Boat Buying Checklist - HELP!

[Holly Lacey]

 

Just remember that after the survey the boat is NOT your until paid for, any monies you spend on it could be 'lost' if the seller decides to back out, or anything else happens.

 

Usually when a boat is lifted out for a survey it is held in the hoist / on the trailer for a couple of hours whilst the survey takes place and is then dropped back into the water. The marina will not want to have its hoist / trailer tied up for days / weeks whilst you reach agreement with the seller, raise the money, transfer the money etc.

 

If there is the chance that you will buy the boat (subject to a good survey) then you need to arrange with both the boat yard and the seller to have it lifted and dropped 'onto the hard' and agree to pay (or maybe pay in advance) all of the storage charges, hoist charges (to 'put back in' etc).

 

The seller and the boatyard do not know you and they are risking 'some cost' - you may decide to change your mind (buyers remorse) or find a better boat the next day so payment in advance would not be unreasonable.

 

Edit to add :

Its not a 'blue boat, painted all over in black bitumen' with all of the vents sealed up, owned by a lady called 'Max' is it ?

 

Thanks for this. So would you say the best course of action is to get the survey done and then just take it from there?

 

And no haha, it's a 40ft Hancock and Lane

Before you commit to transport by road, check the cost of getting a professional boatmover to make the move by water. It could well be cheaper.

 

I have done already. Been quoted £1450 by water, waiting on the quote by road, but have been told by another NB mover that road will be my cheaper option.

[MtB]

Okay, so I've found another boat and will likely be viewing it next Sunday. It's up in Skipton. I plan to contact a surveyor soon and arrange for a full pre-purchase survey to be done (the last one done on the boat was 2011). More questions:

 

 

Woahhh, stop right there!!!!!!

 

Have you actually looked at any boats in the flesh yet? I've not noticed you saying so, so far...

 

The thing is, boats are totally different in personality in real life than in adverts. Boats you think look fantastic in the advert can leave you cold. Boats that are all wrong but you looked just because they are 'on the way home' turn out to move you, and choose you to you buy them. There is no escape once an unsuitable boat chooses you, and I'm not sure you've given any the chance yet or experienced this irresistable effect.

 

Mr Fincher has you'll notice, and so have I.

[Holly Lacey]

 

 

Woahhh, stop right there!!!!!!

 

Have you actually looked at any boats in the flesh yet? I've not noticed you saying so, so far...

 

The thing is, boats are totally different in personality in real life than in adverts. Boats you think look fantastic in the advert can leave you cold. Boats that are all wrong but you looked just because they are 'on the way home' turn out to move you, and choose you to you buy them. There is no escape once an unsuitable boat chooses you, and I'm not sure you've given any the chance yet or experienced this irresistable effect.

 

Mr Fincher has you'll notice, and so have I.

 

Yes, I've looked at some boats already to get a feel for the layout/ size etc. I know I could view this boat and not like it at all, these questions are to get me prepared for a potential buy

[Alan de Enfield]

 

 

And no haha, it's a 40ft Hancock and Lane

 

 

 

From memory so was Max's boat, and it was in 'Skipton area', and she used Pennine cruisers to do some work to get it so 'it moved'.

She bought it based on a 2012 survey and it turned out to be a disaster. I'm sure if you really look you could find the huge thread on the subject.

 

Edit to add :

 

Read the attached, its 'how not to do it' (and was just the last chapter of many 100s of emails to forum members - I had over 200 in a couple of weeks)

 

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=86803&hl=

 

71 pages which unfortunately go a 'bit nasty' towards the end as life seemed to 'get a bit on top of Max'

Edited February 19, 2017 by Alan de Enfield

[WotEver]

Its not a 'blue boat, painted all over in black bitumen' with all of the vents sealed up, owned by a lady called 'Max' is it ?

As soon as Skipton was mentioned that question crossed my mind too...

