Where have all the GRP Cruisers gone???

[GRPCruiserman]

As I've mentioned before I sold the Dawncraft 25 over this DEFRA business, I cannot afford the current cost increase, so 30% would have killed it, and I'm now after a 15 foot or so trailboat with a trailer for a few hundred pounds, like the Yeoman I sold a couple of years ago.

 

They all seem to have disappeared!!!

 

Most boatyards seem to only deal in narrow boats or Gin Palaces these days.

 

Is this due to BW policy of destroying Section 8 boats under £1000, or is there a huge yard somewhere full of them!!!!

 

Anyone know where they are all hiding????

[mikevye]

We are currently inbetween boats and have been cruising the shroppie between Norbury and Autherly Junction in a hire boat courtesy of Norbury Wharf Narrowboats. This section of canal seems to harbour an extraordinary number of boats that do not require licences and about 50% of them are GRPs. They obviously haven't had any TLC for years and their owners would probably be grateful for BW to take them away FOC. Boats that are licenced seem to have special dispensations too with boats having one licence in date and the mooring one out of date and vice versa. Another GRP dominated ploy is to wrap yer boat in a big polythene wrap so that the name and licence can't be seen, slap your own section 8 on any one of these and twenty eight days later the boats yours problem sorted.

[WJM]

"Anyone know where they are all hiding????"

 

 

Secumbed to GRP capillary action?

[Liam]

There's plenty of them about on the Bridgewater... and actually at the moment there's 2 for sale...

 

One Callumcraft 22 and one Norman 23.

[Badger_1]

Ive had a few of them but have now joined the big boys and bought a narrowboat (sometimes wish I'd stuck with my cruiser).

 

You know the old saying - If you pay peanuts you get monkeys? The same goes for cruisers. For a few hundred quid you get crap that needs loads spending on it to get it onto the water. Spend a bit more and get a good one with a 4yr safety cert on it and in nice condition.

It wont cost you anymore in the long run you'll just save yourself a lot of work and sleepless nights.

 

You can pick a good one up for between £2000 - £3000 but steer clear of the crap.

 

Ive bought of ebay in the past and boats & outboards.com and provided you go and have a look first you cant go far wrong.

 

Good luck

[GRPCruiserman]

Apart from the Dawncraft, I have never spent more than £900 on a boat, in fact my Yeoman was only £100, and got it perfectly acceptable for about £200. (excl engine).

 

I sold the Yeoman after 4 years for £350 plus the engine, so had four years of weekends and four summer holidays in it.

 

The best boat I ever had was my Norman 20, that cost me £900 plus the engine.

 

I want a small boat, about 15/16 foot, the Dawncraft cost too much and was too big at 25 foot.

 

The post about the licences on the Shroppie I think explains it, BW's policy of destroying boats below £1000 in value is wrong, they should be section 8 snatched then sold as they used to be by auction. I suspect this is where all the cheapies have gone. Great shame. BW must be loosing out on money, but I suspect it's part of their policy of making the canals narrow boat owner only. I can't think of any other reason for it.

 

They seem to have won, people like me on a low income can no longer afford the canal as I used to. Day licences no longer seem to be promoted either.

 

Don't suppose they'll reply to this now we've lost Eugene's input to this forum.

 

[fuzzyduck]

why not send him an email, and ask him?

[Supermalc]

If you really want a cheap small cruiser.......here's the answer.

 

 

 

Tough 18ft hull. Just needs tin of paint (£6) inside and out. New plywood roof (£0.00 from skip or friend??) 2 air beds tenner each, plus sleeping bags, fiver each. Portable stove £10. Plus outboard........can even get old ones to do up from ebay for £20 or less.

 

£200 for boat, Plus £100 for refit and being realistic say £400 for reasonable second hand outboard.

 

Plenty about.......just no customers. Boat belongs to a friend and he wants rid.

[Yoda]

You didn't mention the air conditioning.

[Hairy-Neil]

........... people like me on a low income can no longer afford the canal as I used to.

 

 

You've just answered your own question.......The salvage costs are greater than the income generated.

 

Those that can afford a better boat will ALWAYS buy a better one. If BW sell a (scrap) sectioned boat to a dreamer who can't afford the repairs/restoration/upkeep/license etc then next year you have a section 8 notice again.

[fuzzyduck]

seems like a nice repeat little earner to me. sell the same boat every year.

