RCR engine service

[Alan de Enfield]

17 minutes ago, Athy said:

Yes, I was including modern Canal Stars and the like, as I'm sure Arthur was, not just big burly JPs and slow-popping SRs and STs.

 

 

Ok.

But - the thread is about servicing an SR2, 

[Athy]

6 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Ok.

But - the thread is about servicing an SR2, 

Yes, I'd noticed, but Arthur suggested that most RCR mechanics had never seen a Lister. That, of course, includes all types of Lister. He did not specify that they had never seen an SR2 (though, given the number of them still in use, that would surely be surprising anyway).

13 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

Yes the £5 charge for oil disposal is a recent additional charge.

I can find no mention of it on their web site. It sounds like a sneaky hidden extra if it is true: boaters will expect that whoever services their engine will take the old oil away as a normal part of the job.

Edited January 28, 2019 by Athy

[Alan de Enfield]

2 minutes ago, Athy said:

Yes, I'd noticed, but Arthur suggested that most RCR mechanics had never seen a Lister. That, of course, includes all types of Lister. He did not specify that they had never seen an SR2 (though, given the number of them still in use, that would surely be unlikely anyway).

Fair enough.

Different interpretation / understanding.

As the thread was started by Arthur & the subject was his Lister SR2, I took his comment to mean SR2 (type) engines, but we are all different.

[Athy]

2 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Fair enough.

Different interpretation / understanding.

As the thread was started by Arthur & the subject was his Lister SR2, I took his comment to mean SR2 (type) engines, but we are all different.

Had he said "never seen an SR2", you would have a point.

 

In any case, as they twice successfully serviced our Gardner 2LW (albeit which some help from phone-a-friend on one of those occasions) they shouldn't have any trouble with the much more common SR2. It did amuse me when, on the first occasion, a lad who may recently have started shaving arrived and announced "I'm RCR's vintage engine specialist". I stifled a guffaw but, fair enough, he did the job, and without phoning a friend too.

[alan_fincher]

It's fairly obvious to me given the subject of the thread that Arthur is saying RCR don't get to work on many of the old air-cooled Listers, (SR, ST, H series, etc).

 

I can well believe that, because although a fair few are still in use, I suspect a large majority are in boats owned by people unlikely to be using the services of RCR.

 

Certainly our two well maintained HA2s are unlikely to have RCR anywhere near them, but equally many boaters on the live-aboard circuit using less well maintained ones are unlikely to spend money being RCR members either.

[Athy]

18 minutes ago, alan_fincher said:

It's fairly obvious to me given the subject of the thread that Arthur is saying RCR don't get to work on many of the old air-cooled Listers, (SR, ST, H series, etc).

 

I can well believe that, because although a fair few are still in use, I suspect a large majority are in boats owned by people unlikely to be using the services of RCR.

 

 

It is indeed possible that that's what he meant, but it's not what he said.

 

Your second point is a good one, an done which had not occurred to me: that boats with, for example, SR engines are often at the cheaper end of the narrowboat scale nowadays and thus are bought by people who have not got much money. How peculiar that even older Listers are often found in boats which are at the other end of that scale.

[Arthur Marshall]

16 minutes ago, Athy said:

It is indeed possible that that's what he meant, but it's not what he said.

 

Your second point is a good one, an done which had not occurred to me: that boats with, for example, SR engines are often at the cheaper end of the narrowboat scale nowadays and thus are bought by people who have not got much money. How peculiar that even older Listers are often found in boats which are at the other end of that scale.

I should have specified SR2s - would have saved some bandwidth.

Interestingly, I succumbed to idleness and emailed a reply to RCR to book a service as they suggest in their mail. It bounced.  Just re-sent it. It bounced again.  Maybe I should try again, without mentioning that it's an SR2...

[Athy]

10 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

 

Interestingly, I succumbed to idleness and emailed a reply to RCR to book a service as they suggest in their mail. It bounced.  Just re-sent it. It bounced again.  Maybe I should try again, without mentioning that it's an SR2...

Have you tried telephoning them? Their number is 01785 785680 - though one member had no response from that number when he tried some time ago.

Edited January 28, 2019 by Athy

[WotEver]

3 hours ago, Athy said:

boaters will expect that whoever services their engine will take the old oil away as a normal part of the job.

Not necessarily. If you have your car serviced at a garage they now charge for disposal of the old oil, so folk might well expect the same when they have their boat serviced. 

[frahkn]

53 minutes ago, Arthur Marshall said:

I should have specified SR2s - would have saved some bandwidth.

Interestingly, I succumbed to idleness and emailed a reply to RCR to book a service as they suggest in their mail. It bounced.  Just re-sent it. It bounced again.  Maybe I should try again, without mentioning that it's an SR2...

It can be quite difficult to arrange a service.

 

I have not tried this year but the previous three winters I applied but they were either "full in my area" or could not make a mutually convenient date for a service (and I am fairly flexible as to dates). So although they offer the service, they are not too eager to actually provide it - perhaps it doesn't make them much money after all.

[cuthound]

31 minutes ago, frahkn said:

It can be quite difficult to arrange a service.

 

I have not tried this year but the previous three winters I applied but they were either "full in my area" or could not make a mutually convenient date for a service (and I am fairly flexible as to dates). So although they offer the service, they are not too eager to actually provide it - perhaps it doesn't make them much money after all.

 

Interesting. I'm in the same general area as you, and last year had them service my engine because I was recovering from a broken leg and found it too uncomfortable to squeeze down into the engine hole.

 

I called them in mid-January and they came a few days later.

 

The only issues I had was an unmentioned surcharge (£10 IIRC) as my engine (Beta 43) took 9 litres of oil and their quoted price is for a maximum of 5 litres, and they won't change the gearbox oil or clean my WASP filter unless it had previously agreed at the time of booking the service.