[Holly Lacey]

From memory so was Max's boat, and it was in 'Skipton area', and she used Pennine cruisers to do some work to get it so 'it moved'.

She bought it based on a 2012 survey and it turned out to be a disaster. I'm sure if you really look you could find the huge thread on the subject.

 

Edit to add :

 

Read the attached, its 'how not to do it' (and was just the last chapter of many 100s of emails to forum members - I had over 200 in a couple of weeks)

 

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=86803&hl=

 

71 pages which unfortunately go a 'bit nasty' towards the end as life seemed to 'get a bit on top of Max'

Didn't make it through all 71 pages, skippped to the last 10 to get straight to the juicey bits. I'll make sure not to seal off my vents!!

[chubby]

I think its worth settling down and reading the whole thing . Order in a pizza as it ll take you a while to read it .

It begins with boundless enthusiasm and energy and ends miserably & is probably the best account of how the " i should buy a boat " idea can go dreadfully wrong .

In my estimation the OP is probably the most sensible potential buyer thats been on this forum in yonks ,and i doubt that similar mistakes will be made .

But when budgets are low its easy to be seduced by nice interiors etc . I think the old idea of " buy the worst house on the best street " is a notion worth bearing mind .

By this i mean try to put the hull and engine above all else and then the interior . By no means easy , but its important i think .

I think you really ought to go and see lots of boats in / slighly above your budget . LOTS ! Have u been to Whilton marina as a " for instance " . You 'll get to see lots of boats , lots of layouts , in varied conditions inside & out . But be wary of actually buying from them , just go mooching there aa they let you do so by yourself unaccompanied and you can have a real nose around them .

I think you are wise to check moving costs etc in advance and your approach to buying , so far has been sensible but its so easy to buy a lemon .

Don t rush into anything - the lengthy thread linked to above will highlight what can happen when enthusiasm overtakes caution and common sense .

Apologies if all this appears " patronising " - its certainly not meant to but i think you and indeed anyone needs to be on your guard when the budget is low .

Get a picnic , banquet , pizza in & settle down and try to read that thread - its a real eye opener .... unfortunately

cheers

Edited February 20, 2017 by chubby

[magictime]

A quick look at Apollo Duck should satisfy any concerned citizens that this is not Max's boat we're talking about! Doesn't really feel like my place to share a link to the boat I'm pretty sure we are talking about, though.

 

Hope the viewing goes well, Holly.

[Holly Lacey]

I think its worth settling down and reading the whole thing . Order in a pizza as it ll take you a while to read it .

It begins with boundless enthusiasm and energy and ends miserably & is probably the best account of how the " i should buy a boat " idea can go dreadfully wrong .

In my estimation the OP is probably the most sensible potential buyer thats been on this forum in yonks ,and i doubt that similar mistakes will be made .

But when budgets are low its easy to be seduced by nice interiors etc . I think the old idea of " buy the worst house on the best street " is a notion worth bearing mind .

By this i mean try to put the hull and engine above all else and then the interior . By no means easy , but its important i think .

I think you really ought to go and see lots of boats in / slighly above your budget . LOTS ! Have u been to Whilton marina as a " for instance " . You 'll get to see lots of boats , lots of layouts , in varied conditions inside & out . But be wary of actually buying from them , just go mooching there aa they let you do so by yourself unaccompanied and you can have a real nose around them .

I think you are wise to check moving costs etc in advance and your approach to buying , so far has been sensible but its so easy to buy a lemon .

Don t rush into anything - the lengthy thread linked to above will highlight what can happen when enthusiasm overtakes caution and common sense .

Apologies if all this appears " patronising " - its certainly not meant to but i think you and indeed anyone needs to be on your guard when the budget is low .

Get a picnic , banquet , pizza in & settle down and try to read that thread - its a real eye opener .... unfortunately

cheers

 

Yep, the is something I'm drilling into myself whenever I see a 'nice' boat and I'm prepared to walk away from said 'nice' boat if it's not in a good condition.

