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Well don't know what to say


luggsy

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33 minutes ago, MartynG said:

I had a Sierra - possibly the worst car I ever owned

 

My company car went from the MKIV Cortina to a Sierra - 'Orrible thing. It wouldn't even drive straight and wandered all over the road in a strong cross wind. I only kept it for a few months and 'passed it down' to a new rep and I got a new Cavalier SRI. A far better car but heavy steeering with wide tyres and no power-steering.

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19 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

I'd simply runa line from the bow back to the stern and take it off when I 'jumped off'.

 

Maybe more of a problem - none of the pictures show that there is actually anywhere to tie-off a bow line (unless you use the stanchions)

If you zoom in on the first picture it does have cleats and a fairlead on the roof at the bow.

 

I would probably work the bow line from the roof. Usually did with NC and the roof on this thing looks nice and safe and flat.

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16 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

Its designed for living in.

 

Yes, there was a similar boat moored opposite me for about a year when I was moored on the Avon. It didn't even have an engine and wasn't designed for an engine or stern gear to be fitted. I think in the end it was bought as office space and taken to Tewkesbury.

 

In that case it was fitted out to a fairly high standard and sold for about £180k.

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On 11/12/2021 at 00:44, luggsy said:

Is the boating world going mad  ? What do you recon https://www.apolloduck.com/boat/house-boats-cruising-houseboat-for-sale/628678

I would say not.

58 minutes ago, Naughty Cal said:

I would probably work the bow line from the roof. Usually did with NC and the roof on this thing looks nice and safe and flat.

That's the way.  Competent crew essential.

Methods for handling a narrowboat on a canal are not necessarily applicable to something bigger  on water that moves .

 

 

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, Naughty Cal said:

If you zoom in on the first picture it does have cleats and a fairlead on the roof at the bow.

And a railing all round the roof deck that would make stepping on and off more difficult.  But that first image is an artists impression, and the actual photographs which follow don't show cleats or fairlead (which isn't to say they couldn't be fitted).

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5 minutes ago, David Mack said:

the actual photographs which follow don't show cleats or fairlead (which isn't to say they couldn't be fitted).

 

Thats what I was looking at.

 

We can only get a bow line ashore by SWMBO 'lassoing' a bollard or hooking a ring.

This magical device makes it very easy :

 

(But, it obviusly doesn't knock mooring pins in automatically)

 

 

 

 

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24 minutes ago, Liam said:

This boat has been for sale on and off for over 12 months. It did move around a bit in the early days on the Bridgewater Canal as it was based in Castlefield.

The boat advertised is a shell awaiting customer instruction on finish. There are several completed Galacticas, one of which is probably the one you've seen on the BW

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On 12/12/2021 at 11:50, David Mack said:

And a railing all round the roof deck that would make stepping on and off more difficult.  But that first image is an artists impression, and the actual photographs which follow don't show cleats or fairlead (which isn't to say they couldn't be fitted).

Our boat had railings around the roof deck. That wasn't where you stepped off the boat unless moored against a high wall. 

 

You worked the lines from the roof, but to get off the boat you walked back to the cockpit and stepped off. I would imagine it would be a similar process on this boat.

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Lots of fuss about access to the bow for disembarking.  I've never done that anyway, and plenty of narrowboats have a bulkhead at the front which prevents it.  This boat has the advantage of very easy access to the cabin top and a flat surface to walk on when you're up there.  When I moor up, I always step off the stern with a centre line and tie that.  Then I can take my time securing the bow and stern properly.  I don't see how this is any different.

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10 hours ago, matty40s said:

The boat advertised is a shell awaiting customer instruction on finish. There are several completed Galacticas, one of which is probably the one you've seen on the BW

They all look the same to me :)

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9 hours ago, doratheexplorer said:

When I moor up, I always step off the stern with a centre line and tie that.  Then I can take my time securing the bow and stern properly.  I don't see how this is any different.

Which is very much a still water canal way of doing things that is not always a  successful approach on rivers.

Lumpy water boats almost always have guard rails and the crew goes to the bow when coming to a mooring or in a lock. The subject boat has a lot of windage so getting a line on the bow will be a priority.

  • Greenie 2
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26 minutes ago, MartynG said:

Which is very much a still water canal way of doing things that is not always a  successful approach on rivers.

Lumpy water boats almost always have guard rails and the crew goes to the bow when coming to a mooring or in a lock. The subject boat has a lot of windage so getting a line on the bow will be a priority.

 

 

Indeed, my deck height is above the roof height  of NB's.

There is no reaching down for a mooring, or jumping off the bow, at best, it is 'lasso a bollard' or hook thru a ring,

 

20191010-105534.jpg

CAM00350.jpg

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55 minutes ago, MartynG said:

Which is very much a still water canal way of doing things that is not always a  successful approach on rivers.

Lumpy water boats almost always have guard rails and the crew goes to the bow when coming to a mooring or in a lock. The subject boat has a lot of windage so getting a line on the bow will be a priority.

