RLWP

Ah yes, I recognise that one Richard

That could cause a whole new set of problems Richard

Presumably off one of the boats moored to the Worcester bar Richard

Yes Richard

Presumably you would need to comply with a whole load of trading standards regulations, like cleanliness, hand washing facilities and so on Don't forget to work out the costs of running refrigeration Also, consider how you are going to go about restocking your shop. Lugging stuff down the towpath for your own consumption is hard enough, what about multiplying it to cover your customers needs And then there is the VAT man Richard (My in laws ran a shop similar to what you are proposing. It was bloody hard work and that was with good regular customers buying papers and using the post office)

No problem, it's what we do here Richard

I agree. Richard

There are instructions for aligning R&D couplings here: http://www.randdmarine.com/flexiblescinst.asp Richard

Then you need to realign the engine and gearbox too. Start by taking the bolts out that join the plates and see what happens. My guess is that you'll find the plates no longer sit flat to each other This makes even more sense - the bottom of the hull carrying the engine bearers has moved misaligning the sterngear Richard

Something with a flexible element to it? What I'm trying to work out is if you have to sort the alignment of just the bearing block, or are you going to have to do the engine as well Richard

Good news! I like using Peter for odd stuff Richard

Bingo! Nothing you had said before added up to an issue big enough to cause that problem. You hadn't repacked or tightened the gland, and it was OK before so why cause a problem now? I was wondering if you had got something wedged up inside the tube from the propeller end If you are fortunate, there will be packing under the block, and this needs readjusting - or maybe the block has moved sideways. It isn't easy to predict what the welding stresses have done to the hull What is between the bearing block and the gearbox? Richard

My guess is that the Welding has distorted your hull and the packing underneath the Plummer block needs readjusting. It isn't the packing in the stern gland, if it was it would be the very front of the sterntube getting hot. Yours is getting very hot indeed along the whole length of the bearing. As the Plummer block is close to the sterntube, any misalignment will put quite a load on the bearings As a quick fix, take the two bolts out of the forward bearing and see what happens. If the bearing pops up, you need to put more packing underneath (strips of beer can). If you cannot pull out the packing easily the block is sitting too high. lever the block up and fiddle it out. Then see what you can slip back under the bearing. Richard

And Was some of the welding done near the sterntube? Richard

Why was the boat out of the water? Richard

Why was the boat out of the water? Richard

Only the first one is inappropriate. The HR looks useful Richard

You all know my attraction to highly inappropriate engines... Richard Or How about an HR3?:

I disagree. If you want to know if you have volts or no volts, it looks ideal. I think I may buy one, if I drop it in the cut, it doesn't matter I wouldn't rely on it for more than that, my lectrics don't extend beyond that though Richard

I wonder if you know exactly how much of a loss the forum has just saved you Richard

Oooooh, the anticip.......... ation Richard

What butties are for sale? Forget Me Not is, and shouldn't be too bad There was a butty at Swallow Cruisers Hazel? Richard

It isn't unusual to find SR installations that are overpropped, and if they are you will get a lot of black smoke Don't take this the wrong way... if you are a newbe to boating, chances are you are trying too hard. It's very unusual to be running a canal boat on full throttle. I know when we first got ours, I would do that in an attempt to go faster. It takes a while to realise you might go quicker by running the engine slower and not pulling all the water out from under the hull Richard