 

Deleted rant - guess what it was about.

 

I'd have thought, with landfill site costs going up through the roof, recycling ANY boat was the better option.

Edited November 30, 2006 by fuzzyduck

[Tinally]

Eventually all the GRP cruisers at the "economy" end of the market will fall apart for one reason or another....and what then? As far as I know no-one is manufacturing any these days. If my numbers come up and I look for a new cruiser in the 20 -30 foot range, where do I go?

 

Dick

[fuzzyduck]

Bayliner

 

personally I'd go back to the 60's tho, and search hard for a nice sea master 27

Edited November 30, 2006 by fuzzyduck

[Hairy-Neil]

seems like a nice repeat little earner to me. sell the same boat every year.

 

I'd have thought, with landfill site costs going up through the roof, recycling ANY boat was the better option.

 

It costs £££££££ to salvage a sunken boat and get it to the market place, far in excess of any value.

[fuzzyduck]

yes, but it costs alot more pounds to salvage it, crush it, and put it in a skip, than it does to salvage it, and then put it on Ebay for a 1p start, no reserve, buyer collects auction.

 

It would also help those on a tighter budget, or who are younger get onto the canals, and maybe just maybe we'd have some help with the locks when we're all old farts.

Edited December 1, 2006 by fuzzyduck

[Supermalc]

You didn't mention the air conditioning.

 

Oh, and air conditioning so £250

 

Seriously, it's a bilge keel yacht, and so forrays into the Wash for a spot of sea fishing, as well and all the canal cruising perfectly possible. If someone had forced me to sell mine, by paying me lots (and I'm pleased they haven't) I'd certainly have it, now I've a free cheap mooring.

[GRPCruiserman]

yes, but it costs alot more pounds to salvage it, crush it, and put it in a skip, than it does to salvage it, and then put it on Ebay for a 1p start, no reserve, buyer collects auction.

 

It would also help those on a tighter budget, or who are younger get onto the canals, and maybe just maybe we'd have some help with the locks when we're all old farts.

 

Here here, it's more environmentally friendly too, as GRP doesn't biodegrade, you cant burn it safely, it's practically impossible to dispose of environmentally friendly-ly ???!!.

 

You can still buy new Shetlands, and there seem to be a few manufacturers in the North West here building new fishing boat hulls, but all have small cuddys, not proper lockable cabins and toilet cupboards. They are actually quite cheap, some under £2000 new, but I want one to sleep on. The Yeoman had a proper toilet cupboard, slept all three of us, and had enough storage for a fortnight's food and clothing for us all. We had full cooker, spare engine, VHF, CB, depth sounder, inverter, and it did 30 mph with the 20hp engine on. Wish I'd kept it now.

 

To be honest, it was in better condition than the windowless one on here when I got it!!, I'm afraid, windows are dear, so it kind of rights a boat off, they used to store section 8 cruisers near where I live and they went for 100-200 with windows, canopies, no problem. I bought the Yeoman from a boatyard, he even helped me get it on the trailer!! It had a cracking canopy, very dry, and no leaks inside. How things change.

 

There was one (a Yeoman 16) for sale with a trailer for about £600 at a yard in Cheshire for ages, but it's sold now I want one!! I suppose I'll just have to be patient.

 

[Hairy-Neil]

Here here, it's more environmentally friendly too, as GRP doesn't biodegrade, you cant burn it safely, it's practically impossible to dispose of environmentally friendly-ly ???!!.

 

 

But you can't force owners to properly maintain their boats so these bargain basement buys would sooner or later end up sunk and abandoned once more and have to be recovered again and again at great expense to the tax payer.....

 

Throw away the rose tinted spectacles, this is why BW have this disposal policy. Its based on years of past experience of the realities in life rather than on a romantic whim.

Edited December 1, 2006 by Hairy-Neil

[fuzzyduck]

Funny thing is, I can point you to quite a number of Project boats that have either been completely restored, or have at the very least been tarted up to a fair degree. certainly none of which have been abandoned again.

 

Had my own boat been section 8'd before i got it, it would have almost definitely been scrapped, she was since been treated to a new outboard, new canopy, old vent holes have either been capped or replaced with Vetus vents. Oh, and she's been completely rewired, and next spring she's coming out of the water for a complete repaint, new rubbing strakes etc.

 

OH, i've been putting off doing new windows, but next autum they will be done too.

