Geoffrey Hammond

I visited the boat today and took a bearable photo of the JP3M which has just been repainted. I am delighted. 3 weeks to go - I hope!

In many ways, I am delighted with my 70ft Barry Hawkins. It has no rivets; it has a JP3M sourced in unrestored condition from RW Davies and tidied up by Tony Redshaw; it has been beautifully and fully fitted out by Bob Mitchell Narrowboats at Braunston. On the other hand, much work has had to be done to undo bad; the boat was bought as a shell lined by, and with engine restored and fitted by, Barry Hawkins. All the lining had to be removed as it was found that spray foam insulation had been waywardly and unevenly applied. The engine had to be partially rebuilt by Tony Redshaw as the work done previously was unattractive and incomplete. But now it is glorious! You are most welcome to have a look at it in the wet dock - it is about 3 weeks away from completion.

Many thanks to those who helped me decide to keep the start button in the engine room, near the engine. What is the most common/effective way of stopping the engine? Is there a best position to place a cut-off to the fuel supply? Apologies for such a naive question, but presently, I can only stop it by stalling it with the speedwheel. Many thanks for all advice.

Presently, my JP3M is being partly dismantled for repainting. This has offered the opportunity to relocate the start button and voltmeter, which are presently on an unattractive panel attached to the engine. The question: should I take the chance to relocate button and meter to the boatman's cabin, where I can see and use them from the tiller, or is there an argument for leaving them in the engine room? All help well received. Many thanks.

These, I hope, are pictures which will help others to answer my question: Many thanks.

My boat, Strumble, is nearing completion. It is based upon just about the last 70ft hull that Barry Hawkins built. It has a Lister JP3 with traditional controls. The engine had been fitted and set up by Barry Hawkins before I bought it. My concern is that the engine moves from idle to full with barely half a turn of the speedwheel; in the past, I had always appreciated the sensitivity which many turns of the speedwheel brought with them. My qustion is simple; what pictures of the fittings should I post in order for a member of the forum to inform me whether I can alter the set up at a reasonable oost - to allow me have the pleasure of winding the speedwheel. Many thanks.

Richard, Thank you so much for your most helpful reply. I am delighted that someone else thought that it looked superb. I'm pretty sure I spotted a gleaming JP3. I'm glad also to learn that it is a Braunston built boat - it means that I may well see it in this area again. Best wishes.

Thank you for the help so far. I do not think it is any of the boats listed on the Jim Shead site. The hull had the look of one which was not the norm - but I do not have the vocabulary to desribe its finer points. The BW number looked very low - 10 something - four or five digits, but it looked like a new, or beautifully maintained boat. I do hope to see it again.

I was in Bruanston on Sunday, standing on the bridge at the marina's entrance. A boat turned there and I was transfixed. It was a trad, about 60 feet long. It was mainly green - a beautiful rich green. It's name was Leonard 1 and it was sign written as registerd at Braunston. The wind was blowing, there were other boats moving; I did not wish to hail and disturb the gentleman at the tiller. But, I would be delighted to know who built the boat; it looked so very elegant. Does anyone know it or its maker? Many thanks.

I was made sad yesterday as I opened The Times to find the obituary of the playwright NF Simpson. He has died aged 92. Though I would hazard that very few people have heard of him, to me as a young boy he became a temporary hero. I didnt encounter his absurd plays, such as One Way Pendulum (1959); I was too young. But I did, at the age of 14 see an episode he wrote for the daytime television courtroom drama series of the 1970s Crown Court. The episode was called An Upward Fall, In this bizarre case, an old people's home was built atop a cliff some 3,000 feet (910 m) high but had its only lavatories located at the foot of the cliff. I was smitten. What is this musing doing on Canalworld? Well according to the Times Obituary: After writing many scripts and television plays, and contributing to several West End revues working alongside Peter Cook, Harold Pinter and Kenneth Williams, he stopped producing work abruptly in 1983 and spent the next 12 years travelling around the canals of England on a narrowboat. "It was the happiest time of my life," he told the journalist Stephen Pile. So between 1983 and 1995, the great playwright was on the canals in bliss. He would have been about 63 when he set off and 75 when he stopped. He may when have answered to Wally, the name he used with his friends. I wonder did anyone on the forum wittingly meet him?

I recently spent the night moored at the top of the Watford flight, almost opposite the lock-keeper's boat. In one direction was the flower - embellished beauty of the flight, in the other was the brutal motoway crossing. It set me wondering, for I have seen motorway construction sites and know the extent of the scar that is created either side of the actual cariageways. What was it like when the motorway bridge was being built over the canal so near the top lock? Was passage through the locks affected or halted? Were any photos taken showing a working boat with bridge construction in the background - the past and intended future of transportation?