 

Inner me is very cautious and a bit cynical, so I'm always expecting the worst and not getting my hopes up, but hopefully this can help weed out the lemons!

[MtB]

I think its worth settling down and reading the whole thing . Order in a pizza as it ll take you a while to read it .

It begins with boundless enthusiasm and energy and ends miserably & is probably the best account of how the " i should buy a boat " idea can go dreadfully wrong .

In my estimation the OP is probably the most sensible potential buyer thats been on this forum in yonks ,and i doubt that similar mistakes will be made .

But when budgets are low its easy to be seduced by nice interiors etc . I think the old idea of " buy the worst house on the best street " is a notion worth bearing mind .

By this i mean try to put the hull and engine above all else and then the interior . By no means easy , but its important i think .

I think you really ought to go and see lots of boats in / slighly above your budget . LOTS ! Have u been to Whilton marina as a " for instance " . You 'll get to see lots of boats , lots of layouts , in varied conditions inside & out . But be wary of actually buying from them , just go mooching there aa they let you do so by yourself unaccompanied and you can have a real nose around them .

I think you are wise to check moving costs etc in advance and your approach to buying , so far has been sensible but its so easy to buy a lemon .

Don t rush into anything - the lengthy thread linked to above will highlight what can happen when enthusiasm overtakes caution and common sense .

Apologies if all this appears " patronising " - its certainly not meant to but i think you and indeed anyone needs to be on your guard when the budget is low .

Get a picnic , banquet , pizza in & settle down and try to read that thread - its a real eye opener .... unfortunately

cheers

 

 

Wish I'd written that. Every thought and every word is spot on. Big fat geenie from me!!

[MtB]

On the other hand it is terribly easy for a newbie to suffer from stasis, looking at boat after boat after boat and rejecting all of them because all of them have *something* on the tickbox list that isn't right.

 

Sometimes you just have to 'take a view' and buy a boat that likes you. The boat choosing you is quite common and all reason flies out the door. You'll find yourself making excuses for why the boxes not ticked don't matter when the right boat selects you to be its owner. I for example was looking for 45-50ft and was selected by a 68ft boat. Wonderful!

Oh, and on reflection I'm a double victim. Another boat also forced me to buy it when the last thing I needed was a second boat!

[alan_fincher]

I think its worth settling down and reading the whole thing . Order in a pizza as it ll take you a while to read it .

It begins with boundless enthusiasm and energy and ends miserably & is probably the best account of how the " i should buy a boat " idea can go dreadfully wrong .

In my estimation the OP is probably the most sensible potential buyer thats been on this forum in yonks ,and i doubt that similar mistakes will be made .

But when budgets are low its easy to be seduced by nice interiors etc . I think the old idea of " buy the worst house on the best street " is a notion worth bearing mind .

By this i mean try to put the hull and engine above all else and then the interior . By no means easy , but its important i think .

I think you really ought to go and see lots of boats in / slighly above your budget . LOTS ! Have u been to Whilton marina as a " for instance " . You 'll get to see lots of boats , lots of layouts , in varied conditions inside & out . But be wary of actually buying from them , just go mooching there aa they let you do so by yourself unaccompanied and you can have a real nose around them .

I think you are wise to check moving costs etc in advance and your approach to buying , so far has been sensible but its so easy to buy a lemon .

Don t rush into anything - the lengthy thread linked to above will highlight what can happen when enthusiasm overtakes caution and common sense .

Apologies if all this appears " patronising " - its certainly not meant to but i think you and indeed anyone needs to be on your guard when the budget is low .

Get a picnic , banquet , pizza in & settle down and try to read that thread - its a real eye opener .... unfortunately

cheers

 

Exactly as above - I'm sure many of us think exactly what chubby has said - spot on!

