Rope work

[pete harrison]

10 minutes ago, Goliath said:

is UMEA still about?

It was tied on the offside moorings above Cowley lock last time I saw it a couple of years ago, but was fitted with a full length cabin in about 1968 - and retained its 15hp Bolinder 

[ditchcrawler]

10 hours ago, Mad Harold said:

 

For mooring longer the centreline can be used as a sort of "springer"if the rope is long enough.

It will still make you roll when it goes taut 

[Chris-B]

Umea is currently in the custodian ship of Michael Pinnock at Enfield where it awaits restoration

It still has the 15 fitted 

 

[Tam & Di]

On 26/10/2019 at 11:58, howardang said:

Yup, and that brings us back to the point that Blackrose made in Post 3, when contrasting traditionalists with us lesser mortals! - "So it's ok for traditionalists to moor up using a tight middle rope, but the rest of us get slagged off for even thinking about mooring with a centre rope even if it's nice and loose? Ok...."

 

 

Howard

A term we only heard for the first time from a guy with a narrow boat in France was "tipped" - he was complaining that these terrible working péniches caused his boat to "tip". And yes, he regularly tied with a central line on his roof down to a mooring ring. It was nothing to do with him or his boating abilites - it was these others, the nasty guys. So I don't know about being 'slagged off', but if someone complains about passing vessels giving him grief and he is moored using a central line he deserves whatever he gets. Any slagging off is more at his reaction to other boaters with no regard to his own responsibility.

 

The back-end on a working boat is the back end of the hold, as opposed to the stern, where you steer. The rail is known as the back end rail and we always refer to the line as the back end line - we didn't even think of it as being in the 'middle'. As Dave says, the rail was mostly used as storage for wellies. I don't think that Barnet is actually tied in any long-term sense by using the back end line - it only looks to have a very loose line forward and I would not expect it to be left unattended like that.

 

Tam

Edited October 31, 2019 by Tam & Di
terminology

[roland elsdon]

22 minutes ago, Tam & Di said:

A term we only heard for the first time from a guy with a narrow boat in France was "tipped" - he was complaining that these terrible working péniches caused his boat to "tip". And yes, he regularly tied with a central line on his roof down to a mooring ring. It was nothing to do with him or his boating abilites - it was these others, the nasty guys. So I don't know about being 'slagged off', but if someone complains about passing vessels giving him grief and he is moored using a central line he deserves whatever he gets. Any slagging off is more at his reaction to other boaters with no regard to his own responsibility.

 

The back-end on a working boat is the back end of the hold, as opposed to the stern, where you steer. The rail is known as the back end rail and we always refer to the line as the back end line - we didn't even think of it as being in the 'middle'. As Dave says, the rail was mostly used as storage for wellies. I don't think that Barnet is actually tied in any long-term sense by using the back end line - it only looks to have a very loose line forward and I would not expect it to be left unattended like that.

 

Tam

I suspect it was from you that i first heard the phrase back end line.... our current motor has the back end line on the rail , but its in front of a short cabin extension.

its really handy because it puts the line at about 26 feet from the stern end. Handling is superb with that location.

[David Mack]

Belfast, having a full length conversion, has an eyebolt in the middle of the cabin roof, as with modern leisure narrow boats. But I have seen one or two converted ex-working boats which have had a back end rail fitted across the roof to replace that previously fitted to the front bulkhead of the engine room.

[ditchcrawler]

Centre line mooring on a river?

https://westbridgfordwire.com/dramatic-river-rescue-after-barge-breaks-moorings-with-woman-on-board-in-west-bridgford/

[Split Pin]

On 26/10/2019 at 18:34, pete harrison said:

It was tied on the offside moorings above Cowley lock last time I saw it a couple of years ago, but was fitted with a full length cabin in about 1968 - and retained its 15hp Bolinder 

Does it have its original engine? I remember that Albert Brookes  purchased it from Claytons and fitted it into his first narrowboat named Glenfied in circa 1968/9. It could have been reunited by now.

You no doubt remember the boat Pete as it was converted from a day boat at Bumblehole and kept at Windmill End may also have been at Valencia Wharf as Albert went on to work for the Allen Brothers

 

Steve

Edited October 31, 2019 by Split Pin

[pete harrison]

16 minutes ago, Split Pin said:

Does it have its original engine? I remember that Albert Brookes  purchased it from Claytons and fitted it into his first narrowboat named Glenfied in circa 1968/9. It could have been reunited by now.

