Jump to content

NB Columba

Guest User

By Guest User
in History & Heritage

 Share

Featured Posts

alan_fincher Veteran II

alan_fincher

Posted
Posted

Many of them owned, neglected and abandoned by BW themselves.

 

BW failed miserably to preserve their own historic fleet. I wouldn't trust them with an inflatable beach dinghy.

 

Of all the (I think) 15 or so of the last batch of working boats dumped on the Wendover ARm in the early 1970s, the only one that initially got cut down and generally massacred was the only one that BW hung onto, I think.

 

Interestingly, later on, one of the buttys that didn't manage to stay a butty, was the one taken by the Narrow Boat Trust, with great flourish and raising of funds to "preserve" it for future generations.

 

Often neither BW, nor trusts are the best custodians, and many times private individuals show far more respect for what they have.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
rrt2 Collaborator

rrt2

Posted
Posted

Interestingly, later on, one of the buttys that didn't manage to stay a butty, was the one taken by the Narrow Boat Trust, with great flourish and raising of funds to "preserve" it for future generations.

 

 

Sold by the Trust as a COMPLETE boat to Malcolm Brain who cut it in half.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
alan_fincher Veteran II

alan_fincher

Posted
Posted

Sold by the Trust as a COMPLETE boat to Malcolm Brain who cut it in half.

Which was the kind of thing that could reasonably have been predicted to happen to a near derelict butty sold to Malcolm Braine at the time ?

 

Yes ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 1 year later...
Chris-B Experienced

Chris-B

Posted
Posted

I can now confirm that Columba is up for sale

No price at present but for genuinely interested parties I will pass on the owners number

It does need work so dont expect a turn key boat BUT if you have the money/time/vision you will have a stunner

 

Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Proper Job Veteran

Proper Job

Posted
Posted (edited)

Why does every ex working boat have to have its top taken off and restored to working condition?

 

Part of their history is that many were converted for 'cruising' use because there was no work for them. Had this not been done, many of them would have just been cut up for scrap.

 

A converted ex working boat has just as much validity as non/de-converted one.

Edited by Proper Job
  • Greenie 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Chris-B Experienced

Chris-B

Posted
Posted

Well let's hope the top comes of and that it is restored back to carrying condition.

 

Darren

 

Sorry to disagree Darren

I would rather see Columba brought back to life and used regularly with the current conversion than yet another super shiny de-converted boat

Whilst JK owned it he part converted the hold..imo the current top is one of the nicest I have seen

If the eventual purchaser did de-convert then I hope it would have some regular loading

All this is just my view mate

 

Chris-B

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ChimneyChain Rising Star

ChimneyChain

Posted
Posted

Sorry to disagree Darren

I would rather see Columba brought back to life and used regularly with the current conversion than yet another super shiny de-converted boat

Whilst JK owned it he part converted the hold..imo the current top is one of the nicest I have seen

If the eventual purchaser did de-convert then I hope it would have some regular loading

All this is just my view mate

 

Chris-B

 

 

Do you know what Chris thinking about it your right. The beer in the swan must be getting stronger I think!!

 

Darren

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Speedwheel Influencer

Speedwheel

Posted
Posted (edited)

imo the current top is one of the nicest I have seen

 

+1 on that. It's a lovely looking cabin with great lines. If I was looking for another boat to live on I would be all over this.

 

ETA Couple of poor quality pics taken September 2007.

 

I think it is trying to be a Steve Hudson replica with those rings ;)

 

DSCF1019.jpg

 

DSCF1018.jpg

Edited by Speedwheel
Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
MtB Veteran II

MtBDonate to Canal World

Posted
Posted

Why does every ex working boat have to have its top taken off and restored to working condition?

 

Part of their history is that many were converted for 'cruising' use because there was no work for them. Had this not been done, many of them would have just been cut up for scrap.

 

A converted ex working boat has just as much validity as non/de-converted one.

 

 

Totally agree PJ. I thought it a terrible shame that the 1970's conversion was recently removed from 'Themis'.