Agreed. And if you have moored with the bow into the flow with the bow line secured the stern will (usually) bring itself alongside wind conditions permitting. 

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27 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

Indeed, my deck height is above the roof height  of NB's.

There is no reaching down for a mooring, or jumping off the bow, at best, it is 'lasso a bollard' or hook thru a ring,

 

20191010-105534.jpg

CAM00350.jpg

 

 

not quite so tall in my case 

image.png.9d16c6d5f19bd27b895ca7b8fb049463.png

Edited by MartynG
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OK, Its got something about it and its not just a dreadful fat boat, You have to give some marks for effort and I have in fact sketched out something a wee bit similar a while ago. There is a nice little boat - the Colvic 'Northerner', which is itself along the lines of some classic cruisers, the Dutch quite like them, they call them 'Bakdekkers' and I think they make good boats. However, making a thumping great thing 12` 6" wide using some design cues from a classic type does not guarantee a successful boat and there is a lot about this boat that I don't think works and for that price I, personally, would like to see something more shapely under the water and a bit of sheer as well as a wheelhouse roof that would lower.

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14 hours ago, MartynG said:

Which is very much a still water canal way of doing things that is not always a  successful approach on rivers.

Lumpy water boats almost always have guard rails and the crew goes to the bow when coming to a mooring or in a lock. The subject boat has a lot of windage so getting a line on the bow will be a priority.

I'm a single hander.  How would you recommend I do things on rivers?

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14 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

I'm a single hander.  How would you recommend I do things on rivers?

 

I would suggest  you avoid circumstances where there are strong flows caused by higher water levels such as now and if single handed avoid tidal rivers altogether .

I see a lot of narrowboats handled in the way you describe . In typical low summer water levels there are no major issues but if there are strong flows and sometimes in windy conditions it doesn't always go as  well as it might .

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2 minutes ago, MartynG said:

 

I would suggest  you avoid circumstances where there are strong flows caused by higher water levels such as now and if single handed avoid tidal rivers altogether .

I see a lot of narrowboats handled in the way you describe . In typical low summer water levels there are no major issues but if there are strong flows and sometimes in windy conditions it doesn't always go as  well as it might .

That's what I do already.  I've done tidal rivers but I make sure I have crew with me for that.  But I've single handed the Warwickshire Avon both ways in summer with no problems.  On the Severn, I tell the lockies I'm on my own and they allow me to use just a centre line and they seem to be able to work the lock a little slower to ensure things are ok.  The Thames is trickier.  Some of those locks are really fierce and some of those lockies are total arseholes who don't give you time to get things ready.  My system there is to get off the boat with a centre line.  Then tie the stern, but not too tight.  Then I tie the bow but stay by the bow on the lockside so I can quickly move to the stern if I need to.  Some of the lockies don't like that and want you on your boat, but I've explained to them, that I wouldn't be able to quickly attend to a problem at the stern if I'm stood on the bow.  In the end, my solution was to only cruise early mornings and evenings when the lockies weren't there, and work the locks myself, slowly and carefully.  In other words, the lockies on the Thames I found to be more of a hinderance than a help.  Sorry, I got off the subject there!

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41 minutes ago, doratheexplorer said:

I'm a single hander.  How would you recommend I do things on rivers?

Would surprise me if something like the boat in the OP doesn't have remote thrusters in the spec. So you could in theory secure the stern which is closest the helm and then use the remote control to keep the bow in with the bow thruster while you get up there to secure the bow lines. 

 

Having witnessed what happens on the Trent when narrowboats are secured with just a centre line I don't think I would be overly happy doing the same with something as large as the boat in the OP. Aside from the fact it doesn't appear to have a centre rope fastening. 

 

It certainly doesn't strike me as a boat that would be ideal for a single hander, but with crew it looks as though it could be safely worked on rivers and tidal waters.

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14 hours ago, Naughty Cal said:

Agreed. And if you have moored with the bow into the flow with the bow line secured the stern will (usually) bring itself alongside wind conditions permitting. 

Not always possible on canals at locks - I know of one or two places where clear signage indicates the importance of getting a stern rope ashore - eg Gloucester from upstream. I think there is one on K&A as well. 

 

I once followed a hire boat stuck below Sileby lock with a lot of fresh on the river. They had taken a bow rope ashore and firmly tied it to a bollard. But they could not hold the stern - no steerer on board. As the boat swung around the curve of the bow meant that the bow rope jammed and in the end we had to cut the rope!

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19 minutes ago, Mike Todd said:

Not always possible on canals at locks - I know of one or two places where clear signage indicates the importance of getting a stern rope ashore - eg Gloucester from upstream. I think there is one on K&A as well. 

 

I once followed a hire boat stuck below Sileby lock with a lot of fresh on the river. They had taken a bow rope ashore and firmly tied it to a bollard. But they could not hold the stern - no steerer on board. As the boat swung around the curve of the bow meant that the bow rope jammed and in the end we had to cut the rope!

On a river its wise to moor facing into the flow .  If that's not possible  it could be better to get a stern rope on first . There will always be exceptions to rules.

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