 

I'm also dubious that buying a boat in Skipton, and paying for 2 sets of craning, and a move by road vehicle will save you money over buying closer to where you actually want a boat. I appreciate that suitable boats are harder to find than a few years back, but I struggle to believe at this stage it is worth travelling that far afield, (unless you had the time and enthusiasm to boat it down yourself, without the road move).

[MtB]

 

Exactly as above - I'm sure many of us think exactly what chubby has said - spot on!

 

I'm also dubious that buying a boat in Skipton, and paying for 2 sets of craning, and a move by road vehicle will save you money over buying closer to where you actually want a boat. I appreciate that suitable boats are harder to find than a few years back, but I struggle to believe at this stage it is worth travelling that far afield, (unless you had the time and enthusiasm to boat it down yourself, without the road move).

 

 

If the OP talks to Tuckeys they will probably tell her what they tell me, which is the distance makes no difference to the cost of moving a boat. They charge the same to move a boat 3 miles as 300 as the lorry and driver has to be booked for the whole day.

 

Consequently say £300 craneage each end and say £700 for the lorry only comes to £1,300, well within the bounds of price negotiation in my opinion, so no reason for not looking further afield. Cambridge/Ely isn't exactly ram jammed with boats for sale anyway is it?

 

 

 

(Edit to add a missing word.)

Edited February 20, 2017 by Mike the Boilerman

[alan_fincher]

 

 

If the OP talks to Tuckeys they will probably tell her what they tell me, which is the distance makes no difference to the cost of moving a boat. They charge the same to move a boat 3 miles as 300 as the lorry and driver has to be booked for the whole day.

 

Consequently say £300 craneage each end and say £700 for the lorry only comes to £1,300, well within the bounds of price negotiation in my opinion, so no reason for not looking further afield. Cambridge/Ely isn't exactly ram jammed with boats for sale anyway is it?

 

You seem to have costs quoted for craning than are less than those I have frequently head. I've never asked, so I don't know.

 

It's not just about bringing the boat down if you buy it though is it? Round trip Cambridge to Skipton? Maybe 350 miles and around 7 hours of driving? So £40 maybe on fuel, and probably a lot more by the time you consider wear and tear, and all you are likely to spend on anciliaries.

 

I'm well aware that boats in the South are supposed to command a premium, but I'm still not convinced looking this far afield is a great idea. I've not read enough of Holly's posts to know her circumstances, but unless looking at multiple boats in an area, it seems a real trek, (to me).

 

(Mind you I'm speaking as one who would never have bought a boat there, as the kind of boat I wanted to buy couldn't have been there, as it would be too long for that canal!)

[MtB]

 

You seem to have costs quoted for craning than are less than those I have frequently head. I've never asked, so I don't know.

 

It's not just about bringing the boat down if you buy it though is it? Round trip Cambridge to Skipton? Maybe 350 miles and around 7 hours of driving? So £40 maybe on fuel, and probably a lot more by the time you consider wear and tear, and all you are likely to spend on anciliaries.

 

I'm well aware that boats in the South are supposed to command a premium, but I'm still not convinced looking this far afield is a great idea. I've not read enough of Holly's posts to know her circumstances, but unless looking at multiple boats in an area, it seems a real trek, (to me).

 

(Mind you I'm speaking as one who would never have bought a boat there, as the kind of boat I wanted to buy couldn't have been there, as it would be too long for that canal!)

 

 

Just for clarity I was only quoting what Tuckeys have charged me just for the lorry, i.e £700.

 

£300 to lift is a typical boatyard charge for lifting a boat onto/off from a lorry using the yard crane in my experience.

 

Tuckeys would charge a whole lot more than that to send their own mobile crane. to each lifting location.

[chubby]

On the other hand it is terribly easy for a newbie to suffer from stasis, looking at boat after boat after boat and rejecting all of them because all of them have *something* on the tickbox list that isn't right.

