Which diesel engine would people recommend for a narrowboat

[alan_fincher]

30 minutes ago, Dave_P said:

Calcutt were still putting brand new (Turkish built) BMCs in their clipper boats until very recently.  Do you know that they have stopped?  You can certainly still buy an 'off the shelf' recon BMC engine from Calcutt.

They stopped advertising them some time back, but I'm not sure I could be precise about when.  5 years, maybe, but that's purely a guess.

There was some suggestion, I think, that they could not meet latest requirements on emission controls, but that may have been a red herring.

Would it be legitimate to fit a Calcutt "reconditioned" engine to a new boat?  I'm not sure.  As far as I can see Calcutt are no longer offering new "Clipper" class boats - something I was unaware of.  (Unless someone can find a link I have missed!)

[TheBiscuits]

Another perspective on this is don't worry too much about it.  The engine in the boat that picks you (you don't pick boats!) is probably the one you want.  By all means get someone to cast an eye over it for any obvious problems, but if it starts well, runs well and isn't too grotty it should be fine. 

Don't reject an otherwise ideal for you boat because someone on a forum once had trouble with a similar engine.  The only time choosing the engine is really relevant is if you are ordering a brand new boat, or are a fan of specific vintage engines.

A lot depends on budget obviously, but you can replace any engine if you must for a few thousand pounds.  Replacing like for like is best as it just swaps out, but any competent boatyard can fit a different engine if you need to.

I certainly would not reject a boat for the engine, but am grateful ours had a new(ish) Beta in it instead of the old Colvic Coventry Victor it once had!

 

Edited February 12, 2018 by TheBiscuits
'Cos I had a brainfade! Thanks Bizz

[bizzard]

3 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

Another perspective on this is don't worry too much about it.  The engine in the boat that picks you (you don't pick boats!) is probably the one you want.  By all means get someone to cast an eye over it for any obvious problems, but if it starts well, runs well and isn't too grotty it should be fine. 

Don't reject an otherwise ideal for you boat because someone on a forum once had trouble with a similar engine.  The only time choosing the engine is really relevant is if you are ordering a brand new boat, or are a fan of specific vintage engines.

A lot depends on budget obviously, but you can replace any engine if you must for a few thousand pounds.  Replacing like for like is best as it just swaps out, but any competent boatyard can fit a different engine if you need to.

I certainly would not reject a boat for the engine, but am grateful ours had a new(ish) Beta in it instead of the old Colvic Victor it once had!

 

Coventry Victor??

[TheBiscuits]

7 minutes ago, bizzard said:

Coventry Victor??

Heh yeah, not the yacht, the old side piston engine!

These don't fit too well in the engine room of a narrowboat:

 

Edited February 12, 2018 by TheBiscuits

[OldGoat]

What a can of worms - I'd be totally bewildered by all the permutations and combinations put forward. I was about to summarise, but I see that young Mr. Bizzard has summed it up perfectly. (Except for Doxford, but he left an appropriate smiley)

There's a simple set of reasons -

• The model should be in current production
• In general use particularly for narrowboats
• have been marinised by a 'specialist' and are suitable for such marinisation and the extra bits such as additional alternator(s)
• spare parts easily available - consumables and 'more serious parts'
• Economic to repair

In effect that means Japanese small plant engines.

Anything else should be treated with caution, and if you love the boat and have surplus funds to replace the existing engine should and when needed - then.....

 

[Guest]

We have a Vetus which continues to be very good after 14 years, but spares, when needed, are in my opinion very expensive. It is possible to get pattern filters, and other non-oem stuff, but that is not always convenient. 

[Tumshie]

23 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

The engine in the boat that picks you (you don't pick boats!) is probably the one you want.

I love this boaty mysticism, but if I bought every boat that I thought picked me I'd have a garden full of boats because I couldn't afford to keep them on the cut.

[Dave_P]

44 minutes ago, alan_fincher said:

They stopped advertising them some time back, but I'm not sure I could be precise about when.  5 years, maybe, but that's purely a guess.

There was some suggestion, I think, that they could not meet latest requirements on emission controls, but that may have been a red herring.

Would it be legitimate to fit a Calcutt "reconditioned" engine to a new boat?  I'm not sure.  As far as I can see Calcutt are no longer offering new "Clipper" class boats - something I was unaware of.  (Unless someone can find a link I have missed!)

They don't seem to be on the website but they were showing them at Crick in 2016 with quite a lot of interest.

[MtB]

20 minutes ago, Tumshie said:

I love this boaty mysticism, but if I bought every boat that I thought picked me I'd have a garden full of boats because I couldn't afford to keep them on the cut.

 

You HEARTBREAKER you, leaving a trail of upset boats out there, all feeling like spurned and rejected lovers, wondering what 'could have been'...

[Tumshie]

3 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

You HEARTBREAKER you, leaving a trail of upset boats out there, all feeling like spurned and rejected lovers, wondering what 'could have been'...