Thank you for the replies this far. I am intrigued, though, as to how the system worked. Was the plate fixed to the vessel by the authorities so that it could not be transferred to another? What do the numbers - in the form of a fraction - represent? Again, all help gratefully received.

At an antiques fair today, I encountered this small - 3" by 2" - enamelled object. It was small, interesting and cheap - so I bought it. There is a clear Thames Conservancy link, but I would be delighted to know exactly what it is - a licence, perhaps? Any help gratefully received.

Thank you for all the replies this far. I have learned much, but I am still keen to know: 1) if they have a name - and having learned that they appear on some working boat, I would think that they might. 2) if anyone can think of a boatbuilder one might approach in order to buy them. Many thanks, again.

I wonder if someone could help me. On certain new built trad tugs - such as those built by Steve Hudson - there is often a pair of shaped metal fittings either side of the front door set at an angle and with a large ring on them. I quite like the look of them, presume that they serve a good purpose and would quite like a pair fitted on my almost fitted-out boat. My questions are these: 1) Do the fittings have a name? 2) Are they available to buy or do I need to find a metal worker to fabricate them especially for me? Apologies for the lack of image and for the slightly inexact description. Many thanks.

Many thanks.

Thank you for further, helpful replies. Perhaps someone knows one or other of the authors of the book which states that the cottage was demolished: they are Wendy Freer and Gill Scott. Certainly the cottage looks jolly well cared for now.

Many thanks for the replies this far. I will be delighted if the cottage at the junction was the Fielding's home - there is certainly a cottage there. But I still wonder how it is that the book I mentioned earlier - the book whose only subject is boatman's missions - has got it so completely wrong: there the author is adamant that the cottage was demolished. A strange mistake to make - if it is a mistake!

I turned at Norton Junction junction recently and recalled that the little house on the corner was where Fred and Ivy Fielding retired to when their time as floating canal ministers for the Salvation Army was over. At least, that was what believed, as I am usually happy to accept what is written the highly enjoyable Pearson's guides. However, even more recently, I picked up, with hope, a copy of a book entitled "Canal Boatman's Missions". I flicked to the section on the Fieldings and read that the house that the Fieldings had retired to at Norton Junctioon had been destroyed after their deaths. Can anyone tell me which book is right - Pearson or CBM? I rather hope it is Pearson because I like to think that some tangible link with Fieldings remains.

I had the pleasure of visiting friends near Burnham recently. They kindly took me for lunch at the Boat and Anchor Inn at Huntworth on the B & T . We then walked 2 miles or so towards Taunton and back. The canal was beautifully clear, but rather weedy and narrow. I spoke with several fishermen; all were friendly, all were clear on one point: they had never seen a powered boat go past them. So, a simple question. Has anyone on the forum taken a powered boat from Taunton to Bridgwater Docks? If so, was it an enjoyable experience?

RAP, Thank you very much for the very kind message. Yes, I am delighted. I'll get back to you on your two questions after I have been up to the boat on Sunday. In other words, I need to ask! Very best wishes, Geoffrey Hammond

I have little to add other than I enjoyed myself hugely - so many friendly and enthusiastic people made the show a pleasure to be at. I was also lucky enough to get to chat with Andy Watson whom I last met when he owned Oslo. Here are a couple of images which I captured early Sunday morning with my Iphone. I hope you like them.

John, Many thanks for your friendly reply. I look forward to meeting you on the water. Geoffrey I visited a very damp Braunston today to measure futher Strumble 2 progress - and was delighted. The woodwork in the main cabin is almost completed. The area around the engine has been cleared so that it - the engine - may be painted. The day tank is ready to go to Tony Redshaw to have a gauge fitted. July 20th looks possible!

When in Braunston, you are welcome to wander over to the wet dock. There, I am lucky to having my new boat fitted out. The shell is one of the last builds by Barry Hawkins. When I bought it, it had had a 1952 Lister fitted from RW Davies and a boatman's cabin part built and some other parts barely started. Well, there were many problems with what had been done. So, Tony Redshaw has sorted out the engine. Bob Mitchell has torn out all that was wrong within and is creating something new and beautiful. Do catch a word with Bob - he is brilliant, but do not stop him working! Dave Bishop painted much of the boat; the back panels were then sorted by Peter Hyde and the signwriting has just been gloriously applied by Becky Roberts. Completion is due for mid-July. And so at last I am allowing myself some gentle anticipatory excitement. I hope you like what you find.

Greetings, RichardHula. Many thanks for your very helpful reply. My engine came from RW Davies, was then rather disrupted elsewhere and was then made good by Tony Redshaw. It is going back round to him to have a couple more jobs done and, when it does, I'll catch a word with him about the rocker oil feed modification. Who is working on yours? With best wishes, Geoffrey Hammond