To Stretch or Not to Stretch

[peterboat]

3 minutes ago, cheshire~rose said:

Thanks everyone for the replies, I have been busy doing a car shuffle to get home for a couple of days so was unable to reply until now but I really appreciate everyone's input. 

 

I had searched through and read many of the threads that have already been shared before posting. I tend to think with so many new members joining this forum over a year there is always a possibility of someone with some different experience to share.

 

If we were to go down the stretch route I think it unlikely we would go anywhere other than Paul Barbers to get it done. There are of course other perfectly good boatyards around who we would probably be equally as happy with but Paul's yard is as handy logistically as any for us as any can be when a tidal river in involved and having been s closely involved with the amazing work he did on Python I know it is a boatyard we can trust implicitly - not just to do a really fine job but also to offer great advise to steer us in the direction of what is right for the boat and for us. 

 

I think more compromise might be required on the second hand boat. I think there are too many we are not even looking at because there is some box they don't tick on paper. 

 

I picked up on a lovely boat on brokerage today that I thought was worth viewing but it is a reverse layout and "somebody" dismissed it because they won't consider a reverse layout. I went to throw the particulars away that I had picked up and he looked at them and agreed it is possibly worth looking at. I think maybe we need to do the newby thing and go to Wilton and look at 20 boats so we can re-evaluate the priorities 

Good move, I bought mine to stretch and so didn't have any issues, but I knew my boat was very cheap so any money put into the stretch was money well spent. My old boat I wouldn't have stretched as it was already at its optimum length.

[cuthound]

8 minutes ago, cheshire~rose said:

Thanks everyone for the replies, I have been busy doing a car shuffle to get home for a couple of days so was unable to reply until now but I really appreciate everyone's input. 

 

I had searched through and read many of the threads that have already been shared before posting. I tend to think with so many new members joining this forum over a year there is always a possibility of someone with some different experience to share.

 

If we were to go down the stretch route I think it unlikely we would go anywhere other than Paul Barbers to get it done. There are of course other perfectly good boatyards around who we would probably be equally as happy with but Paul's yard is as handy logistically as any for us as any can be when a tidal river in involved and having been s closely involved with the amazing work he did on Python I know it is a boatyard we can trust implicitly - not just to do a really fine job but also to offer great advise to steer us in the direction of what is right for the boat and for us. 

 

I think more compromise might be required on the second hand boat. I think there are too many we are not even looking at because there is some box they don't tick on paper. 

 

I picked up on a lovely boat on brokerage today that I thought was worth viewing but it is a reverse layout and "somebody" dismissed it because they won't consider a reverse layout. I went to throw the particulars away that I had picked up and he looked at them and agreed it is possibly worth looking at. I think maybe we need to do the newby thing and go to Wilton and look at 20 boats so we can re-evaluate the priorities 

 

You need to point out the advantages of a reverse layout in a language he understands.

 

Cold beers and hot teas arrive at the helm much more quickly because of the reduced travelling time. ?

[cheshire~rose]

1 hour ago, cuthound said:

 

You need to point out the advantages of a reverse layout in a language he understands.

 

Cold beers and hot teas arrive at the helm much more quickly because of the reduced travelling time. ?

Real ale is not served "cold" and he doesn't drink tea or coffee - perhaps we will fit a wine rack by the hatch  

[MtB]

 

Reverse layout is intuitively just 'wrong', for reasons that are beyond logical analysis.

 

Same as bungalows, and three wheeled cars.

 

 

[alan_fincher]

7 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Reverse layout is intuitively just 'wrong', for reasons that are beyond logical analysis.

 

Same as bungalows, and three wheeled cars.

 

 

But the standard layout of a typical working narrow boat cabin is surely "reverse layout"?

 

In both of ours you pass through the "kitchen" area to the "dining and living area", with the "bedroom" area forward of that! ?

 

Are you suggesting tradition had it wrong for some 200 years?

[cheshire~rose]

The one we looked at still has the gally in the middle it is just the saloon and bedroom that have swapped ends. I do think that sitting and looking out the bow doors is better done in the saloon than the bedroom when I think about it.

 

Nothing wrong with 3 -wheeled cars either. I had loads of fun in the one I owned for a while

 

[bizzard]

''Two way stretch'' was on the telly the other day.

