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Daydream Believer (Long Post)


Mike1951

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Very good. Colecraft have been around for a long time and have a good reputation for quality, I think you made a good choice compared to some of the names you mentioned earlier.

 

4 months wait is much better than a year+, but it will still drag and you will be frustrated - but once you actually take delivery, it will all seem worth it!

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It looks as though it will be a bonny and practical boat. 50/52' ish is perfectly spacious for a couple if they're not living on it with all their worldy goods. Portholes in bedroom and corridor, hatch opposite galley and two large windows in the saloon, I think will work well to live with. Obviously your previous experience of boats has informed you well regards what you need and want in one so I'm sure you'll enjoy the latest inland chapter of your boat owning life. Getting your first choice of mooring sorted sounds a good result too.

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It's an immensely exciting time, seeing the boat a bit more complete each time you visit, isn't it? We've been through the process twice and yes, waiting is frustrating, but it will come to an end - in your case, sooner than you had envisaged.

   So far so good, and with ColeCraft there's no reason why anything should go wrong. They were our second choice when we had our first new boat built. That wa sin 2000, and the very fact that they are still flourishing 21 years later speaks volumes.

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We have agreed the galley layout and Daydream Believer is due to be spray foamed today and should be lined-out before Christmas. Still undecided what to do with the remaining area of the saloon once the L shaped dinette is installed. They are going to tape the outlines on the floor for us, so we can try and visualize the space. We are hoping to get a couple of armchairs or a small sofa in, but its going to be cosy! We can't wait for our next visit which will be early in the New Year to meet with the chippies, painter and upholsterer

FRONT HALF.jpg

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2 minutes ago, matty40s said:

No stove??

Stove was on the original drawing, but we have deleted it for now, as there is no availability this side of Easter and we thought the cost quoted was excessive (see my other thread), so we may well get one installed next summer.

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22 minutes ago, Mike1951 said:

Stove was on the original drawing, but we have deleted it for now, as there is no availability this side of Easter and we thought the cost quoted was excessive (see my other thread), so we may well get one installed next summer.

I can’t find your other thread (not the one about cleaning products, presumably). But I just wanted to say that a stove is pretty essential if you want to use you boat outside the summer season. This was bought home to me last week when our stove was out of action for a (pretty cold) 24 hour period. Yes we had the Mikuni diesel heater /radiators on so it wasn’t cold, but the condensation on the windows was really bad. Stoves are great for keeping everything dry, as well as warm. I would strongly recommend that you make provision for a stove at build (hearth, flue collar through the roof) even if an actual stove is hard to come by right now (although that seems strange). You can temporarily cap the flue collar to make it weatherproof. Completely retrofitting a stove into a finished boat will be a lot harder and costlier.

Edited by nicknorman
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As to the space, a couple of chairs is probably the best bet. Some people like “captain’s chairs” - those swivel leather things, but personally I think they are a bit OTT both in cost and look. We had IKEA Poang chairs for a while but recently replaced one with an offering from Dunelm Mill, which is really comfortable and not too big…

 

https://www.dunelm.com/product/whitham-swivel-recliner-chair-grey-1000120051?defaultSkuId=30583506

 

 

Just now, matty40s said:

Next delivery of Morso stoves to UK in April 2022 Nick!! 

Blimey!

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19 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

I can’t find your other thread (not the one about cleaning products, presumably). But I just wanted to say that a stove is pretty essential if you want to use you boat outside the summer season. This was bought home to me last week when our stove was out of action for a (pretty cold) 24 hour period. Yes we had the Mikuni diesel heater /radiators on so it wasn’t cold, but the condensation on the windows was really bad. Stoves are great for keeping everything dry, as well as warm. I would strongly recommend that you make provision for a stove at build (hearth, flue collar through the roof) even if an actual stove is hard to come by right now (although that seems strange). You can temporarily cap the flue collar to make it weatherproof. Completely retrofitting a stove into a finished boat will be a lot harder and costlier.

