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Hurleston locks


canalboater2012

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After having a break from work today amd was nearby i decided to stop on the A51 & walk down the locks to see wot it was like in the snow etc i seen a boat entering the bottom lock. It was a man on his own he was a cc and was going up on to the Llangollen. Anyway he got jammed entering the bottom lock. He got the boat in as i watched. And i offered to do the paddles etc. he told me he would keep and eye and for me to just open the one slowly. I did and the boat stayed floating and riseing, He then told me to stop. Which i did the boat was no longer rising but the water was. If this was my boat i wouldnt of even attempted to go up once i knew i might not fit. Anyway i let water back out as he decided to leave trying but the water was draining back out but the boat was hanging. Then all of a sudden it just dropped and i opened gates and he reversed out and aborted this attempt.

 

This was scary to watch and he said his boat a liverpool shell was 6ft10 beam obiviously not.

 

I have read on here and places that quite a Few boats wont fit up the bottom lock here but isnt the 2nd lock even narower??.

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How long is the boat? I am led to believe there is a bulge in one of the walls (near the right (ie non towpath side) back, if you're going up) which means if your boat is a bit shorter than 70', you can avoid it to be safe. I've seen boats jam in the lock too. We made it safely through (twice) though (2 different boats).

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LBs are notorious for being wider than 6'10". A friend had his sailaway replaced by them (along with the work done to date) after some argument as it was too wide.

 

I have seen boats get in by flushing water through the top paddles to lift it a bit as it goes in. I've also seen boats go in backwards. It depends where your wide bit is relative to the narrowest part of the lock.

 

I've lost count of the number of boats I've seen stuck bt going in with fenders down. Despite the clear signs. One chap said he thought he would be ok as he only had small rubber fenders. He had to cut them off in the end and still took an hour to get free.

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Hurleston bottom lock has a bend and a buldge which makes it very problematic for any boat thats over 6'10'' beam. Shorter boats that are above 6'10'' can usually position themselves to avoid the buldge but this is not always the case. Fenders left down on any boat (in my experiance) pose a big risk of getting stuck. Lock 2 does not have such a big bend or bulge but is narrower. We are 6'11'' 43 feet and go through both with out any problem. But would have no chance with the fenders down.

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This is a very good description of what we experienced two years go, and even with only one paddle up, when the boat sticks it all gets very scary quite quickly. The drop back into the water as the level falls is indeed "exciting".

I believe the narrow entrance to the second locks does cause more trouble but we got through that ok.

It was indeed the bulge in the first lock that got us, near the bottom gates, towpath side, two thirds up the lock I recall. A 57 footer should be able to avoid this. We are 70 foot and about 6' 11-1/2" at the back, though only 6' 10" elsewhere. We eventually got through backwards with help from the friendly lockkeeper(though a couple of onlookers insisted we where doing it wrong!!!!). It is just possible to wind a 70 footer above the second lock.

If you can get through the first two locks then no trouble on the rest of the canal.

It is said that the lock "breathes" quite a bit as the groundwater level changes so things might be better if we get a summer.

The only to find out if you will fit is to turn and try, but choose a quiet time so you don't cause a big queue.

 

...........Dave

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Our Liverpool boat, as dor says, wedged tight in the bottom lock, and we had to be dragged back out. Gave up after 2nd attempt. Turns out the boat was, according to them, a 'nominal' 6'10 beam, but actually was 7'1" in the middle. They replaced our 58' sailaway after a legal wrangle. The replacement, our current boat, fits with inches to spare I'm pleased to say. Never had a problem with the other 3 locks.

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Our Liverpool boat, as dor says, wedged tight in the bottom lock, and we had to be dragged back out. Gave up after 2nd attempt. Turns out the boat was, according to them, a 'nominal' 6'10 beam, but actually was 7'1" in the middle. They replaced our 58' sailaway after a legal wrangle. The replacement, our current boat, fits with inches to spare I'm pleased to say. Never had a problem with the other 3 locks.