I spent a lot of tea brakes with poor old NB Ian when he was on the duck (dreaming of the future that we might have together) but a lass it wasn't meant to be - I just couldn't give him what he needed and he found someone else. But I still think of him from time to time and hope he is happy now. 

[WotEver]

56 minutes ago, bizzard said:

Coventry Victor??

Progress. That was the un-aptly named boat that I had in the 80’s with a clapped out single thumper Coventry Victor. 

[BruceinSanity]

1 hour ago, alan_fincher said:

They stopped advertising them some time back, but I'm not sure I could be precise about when.  5 years, maybe, but that's purely a guess.

There was some suggestion, I think, that they could not meet latest requirements on emission controls, but that may have been a red herring.

Would it be legitimate to fit a Calcutt "reconditioned" engine to a new boat?  I'm not sure.  As far as I can see Calcutt are no longer offering new "Clipper" class boats - something I was unaware of.  (Unless someone can find a link I have missed!)

The BMCs on OwnerShips boats had a bit of a rep for blowing head gaskets. I managed it myself one year coming up the Middlewich 3. There was an access problem with one of the head nuts, as I recall, such that some boats had a socket left permanently jammed on the nut.

[MtB]

10 minutes ago, Tumshie said:

I spent a lot of tea brakes with poor old NB Ian when he was on the duck (dreaming of the future that we might have together) but a lass it wasn't meant to be - I just couldn't give him what he needed and he found someone else. But I still think of him from time to time and hope he is happy now. 

 

I too spent a long time balancing on the cusp of buying IAN. Lovely boat, lovely JP2 engine! But having owned a wooden boat before, common sense won the day. 

Does anyone know what became of IAN? I never seen the boat around.

[Tumshie]

1 minute ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

I too spent a long time balancing on the cusp of buying IAN. Lovely boat, lovely JP2 engine! But having owned a wooden boat before, common sense won the day. 

I know - I knew that I didn't have the experience or the funds to do him justice.  But anybody dares to tell me that he isn't being restored to his former self I'll cry.

I could almost see him being bought just for the JP2 engine.

[TheBiscuits]

1 hour ago, Tumshie said:

I love this boaty mysticism, but if I bought every boat that I thought picked me I'd have a garden full of boats because I couldn't afford to keep them on the cut.

I have been told that boats are like rabbits - they breed.  

You can have one boat and that's fine or you can have many boats and that's fine too.

What you can't do is have two boats and stay that way ...

(We are up to 6 at the moment if you count the canoes!)

[rusty69]

5 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

(We are up to 6 at the moment if you count the canoes!)

7.5 here!

[TheBiscuits]

Just now, rusty69 said:

7.5 here!

Which half have you got? Top or bottom?

[Tumshie]

1 minute ago, rusty69 said:

7.5 here!

 Huh?

 

And another Snoopy - Go Rusty69

[rusty69]

Just now, TheBiscuits said:

Which half have you got? Top or bottom?

Its due for blacking, so top half this year is mine

2 minutes ago, Tumshie said:

And another Snoopy - Go Rusty69

Changed it specially for you.

[Tumshie]

2 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

Changed it specially for you.

Aw bless. Thanks Rusty 

[Arthur Marshall]

I wouldn't recommend Listers.  Engineers who understand them are now few and far between, RCR are hopeless with them and spares are hard to get and expensive.  And to say they never go wrong simply isn't true - my SR2 has been an expensive disaster area for the past five or six years.

[rusty69]

1 minute ago, Arthur Marshall said:

I wouldn't recommend Listers.  Engineers who understand them are now few and far between, RCR are hopeless with them and spares are hard to get and expensive.  And to say they never go wrong simply isn't true - my SR2 has been an expensive disaster area for the past five or six years.

Only a fool would suggest an engine will never go wrong

[Alan de Enfield]

34 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

I wouldn't recommend Listers.  Engineers who understand them are now few and far between, RCR are hopeless with them and spares are hard to get and expensive.  And to say they never go wrong simply isn't true - my SR2 has been an expensive disaster area for the past five or six years.

Would it be fair to suggest that you are NOT referring to the LPWS3 / LPWS4 water-cooled Listers.

At almost 10,000 hours mine did not use or drop any oil, it did not smoke and started and ran 'at the touch of the button'.

I did do a service every 100 hours which may of helped.

[rusty69]

4 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Would it be fair to suggest that you are NOT referring to the LPWS3 / LPWS4 water-cooled Listers.

At almost 10,000 hours mine did not use or drop any oil, it did not smoke and started and ran 'at the touch of the button'.

I did do a service every 100 hours which may of helped.

If mine ever packs up ,I know a guy who has one in his shed,hopefully he may want to sell it.

[Alan de Enfield]

Just now, rusty69 said:

If mine ever packs up ,I know a guy who has one in his shed,hopefully he may want to sell it.

That's handy - I bet it has a fully factory refurbished gear box with it as well !!!