 

Sometimes you just have to 'take a view' and buy a boat that likes you. The boat choosing you is quite common and all reason flies out the door. You'll find yourself making excuses for why the boxes not ticked don't matter when the right boat selects you to be its owner. I for example was looking for 45-50ft and was selected by a 68ft boat. Wonderful!

 

Oh, and on reflection I'm a double victim. Another boat also forced me to buy it when the last thing I needed was a second boat!

 

Agreed ,

 

 

I think though , as is often said you can tend to " feel " that you are looking at the right boat once youre inside it or looking over it .... in the flesh so to speak .

The camera never lies has got to be the least accurate turn of phrase ever created . I remember several boats looking great on the duck and being bobbins in real life .

Being a cynical old sod means that my mentality would be that id rather look at a boats interior and see some floorboards that need fixing , and old tired kitchen that needs replacing or dull boring wall panels that might benefit from a splash of paint than be enticed by a boat thats been painted throughout in " London Narrowboat White " , has some " metro " tiles put up in the bathroom and an " all the rage " laminate floor .

It just , to me , screams "'rip off " or " old banger spruced up " . Most of em in real life probably look like a bad episode of 60 Minute Makeover .

I d prefer an " honest " boat if i d a low budget . Not a dump as such but just something that needed a bit of doing up . This is how my boat was when i bought it .

Nothing about it sounded alarm bells , it didn t appear tarted up and that appealed to me . The idea being that hopefully the hull and engine are sound and i can do the tarting up myself ..... and enjoy doing it .

Once id thought " this 'll do for me , it has potential etc " then the brain really kicks in i had to consider the hull & the engine . My lack of knowledge meant that this could be determined only via a survey . If the hull , steelwork and engine were not good enough then id walk away .

This are just my thoughts of course but to me the fundamentals are paramount the rest is furniture to be sorted in due course .

When the OP visits boats , as is often said , you ll know if its suitable for thier purposes quite quickly , within a few minutes id even say and from there the purchase can be considered more seriously .

But

i think looking at boats in the flesh is infinately more worthwhile than mooching on tinternet to get a better idea of what thier budget is likely to buy them & remove any rosey coloured tints from spectacles .

There really is no substitute for it

cheers

[Jess--]

when we were looking at boats we went to look at 3 on the same day (having narrowed down the list a lot based on the adverts), all were roughly the same age and advertised at very similar prices, initially we thought we were most likely to buy the 3rd boat but were looking at the others just in case, the least likely was thought to be the 1st.

 

The first had very tidy paintwork externally, a battered and green pram hood and internally someone had tried sanding down some of the woodwork (poorly), also someone had removed all of the seating from the saloon (presumably they used a sofabed or similar)

overall a boat that was shown in honest condition with nothing tarted up or hidden, in one of the drawers under the bed was a folder containing the manuals for every bit of equipment along with the original drawings for the boat and numerous invoices for work that had been done.

 

The second was a little rough on the outside (almost to the point of needing a repaint) but had a fresh BSC and was tidy inside, lifting the boards at the back revealed a very oily bmc engine (which was a surprise as it was advertised as having a beta), 9 inches of water and a bilge pump with the wires cut off, we stopped looking at this point and had serious doubts about the BSC that was at that point less than 2 weeks old.

 

The third looked great from the outside but we found that we hated it as soon as we got inside... can't explain why but it just didn't fit for us.

 

We ended up making an offer on the first boat that was around 30% lower than the asking price and after haggling buying it for a little over 19% off. we decided against a survey (but I would not advise this unless you have previously spent a lot of time on/around boats).

 

Almost 2 years on I am still sure that we got the right boat, our biggest issue so far has been a loose screw that jammed the throttle control at half throttle.

