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Cratch Info Required


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Hi All,

I have a 70ft Trad built by Five Towns Boatbuilders in 1994. I'm keen to fit a cratch. The builders have fitted a steel box-like structure in the centre of the roof about 2 feet back from the front. There are also two strap shaped bits of steel welded either side of the rear facing panel of the well deck as though something should slide in there from above. I'm assuming these two features are to do with the fitting of a cratch. I realise the builders no longer exist but I was wondering if there is any other owner of a Roger Fuller boat on the forum that may have had a cratch sympathetically fitted either by Five Towns or another company who could give me some clues as to how the above fittings are utilized. I can probably conjure something up but would prefer to see what the builders had in mind if this was standard on all RF shells.

Thanks

Stephen   

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8 minutes ago, Stephen Jeavons said:

I realise the builders no longer exist but I was wondering if there is any other owner of a Roger Fuller boat on the forum that may have had a cratch sympathetically fitted either by Five Towns or another company who could give me some clues as to how the above fittings are utilized.

Surely Roger Fuller would be prepared to advise you himself if you approached him?

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Hi Peter,

 

Thanks for that. Actually, I've tried those numbers before without success. Also that is a redundant email address. 

 

However, great news, I have discovered the correct contact details and have just had a great conversation with the man himself who has offered to send me drawings of how his system for a cratch works. He even recalls my boat well from memory so I'll be sending him up to date photos for his gallery ?

 

For what it's worth, Roger Fuller still has a small workshop at the site mentioned in the earlier post where he does small jobs but no longer builds complete boats.

 

Thanks to you all for taking the trouble and offering suggestions

 

Stephen

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2 hours ago, Stephen Jeavons said:

That is indeed his old address but it's no longer a boatyard ?

No, but he’s still there, I believe. 

 

Edit to add - so you’ve found :)

Edited by WotEver
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And if you fit a large hinge to the rear of the top board and fashion a dovetail at the other end to sit into the top of the cratch board, you can fold it completely out of the way if you wish. 

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Many thanks to you all for the help and to Mark99 for the above photos, I like the proportions of your cratch. Did you do the woodwork yourself?  All very helpful. I have a pretty good idea of how to go forward thanks to your photos and with Roger Fuller's help, I understand more of the detail now. He recommended that the top-plank extend all the way from the mast-box and to dove-tail it into the cratch board (as WotEver above has also said). The cratch board should never be vertical but should lean forward 1-1.5 degrees from the vertical to be correct.

Incidentally, the boat above has a long well-deck like mine, would you classify that as a tug style due to the length or would it need a high deck to be considered a tug.  Also would the overall boat's length come into play (you wouldn't really have a 70' tug would you? Tugs are usually much shorter)

Stephen

Edited by Stephen Jeavons
spell
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4 hours ago, Stephen Jeavons said:

Many thanks to you all for the help and to Mark99 for the above photos, I like the proportions of your cratch. Did you do the woodwork yourself?  All very helpful. I have a pretty good idea of how to go forward thanks to your photos and with Roger Fuller's help, I understand more of the detail now. He recommended that the top-plank extend all the way from the mast-box and to dove-tail it into the cratch board (as WotEver above has also said). The cratch board should never be vertical but should lean forward 1-1.5 degrees from the vertical to be correct.

Incidentally, the boat above has a long well-deck like mine, would you classify that as a tug style due to the length or would it need a high deck to be considered a tug.  Also would the overall boat's length come into play (you wouldn't really have a 70' tug would you? Tugs are usually much shorter)

Stephen

Where else but on a narrow boat web site could you tell someone that you like the proportions of there cratch ? Different language aint it ?

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10 hours ago, Stephen Jeavons said:

Many thanks to you all for the help and to Mark99 for the above photos, I like the proportions of your cratch. Did you do the woodwork yourself?  All very helpful. I have a pretty good idea of how to go forward thanks to your photos and with Roger Fuller's help, I understand more of the detail now. He recommended that the top-plank extend all the way from the mast-box and to dove-tail it into the cratch board (as WotEver above has also said). The cratch board should never be vertical but should lean forward 1-1.5 degrees from the vertical to be correct.

Incidentally, the boat above has a long well-deck like mine, would you classify that as a tug style due to the length or would it need a high deck to be considered a tug.  Also would the overall boat's length come into play (you wouldn't really have a 70' tug would you? Tugs are usually much shorter)

Stephen

Hi Steven,

 

No the cratch came with the boat.

 

Being a Fuller it does have a Luby.

 

image.png.c2bc4e8169ec74e9bafc6336c8908a67.png

 

 

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