[peterboat]

I was in a bond bug just the other  day, it was one of the Rothmans ones, lovely car and so much fun. My Tuk Tuk is great fun as well whats not to like about them? so good that most of the world uses them

[PD1964]

On 02/06/2019 at 22:25, cheshire~rose said:

 

I suppose it is inevitable that we have become a bit attached to this boat but the really odd thing is that it was never meant to be kept past his retirement. Dave bought the boat with his now ex-wife and he made certain compromises on the boat he really wanted so that she also got the boat she wanted. The thing is the boat that Dave and I would have chosen together would not have been this one and many of the things he compromised on for her would not be a compromise for me. We have much more similar taste. 

 

I suppose what has happened is that each time we look at a boat for sale we see the stuff we need to do to make it right and so with a boat that has been so good to us why not just make that right? I am starting to appreciate everything that is good about this boat a lot more! 

 

If we did get a stretch we already have in mind who we would want to do it. Our neighbour had a very bad experience at Stanilands so they would not be on the radar for us. 

 

On 02/06/2019 at 22:32, peterboat said:

I have only dealt with Steve and found his work great, the steelworker worked for Johnathon and worked on my stretch he always seemed very good, but that was at Sheffield, so firsthand experience is the way forward, hope it all goes well whatever you choose to do

Please be careful what you say about the boat welders at Stannilands as there is a boat builder and a welder that welds boats, the former is the Ex Jonathan Wilson boat builder now set up on his own, the latter just welds boats cheaply, the cheap welder is the one your neighbour delt with, not the Boat builder as he is not cheap. You get what you pay for.

[cheshire~rose]

  Be careful?

 

Perhaps people need to be careful they read what I wrote and not put two and two together and make five? 

 

I did not mention anything about any welder. Our neighbour did not have any welding done so I have no knowledge of the quality of their welding and would not be able to comment upon it. The nature of the experience our neighbour had means we would not wish to use them for anything. 

 

 

[mrsmelly]

8 hours ago, peterboat said:

I was in a bond bug just the other  day, it was one of the Rothmans ones, lovely car and so much fun. My Tuk Tuk is great fun as well whats not to like about them? so good that most of the world uses them

Unlike poxy narrow beam boats that we are stuck with!! ☹️

[peterboat]

18 minutes ago, cheshire~rose said:

  Be careful?

 

Perhaps people need to be careful they read what I wrote and not put two and two together and make five? 

 

I did not mention anything about any welder. Our neighbour did not have any welding done so I have no knowledge of the quality of their welding and would not be able to comment upon it. The nature of the experience our neighbour had means we would not wish to use them for anything. 

 

 

I did think of replying but couldnt be bothered with him, I know Steve the boatbuilder, and he has done a lot of work on my boat to a very high standard. The shellbuilder worked on my stretch, and again did a great job. I have seen boats that him and Steve have built, and they look lovely the equal of most other boats out there and better than a lot of others. That is all I can say about them, if others dont like their work, they probably have good reason for it. I do think though that you seem to be talking about looking at boats so fingers crossed that you find the perfik one

[PD1964]

2 hours ago, cheshire~rose said:

  Be careful?

 

Perhaps people need to be careful they read what I wrote and not put two and two together and make five? 

 

I did not mention anything about any welder. Our neighbour did not have any welding done so I have no knowledge of the quality of their welding and would not be able to comment upon it. The nature of the experience our neighbour had means we would not wish to use them for anything. 

 

 

So your neighbour had a bad experience with Stannilands Marina, your thread is about stretching a boat so it read that your neighbour had a bad experience with that aspect of boating, as I said there is a welder based there that does welding jobs on 

boats and a shell builder who builds quality shells, I doubt the boat builder would touch your boat as he is too busy building new quality shells.

Maybe you should do your research on the boat builder and the boat fitter/woodworker who are based there, you won't find better in that area.

 

1 hour ago, peterboat said:

I did think of replying but couldnt be bothered with him, I know Steve the boatbuilder, and he has done a lot of work on my boat to a very high standard. The shellbuilder worked on my stretch, and again did a great job. I have seen boats that him and Steve have built, and they look lovely the equal of most other boats out there and better than a lot of others. That is all I can say about them, if others dont like their work, they probably have good reason for it. I do think though that you seem to be talking about looking at boats so fingers crossed that you find the perfik one

So Mick worked on your cut and shut at Jonathan's???? Funny that, since he left there years before you bought it. Maybe your thinking of his brother Paul who would of worked on your boat.

