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A Rice Boat Builder?


Chas78

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On 13/02/2022 at 11:43, Tonka said:

I know Mike Heywood the boat builder was at Hoo Mill in 1986 because he repaired my 1983 Mike Heywood built boat.  Had to have a new propellor shift and coupling installed on our way home from Lymm to Surrey having just bought the boat second hand

There was someone  else,  i think called Richard who ran the business after JER for a few years. He just about completed the stretching of our boat in 1982 before going bust.

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On 13/02/2022 at 11:21, Colin S said:

Hi There. I appreciate this is an old post, but I'm sat here on a rainy day googling Kingfisher Line Hoo Mill. I'm reminiscing I guess.

J.E Rice was my Uncle (John Edwin) and A.Rice was my Grandfather. Both Passed away, My Grandfather in about 1971 and Uncle John about 5 years ago.

My Granny continued to live in the house and help out with the day to day running of the hire boat business until it was all sold in about 1981 (ish).

I have very few photos or records of that era even though some of my most memorable and enjoyable holidays were taken at Hoo Mill.  When I was 10 or 12 a small dayboat built of steel in workshops at Kingfisher Line (the smell of Swarfega takes me right back to those days! ) was made available to me during my stay. "Flip" as she was called had a Stuart Turner petrol engine and was part of the hire fleet.

 I'm still boating now but sea based, our present boat being a Nimbus 3003.

I'd love learn more about Kingfisher Line, I was about 14 when the business was sold (55 now).

 

ATB

 

Colin

Dear Colin

Nice to hear from you. I remember your Uncle John well!  I will have a look at the files from 1978-79 and see if there is anything that might be of interest to you. 

Bill did the joinery, and Nigel our roses and castles (still in use,  on the inside of stern doors). I can't remember the welder.

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Rice made jolly good horse boxes.

My failed show jumper / hunter hated his - kept trying to leap over his, but failed and banged his head on the roof instead. Stupid Irish Draught (actualy he loved a drop of Guiness)......

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I think it would have been A. Rice (he was just "Mr Rice") that I remember as being kind. He let me help to clean the hire boats (Tranquil, Halcyon and a smaller one) one day. I didn't want any payment because I enjoyed working on boats but he sent me off for a couple of hours with the outboard-powered runabout and I took it to Tixall Wide. A long time ago and far away.

 

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1 hour ago, GilesMorris said:

I think it would have been A. Rice (he was just "Mr Rice") that I remember as being kind. He let me help to clean the hire boats (Tranquil, Halcyon and a smaller one) one day. I didn't want any payment because I enjoyed working on boats but he sent me off for a couple of hours with the outboard-powered runabout and I took it to Tixall Wide. A long time ago and far away.

 

Here ya go!img439.jpg.66f778dce75588d611791c3279980133.jpg

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23 hours ago, Colin S said:

Brilliant! Thank you 😀

 

And here is Nigel's painting. Not bad after 43 years. The scumbling was redone in 1994, and the original wooden doors (not clear from the original quote!) were mounted on steel stern doors at the same date (the second stretching). He said that the dark sky in the top panel reflected air pollution in the Potteries ....  Bill the joiner went on to work for BW at their Fradley yard.

 

DSC_6073.JPG.19e408cf1418eb52e73b991abe5b014d.JPG

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On 23/02/2022 at 18:36, Scholar Gypsy said:

 

And here is Nigel's painting. Not bad after 43 years. The scumbling was redone in 1994, and the original wooden doors (not clear from the original quote!) were mounted on steel stern doors at the same date (the second stretching). He said that the dark sky in the top panel reflected air pollution in the Potteries ....  Bill the joiner went on to work for BW at their Fradley yard.

 

DSC_6073.JPG.19e408cf1418eb52e73b991abe5b014d.JPG

 

 

Great Aren't they? I think the colours and decorations of canal boats was what drew me into boating from a very young age. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

There's an article in the April Waterways World about someone who hired a boat from Hoo Mill in 1972. I think they had a fun time, apart from 30 hours in Rugeley waiting for a spare part for their engine ....  Let me know if you can't find a copy & I will stick it in the post.  

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On 03/03/2017 at 11:08, Chas78 said:

  it had a hull survey in 2003 unfortunately there is no evidence that it was blacked but i cannot see why it would have been taken out of the water and not blacked? the thinnest gauge noted was 4.9mm in 2003  

That's nearly 20 years ago, there are boats that have been built since then that have needed overplating

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13 hours ago, Scholar Gypsy said:

There's an article in the April Waterways World about someone who hired a boat from Hoo Mill in 1972. I think they had a fun time, apart from 30 hours in Rugeley waiting for a spare part for their engine ....  Let me know if you can't find a copy & I will stick it in the post.  

That would be an interesting read. Thank you. 

My Grandfather died in 1971 so my Uncle and Grandmother would have been running the business and possibly about the time they changed from weekly hire to dayboats. 

 

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