The Cat's Corner

[Rob-M]

Just now, Stroudwater1 said:

Was that at the old shed end Rob? It’s very bad there, you need a good run up only to find someone in the tunnel and it’s very hard to reverse out then. Really needs a bit of targeted dredging. 

Having left Hawne Basin, from about half way through to the end and then through the narrows was very slow going.

[TheShipsCat]

Having recovered my mood after the heat, just a note that at this time I'm thoroughly enjoying the process of learning, fixing, and improving this boat.  Even the inevitable ahhh-s**t moments most often turn to ohhh-ok endings.  Inheriting a craft built for and exclusively owned by an experienced, highly intelligent, and thoughtful boater has its perks.  Yesterday had the leisure battery bank replaced by a smashing young RCR engineer who also installed the SmartShunt that I rushed to buy as soon as I experienced the original crappy battery condition.  He showed me how it works and we had a long and informative discussion on blue-box tech.  Solar next.  Looking more and more that I will need to mostly DIY to get what I want.

The hardest part is to focus and prioritize given the length of my to-do list.  

[MtB]

12 minutes ago, TheShipsCat said:

The hardest part is to focus and prioritize given the length of my to-do list.  

 

You realise the more you cross off, the longer it gets? 

 

The "To do" list is never done and will have existed (for someone) ever since the boat was delivered new. This is why I sometimes say a boat-build is never finished! 

 

 

 

 

[LadyG]

I rushed to replace the existing single 100W panel. Now, with more knowledge  I would go to Bimble to learn about balanced kit. I bought from them because they provided the kit ready to instal (two -three hours for the upgrade). Specialist courier, panels delivered to the roof!. I gave him a fiver for his troubles

I started with an existing frame on the boat. Now i have understanding of my needs, and my winter cruising. I would  buy the best quality panels, probably four to replicate the look of dog boxes, and clear the roof  ventilators

Tilting will be more efficient,  for spring snd autumn. More faffing.

Most of my roof (57ft NB) is clear, the boat retains its nautical look.

I bought my boat on the hard, so the hull needed coated. I should have spent more time preppng and painting the bits that would get scuffed and would be difficult to access.

I cleaned everything,  windows seals trap dirt. I had a lad prep the roof for coating, its not easy to get down to rust, which bubbles up, if found more sanding needed.

Most people will be able to change the oil and the filter, Ive just had my engine etc serviced by a hire boat mechanic, he removed all the old oil, fastidiously, I know this because the dipstick oil is now cleaner than ever before. He spent considerable time checking everything, including the prop shaft.

I check the engine hole, the belts and hoses, plus coolant level before setting off. If going on a river I would also check the diesel tank, just in case. Plus weather, including last few days upstream, and tides. Don't forget the bilge pump.

The newby  cant do everything straight away. Give it five years and you'll get there

Edited May 28 by LadyG

[TheShipsCat]

2 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

You realise the more you cross off, the longer it gets? 

Oh yes.  I know what I've gotten myself into.  I also know that items on the to-do list will move to the live-with-it list as the to-do list grows and morphs.

[MtB]

Just now, TheShipsCat said:

Oh yes.  I know what I've gotten myself into.  I also know that items on the to-do list will move to the live-with-it list as the to-do list grows and morphs.

 

 

The next step in this process of degradation is re-ordering list to prioritise the items on it. Again and again.

 

Eventually more time will be spent on this than actually doing the tasks. 

 

DAMHIK. 

 

 

 

 

[TheShipsCat]

1 minute ago, MtB said:

Eventually more time will be spent on this than actually doing the tasks. 

Already happening.

8 minutes ago, LadyG said:

Most of my roof (57ft NB) is clear, the boat retains its nauticsl look.

My roof is more cut up due to two Houdini hatches , a couple of port/starboard mushrooms, and a built-in plank etc. rack the positioning of which I really don't like but there it is.  Latest thought is 13 small 50W panels on magnetic feet.

[LadyG]

37 minutes ago, TheShipsCat said:

Already happening.

My roof is more cut up due to two Houdini hatches , a couple of port/starboard mushrooms, and a built-in plank etc. rack the positioning of which I really don't like but there it is.  Latest thought is 13 small 50W panels on magnetic feet.

Ive got 2 x 275 W,  550W,  which is just adequate for a low user.. 650 will be better, not sure about the extra cost and the serial v parallel electrics?

I wonder if you have considered having the first four panels tilting, because this would be fairly easy to alter. You could of course have the middle ones tilting, gives you a differernt aspect. I would think about having a group of two then three on the port side, but not bother with the two starboard ones, particularly if costs were  being stretched. 