You no doubt remember the boat Pete as it was converted from a day boat at Bumblehole and kept at Windmill End may also have been at Valencia Wharf as Albert went on to work for the Allen Brothers

 

Steve

I do know GLENFIELD and I am aware that it was initially powered by a hot bulb Bolinder. I do not know where this Bolinder came from or whether UMEA is still fitted with its original.

 

Interestingly Thomas Clayton (Oldbury) Ltd. records state that UMEA was sold in 1966 to a John Henderson, and it was lettered as J.E. Henderson once fitted with its cabin conversion. Whether UMEA was sold with or without an engine is not stated

Edited October 31, 2019 by pete harrison

[blackrose]

On 25/10/2019 at 18:39, Rob-M said:

Slightly different though when it is coming from the rail as it is at the edge of the boat and lower down compared to coming from the centre of the roof where it is typically on a modern boat.

 

It's slightly lower but it doesn't look that different to me. It will have the same effect whether it's coming from the centre of the roof via a fairlead or tied to a handrail at the top of the cabin side. Effectively both are coming from similar positions.

On 25/10/2019 at 22:20, Victor Vectis said:

A frequent single hander writes........

 

NO!

 

The middle rope is your friend when single handing through locks etc.

 

But not when mooring.

 

YES! It's fine when mooring as long as it's loosely tied. The number of boats I've seen which have come adrift from the bow or stern and are across the canal... If they'd moored with a loose centre rope it would have acted like an insurance policy. If you don't want to moor using a loose centre rope that's fine with me but I've been single handing for 20 years so I'll carry on doing it my way.

Edited October 31, 2019 by blackrose

[Tam & Di]

That's fine. I can't imagine anyone with knowledge of boating skills arguing with that. It is only aguable if the person who ties with a central tied tight as their principlal line complains about what happens when another craft passes, and attributes what happens to their boat as being all down to the passing vessel.

 

Tam

[Derek R.]

A line from the back end rail is very useful when single handed or stopping to empty or fill containers. But for mooring, it's a bit like taking out windscreen insurance on a narrow boat.

 

That Westbridgford Wire article shows the boat seemingly after it had been recovered, and poses some questions; It has lines at both ends in addition to the center line - both slack; it appears to be tied by the centre line to something submerged - a staging?; the volume of detritus suggests it has been there for at least several hours - and if anyone had been aboard, they surely would have raised an alarm as clearly the river is in flood. This is surely after the rescue has occurred and a reporter sent to view the craft, during whuch time the river has risen. So which monkey tied the boat up after rescue?? The rescuers?

 

Useful that the first rescue boat also needed rescuing!

[ditchcrawler]

7 hours ago, Derek R. said:

A line from the back end rail is very useful when single handed or stopping to empty or fill containers. But for mooring, it's a bit like taking out windscreen insurance on a narrow boat.

 

That Westbridgford Wire article shows the boat seemingly after it had been recovered,  

The photo was before the owner was found to tell her that her boat was listing. She went adrift after removing the centre line

[max's son]

On 31/10/2019 at 16:50, Split Pin said:

Does it have its original engine? I remember that Albert Brookes  purchased it from Claytons and fitted it into his first narrowboat named Glenfied in circa 1968/9. It could have been reunited by now.

You no doubt remember the boat Pete as it was converted from a day boat at Bumblehole and kept at Windmill End may also have been at Valencia Wharf as Albert went on to work for the Allen Brothers

 

Steve

Glenfield was half of a Bantock the other half was Ballinger  Dad and Albert start building the two boats in 66

 

Albert taught dad to weld building glenfield then let him build ballinger

 

https://worcestervista.com/index.php/mechanics/renovating-ballinger/

 

[Derek R.]

6 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

The photo was before the owner was found to tell her that her boat was listing. She went adrift after removing the centre line

Thank you for the correction. Overall it does appear her boat was insecurely moored.

[BWM]

On 31/10/2019 at 15:14, David Mack said:

Belfast, having a full length conversion, has an eyebolt in the middle of the cabin roof, as with modern leisure narrow boats. But I have seen one or two converted ex-working boats which have had a back end rail fitted across the roof to replace that previously fitted to the front bulkhead of the engine room.

We have the shortened back end rail on the cabin top.