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Bubblebuster

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Posts posted by Bubblebuster

  1. Can anybody clarify what the situation is regarding the use of two stroke outboard engines on our rivers and canals here in the UK as I'm going to be a lot more than miffed if on buying one I'm told err, sorry fella, not here you can't. 

  2. Regarding electric v motorised outboards, I wonder how long it will be before all electric outboards have (like strimmers such) clip on/clip off lithium batteries. There are some out there I know but in many cases we are talking about a couple of grand.

    This leaves the financially considerate with two options when it comes to weight. The weight of a conventional ontboard compared to that of a much MUCH cheaper 'just the motor' electric outboard, along with a much MUCH cheaper lead acid battery to go with it. 

     A sort of quid pro quo, as it seems to balance out.

  3. Not to cause division, but what is the attraction of owning a  GRP boat rather than a narrow boat. Does tradition trump the latter and  is cost the final arbiter as it seems to me that you get more 'bangs for your bucks' with a GRP craft than you do for a narrow boat.

    Money being no object then a narrow boat is in a class all of it's own but conversely the cheaper and let's face it the sleeker, gets more of us afloat.

     

     

  4. 2 hours ago, magnetman said:

    Looks like Honda and Mercury are entering the electric outboard market. 

     

    Mercury calling theirs a 7.5 (750w) a bit cheeky. I would have thought a better branding approach would be to call it a "one" and relate it to horses. 750w is one horsepower. 

     

    I think the Mercury thing is going to be expen$ive. 

     

    That name has always attracted a premium price. Used to have one on my 'back in the day' small fishing boat. Not impressed tbh. Some might not take to those low priced outboards out of China - but I've yet to see any home grown rockets to the moon or otherwise! 😂

     

  5. 4 hours ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

    Not looked, but are the <£100 ones on EBay and AliExpress, direct from China? If so, they risk battery fires, due to poor design and construction. Similar to the problem with cheapo electric scooters and ebike batteries. Once started, these fires are fierce and very hard to put out.

    If not, then look at range (cheaper gets you less), power/force (cheaper gets you less), charge time (cheaper takes longer). Then you get in to bearing life, water proofing and the brand name premium.

    Look for proper CE marks (not "China Export") and properly imported in to the UK by an importer with a reputation they may want to keep, so there is more chance of them meeting basic safety rules over design and construction. Not that this is checked much any more.

    Put a few example links up here and the experts will critique!

    Thanks Jen, you make some good points. Lot's also lately in the media about those batteries having self certifications not worth the paper they were written on. As for the engines themselves 'you get what you pay for' as they say

     

     

    1 hour ago, rusty69 said:

    An inflatable boat would be my guess. 

    Yup 😛

    2 hours ago, David Mack said:

    Do these include batteries? The ones I have seen are just the motor unit with wires to be connected to a separate battery.

    Just the motor. Not seen one yet with say an integral battery of sorts but I expect they are out there somewhere.

  6. Hope you guys can help out here, but been looking at what are new to me - electric outboards.

    What is puzzling me (and I might be missing the obvious) is why is there such a wide variation in the price of 'em as they seem to range from a hundred pounds or less to well over a grand or more.

    Is there a simple answer staring this old duffer in the face?

     

  7. Thanks for all the replies guys.

    The only remaining issue (unless I have missed it) is the suitability of using an inflatable because of any underwater snags. Not on the M&B canal as far as I know, but cruising the Cheshire ring a few years back on a section of clear water it was quite shocking to see the amount of 'debris' that could be seen.

    Swim in a canal?

    Err, I don't think so.😉

     

  8. Now I am living near the idyllic Monmouth and Brecon canal I have been thinking of getting a little boat along with an electric engine to do some lazy days exploring - but should it be an inflatable, or something rigid like a conventional dinghy given that it might snag and puncture. 

  9. All good stuff guys, and I guess I'd better not ask about using a trike!

    On a conventional two wheeler carrying stuff could also be a problem especially if you have a basket with say groceries on the front because of the wobble factor - so unless you fancy an early bath, a trailer behind is probably going to be a lot safer as you head back to that boat along the canal path.

      

  10. What's the deal with electric bikes on towpaths.

    Are they allowed and if so, what sort of restrictions if any are there... and recommendations please as thinking of getting a couple of 'em.

    Bikes in general can be a but of a nuisance as walkers will know, but are electric bikes charging along (see what I did there 🙂) going just a bit too far?  

  11. For those like myself that sell their house before buying a 'live aboard' boat, where do you/did you live during the interim.

    Not wanting to impose on friends and family we'll need to find somewhere that does not deplete our capital too much but by crikey, rentals are really expensive - so any suggestions guys... apart from don't be so daft.  

     

    One idea which might be daft is to buy a motor home and sell it once we find a boat but that just seems messy plus, there would be some sort of ground rent to pay if it's parked up somewhere for weeks or even months.

  12. 38 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

    To search canalworld.net, for stuff on toilets or any other web site on its own, then you can place the following in your browsers usual search box, rather than using the canalworld search box.

     

    site:canalworld.net toilets

     

    In

    general, use

    site:website.com subject of search

    Works on Google, DuckDuckGo and probably others.

    Thanks Jen.

    39 minutes ago, Idle Days said:

    Yes for what they are, about £100 each and full ones need to be stored flat, they weigh about 20Kg when full so best on the floor.

    Thanks for that.

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