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Hull differendes?


jimxtc

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I am currently looking at a 34' narrowboat that has a V hull.  I was unaware that this was an option and assumed all narrowboats were flat bottomed.  The construction is 6-5-4, again, I thought that most boats were 10-6-4 but I really know nothing about boats!  Can anyone advice me the difference / advantage / disadvantage of a V hull and the thickness construction?

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Built by Total Craft (whom I haven't heard of) in 1989, when those steel thicknesses would be common in shorter boats. Our first boat was a 1989 39-footer by Atlas (whom I also haven't heard of) and her plating was 6/5/3. The roof flexed a bit when I walked on it, but otherwise she was solid enough.

Edited by Athy
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12 minutes ago, jimxtc said:

I am not entirely sure to be honest, it is on Evilbay, maybe you could advise me?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Handsome-Narrow-Boat-Live-Aboard-34ft-with-optional-mooring/192663277844

Not a Springer, steel thickness right for the age. The spec looks good but it is an old boat

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2 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Not a Springer, steel thickness right for the age. The spec looks good but it is an old boat

The spec and the length suit me well, not particularly but off by the age unless I should be?  No really a fan of buying a boat on eBay, I was just looking to see what kind of boats were available when this one caught my eye, it is only half the amount I had budgeted for which is good.  Why a V hull though, any ideas?

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3 minutes ago, jimxtc said:

The spec and the length suit me well, not particularly but off by the age unless I should be?  No really a fan of buying a boat on eBay, I was just looking to see what kind of boats were available when this one caught my eye, it is only half the amount I had budgeted for which is good.  Why a V hull though, any ideas?

Buying boats through eBay is OK - it's selling them there that is a nightmare due to timewasters.

 

The V hull profile stiffens the bottom without having to add lots of extra metal supports or use a thicker baseplate, so was a cheaper way to build budget boats.  Nothing wrong with it if the steel is sound, but you are slightly more restricted in which dry docks or boatyards you can use when blacking the boat - some can't or won't do V hulls, some charge a little bit extra as they need to be propped up differently.

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10 minutes ago, jimxtc said:

The spec and the length suit me well, not particularly but off by the age unless I should be?  No really a fan of buying a boat on eBay, I was just looking to see what kind of boats were available when this one caught my eye, it is only half the amount I had budgeted for which is good.  Why a V hull though, any ideas?

Perhaps just the fashion of the time. Springer was a major builder of budget-level narrowboats at that time, and most of their boats were V-hulled. It does have the advantage that in shallow water you can get the boat closer to the bank when mooring up. In fact this one bears some resemblance to the slightly more upmarket model called the "Springer Tug". One forum member has one of those, so he will know more about any resemblance that I do.

   The price looks rather high for a boat of this size and age, but in view of the amount of attention and new equipment which it has recently received, it's worth a look.

Edited by Athy
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Thank you for your advice, I am a little reassured now.  I also think the price is a little high but as so much has ben done recently it is a place to start negotiations.  I was offered a 30yo ex-hire boat for the same price yesterday.  I am not sure where to go to find boats to be honest, I have looked at Apollo Duck and found one that had potential but didn't receive a reply to my enquiry.  A boatyard or marina with a few for sale would be good as I am on public transport.  One thing I am not is a dreamer I have the budget to buy a boat but want to find the right one, I don't have time to waste of my own!

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5 minutes ago, jimxtc said:

Thank you for your advice, I am a little reassured now.  I also think the price is a little high but as so much has ben done recently it is a place to start negotiations.  I was offered a 30yo ex-hire boat for the same price yesterday.  I am not sure where to go to find boats to be honest, I have looked at Apollo Duck and found one that had potential but didn't receive a reply to my enquiry.  A boatyard or marina with a few for sale would be good as I am on public transport.  One thing I am not is a dreamer I have the budget to buy a boat but want to find the right one, I don't have time to waste of my own!

You will find the greatest quantity, if not quality, of boats gathered in one place at Whilton Marina. It's by the A5 and the West Coast main line, but I'm not sure where the nearest 'bus stop and station are. They allow you to take sets of keys from the office and view boats at your leisure.

I can't think of any brokerages near Brighton, though I guess that the trains which go directly from there to the Midlands may come in useful.

Edited by Athy
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50 minutes ago, jimxtc said:

I am currently looking at a 34' narrowboat that has a V hull.  I was unaware that this was an option and assumed all narrowboats were flat bottomed.  The construction is 6-5-4, again, I thought that most boats were 10-6-4 but I really know nothing about boats!  Can anyone advice me the difference / advantage / disadvantage of a V hull and the thickness construction?

Don't let the steel thickness worry you, it's only fairly recently that bottoms etc have grown. My 1981 colecraft a 65 footer was built 6/6/3 or 4? And is still going strong and at present for sale at whilton and has been virtually untouched hull wise.

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1 minute ago, jimxtc said:

The spec and the length suit me well, not particularly but off by the age unless I should be?  No really a fan of buying a boat on eBay, I was just looking to see what kind of boats were available when this one caught my eye, it is only half the amount I had budgeted for which is good.  Why a V hull though, any ideas?