Edited January 28, 2019 by cuthound
Spillung

[Arthur Marshall]

1 hour ago, Athy said:

Have you tried telephoning them? Their number is 01785 785680 - though one member had no response from that number when he tried some time ago.

Yes, just phoned and booked it for later this week. Told them the email was not functioning.

[Arthur Marshall]

14 minutes ago, cuthound said:

 

Interesting. I'm in the same general area as you, and last year had them service my engine because I was recovering from a broken leg and found it too uncomfortable to squeeze down into the engine hole.

 

I called them in mid-January and they came a few days later.

 

The only issues I had was an unmentioned surcharge (£10 IIRC) as my engine (Beta 43) took 9 litres of oil and their quoted price is for a maximum of 5 litres, and they won't change the gearbox oil or clean my WASP filter unless it had previously agreed at the time of booking the service.

It does say in the details of what they offer that it's a max of 5l of oil, and while it also says they check the gearbox oil it does imply they charge for changing it.  I suppose as all the gearboxes take different oil they might need to know what they need before they come, but I wasn't asked anything apart from make of engine. The surcharge for disposing of oil was mentioned, but I just take it to the tip on the way home - i've enough old cans for it to go in.

[cuthound]

1 hour ago, Arthur Marshall said:

It does say in the details of what they offer that it's a max of 5l of oil, and while it also says they check the gearbox oil it does imply they charge for changing it.  I suppose as all the gearboxes take different oil they might need to know what they need before they come, but I wasn't asked anything apart from make of engine. The surcharge for disposing of oil was mentioned, but I just take it to the tip on the way home - i've enough old cans for it to go in.

 

Just looked at RCR's webpage, and yes this year they do mention the additional cost of more oil. I don't think they did last year.

 

Also last year it was £130 including old oil disposal, so £15 more this year if you want them to dispose of your old oil.

[dor]

As the OP's question has now been answered it seems traditional to go off topic.

 

 

Quote

Ah yes but modern oil is horribly expensive. - the stuff for my car is £15.00 a litre

The Honda dealer used to charge about £90 for the oil in my Accord service, and that was about ten years ago.  they were charging for fully synthetic.  I pointed out that the handbook said semi-synthetic so next time they only charged me £85 for the oil.

[Athy]

3 hours ago, cuthound said:

 

Just looked at RCR's webpage, and yes this year they do mention the additional cost of more oil. I don't think they did last year.

 

 

The first time we used them they mentioned (on the phone) that there would be a charge for additional oil after the first five litres.

 

We have never had a boat with a modern type engine; do most of them need under five litres?

[cuthound]

27 minutes ago, Athy said:

The first time we used them they mentioned (on the phone) that there would be a charge for additional oil after the first five litres.

 

We have never had a boat with a modern type engine; do most of them need under five litres?

 

I wasn't told about or charged for oil disposal last year.

 

Yes most modern engines use 5 litres or less. The popular Beta 43 can be supplied with an optional larger sump which holds 9 litres. It is common on plant equipment because it reduces the chance of equipment running out of oil if the oil level isn't checked often enough.

Edited January 28, 2019 by cuthound
Phat phingers

[Alan de Enfield]

23 minutes ago, Athy said:

The first time we used them they mentioned (on the phone) that there would be a charge for additional oil after the first five litres.

 

My engines take 23-25 litres each (depending on how high up the dipstick you go)

[MoominPapa]

4 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

My engines take 23-25 litres each (depending on how high up the dipstick you go)

As does mine.

 

On the oil disposal front, I was at our council tip last week, empty the old oil into the tank when chap came up and told me that there's now a limit of 5l oil disposal per person per day. I thanked him for the information and said it was very useful he'd started to tell  me after I'd started emptying the second 25l container, and not completed the explanation until after it was empty!

 

MP.

 

 

 

[Keeping Up]

31 minutes ago, cuthound said:

 

I wasn't told about or charged for oil disposal last year.

 

Yes most modern engines use 5 litres or less. The popular Beta 43 can be supplied with an optional larger sump which holds 9 litres. It is common on plant equipment because it reduces the chance of equipment running out of oil if the oil level isn't checked often enough.

The standard Beta 43 sump holds 9.5 litres; there is also an optional shallow-sump version that holds 7 litres. If I'd known about it beforehand I'd have bought the shallow one to save money at oil changes.

[WotEver]

39 minutes ago, Keeping Up said:

The standard Beta 43 sump holds 9.5 litres; there is also an optional shallow-sump version that holds 7 litres. If I'd known about it beforehand I'd have bought the shallow one to save money at oil changes.

Isn’t the idea of the larger sump that you can go longer between oil changes?

[Momac]

1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

My engines take 23-25 litres each (depending on how high up the dipstick you go)

Is everything on your boat bigger than average ?

[Keeping Up]

6 minutes ago, WotEver said:

Isn’t the idea of the larger sump that you can go longer between oil changes?

The manual states the same interval for each size (250 hours)

[Alan de Enfield]

4 minutes ago, MartynG said:

Is everything on your boat bigger than average ?

Depends if I'm on board or not.

[alan_fincher]

1 hour ago, MoominPapa said:

As does mine.

 

On the oil disposal front, I was at our council tip last week, empty the old oil into the tank when chap came up and told me that there's now a limit of 5l oil disposal per person per day. I thanked him for the information and said it was very useful he'd started to tell  me after I'd started emptying the second 25l container, and not completed the explanation until after it was empty!

 

MP.

 

 

 

That's why I usually try to get rid of my used engine oil at the Daventry tip.  The container is on the way in long before you get to most of the operatives.  If they were to head my way, I think it would probably all be emptied before they got there.