 

 

One silly thing to check on any boat which sounds silly but could easily destroy your enjoyment of the boat.... check that you fit in the bed, one of the boats we looked at (2nd or 3rd) had a bed that looked fine but was only 5'8" long, at a touch under 6' tall neither moe or my partner would never have been able to lie straight on it

[OldGoat]

chubby, on 20 Feb 2017 - 11:02 AM, said:

Agreed ,

 

 

I think though , as is often said you can tend to " feel " that you are looking at the right boat once youre inside it or looking over it .... in the flesh so to speak .

The camera never lies has got to be the least accurate turn of phrase ever created . I remember several boats looking great on the duck and being bobbins in real life .

Being a cynical old sod means that my mentality would be that id rather look at a boats interior and see some floorboards that need fixing , and old tired kitchen that needs replacing or dull boring wall panels that might benefit from a splash of paint than be enticed by a boat thats been painted throughout in " London Narrowboat White " , has some " metro " tiles put up in the bathroom and an " all the rage " laminate floor .

It just , to me , screams "'rip off " or " old banger spruced up " . Most of em in real life probably look like a bad episode of 60 Minute Makeover .

I d prefer an " honest " boat if i d a low budget . Not a dump as such but just something that needed a bit of doing up . This is how my boat was when i bought it .

Nothing about it sounded alarm bells , it didn t appear tarted up and that appealed to me . The idea being that hopefully the hull and engine are sound and i can do the tarting up myself ..... and enjoy doing it .

Once id thought " this 'll do for me , it has potential etc " then the brain really kicks in i had to consider the hull & the engine . My lack of knowledge meant that this could be determined only via a survey . If the hull , steelwork and engine were not good enough then id walk away .

This are just my thoughts of course but to me the fundamentals are paramount the rest is furniture to be sorted in due course .

When the OP visits boats , as is often said , you ll know if its suitable for thier purposes quite quickly , within a few minutes id even say and from there the purchase can be considered more seriously .

But

i think looking at boats in the flesh is infinately more worthwhile than mooching on tinternet to get a better idea of what thier budget is likely to buy them & remove any rosey coloured tints from spectacles .

There really is no substitute for it

cheers

 

 

Jess--, on 20 Feb 2017 - 11:36 AM, said:

when we were looking at boats we went to look at 3 on the same day (having narrowed down the list a lot based on the adverts), all were roughly the same age and advertised at very similar prices, initially we thought we were most likely to buy the 3rd boat but were looking at the others just in case, the least likely was thought to be the 1st.

 

The first had very tidy paintwork externally, a battered and green pram hood and internally someone had tried sanding down some of the woodwork (poorly), also someone had removed all of the seating from the saloon (presumably they used a sofabed or similar)

overall a boat that was shown in honest condition with nothing tarted up or hidden, in one of the drawers under the bed was a folder containing the manuals for every bit of equipment along with the original drawings for the boat and numerous invoices for work that had been done.

 

The second was a little rough on the outside (almost to the point of needing a repaint) but had a fresh BSC and was tidy inside, lifting the boards at the back revealed a very oily bmc engine (which was a surprise as it was advertised as having a beta), 9 inches of water and a bilge pump with the wires cut off, we stopped looking at this point and had serious doubts about the BSC that was at that point less than 2 weeks old.

 

The third looked great from the outside but we found that we hated it as soon as we got inside... can't explain why but it just didn't fit for us.

 

We ended up making an offer on the first boat that was around 30% lower than the asking price and after haggling buying it for a little over 19% off. we decided against a survey (but I would not advise this unless you have previously spent a lot of time on/around boats).

 

Almost 2 years on I am still sure that we got the right boat, our biggest issue so far has been a loose screw that jammed the throttle control at half throttle.

 

 

One silly thing to check on any boat which sounds silly but could easily destroy your enjoyment of the boat.... check that you fit in the bed, one of the boats we looked at (2nd or 3rd) had a bed that looked fine but was only 5'8" long, at a touch under 6' tall neither moe or my partner would never have been able to lie straight on it

 

Lots of very sensible pointers in the above - worth a greenie...

