Laurence Hogg

Boatmans Cabin made one very similar a rolled conical shape that rested in the collar and sprung open into the chimney. They worked very well. The last thing you want is a fixed liner when moving, catch a bridge or similar and the chimney becomes very strong and can buckle the roof, or if wooden tear the collar out.

10-30 for engine / gearbox according to handbook

Nice period picture, boat has LNER on it so post 1923.

Possibly from Fox's on the fens?

One of series of pictures taken in a studio, it is a horse whip. 500 to get a sensible price.

Bococks were in Great Hampton St before moving to Bishops st (from memory).

The following were known manufacturers of "Boatmans cans" and associated items. Joseph Ash, Birmingham (main supplier to FMC, GUCCCo, BW etc) Bococks, Birmingham W T George, Birmingham S J & E Fellows, Wolverhampton A J Lester, Birmingham Boatmans Cabin Co, Wombourne Whilst many small metalworkers produced a few many of the names are now untraceable, Peraph's we can add to this list?

The "John Hill " painting is on a can made by Bococks of Birmingham who did an economy version for sales to the public at shows (note missing handle grip), these were produced in Tinplate as well as better galvanised versions. My original can from "Neptune" is a tin one which was painted internally and is still in good water holding condition today 38 years on.

The cans from "Black Country Metalworks" (in Oswestry) and "Midland Chandlers share the same part numbers if I remember correctly and are the same sourced non British items. The cans and bowls I have seen both plain and painted are of awful quality and certainly not to the standard I had our "Boatmans Cabin Co" ones made too. If you start with poor quality metal then no matter what else you do it will be a poor quality item. The best cans are the ones which were galvanised post manufacture, although the soldered ones by Lesters and similar if done well are just as good. It may surprise some to know there are still firms capable of manufacturing cans and indeed I have looked into this extensively quite recently. Apart from two parts all other components are already made for other uses so tooling up isn't a problem. The problem is the number required to achieve a sensible price and then where to store them.. Whilst there is much talk of the prices achieved on ebay you have to consider how many would sell each month to warrant the investment and in my opinion the number isn't large enough. Sadly a large proportion of todays boat owners have little interest in traditional decoration or decoration which gives a big reduction in the potential to capture waterborne buyers, you will find few water cans in the tin can housing estates around our "navigations".

All getting a bit silly chaps, how many of you know the differences and could recognise the types without a reference?

Ahh but which wooden bow? There's quite a choice of yards and with or without a fore cabin.

Which Josher bow is the best then? ........ at least 7 to choose from.

http://www.allensregister.com/no problems with it.

No descriptions with them I suppose??

Your father was almost certainly referring to Will King who lived at the Brades lock house. Some of his collection may be in the Dudley archives. FMC records are scant, there is however a FMC archive in the Birmingham library. Good luck..

Billy if you have one of my films depicting the last tar run from Walsall with Towy just still frame it where you can see the can, its super 8 colour so the colouration isn't bad.

The only companies I know who had liveried water cans were the GUCCCo Ltd and The Erewash CCCo Ltd. The cans on Claytons were personal items although Clayton's painter produced a Rose nicknamed "Claytons cabbages", if you look at original pictures you can see why!

CRT is the last place I would place a collection, they are incapable of proper interpretation and even now the results of the digitised archive are dire, just look at the poor resolution of the images. Creating your own website isnt too expensive nowadays or something like Pinterest would be suitable. My own archive will need a home one day, placing with a like minded individual is a preffered option.

I copied and enhanced the picture and it is the design of the stern that attracted my attention. Pretty sure Wey barges travelled wide, another contender could be traffic from the Surrey canal.

What is the boat on the left of the picture? Looks old.

Are they not a pair of Wey barges?

"Star" is a ex Midlands & Coast horse boat built by Crichton (spelling wrong?) of Chester in 1929. She was absorbed into the FMC fleet. Only docking recorded was "Old Hill" (the old M&C base) in 1939, will check our photos but I am sure its still about.

Oh WOW, that's looking great!

Superb design of boat doing its real job, you can't get better than that.

If the picture in TT is the one above that is the paired locks on the T&M.