it to water and make sure it drinks.

Paging @RichM...

I've heard of a blank on the map, but my location (and a few other profiles I checked recently) is currently showing an indicator with a blank map beneath. My suspicion is that this is linked with the mapping script being updated at the start of November and a notice that a new API key was required appearing.

The eponymous James of The Narrowboat That James Built did blacking in the depths of winter. Here he is recoating existing blacking in January (from about 5:40): AFAIK nothing fell off the boat in the nearly three years since.

This isn't at all bad, a 20 mile walk along what may one day be a fully restored waterway: https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2023/nov/15/meresyside-canal-towpath-20-mile-walk-industrial-revolution-merseyside

The Harecastle is a vital artery on the T & M. Albeit a rather unhealthy artery suffering atherosclerosis as a result of too much saturated fat in the water. I mean, just look at its colour...

My boat has those, the "yoghurt pot slashers" on the stern, flat steps about an inch under water. I found using them surprisingly difficult when I tried reboarding following a long swimming session in the Avon river near Pershore last year (remember that heatwave?). And I consider that I have pretty strong leg muscles. Yet I couldn't get adequate purchase on the slippery slimy step to pull myself vertical (grabbing onto the taff rail) in order to haul myself out. In the end, I waded ashore over rocks.

I was about to say the same. When I was doing my engine room in oak-faced ply I briefly considered chugging to the Bridgewater near their yard. One look at the area on Google Street view disuaded me - it's an ugly industrial zone with big roads and power lines crossing everywhere. The Atlantic people sent my delivery with an extra person (extra charge, but worth it) to help load everything onto my boat moored on the Macc. Give them a bridge number with access and they'll do it.

Not everyone streaming music lives in a country with high speed broadband. The mp3 format is popular in countries such as India for that reason. I wonder why I'm the only one talking FLAC on here? You can shrink a 24-bit audio file (a five minute track comes in around 5GB uncompressed) to half that size. Even on a 2TB SSD that allows more music per storage unit.

I've seen the cutouts bevelled and turned into a close-fitting board for inside the sink. This allows it to double as a chopping board, etc. No comments on your proposed worktop idea but I can vouch for Atlantic Timber being reliable. Their delivery guys are familiar with boaters.

One of my favourite toys as a young lad was a small boat (it may have been a gift in a packet of cornflakes), which was powered by a piece of napthalene you clipped on the back. A mothball engine! I'm not sure how this resulted in propulsion - some surface tension effect? I expect you could scale the idea up and hang nets of mothballs off the stern to power your narrowboat. Not likely to be well received by CRT or EA, I'd imagine.

Shoddy with bells on I'd say. At least you can console yourself, Arthur. That blacking is now the most valuable part of your boat 😂

It's entirely unresponsive for me on mobile.

Welcome to the forum! The interior fitting won't age nearly as much as your engine and hull. Those last two are the vital components of any narrowboat. However nicely fitted out your prospective purchase seems, it is what's beneath the lining which tells the genuine age - a little bit like humans, I suppose. I see you are enquiring about mooring in Cambridgeshire in your other posts. I'd say be cautious of boats advertised for sale from private individuals around London. It's quite common to take a tired old boat (old or even one that suffered a fire or sinking) and dress up the interior with fancy painted surfaces and carpets to make it appear modern. Such a boat might have been well maintained throughout its long life. However, you don't want to find a problem with a collapsed engine or perforated hull once you have handed over the cash.

You could say there's little Poynting you having one... Sorry, I'll

As I understand it, you need a static repeater. Not all the ones you'll see are legal, but this one is OfCom approved,.if a little pricey https://www.amazon.com/SureCall-Flare-Voice-Signal-Booster/dp/B07KBKYV1C You'll need to aim the antenna at the nearest cell tower, which might need an app on the phone to locate.