I think one has to be careful to prevent any corrosion.

I keep a boathook / strong deck brush on the roof at the front because you sometimes find them usefull when handling.

I keep a small boathook at the stern.

It was obvious what was needed, really no need for a list. 

Edited May 28 by LadyG

[ditchcrawler]

2 hours ago, TheShipsCat said:

Having recovered my mood after the heat, just a note that at this time I'm thoroughly enjoying the process of learning, fixing, and improving this boat.  Even the inevitable ahhh-s**t moments most often turn to ohhh-ok endings.  Inheriting a craft built for and exclusively owned by an experienced, highly intelligent, and thoughtful boater has its perks.  Yesterday had the leisure battery bank replaced by a smashing young RCR engineer who also installed the SmartShunt that I rushed to buy as soon as I experienced the original crappy battery condition.  He showed me how it works and we had a long and informative discussion on blue-box tech.  Solar next.  Looking more and more that I will need to mostly DIY to get what I want.

The hardest part is to focus and prioritize given the length of my to-do list.  

If he was good you should have got his number for next time you need help 

[TheShipsCat]

31 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

If he was good you should have got his number for next time you need help 

Did.  I'm hanging back from questions until something really pressing turns up.  It appears that it's a health issue, probably serious,  that ended his boating.

[cuthound]

5 hours ago, MtB said:

 

You realise the more you cross off, the longer it gets? 

 

The "To do" list is never done and will have existed (for someone) ever since the boat was delivered new. This is why I sometimes say a boat-build is never finished! 

 

 

 

 

 

Several things on my originals "to do" list have been taken off simply because I got used to them!

Edited May 28 by cuthound
To remove a full stop masquerading as a space.

[TheShipsCat]

One thing that I will not get used to and seriously needs to be rectified:  The original owner appears to have been quite a tall man.  The tiller height is at least 6 inches too high and causes me serious shoulder strain.  I've been told that the fix for this is to saw down and re-weld the swan neck, which sounds like an expensive and time consuming procedure.

 

Why does this not exist?
 

[Alan de Enfield]

8 minutes ago, TheShipsCat said:

Why does this not exist?

 

 

 

The answer does exist.

 

Stand on a milk-crate and not only will it be easier with the tiller, but you'll be able to look down the length of the boat.

 

Does Snow White know you have bought a boat ?

[MtB]

Stand on a 6" high box first to check, before spending a load of money getting a tiller bar shaped like that! 

 

 

 

[David Mack]

A decent boatbuilder would probably find cutting and shutting the Z iron easier than bending the tiller tube - especially if you have a brass tiller.

 

A point to note: If you have a trad or a semi trad stern, check the clearance between the end of the tiller handle and the back doors/ slide rails. Lowering the handle end can result in a nasty finger trap, and you may need to shorten the tiller handle, which will then give you less leverage for steering.

[TheShipsCat]

5 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Stand on a milk-crate and not only will it be easier with the tiller, but you'll be able to look down the length of the boat.

Within two days of steering this boat I bought one of these

Oh yes, it's a shoulder saver, and as you say, it does provide a nice view.  It also provides another thing to manage, and something to trip over.  I suppose I could get used to it, especially once I see the estimate for chopping the swan neck and tiller.  It also comes in handy as a step to get up to the roof from the semi-trad locker.  And to deal with the other piece of tall-man evidence, the toilet.

 

It doesn''t feel like a long-term solution for steering.

 

3 hours ago, David Mack said:

A point to note: If you have a trad or a semi trad stern, check the clearance between the end of the tiller handle and the back doors/ slide rails. Lowering the handle end can result in a nasty finger trap, and you may need to shorten the tiller handle, which will then give you less leverage for steering.

Yes, definitely the tiller would need to be two or three inches shorter. More work.

 

3 hours ago, David Mack said:

A decent boatbuilder would probably find cutting and shutting the Z iron easier than bending the tiller tube - especially if you have a brass tiller.

This seems to me to be a matter of equipage.   There are tube bending mills that make a double curve like that a piece of cake.  A canal boat builder just doesn't have tube bending in his tradition or repertoire, and may not have ever seen one.  A sailboat builder who does railings, perhaps, might be more equipped for such fabrication.

 

The curved tiller idea is also presented as an attempt to annoy the natives by coloring... ahem... colouring outside the lines.  Apparently successful.  🤣

6 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Does Snow White know you have bought a boat ?

Actually, I married Goldilocks, but that's another story.