We thought £4K was a bit OTT tbh! My brother in law is a boatbuilder and very skilled woodworker and can build us a hearth and we are getting a quote from a local professional installer for the stove install next year. On the condensation issue. With the Channel Glaze double glazed, thermal break windows we have been promised (unsolicited) there will be no condensation so we will see. If we can decide where the stove will go, we can get the builder to make the hole in the roof during the build.

23 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

As to the space, a couple of chairs is probably the best bet. Some people like “captain’s chairs” - those swivel leather things, but personally I think they are a bit OTT both in cost and look. We had IKEA Poang chairs for a while but recently replaced one with an offering from Dunelm Mill, which is really comfortable and not too big…

 

https://www.dunelm.com/product/whitham-swivel-recliner-chair-grey-1000120051?defaultSkuId=30583506

 

 

 

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3 minutes ago, Mike1951 said:

We thought £4K was a bit OTT tbh! My brother in law is a boatbuilder and very skilled woodworker and can build us a hearth and we are getting a quote from a local professional installer for the stove install next year. On the condensation issue. With the Channel Glaze double glazed, thermal break windows we have been promised (unsolicited) there will be no condensation so we will see. If we can decide where the stove will go, we can get the builder to make the hole in the roof during the build.

Many people (including us) put the stove at the front and I suspect that may be where yours ends up, but if possible it is better more towards the middle of the boat, so that the heat is distributed more evenly. You also want to have it on the left side of the boat if possible, because since one drives on the right and since overhanging vegetation can be an issue, having the stove on the RHS makes the chimney prone to being damaged / knocked off.

Edited by nicknorman
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We are probably going to go for IKEA Poang chairs as we have a couple in our beach hut and find them very comfortable, but we have also been looking at the narrowboat range at the Sofabed Barn, after seeing them on the "Floating Our Boat" YouTube channel.

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16 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

Many people (including us) put the stove at the front and I suspect that may be where yours ends up, but if possible it is better more towards the middle of the boat, so that the heat is distributed more evenly. You also want to have it on the left side of the boat if possible, because since one drives on the right and since overhanging vegetation can be an issue, having the stove on the RHS makes the chimney prone to being damaged / knocked off.

Yes they were going to put at the front on the LHS

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On 03/12/2021 at 11:19, nicknorman said:

Very good. Colecraft have been around for a long time and have a good reputation for quality, I think you made a good choice compared to some of the names you mentioned earlier.

 

 

I think Aqualine are better than Colecraft. I've got friends with both and Aqualine seem like better quality to me. To be honest I've never really understood the adulation of Colecraft on this forum. Don't get me wrong, they're perfectly good boats, but from what I've seen only a grade above a budget boat. For example, I've never thought the sprayfoaming of my Liverpool Boat was done very well, but my mate's Colecraft developed consideration and wood staining issues within a couple of years from new. When he took off the lining in one area I saw that his sprayfoam was even worse than mine. 

 

The steelwork is slightly better, mainly in terms of decorative flourishes as is the interior panelling & woodwork with lots more hardwood, but then he paid a lot more money than me. In terms of engine and other installations they're comparable, but just like me he often used to complain about all the things they hadn't done properly.

 

Perhaps his was just a bad example, but having looked at quite a few Aqualines they more than give Colecraft a run for their money and in my opinion come out on top.

Edited by blackrose
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1 minute ago, blackrose said:

 

I think Aqualine are better than Colecraft. I've got friends with both and Aqualine seem like better quality to me. To be honest I've never really understood the adulation of Colecraft on this forum. Don't get me wrong, they're perfectly good boats, but from what I've seen only a grade above a budget boat. For example, I've never thought the sprayfoaming of my Liverpool Boat was done very well, but my mate's Colecraft developed consideration and wood staining issues within a couple of years from new. When he took off the lining  I saw that his sprayfoam was even worse than mine. 

 

The steelwork is slightly better as is the interior panelling with lots more hardwood, but then he paid a lot more money than me. In terms of engine and other installations they're comparable, but just like me he often used to complain about all the things they hadn't done properly.

