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Stenson Lock, T&M


JamesWoolcock

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2 hours ago, Rob-M said:

That is the closest I've ever got to thumping someone when a volunteer there had a go at my wife for putting the paddle up by more than the six clicks he told her she could do when we went through a couple of years ago.

Probably the same guy I remember.  Utter tool.  Behaved like the god of the lock ordering boaters around.  After that I've made sure to go through early so I can do it myself.  No kids from the cafe chasing around either.

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34 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Did you remember that you have a horn?  I have found most forget and just try shouting to attract attention.

I was on the bank holding the rope…..thought I just flick it free…..it didn’t happen! 

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1 hour ago, JamesWoolcock said:

I'm always surprised by the number of boats I see out of the water, which is quite a few as my home mooring is opposite Crown Wharf and Canal Cruising Co's dry docks in Stone, which have a portion of the base plate protruding out in front of the stem post, just ready to catch up of on such a cill which carries a goodly amount of iron guard fendering.

@Lord Maffi of Oxford had that happen with his boat but I can't remember which lock

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2 hours ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Are RCR the only approved salvage contractors to C&RT now? They seem to always be involved and closely joined these days.

They are probably on the contract list so they can just been given a works order against fixed rates and not have to tender for every job.

53 minutes ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

There always used to be a 'healthy' flow through those top gates and paddles.. Not sure what it is like nowadays.

 

 

 

It looked quite dry from the photo with the sunk boat

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9 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

It looked quite dry from the photo with the sunk boat

 

Yes it does look as if the leaky paddles no longer leak and the amount coming through the gates is less.

 

 

Edited by The Happy Nomad
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I seem to remember a nasty lip overhanging the top of the sill from the last time I passed through there.

 

I also recall having a full and frank exchange of views with a locksmurf, sorry, vlockie there.

I was going uphill and he objected to me wanting to open the paddles fully to empty the empty (ie no boats) lock. He said opening them fully is bad manners as it disturbs the boats moored on the offside below the lock.

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3 hours ago, frangar said:

No it’s not! Not in a narrow lock…unless the riding plate is damaged…it’s far safer than being too far back or thrown backwards & forwards if you are a shorter boat. No one is suggesting riding the gates in a wide lock. 

Yes it is. How many undamaged locks do you see these daya? Going up a single lock in a short boat is fine if the water flow is managed, and a bit of to and fro is a damn sight safer than risking get caught on a bit of damaged gate.

Yes, a full size working boat has little option, and generally their owners are experienced, but for anyone else it's an idiot's trick. I thought so when I first got told about it 30 years ago  and I've seen nothing to change my mind since. And enough reports of sunk boats to confirm my view. It's simple enough, keep off the gates and away from the cill and you won't sink. Anything else and the risk increases.

You have to remember is that the vast majority of boaters are emphatically not experienced - they go out for a few weeks a year. And make mistakes.

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2 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

Yes it is. How many undamaged locks do you see these daya? Going up a single lock in a short boat is fine if the water flow is managed, and a bit of to and fro is a damn sight safer than risking get caught on a bit of damaged gate.

Yes, a full size working boat has little option, and generally their owners are experienced, but for anyone else it's an idiot's trick. I thought so when I first got told about it 30 years ago  and I've seen nothing to change my mind since. And enough reports of sunk boats to confirm my view. It's simple enough, keep off the gates and away from the cill and you won't sink. Anything else and the risk increases.

You have to remember is that the vast majority of boaters are emphatically not experienced - they go out for a few weeks a year. And make mistakes.

I see far too many people stick the bow fender on the gate with the boat in gear and no one watching what is happening as they whack the paddles up and have a chat.  If I stay on the boat then I sit at the back of the lock when going up, if I am single handed then I put it on the gate but I do the paddles and watch the bow so I know what is going on.

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44 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

I see far too many people stick the bow fender on the gate with the boat in gear and no one watching what is happening as they whack the paddles up and have a chat.  If I stay on the boat then I sit at the back of the lock when going up, if I am single handed then I put it on the gate but I do the paddles and watch the bow so I know what is going on.

 

Which goes to show there’s not really one way that things should be done. I once tried riding up the gate to avoid the forward pull that can cause a short boat to impact the top gate rather too hard for either boat or gate (T&M, S&W and Oxford seemingly being prize culprits) but got the bow fender stuck under a protusion on the cill (at Colwich lock). As you know Vulpes has very low freeboard hence it’s bow fender reaches parts other fenders do not, hence the method is as much about the boat - and its owner’s comfort levels - as it is about the lock.