Some one in the same position as you sued the builder as not being fit for purpose. I am sure its been mentioned on here.

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Some one in the same position as you sued the builder as not being fit for purpose. I am sure its been mentioned on here.

We said exactly the same, we bought with the intention of cruising the system eventually, and as we couldn't get through Hurleston, would not be able to do the Llangollen or Monty. we got sick of trying to contact them. The only (and the best!) way we got our replacement was at the February Boat and Caravan show at the NEC, where said company had a stand. My other half stood in front of their stand, where all the potential buyers where exiting the display boat, and started shouting 'not to buy from them' and yelled the reasons why!! we got an immediate reaction, and a call within half an hour to say they'd replace our boat - they had originally suggested 'cutting and shutting it!!' said we'd never know. Just a shame we wasted so much money on solicitors though.

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Our Liverpool boat, as dor says, wedged tight in the bottom lock, and we had to be dragged back out. Gave up after 2nd attempt. Turns out the boat was, according to them, a 'nominal' 6'10 beam, but actually was 7'1" in the middle. They replaced our 58' sailaway after a legal wrangle. The replacement, our current boat, fits with inches to spare I'm pleased to say. Never had a problem with the other 3 locks.

 

Perhaps they replaced it with a 6' 6" beam just to be on the safe side!?

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When my shell was built for my sailaway I had taken on a surveyor to check the build and do the RCD etc. He measured the shell during the build at over 7ft and made the builders remove ribs etc and re-do it. Still comes in at 6'11" and the first thing I did when I picked it up was to take it up and down the first two Hurleston locks. It fits, but there is not a huge amount of space!

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When my shell was built for my sailaway I had taken on a surveyor to check the build and do the RCD etc. He measured the shell during the build at over 7ft and made the builders remove ribs etc and re-do it. Still comes in at 6'11" and the first thing I did when I picked it up was to take it up and down the first two Hurleston locks. It fits, but there is not a huge amount of space!

 

When our shell was being built I measured carefully and measured again.

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NB Earnest is exactly (Ray at R&D had a gauge and he let me borrow it to check) 6ft 10ins wide at the top rubbing strake. It has been through just about every narrow lock with the pipe fenders down (ICBA to take them up). The only lock it got nearly stuck in was Stret on the Chesterfield and as we know that can now not happen.

There have been many occasions when we have assisted the lockie (or helped boaters if he was not about) at Hurleston extract offending too wide NB's, normally by flushing them out.

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Perhaps they replaced it with a 6' 6" beam just to be on the safe side!?

Not measured it, but sure it's wider than that. Standing on the top gate of the lock when we first took it in, looked like an inch either side. I didn't care, as long as it fitted!

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Then it was wider than 6'10" - or a banana boat!

 

Was it built in East Fife by any chance.......?

 

Sorry Nick! :blush:

 

LBs are notorious for being wider than 6'10". A friend had his sailaway replaced by them (along with the work done to date) after some argument as it was too wide.

 

 

Incredible that any boat builder worth his/her weight, would allow a boat to get past gunwhale stage and not use some sort of gauge to measure the beam width is in tolerance, or the hull is straight as a die. :rolleyes:

 

(Hi Dave)

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Funny isnt it, LP boats otherwise turn out very competent well built, all be it to a price, boats, and clearly quite a few go through fine. They also build enough of them you would have thought they would just make a u-shaped gauge.

 

 

Daniel

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Funny isnt it, LP boats otherwise turn out very competent well built, all be it to a price, boats, and clearly quite a few go through fine. They also build enough of them you would have thought they would just make a u-shaped gauge.

 

 

Daniel

 

My sentiments exactly.

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Some one in the same position as you sued the builder as not being fit for purpose. I am sure its been mentioned on here.

Someone put me out of my missory and point me to the thread where the judge said the boat wasnt fit for purpose because it wouldnt go through the lock.

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