Edited June 4, 2019 by PD1964

[peterboat]

3 hours ago, PD1964 said:

So your neighbour had a bad experience with Stannilands Marina, your thread is about stretching a boat so it read that your neighbour had a bad experience with that aspect of boating, as I said there is a welder based there that does welding jobs on 

boats and a shell builder who builds quality shells, I doubt the boat builder would touch your boat as he is too busy building new quality shells.

Maybe you should do your research on the boat builder and the boat fitter/woodworker who are based there, you won't find better in that area.

 

So Mick worked on your cut and shut at Jonathan's???? Funny that, since he left there years before you bought it. Maybe your thinking of his brother Paul who would of worked on your boat.

I bought my boat a long time ago, its 11 years old now and was just over a year old when I bought it and took it to Jonnys both brothers still worked there

[TheBiscuits]

Interesting thread this one.

 

All the people I know who stretched their boats purely to gain more room in a mostly static moored boat are very happy with them.  All the keen active boaters who stretched a boat they really liked insist it's the worst thing they have ever done, as the boat always handles differently afterwards.

 

I'm with @mrsmelly on this one - don't alter a boat you like to gain more space, just swap it for another one you like.  I suppose the logical flip side to that if you don't like the handling of your boat, cut it in half and add a bit - it might improve it!

 

Of course there is the other approach:

 

 

[cheshire~rose]

ah! The wonderful Hortus! 

 

I think it is the most marvelous concept and I have thoroughly enjoyed watching it grow from some lines on a notepad to a functioning garden boat. 

 

Inside stuff is growing and it's been amazing how resourceful they have been in recycling old stuff to make this happen. I am full of admiration 

 

[PD1964]

44 minutes ago, peterboat said:

I bought my boat a long time ago, its 11 years old now and was just over a year old when I bought it and took it to Jonnys both brothers still worked there

I must be mistaken then, but I thought you had a narrow boat back in 2009 and when I bought Micks boat in 2009 he hadn't worked there in a while. 

[cheshire~rose]

Well that answered my question!

 

Carrie~Lou won't be stretched - at least not in the near future and certainly not by us. Subject to survey she will be under new ownership very soon with a lovely couple who have hired boats loads of time but want their own boat. 

 

I hope they will have as many happy times in her as we have had. 

Now we just have to get boatyards, surveyors and planets aligned for both them and us to progress with our boat buying plans 

 

Exciting times 

[Rob-M]

Hope all goes well with your selling and buying.

[mrsmelly]

4 hours ago, cheshire~rose said:

Well that answered my question!

 

Carrie~Lou won't be stretched - at least not in the near future and certainly not by us. Subject to survey she will be under new ownership very soon with a lovely couple who have hired boats loads of time but want their own boat. 

 

I hope they will have as many happy times in her as we have had. 

Now we just have to get boatyards, surveyors and planets aligned for both them and us to progress with our boat buying plans 

 

Exciting times 

Very sensible in my opinion ?

[alan_fincher]

5 hours ago, mrsmelly said:

Very sensible in my opinion ?

Given your previous thoughts on boats, you are unlikely to still say that if you knew what they are wanting to buy!

[matty40s]

1 hour ago, alan_fincher said:

Given your previous thoughts on boats, you are unlikely to still say that if you knew what they are wanting to buy!

He might give a belhi laugh.....

[mrsmelly]

1 hour ago, alan_fincher said:

Given your previous thoughts on boats, you are unlikely to still say that if you knew what they are wanting to buy!

Ohhhhhhhh noooooooooooo not an engine room with a scrap engine fit for use as an anchor?

[Naughty Cal]

9 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Ohhhhhhhh noooooooooooo not an engine room with a scrap engine fit for use as an anchor?

I have only seen some of it but yep. You are pretty close

 

[matty40s]

1 hour ago, Naughty Cal said:

I have only seen some of it but yep. You are pretty close

 

It's a bit like Tawny Owl with the amount of seats available....