 

there is an Eberspacher sitting in my dinning room ready to go in, as soon as a new control board is made up.

 

And i'm not the only one.

 

One of my friends has twice bought back very sad boats and fitted them out to high standards, GRPcruiserman has obviously done something similar with several bargains.

 

these boats then go back onto the system, and pay licences, moorings, and all the other fripparies.

 

None of these are romantic whims.

 

I'm firmly in GRP's camp, crushing such boats is irresponsible, and filling up vital land fill space, it's also potentially denying those on a low income access to the boaty side of the waterways.

 

They're also a lot more waterways friendly, they do less damage on impact with something, and 4-6 of them in a widebeam lock is not unheard of, someone being a pratt in a cruiser is a danger to himself, someone being a pratt in a N.B is a danger to others.

[GRPCruiserman]

Funny thing is, I can point you to quite a number of Project boats that have either been completely restored, or have at the very least been tarted up to a fair degree. certainly none of which have been abandoned again.

 

Had my own boat been section 8'd before i got it, it would have almost definitely been scrapped, she was since been treated to a new outboard, new canopy, old vent holes have either been capped or replaced with Vetus vents. Oh, and she's been completely rewired, and next spring she's coming out of the water for a complete repaint, new rubbing strakes etc.

 

OH, i've been putting off doing new windows, but next autum they will be done too.

 

there is an Eberspacher sitting in my dinning room ready to go in, as soon as a new control board is made up.

 

And i'm not the only one.

 

One of my friends has twice bought back very sad boats and fitted them out to high standards, GRPcruiserman has obviously done something similar with several bargains.

 

these boats then go back onto the system, and pay licences, moorings, and all the other fripparies.

 

None of these are romantic whims.

 

I'm firmly in GRP's camp, crushing such boats is irresponsible, and filling up vital land fill space, it's also potentially denying those on a low income access to the boaty side of the waterways.

 

They're also a lot more waterways friendly, they do less damage on impact with something, and 4-6 of them in a widebeam lock is not unheard of, someone being a pratt in a cruiser is a danger to himself, someone being a pratt in a N.B is a danger to others.

 

Totally agree, a guy on the Lancaster just saved a very nice Fairline 19 in the summer from the crusher, BW were going to section 8 it and crush it, he gave the owner a couple of hundred pounds, spent most of the summer having it done up and it's a cracker now, paying licence, and full BW mooring fees to them. The owner just could no longer afford the licence or mooring, and was glad of the money.

 

I am on a low income, but I know how little it costs to run and keep a small boat, and how much dearer it gets when you go up to 25 foot. I CAN afford 16 foot, but not 25. Similarly, I can't afford more than say about £1500 to buy one. I would rather buy my own engine, so a few hundred for the boat would do very nicely, but they've all disappeared.

 

BW just want the corporate image of nice shiney narrow boats and nothing else on the canal, that is why they brought in the £1000 rule, at least in my opinion, and no BW person has yet denied it.

[fuzzyduck]

GRP, just for you, email this to Eugene.

 

Dear Eugene.

 

Please consider this a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

 

Please provide all documentation, and communications relating to the development of the ruling that boats considered to be worth less than £1000 should be scrapped if they are section 8'd

[GRPCruiserman]

GRP, just for you, email this to Eugene.

 

Dear Eugene.

 

Please consider this a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

 

Please provide all documentation, and communications relating to the development of the ruling that boats considered to be worth less than £1000 should be scrapped if they are section 8'd

 

 

Shame he was frightened away, his input was useful on this site, wasn't it, mind you BW have probably had to give all their computers to DEFRA now to pay their fines so he wouldn't be able to reply anyway.

 

It would be worth a quick e-mail, though.

[Yoda]

I doubt that there is a £1000 rule but I wouldn't be surprised if for cost accounting, there is a limit.

[fuzzyduck]

I would't either Yoda, but for various reasons i think it's wrong.

 

mind you you know the bit in the original Italian Job where all Those nice cars get pushed over a cliff, i have to hide behind the sofa.

[Yoda]

I would't either Yoda, but for various reasons i think it's wrong.

 

mind you you know the bit in the original Italian Job where all Those nice cars get pushed over a cliff, i have to hide behind the sofa.

 

I know, the Lambo was a body on a Triumph Herald chassis but the two XKE's and the Aston were for real.