 

So many folks come on here and buy a pretty interior and completely ignore the 'mechanicals'.

You can personalise most interiors using your own labour and bought in fittings.

However, the engine, plumbing and electrics are (not unreasonably) a mystery to most. Expensive to fix - because at least - you have to buy in the resource and some parts are expensive.

Yet folks ignore what they can't understand and soon come back on here for help.

Examples-

One owner needed to upgrade their alternator on an old Lister engine. Very difficult / impossible because part of the engine came within the bedroom.

Two cases recently of leaking water pumps / broken accumulators / badly cooled engines as a result of poor fitouts. May be not a show stopper - but enough expense when the owner has spent all their limited budget...

[Phil Ambrose]

"In terms of electrics, is it likely to find a boat that won't have what's necessary to match a Marina mooring? (Apologies for my newbie talk, I'm trying to learn as much as possible)"

 

 

It's possible to live on a boat with only 12v power for lights, water pumps, fridge, radio and tv, and plenty do, but if you want any 240V items you will need an inverter (google it). To charge your 12v batteries in a marina your boat will need a shore-line (hook-up) connection and charger box (can be seperate but is included in an inverter). Most modern boats have these but some don't; a new inverter is about £400 plus £100 for shoreline plug socket.

Just to be sure the OP understands , by charger box what is actually meant is battery charger plus chargers are not included in inverters, only in combi inverters, ordinary inverters do not have charging ability

Phil

[Holly Lacey]

Hi again all, and thanks for all your help!

Big news... I have a boat!

Be it fate, coincidence, or luck, I found a boat at the marina I intended on mooring at (Ely).

On our way back from Tring, visiting a boat (glad I didn't go with that one in the end), I arrived at the marina with the intention of handing over my deposit to secure my mooring, but was told they had recently got a small narrowboat that I may be interested in. So to cut a long story short, I looked, I liked, I surveyed (came back absolutely fine), and it's now mine! I am the proud owner 35ft Lady Mildred

[rusty69]

1 minute ago, Holly Lacey said:

Hi again all, and thanks for all your help!

Big news... I have a boat!

Be it fate, coincidence, or luck, I found a boat at the marina I intended on mooring at (Ely).

On our way back from Tring, visiting a boat (glad I didn't go with that one in the end), I arrived at the marina with the intention of handing over my deposit to secure my mooring, but was told they had recently got a small narrowboat that I may be interested in. So to cut a long story short, I looked, I liked, I surveyed (came back absolutely fine), and it's now mine! I am the proud owner 35ft Lady Mildred

Congratulations. Just in time for spring. Enjoy

[Guest]

Superb have fun  

[Chewbacka]

1 hour ago, Holly Lacey said:

Hi again all, and thanks for all your help!

Big news... I have a boat!

Be it fate, coincidence, or luck, I found a boat at the marina I intended on mooring at (Ely).

On our way back from Tring, visiting a boat (glad I didn't go with that one in the end), I arrived at the marina with the intention of handing over my deposit to secure my mooring, but was told they had recently got a small narrowboat that I may be interested in. So to cut a long story short, I looked, I liked, I surveyed (came back absolutely fine), and it's now mine! I am the proud owner 35ft Lady Mildred

I just googled it and it's a nice looking boat.  You must be pleased.

[Holly Lacey]

1 hour ago, Chewbacka said:

I just googled it and it's a nice looking boat.  You must be pleased.

Thanks, I am indeed. It's a lovely, little, very tidy boat. 

[Chewbacka]

7 minutes ago, Holly Lacey said:

Thanks, I am indeed. It's a lovely, little, very tidy boat. 

Just a word of caution, be careful when you let your crew sit on the nice bench in the sweep of the tiller arm as in locks etc it as been known for a boat to surge backwards when the paddles are opened and bash the rudder into the lock gates causing the tiller arm to sweep them over the back rail into the canal and sucked into the prop.