It may not be, go and look at it if you are interested, that way you will know the boat exists

 

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Thank you again for your input.  I will look up Whitton Marina and see about taking a trip there once I have contacted them.  Brighton is way off the network so I fully appreciate that it will almost certainly be the Midlands where I will find the greater number of boats for sale.  I think the price may indeed reflect the value of the mooring unfortunately - I don't want the mooring as it is difficult for me to get to and I intend to have a continuous licence and keep on the move for now at least.  The owner did say that some boaters will actually buy a boat they don't want just to obtain one of those moorings.  If I do take a mooring it would probably be on the Basingstoke. closer to Bath or somewhere near Ely as all are accessible to me by train.

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10 minutes ago, Athy said:

You will find the greatest quantity, if not quality, of boats gathered in one place at Whilton Marina. It's by the A5 and the West Coast main line, but I'm not sure where the nearest 'bus stop and station are. They allow you to take sets of keys from the office and view boats at your leisure.

Whilton is about 2.5 miles from Long Buckby station. It is quite doable on foot. Turn left out of the station and stop when you come to the bridge over the cut. Go down the steps to the tow path and again turn left towards the bottom lock.  Alternatively there may be a taxi or phone number for one at the station.

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10 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

It may not be, go and look at it if you are interested, that way you will know the boat exists

 

Luckily for me the boat owner also lives in Sussex and the first opportunity he has to show prospective buyers is the end of the month, I may be cheeky and see if I can get a lift with him from here when he goes down!

3 minutes ago, philjw said:

Whilton is about 2.5 miles from Long Buckby station. It is quite doable on foot. Turn left out of the station and stop when you come to the bridge over the cut. Go down the steps to the tow path and again turn left towards the bottom lock.  Alternatively there may be a taxi or phone number for one at the station.

Thanks Phil, I will give the Marina a call and see what they have for sale that may suit.

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It might be a tad overpriced (but the market is moving) but I reckon it will sell quite quickly.

 

I'd go and look at it and, if it was what I wanted, I'd offer £18k cash and no survey.

If that is accepted then you have saved (probably) £3-£4k and could use that as an 'operating fund' should work be needed in the future (it would for example pay much of replating costs, major engine or gearbox work or a re-paint)

 

Yes its coming up to 30 years old but it sounds as if it has been maintained.

 

More than worth the trip to have a look.

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I agree Alan, it is worth a look and in retrospect, as the mooring fee is only £1,300 a year it may be worth hanging on to it.  I will sell the boat in a couple of years time anyway (probably) and the mooring may add value to the boat.  If I got half of the purchase price back in 2 years time that would be acceptable.  I know boating is not cheap!  I can only go by what the vendor tells me Mike!

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6 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

I see the listing claims a vee hull but it doesn't have the look of a vee hulled, er.. hull. I reckon the chances are evens that the baseplate is flat. 

 

How would it look any different if it were a vee hull? Just because it's not a Springer doesn't mean it can't be v bottom ..

 

My friends  boat has a vee bottom, it's only a couple of inches , but it is impossible to tell from just looking at it in the water, never mind on pictures...

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17 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

I see the listing claims a vee hull but it doesn't have the look of a vee hulled, er.. hull. I reckon the chances are evens that the baseplate is flat. 

Even the Springers only have a slight v when compared to proper v hulled boats.

 

 

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It looks very much like my boat."Popsie"original steel spec,6,5,3mm.Built 1978,and has had the swim plate overplated at some time,but the rest of the hull is fine according to a recent survey.

 I value her around 12-15K,because of size and age,and the boat you have pointed out ,I think a little more,perhaps 15-18K,perhaps the price is a bit inflated because of the desirable mooring.

The asking price may well be just a guide. As a matter of interest two boats that have been sold recently at my mooring one was initially priced at 22K,then reduced to 171/2K,and sold for 15K.The other 26K and sold for 18K.

 

PS Are you the person who posted recently with the poor eyesight?

 

 

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A bit of Googling to try and find out about Total Craft seems to indicate this boat was offered for sale and sold via the Canal cuttings web-site in 2015.  The asking price then was £15,000, so I think a bit of questioning might be needed about how it has achieved so much more value in just 3 years.

I'm not posting a link to that previous advert, as my virus checker is bringing it up as an infected page.

I've not heard of Total Craft, but it certainly doesn't look to be related to a Springer.

You can certainly have V bottomed narrow boats that are not a Springer - I know this because I own one!

 

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If the registration details are correct she does look to be a very narrow, narrowboat, and surprisingly 'shallow' if she is indeed a V-Hull.

 

Solitude Built by Total - Length : 10.36 metres ( 34 feet ) - Beam : 2.07 metres ( 6 feet 9 inches ) - Draft : 0.48 metres ( 1 foot 7 inches ). Metal hull N/A power of 20 HP. Registered with Canal & River Trust number 46617 as a Powered Motor Boat.  ( Last updated on Friday 20th April 2012 )

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