[LadyG]

As it happens i rarely steer with my hands for long, i just use my body. I removed the wooden tiller end, and never replaced it. My tiller is too short to catch on the lock walls, a real safefy feature.

Edited May 29 by LadyG

[MtB]

2 hours ago, TheShipsCat said:

There are tube bending mills that make a double curve like that a piece of cake.

 

Yes but in ductile materials such as steel or copper, but not in brass. Brass is not ductile and does not take kindly to attempts to bend - it snaps instead. 

[Stroudwater1]

I would leave it and stand on what you have. If you look at other boats quite a few people stand on milk crates and the like. Alternative is to change sides from time to time or as LadyG suggests (politely) use your body for a while. 
 

I suspect the boat was built with the tiller as it came and not for anyone in particular but could be wrong for some boats.

 

Also worth noting that it’s probably a thing on long pounds and so on quite a few canals you won’t get a chance to get sore. You may also find that a bit like an athlete your musculature will get adapted to this new usage. 

[MtB]

May I enquire exactly how high your tiller bar is, above the steering step or deck? 

 

My own tiller on the last boat seemed high but once standing on the steering step (trad stern boat) it was fine for me, and standing directly ahead of the tiller and leaning back onto the wooden handle to steer, it fitted the small of my back perfectly. 

 

Do you stand on your semi trad to one side of the tiller? Or in front of it?

 

 

Edited May 29 by MtB

[ditchcrawler]

10 hours ago, TheShipsCat said:

One thing that I will not get used to and seriously needs to be rectified:  The original owner appears to have been quite a tall man.  The tiller height is at least 6 inches too high and causes me serious shoulder strain.  I've been told that the fix for this is to saw down and re-weld the swan neck, which sounds like an expensive and time consuming procedure.

 

Why does this not exist?
 

Weld a new bit on 

 

 

Or weld the red bit on 

Edited May 29 by ditchcrawler

[cuthound]

12 hours ago, TheShipsCat said:

One thing that I will not get used to and seriously needs to be rectified:  The original owner appears to have been quite a tall man.  The tiller height is at least 6 inches too high and causes me serious shoulder strain.  I've been told that the fix for this is to saw down and re-weld the swan neck, which sounds like an expensive and time consuming procedure.

 

Why does this not exist?
 

 

The previous owner of my boat was a short ar*e.

 

He had the swan neck set so that when you steered from the correct position (inside the stern doors with the tiller behind you) your fingers got trapped between the cabin return and the tiller handle.

 

I had the bends on the swan neck eased (by heating them and re-bending them)  equally, because I hate tiller bars that are not parallel to the water.

Edited May 29 by cuthound
Clarification

[haggis]

When we got kelpie, you would often get trapped knuckles between the tiller and the cabin roof. It now has a hinge on the tiler with it permanently angled slightly up. I often steer with the tiller under my armpit which saves shoulder muscles 🙂 

 

[TheShipsCat]

This discussion about tiller height is interesting and I appreciate having my perspectives challenged.  Mucch of the valuable feedback comes from those who under similar circumstances have developed steering habits that allow them to just live with the high tiller.  What I've been doing so far is the step ass previously pictured, plus I find myself sitting on this shelf in the back of the semi-trad:

   s

I don't know what the original designed purpose of this shelf is, but it makes a fine bum perch.  I might have a cushion made for it.

 

I've read so many opinions on this forum about the proper place to stand and the proper way to hold the tiller and the proper way to steer... all of which would only work for me were I a proper 6 ft 2.   Seems that for many what is proper is dictated by individual circumstance rather than tradition.

 

What I really don't want to do is make serious and expensive modifications to the craft that a subsequent owner might need to spend a bunch of money and headache undoing.

 

I'll continue to work with my workarounds, and maybe even cast about a bit for a fabrication shop (likely not narrowboat) who has the tools and skill to make the double bent drop tiller easily.  Yes, shorter than the original to not catch a hand between the handle and the semi-trad.

 

Maybe.

[alias]

12 minutes ago, TheShipsCat said:

I'll continue to work with my workarounds, and maybe even cast about a bit for a fabrication shop (likely not narrowboat) who has the tools and skill to make the double bent drop tiller easily.  Yes, shorter than the original to not catch a hand between the handle and the semi-trad.

 

 

A fellow owner on our share boat managed coffee shop fitouts.  He had a second tiller bar made up by one of his contractors out of the polished tubing used in the shop fitouts with three bars (one long and two short), joined at ninety degrees to give a four or five inch step down.