 

Personally I choose to avoid impact with lock gates with my short boat, that’s just what my experience has taught me. It very rarely doesn’t naturally work by positioning the boat midway in the lock but those noted above do need the boat to be further back when ascending. I would also consider removing fenders from a 35’ boat to be a nonsense yet a few weeks ago you and I boated a flight without bow or stern fenders by necessity.

 

Best to give the boater an insight as to how each lock - or each canals generic design of locks - works and let them figure out what works for them.

 

And if anyone can figure out how to operate Camp Hill single handed without at least four different methods please let me know.

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56 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:

 

 

And if anyone can figure out how to operate Camp Hill single handed without at least four different methods please let me know.

I did that in Tawny Owl(70ft), managing to rescue several tyres and a decorated christmas tree going up.

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7 hours ago, matty40s said:

I did that in Tawny Owl(70ft), managing to rescue several tyres and a decorated christmas tree going up.

We pulled the best part of a Mazda inside trim from the last pound from top one winter.

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13 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

And did he moor there by any chance

 

Don't know.

 

He said I was being 'inconsiderate'.

I said being bobbed about comes with the territory if you moor right below a lock.

 

ETA And, oddly enough, I was moving the afore mentioned Tawny Owl on that trip.

Edited by Victor Vectis
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13 hours ago, Arthur Marshall said:

Yes it is. How many undamaged locks do you see these daya? Going up a single lock in a short boat is fine if the water flow is managed, and a bit of to and fro is a damn sight safer than risking get caught on a bit of damaged gate.

Yes, a full size working boat has little option, and generally their owners are experienced, but for anyone else it's an idiot's trick. I thought so when I first got told about it 30 years ago  and I've seen nothing to change my mind since. And enough reports of sunk boats to confirm my view. It's simple enough, keep off the gates and away from the cill and you won't sink. Anything else and the risk increases.

You have to remember is that the vast majority of boaters are emphatically not experienced - they go out for a few weeks a year. And make mistakes.

Single hander here.  In narrow locks, I always ride the gates going uphill, while in forward tickover.  Always have, always will.

Edited by doratheexplorer
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How much forward pull for a given lock seems to depend on the individual boat, not necessarily its length.

 

I used to stay towards the back of an uphill lock on our two shareboats, both 58 footers. However when I bought my present boat, a 60 footer, I immediately noticed it was much more susceptible to a strong forward pull, and adapted my technique to riding the gate when going uphill in narrow locks, unless I know they have a gentle forward pull.

 

I think it is up to the steerer to remain vigilant and be prepared to be flexible in their technique if necessary.

Edited by cuthound
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41 minutes ago, cuthound said:

How much forward pull for a given lock seems to depend on the individual boat, not necessarily its length.

 

I used to stay towards the back of an uphill lock on our two shareboats, both 58 footers. However when I bought my present boat, a 60 footer, I immediately noticed it was much more susceptible to a strong forward pull, and adapted my technique to riding the gate when going uphill in narrow locks, unless I know they have a gentle forward pull.

 

I think it is up to the steerer to remain vigilant and be prepared to be flexible in their technique if necessary.

Its up to the person operating the paddles to be vigilant, they are the one who can control the water flow.

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2 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Its up to the person operating the paddles to be vigilant, they are the one who can control the water flow.

 

Indeed, but are often unaware that the boat may be hung up, wheras the steerer is much more likely to be aware of the boat tilting.

 

I have drilled into my crew that if I sound the horn they are to drop the paddles pronto and ask what is wrong later.

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On 03/06/2021 at 10:55, doratheexplorer said:

Single hander here.  In narrow locks, I always ride the gates going uphill, while in forward tickover.  Always have, always will.

Out of interest,  how long is your boat? I do suspect that makes a difference, as, obviously, does experience. It may also depend on how tickover operates,  maybe. I'm not criticising here, I suspect you know more about boat handling than I do,  just Looking for information.

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45ft boat. Going up in the northern T&M locks with their vicious forward pull, I always used to try to lurk just shy of the bottom gates (being careful not get anything caught between the gates), and stay there with reverse gear. Worked-ish, but sooner or later the flow would catch the boat and once you were moving there was about 30ft in which to accelerate rapidly towards the top gates that no amount of reverse would stop. More recently I’ve tried riding the cill “plate” and gate, but provided they are good condition, and I watch the boat like a hawk. Seems to work better.  Not at Red Bull though, where the cill plates have horizontal half round bars across them.

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