 

Very few old conversions left now that I see out on the cut. The trend for converting back to impossibly shiny working trim seems unstoppable now dunnit.

 

Three others apart from Columbus still extant spring to mind, 'Bournemouth', 'Lancing' (both at Burghfield on the K&A), and Trevor Council's butty 'Taurus' on the shroppie. And possibly 'Uranus' (on the S&W), although I suspect this conversion is a whole lot newer. VERY nicely done though to my untutored eye.

 

Is it time for a list of 1970s conversions still extant and worth preserving?

 

Mike

 

P.S. Sorely tempted by Columbus. Is one allowed to have three boats?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
johnthebridge Proficient

johnthebridge

Posted
Posted (edited)

+1 on that. It's a lovely looking cabin with great lines. If I was looking for another boat to live on I would be all over this.

 

Sorry, can't agree with you. The back doors are all wrong, with the step to the footboard too high, and because of the horrid steel slide (with welded angle slide runners-yuck) the doors are also too tall, extending above the line of the cabin top. In addition, because false gunnel cappings haven't been fitted, there's no step down from the the gunnels to the counter top, which offends my eye, and the lack of these cappings also has the effect of increasing the cabin side height by a couple of inches. It might be the photographs, but the kick up on the back cabin looks to be excessive, even for a little Woolwich.

Edited by johnthebridge
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Laurence Hogg Veteran

Laurence Hogg

Posted
Posted

Even though this boat "looks a mess" it is what it has evolved into. Sadly with the sale of the BW workboats many evolved boats will get turned back into pseudo lookalike originals of what they were built to be. This totally removes the evolved appearance and historical look and in a few years time untouched examples will be sought after craft. Take Radiant an an example, left completely as it was when purchased out of service it is now an historic boat in its own right, other examples would include "Ling" a Josher so evolved that little of the original remains and as it is today is how it finished its proper working life. As for conversions that too is a stage which boats got to and I feel some whould be left as they are.

We all screamed in horror years ago when "Friendship" was sectioned at Ellesmere Port - but today we can view a working boat exactly as it finished trade and waterway use, I wish there were more of that type of preservation.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
alan_fincher Veteran II

alan_fincher

Posted
Posted (edited)

Very few old conversions left now that I see out on the cut. The trend for converting back to impossibly shiny working trim seems unstoppable now dunnit.

 

Three others apart from Columbus still extant spring to mind, 'Bournemouth', 'Lancing' (both at Burghfield on the K&A), and Trevor Council's butty 'Taurus' on the shroppie. And possibly 'Uranus' (on the S&W), although I suspect this conversion is a whole lot newer. VERY nicely done though to my untutored eye.

 

Is it time for a list of 1970s conversions still extant and worth preserving?

Firstly it's "Columba" ;)

 

Not sure about the ages of, but I still seem to see a fair number of quite elderly looking conversions of working boats.

 

For example we passed Tyseley on the way up here - I suspect that one has been there a while ?

 

Not sure about Bristol, moored just across from us, (newer, I guess ?).

 

There are several River class boats with fairly unusual conversions as we motor up this way. I'm struggling with names, but one is "Dee", I think, that actually makes extensive use of some "blue tops" as part of the cabin.

 

The trouble is that for many of the conversions genuinely done in the 1970s, they would seldom have been steel, and were generally based on timber and Masonite, or even plywood, type construction. No doubt the wooden-top devotees will down on me like a ton of bricks, but even with fairly careful maintenance, not many 40 year old "wooden tops" converted in that manner have survived that well.

 

Many boats that were wooden cabined then still survive as converted boats, but often completely re-topped in steel, or perhaps with a steel skin over some of the former. This includes things like Malcolm Braine conversions - very rare now to see a wooden top one of those, despite being considered "top of the range" when he was doing them. Again, steel has sometimes replaced Braine's timber and Masonite efforts.

 

EDITED TO ADD: Columba's conversion has already stated to be "late 80s", so not that old really is it ?....

Edited by alan_fincher
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.