 

Perhaps his was just a bad example, but having looked at quite a few Aqualines they more than give Colecraft a run for their money and in my opinion come out on top.

Yes we did look at Aqualine but there was no flexibility of layout and one marina owner told us that a woodworker based at his marina, made most of his living correcting the woodwork on Aqualines, that is pre-cut on CNC machinery and not made to fit the individual boat, so after they are launched, the woodwork doesnt fit anymore. Another told us that he had 2 Aqualine widebeams launched there and both had leaks in the same place and had to be craned out and welded up. He didn't get paid for this work and when a 3rd boat Aqualine leaked in the same place he refused to do the work. Both these stories from people with no axe to grind, as we were just looking for moorings. So these stories (true or not) and the lack of layout fliexibility combined with Poland being a long way away. Both of these guys were complimentary about Aintree and Colecraft.

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Unfortunately, I can verify the Aqualine issues, aligned with the almost impossible task of getting the snagging completed though N&U(less). The electrics look fantastic, but over complicate simple charging norms with expensive solenoids, along with AC trips on 12v DC circuits. Many have damp issues in areas not sprayfoamed, some where sprayfoamed, the outside spray paint looks good short term, but soon rusts under handrail lips, hinges and other difficult to spray areas. Finally, the hull coating , unless 2 pack specified, is next to useless...they say black within 18 months...from what I have seen, 6 might be a better instruction.

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7 minutes ago, matty40s said:

The electrics look fantastic, but over complicate simple charging norms with expensive solenoids, along with AC trips on 12v DC circuits.

Hmmm I’m not sure they look “fantastic”, just rather unnecessarily complicated. Who needs an enormous panel with lots of master switches for areas of lighting, and little LEDs showing you stuff is on? And they use relays to switch power to various services, all of which adds up to a significant and permanent current drain.

 

I know I have one of the most complicated electrical systems, but it is pretty transparent to the user and certainly no enormous showy and rather pointless bank of switches like something out of Thunderbirds! No significant fixed power drain!

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1 hour ago, matty40s said:

Unfortunately, I can verify the Aqualine issues, aligned with the almost impossible task of getting the snagging completed though N&U(less). The electrics look fantastic, but over complicate simple charging norms with expensive solenoids, along with AC trips on 12v DC circuits. Many have damp issues in areas not sprayfoamed, some where sprayfoamed, the outside spray paint looks good short term, but soon rusts under handrail lips, hinges and other difficult to spray areas. Finally, the hull coating , unless 2 pack specified, is next to useless...they say black within 18 months...from what I have seen, 6 might be a better instruction.

 

My old budget Liverpool Boat is sounding better and better all the time in comparison...

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1 hour ago, blackrose said:

 

My old budget Liverpool Boat is sounding better and better all the time in comparison...

You ensured the right things were done before and pre-launch, with the right coatings.

Many newbies now walk into an expensivelly mismanaged mistake that will cost an awful lot more as time progresses.

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We are going to go in and check the sprayfoam coverage, although this is subcontracted and I am sure Gary would not tolerate any substandard work.  The inside and outside of the steelwork is blasted and coated with Interseal 670S. Blacking and paintwork is International Perfection Pro epoxy. So we are not skimping on protecting the steelwork. 

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On 07/12/2021 at 17:15, Mike1951 said:

We have agreed the galley layout and Daydream Believer is due to be spray foamed today and should be lined-out before Christmas. Still undecided what to do with the remaining area of the saloon once the L shaped dinette is installed. They are going to tape the outlines on the floor for us, so we can try and visualize the space. We are hoping to get a couple of armchairs or a small sofa in, but its going to be cosy! We can't wait for our next visit which will be early in the New Year to meet with the chippies, painter and upholsterer

FRONT HALF.jpg

 

My boat came with Two Captain's chairs. They were comfortable but heavy and took up an inordinate amount of space.

 

I eventually replaced them with a three seater sofabed from.Sofabed Barn.

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