Speedwell

You could try to diagnose a sticky switch by giving the pump a tap (accidental pun) in the minute before it switches if left alone. Arthur

Everything else being equal, which it very very rarely is, I should prefer port side to as I can then see along the boat. SWMBO is left handed and would presumably prefer starboard side to but then she can't reach the controls :lol: Arthur

Hello Lockdodger. I think I'm in the same marina as you. I got this off "Yell" although I don't know anything about them. There are many pages in "Yell" if you search for "fridge repairs". Arthur Frostkool Ltd Refrigeration Engineers Tel: 01704 895589| Unit 3 Ringtail Place, Ringtail Road, Burscough Industrail Estate, Ormskirk, L40 8JY * Refrigeration * Air Conditioning * Installation, Service * Maintenance * Service Contracts * Free Survey & Quotation

It's an individual choice, of course but, being a frustrated mariner, I use as many as I can get SWMBO to understand - certainly port & starboard, ahead & astern and "take the helm". "Deck" applies outside but it's still "floor" inside and "head" does not seem right for a narrrowboat "toilet". "Galley" and "kitchen" seem to be interchangeable. Arthur

I understand, from a well known expert, that advancing the timing is standard practice for preventing smoking on BMCs. It has certainly worked for me on a 1.5 and a 1.8. Arthur

Bare wires touching (uninsulated) hull would result in a big flash and either melted wire or blown fuse (or tripped circuit breaker) so it's got to be something more subtle than that. Perhaps the positive feed to the shower etc is mixed up with the positive feed to to the ignition circuit somewhere. Arthur

Our very hairy mongrel falls in quite regularly, particularly when she forgets that she can no longer jump as far as she could in her prime. Never had any trouble getting her out. Arthur

We have just bought a new Shurflo to replace our old leaky one. The new one is much more efficient than the old one but cycles at low flow rates. The instructions say that the new one can be used without an accumulator. I have just assumed that it gets a bit confused, working with our small accumulator. Arthur

I find plastic waste pipe from B&Q, Wickes or similar ideal, small diameter inside larger diameter. They're easy to stow, cheap, expendable and roll on the boat side so as not to make those half moon scuff marks that the rope ones make. Arthur

I need to replace my indoor aerial on the roof. At the moment a normal log type aerial seems favourite but has anybody any experience of the "Image" type of aerial ? They look rather like a plastic fish with too many fins and seem to be getting quite popular. Arthur

I use plastic waste pipe for fenders and, for use with curved brick (or similar) bottoms and underwater shelves, I have a pair with weighted ends that will go between the rubbing edge and the offending hard object. Similar to Sir Nibble's idea but waste pipe floats. Mooring tight with the head rope and concentrating the wear at the end of the swim seems a bad idea as this is usually the most worn part of the hull anyway. Arthur

As everybody has said, water in the cabin bilge (unless a wet bilge boat) is a very bad thing, however, most of us with cruiser sterns have to live with water in the "engine hole". All you can do is get it pumped out and check to see if there is any serious corrosion as shown by deep pitting, especially along joint lines. You get an awful lot of rust from a small amount of metal, it's pitting that's dangerous. Arthur

The cheapest answer is usually to have a go yourself and, if it's going to be scrapped otherwise, there's not much to loose. Parts are fairy easy to come by. If that's not possible AMC Diesel (Thornycroft) supply modern engines which will fit in place of BMC engines - don't know what the price would be though. I also bought a boat with a BMC 1800 which emitted copious black smoke, if revved, and the fault turned out to be a knackered camshaft so it would be worth checking that the valves are going up and down properly before spending money. The engine runs OK now but it cost over £1000 for parts back in 2003. Arthur

One wouldn't expect to use ropes with "Pride of Sefton" - it's a wide boat. Arthur That's our method too - copied it from an L&L trip boat years ago. Arthur

We have just done the Grand Union from Norton Junction to Birmingham and found their broad locks very gentle and a pleasure to use compared to our local locks on the Leeds Liverpool. I personally would not do wide locks as a single narrowboat without roping but this is more due not wanting the indignity of being washed about all over the lock. Not using ropes on the L & L could be dangerous unless you were very careful as the flows are so fierce. We have solved the problem of getting the rope up, if SWMBO is having a bad day, by carrying a telescopic clothes prop which can be used to pick up or pass up the rope. Arthur

If you want an online manual, you can get one from this site Arthur www.calcuttboats.com/default.htm

The 1500 pump is driven by shaft from a bevel gear on the camshaft, where the distributor was in the original petrol engine. I've never set the drive position on a 1500 so I can't give any useful comments. However, the amount of adjustment at the 3 bolts is limited and I don't think it could be used to correct a serious timing error, even if you could work out what it was. As the pumps are timed at a specialists, away from the engine, I can only imagine that the setting is for a "perfect" engine and cannot take wear into account. I quite regret not fitting a new chain and pulleys when I overhauled the engine, as I have to set the timing well advanced of the pump mark to get good starting and avoid smoke. I also had to modify a spanner to get at the inner bolt. Arthur I'm afraid I can't remember offhand, but it should have a direction arrow on it. Opposite to the direction of the arrow to advance. Arthur

I did my 1800 in 2003 but don't remember using a peg. The timing sets up on timing marks on the pulleys. These set the valve timing and the position of the pump drive but the actual injection point in relation to the drive point is set somehow within the pump. The 1500 does not have chain drive to the pump so rather Sorry! Arthur

When I had this problem, it was a burnt contact bar in the solenoid. When it gets bad enough to be annoying, I have to take it apart clean away the burning. Arthur

It's hard to imagine a BMC 1500 getting advanced unless it was set up that way in the first place. They tend to go retarded as the drive gear wears. I don't think it's possible to check the timing on these engines in any simple way but it's possible to do a practical check, once the engine is running, by slowing it right down until it stalls. If it doesn't kick back as it stalls, it can't be very far advanced. You will need to fiddle the throttle stop to do this. I found advancing the timing on my 1500 (also my present 1800), to compensate for supposed wear, improved the starting and reduced smoke. Somebody could have overdone this. Have you tried adjusting the timing. It's easy on a BMC - just slacken and turn the injection pump. There is a timing mark on the pump mounting but this only allows the pump to be set back to its original setting. It does not prove that the original setting was correct. Mine needed to be advanced considerably beyond the original setting. The varying starter speed could be due to varying resistance in the circuit. I have had trouble with burning on the contact bar within the starter solenoid and similar trouble on the contact bar in the battery master switch. Admittedly these did not give your symptoms - in my case starter action became intermittent. Arthur

Think of all the food/beer space you're using up ! Best I can manage is to turn the fridge to a high setting when moving and a low setting when stopped. Arthur

I've always thought so, although I would have thought that "drawbridge" referred more to the hand operated sort. Arthur

Thanks very much. That's useful information. Thanks to everybody else, who has replied, as well Arthur

David The online Calcutt BMC manual gives engine numbers for 1.8 diesel which have a similar form except 18 is substituted for 15. 18P... appears to be the oldest version listed but how old, is not noted. I am convinced that these are the original BMC numbers (or Turkish BMC in my case). Numbers are given for the 1800 as there was a major design change at some point. Arthur

Sadly, that was our experience last last year. Thanks again for all the replies. Arthur