HELP KEEP HISTORY AFLOAT - CRT press release

[Derek R.]

This opens up the thought that what licence monies are paid might be allocated to individual projects by the licence payer.

 

I bet that wouldn't go down too well in head office!

 

A 'dismissable' thought I'm sure.

[greywolf]

So many charities so little money and thats just in the canal world,how do you decide. I would rule out contributing to the people running the canals so that just leaves the various restoration trusts and boat restoration societies i suppose and that is down to individual taste,priority.

 

i suppose putting this right then selling it to the highest bidder and using the proceeds to repair the next boat may be one way to go.They might make enough to do a wooden boat then.

[magpie patrick]

I know this has come live again: some of the earlier comments show the low self esteem in which CRT are held as a navigation authority, and one problem is that they have roles other than this in the brave new world. The Boat Museum was run, I think, by TWT which merged with BW when CRT were formed, I think sometime in the distant past BW divested itself of the museums precisely because of this sort of confusion.

 

My own personal view is that CRT would do well to create a separate, arms length trust for the museums otherwise they are facing the same issues that they would if they, say ran a hire fleet. Others also have historic boats and CRT shouldn't use their national waterway identity in this way.

[greywolf]

Wow, some bitter comments there! I'd like to point out that

A, it's ridiculous to talk about putting 'another boat on the system' as it is already on the system

B, Ferret does not belong to CRT, it is still within a trust along with all the other boats at the museum, CRT merely run the museum as relying on donations wasn't sufficient (shown by the bitterness that has been displayed here because a CHARITY is asking for donations...)

C, the cost of restoring one of the wooden boats in the collection would be enormous. But as someone mentioned, they are very close to receiving funds for both Mossdale and George

D, it is hoped that Merak will be next in line, and once Ferret has been completed, she will be available to tour the system extensively

E, ferret is ideal for us trainees to work on, being able to do everything from the surveys and documentation to woodwork and steel work

 

I find it quite embarrassing that only £500 has been raised so far and yet everyone moans about the state of the boat. The museum, in particularly the yard has turned a massive corner a couple of years ago with employing Dave Linney and a proper plan of on going maintenance of all the boats has been implemented, the only thing we struggle with is funding.

 

And for all those who slate CRT, that yard would not be there were it not for Tony Hales who has time after time reached into his own pocket to fund us.

 

And Lawrence, what on earth are you going on about horse manure? That pitch and tar was made by ourselves, ie not bought in pre mixed, and the Oakham has been sprayed with Stockholm Tar. The Hairy Bikers wanted something for TV, and so may not be entirely representative of how we do things, but there are people at the yard with a wealth of experience who know what they're doing

would it not be possible to offer the services of the training arm to the public.You would get your experience and historic boat owners would get a much needed service. i think i did hear that this was the original idea or am i thinking of a different regime .

[Tiggers]

The problem is the best to run the training is at the specially created Heritage Yard, and I think there is enough work there to keep us working for years, even if it is just the general maintenance of the boats at the museum.

 

As for selling ferret, as I said, the intention is hopefully the boat will tour the system as an on the move museum.

 

Also, I do believe the last thing we need is CRT getting involved in the selling off of any more of their historic boats like they have done in recent years. At least this way she will end up being restored to the way she was built instead of having a steel bottom, cabin and counter that does not reflect at all what the boats were like originally. That is unfortunately what has happened to most of the historic boats CRT have sold off. There are very few people still doing it properly.

i suppose putting this right then selling it to the highest bidder and using the proceeds to repair the next boat may be one way to go.They might make enough to do a wooden boat then.

I would be also horrified if ferret went to 'the highest bidder' and ended up having her wooden bottom and cabin replaced with steel

[Laurence Hogg]

"And Lawrence, what on earth are you going on about horse manure? That pitch and tar was made by ourselves, ie not bought in pre mixed, and the Oakham has been sprayed with Stockholm Tar. The Hairy Bikers wanted something for TV, and so may not be entirely representative of how we do things, but there are people at the yard with a wealth of experience who know what they're doing"

 

I am sure you mean "Oakum" and at Keays horse manure was mixed in with the tar, I was there, I mixed it. The Oakum Eddie used to "roll" had an oil added to it but definatly not Stockholm tar, that if I remember correctly was used to seal the joints after caulking.

[Timleech]

 

"And Lawrence, what on earth are you going on about horse manure? That pitch and tar was made by ourselves, ie not bought in pre mixed, and the Oakham has been sprayed with Stockholm Tar. The Hairy Bikers wanted something for TV, and so may not be entirely representative of how we do things, but there are people at the yard with a wealth of experience who know what they're doing"

 

I am sure you mean "Oakum" and at Keays horse manure was mixed in with the tar, I was there, I mixed it. The Oakum Eddie used to "roll" had an oil added to it but definatly not Stockholm tar, that if I remember correctly was used to seal the joints after caulking.

 

 

Horse manure is/was routinely mixed with tar to form a sort of bedding mastic - for instance to spread behind shearing boards or under metal 'tingles', the mix being often known as 'chalico'. Not for filling seams.

That said, I know nothing of what strange practices may have gone on in the Black Country or thereabouts

 

Tim

[davidg]

There are very few people still doing it properly.

 

The problem is more often in finding boat owners willing to pay to have it done properly:

 

You can have a new wood bottom & keelson, galvanised bolts (cheesehead bolts anyone?) etc. after we've cleaned up & restored the chine angle or we'll rip the bottom off & weld some plates to the chine angle. Same applies to new steel versus wooden cabin, riveting etc....How much do the options cost?

 

Which brings me on to:

 

 

would it not be possible to offer the services of the training arm to the public.You would get your experience and historic boat owners would get a much needed service. i think i did hear that this was the original idea or am i thinking of a different regime .

 

That would go down well with boatyards trying to make a living out of restoration work, having to compete with a heritage boatyard subsidised by donations, premises, etc. I'm sure Dave Linney and Dawn are well aware of problems going down that route.

[nebulae]

The fate of Ethel should be a warning.A chainsaw and bonfire makes short work of a wooden boat.

[Tiggers]

The fate of Ethel should be a warning.A chainsaw and bonfire makes short work of a wooden boat.

Fortunately I think have changed a bit since then!

With regards to finding customers willing to have a boat rebuilt the way it should be, there are probably not many that could afford it, or the upkeep, which is why it is important that there is somewhere doing it, otherwise it'll become a distant memory. You could probably count on one hand how many Joshers have had a new back counter that has been built to the original specifications

[Pluto]

The fate of Ethel should be a warning.A chainsaw and bonfire makes short work of a wooden boat.

Having broken up an old wooden wide boat, I would challenge that statement, as dismantling safely takes some time and a lot of effort. Most of the C&HN wooden boats on the coal trade in the 1970s were built just post-war using what was considered to be poor quality wood, all that was available. Most were in a pretty poor state by the end of traffic, and certainly would not have survived until now without major reconstruction. Unfortunately, there are few people capable of such work, which is far more skilled that needed for rebuilding wooden narrow boats. There is no doubt that there were and are problems with the waterways museums, but with regard to the wooden wide boats, most would have been destroyed over the years without a record had they not been taken in by the museum. At least there is something to work upon and measure up. I, and I am sure others who have owned wooden wide canal boats, do tend to get annoyed by criticism from those who have not had to maintain such boats. It is a completely different challenge to restoring wooden narrow boats, and not really for the amateur.