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what happens to abandoned boats?


sailor mcgee

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I am keen to get on the water, and i wonder a few things, firstly i am wondering if crt simply crush abandoned or unlicenced boats or do they auction them off for a pound or something?. there are bound to be some run down boats without a usable cabin, perhaps abandoned ones with just a hull that may be worth sand blasting survaying and painting? perhaps with a little luck avoid need for overplating - survey dependent on the thickness of the metal of course. 

id be interested to find out if anyone knows what they do with them?

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4 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

any way to get a boat  hull under 1000?

 

Yes, get a GRP cruiser !

A brand new steel "sailaway" shell, with windows, doors, and a fitted brand new engine can be had for £27,000.

 

Are you a skilled steel fabricator/welder?

If you find your £1000 hull you need to put it somewhere (monthly cost).  Shot blast or otherwise derust (outside and in). Do extensive overplating or replating.

...it will almost certainly need this. Purchase and fit an engine, with suitable work on sterngear and engine beds. Purchase and fit new windows etc etc.

Even putting in a lot of your own time the cost will start creeping up towards that £27,000.

You then spent a huge amount of time and money doing a lovely fit out on an old boat, and you end up with a new fitout in an old boat (with a hull still a bit thin places).

 

If somehow you find an old hull that has some historic value and character and want to bring it back to life then that's a different kettle of worms ?

 

................Dave

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2 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

One of Alan's favourites sites, though I think you will be hard pushed to find anything under 1000

 

http://www.boatwrecks.com/power.asp

rusty, those look sweet, i realy like the rusty ones, they look like a lot of work but bit of paint and some insulation it'd be ok i think.

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2 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

rusty, those look sweet, i realy like the rusty ones, they look like a lot of work but bit of paint and some insulation it'd be ok i think.

A lot of them are sold, but keep an eye on the site,you never know!

Lots of work /money though.

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1 minute ago, dmr said:

Yes, get a GRP cruiser !

A brand new steel "sailaway" shell, with windows, doors, and a fitted brand new engine can be had for £27,000.

 

Are you a skilled steel fabricator/welder?

If you find your £1000 hull you need to put it somewhere (monthly cost).  Shot blast or otherwise derust (outside and in). Do extensive overplating or replating.

...it will almost certainly need this. Purchase and fit an engine, with suitable work on sterngear and engine beds. Purchase and fit new windows etc etc.

Even putting in a lot of your own time the cost will start creeping up towards that £27,000.

You then spent a huge amount of time and money doing a lovely fit out on an old boat, and you end up with a new fitout in an old boat (with a hull still a bit thin places).

 

If somehow you find an old hull that has some historic value and character and want to bring it back to life then that's a different kettle of worms ?

 

................Dave

yes.  i am, i can sandblast and have been trying sandblasting with soda as it is less harsh than many of the different sands you usually find.

and if you beg borrow and liberate (with the concent of the owner id suggest that you can get a lot further than to pay a yard to do it. unless its the hull; always get a yard to work on the hull.

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24 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

rusty, those look sweet, i realy like the rusty ones, they look like a lot of work but bit of paint and some insulation it'd be ok i think.

A big issue with a fire damaged steel narrowboat is the distortion of the steel. Normally affecting the cabin sides and roof.

 

If you can live with that fine but if left when painted it will stand out like a sore thumb. Unless you cut it out and replace of course which will add to the expense.

 

It also may affect how well windows fit/seal.

Edited by MJG
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29 minutes ago, MJG said:

A big issue with a fire damaged steel narrowboat is the distortion of the steel. Normally affecting the cabin sides and roof.

 

If you can live with that fine but if left when painted it will stand out like a sore thumb. Unless you cut it out and replace of course which will add to the expense.

 

It also may affect how well windows fit/seal.

yeah its not too hard with a few poprivits and anglegrinder, a few umm cardoors and a pannelbeater. can roll a shape on a wheel.

 

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4 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

yeah its not too hard with a few poprivits and anglegrinder, a few umm cardoors and a pannelbeater. can roll a shape on a wheel.

 

 

I think car body panel manipulation is a different ballgame from 4, 5, and 8mm steel plate.

 

 

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10 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

yeah its not too hard with a few poprivits and anglegrinder, a few umm cardoors and a pannelbeater. can roll a shape on a wheel.

 

You have a lot to learn, stick with it though and people on here will put you right.?

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5 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Never mind. You'll figure out were the various thicknesses go once you get a bit more experience....

 

:giggles:

I'm not into all this modern newfangled rubbish.  10/6/4 mm? Mine's quarter inch plate all the way round.

 

I still think 5/8 inch steel plate is a bit thick for a cabintop though.  When you put all your crap on top it'll roll over.

 

Edited by TheBiscuits
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18 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

ok, thats unique. in seagoing craft its the hull that provides the structure

 

 

:s

 

In narrowboat building, the shell is constructed of hefty plate and simply reinforced inside with angle iron to a greater or lesser degree according to the price being paid for the new shell.

 

This is because narrowboats are constantly whacking lock sides, junk on the bottom, other boats etc and also the thick hull material means they take decades to corrode through given protective costings get scraped off really easily.

 

 

3 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

he works in any yard in sweden - its a joke that you go to any yard in sweden and theres a bengt usually

 

 

Aha I see what you mean!! :)

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7 minutes ago, sailor mcgee said:

why not marine ply? its usually as strong as steel if you use the right joint like a modern grp

 

On a steel Hull with Ply topsides it'll pretty much always leak from somewhere as they expand at different rates. Ply Hull is doable but surprisingly expensive and you would havd to design rubbing strakes carefully as wood really suffers against concrete banks and locks. 

 

Go GRP, they're great! 

  • Greenie 1
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