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NB Water Snail - Lengthening and beyond!


NB Watersnail

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On to paint.

 

We struck a deal to use a paint dock over the Christmas period and decided to save some money by doing the prep ourselves. With the aid of a friend, we spent a week grinding, scrabbling, stripping and needle gunning. Everything at home slowly turned black, relatives thought we were going death and I now have a deep seated aversion to grinders, but eventually all of the old paint was off! It also seems that at somepoint in Water Snails life, somebody had decided that stripping the paint off was too much hard work, so the whole boat had been skimmed in filler!

 

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Finished!

 

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Next came several days of grinding, rust treating and filler untill everything was rust free and relatively smooth. We've not tried to polish this boat to perfection. It's an old boat, with battle scars and a story. We don't want to cover that up!

 

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We'd also decided to put the first coat of primer on too, before handing over to the professional painter. So after a thorough de-grease, lots of cheking of the mositure monitors, we got the rollers out.

 

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In the middle of January we were ready to hand over to Chris, to put the rest of tha paint on and make it look beautiful! We'd worked hard and fully appreciate the cost of properly painting a boat now. Would we do the prep again or pay the money next time? I'd pay the money any day - boat painters earn it!

 

A blue undercoat came next:

 

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A white base coat for the bow decoration

 

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We used Ronseal Black Floor paint on the gunwhales. It's incredibly tough stuff, a slightly satin finsih, very good in the wet and I always have a can of it at work for touch-ups!

 

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I missed out on getting any photo's of the gloss coats going on as work prevented me from visiting the boat for a week, but on the next visit Chris was marking up the coachlines.

 

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Coachlines finished, we started to fit windows.

 

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Just the tape left to remove now:

 

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The Engine Bay had a coat of Bilge paint too

 

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Tiller Arm

 

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The rear bulkhead pattern was choosen from a book. It's a designed used by Shropshire Union Boats and seemed to match our colour scheme well. It's also a bit different to the all too common 'mouse ears'

 

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A tidy roof, all fitted and sealed.

 

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On our last day in the paint dock, we decided to get some ballast in, as it would be our last chance to get a van anywhere near to the boat before the homeward journey. We rpoed in a friend and my brother to help unload 1 ton of paving slabs that my father-in-law had going spare. 90 slabs later, one small scrape on the fresh paint and the boat had a layer of slabs all the way through. It didn't make much difference to the waterline, but the boat felt a lot more stable!

 

Finally, we ended up outside to await the engine being refitted then the journey home.

 

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Next time, engine rebuilding!

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I think this looks lovely but it has conjoured up the same thoughts as when I read the recent article on stretching in CB or WW.

 

We did lots of sums working with Gary Peacock (former forum member) at Ledgard Bridge on our beloved first narrowboat.

 

No matter how we did it and Gary was very honest about this, we would have only ever recovered a tiny fraction of the cost. She would have still been a 1982 boat and the value benefit between 42 and 56 feet was tiny when comparing similar boats on the open market.

 

As with all things boat related it is 'each to their own' but I can't help thinking it would have been better value to sell up and invest the difference in a newer, longer boat.

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we spent a week grinding, scrabbling, stripping

Oh yes, I can remember being of an age when I used to spend quite a lot of my holiday time like that. I'm just amazed that you found time and energy to work on the boat too.

 

 

Ahem, behave yourself Athy.

 

Seriously, it looks a herculean task and the results are a pleasure to behold, well done.

Edited by Athy
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Thanks for all the comments. I'm glad to be able to give something back after reading and enjoying threads like this for years.

 

RichardH, I fully agree. Lengthening a 30 year old boat is not financially sound if you wish to be able to recoup your spend in the near future. We will end up with a boat that is possibly going to be worth less than the money we have put in, let alone the time we have put in ourselves. But for us, it's not just about money. Having a boat that suits us, that we are proud of and meets all of our needs as a home is important. We could have sold up and bought a second hand boat for similar money - we've still not spent enought to have been able to consider a new boat as an option. But we would still have been in a second hand boat, that probably wouldn't have suited our needs (we couldnt find one in budget when we looked) with the ever present possibility of unknown problems. There is nothing on this 30 year old boat that hasn't been checked, double checked, hit, ultrasonic tested, painted....... There are no hidden problems. To me, that is well worth the potential loss if we were to sell up. The bottom line is that we have no plans of selling up in the near or distant future, so for us it is worth while.

 

I can also see the viewpoint that lengthening an old boat makes no sense. To a leisure boater or someone who has bought a boat with the intention of resale at some point, I think even I, as a lengthening advocate, would be hard pushed to create a valid financial case for lengthening.

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I can also see the viewpoint that lengthening an old boat makes no sense. To a leisure boater or someone who has bought a boat with the intention of resale at some point, I think even I, as a lengthening advocate, would be hard pushed to create a valid financial case for lengthening.

You don't have to. From this thread it's obvious that you love your boat. Faced with a dilemma you have gone to extraordinary lengths to make sure you can keep the boat you really want. As you are not thinking of selling her, and as the money spent has enhanced the quality of your life on her, the investment is perfectly justifiable except perhaps to an accountant (which I'm not).

Edited by Athy
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Thanks for all the comments. I'm glad to be able to give something back after reading and enjoying threads like this for years.

 

RichardH, I fully agree. Lengthening a 30 year old boat is not financially sound if you wish to be able to recoup your spend in the near future. We will end up with a boat that is possibly going to be worth less than the money we have put in, let alone the time we have put in ourselves. But for us, it's not just about money. Having a boat that suits us, that we are proud of and meets all of our needs as a home is important. We could have sold up and bought a second hand boat for similar money - we've still not spent enought to have been able to consider a new boat as an option. But we would still have been in a second hand boat, that probably wouldn't have suited our needs (we couldnt find one in budget when we looked) with the ever present possibility of unknown problems. There is nothing on this 30 year old boat that hasn't been checked, double checked, hit, ultrasonic tested, painted....... There are no hidden problems. To me, that is well worth the potential loss if we were to sell up. The bottom line is that we have no plans of selling up in the near or distant future, so for us it is worth while.

 

I can also see the viewpoint that lengthening an old boat makes no sense. To a leisure boater or someone who has bought a boat with the intention of resale at some point, I think even I, as a lengthening advocate, would be hard pushed to create a valid financial case for lengthening.

What a lovey job and if your wife took part in all that rubbing down and paintwork grinding then she is of a more determined character than mine! biggrin.png

At the end of the day, whether you have strictly achieved a financially viable return for yourselves is immaterial. You can get a lot of satisfaction from the fact that you have done so much of it yourself. Every time you look at that pristine engine bay for example, you'll think 'We did that!'

Well done.

Roger

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  • 2 weeks later...

Right, a few minutes spare this afternoon to try and bring this up to date.

 

Here's how the engine looked when we got it out of the boat. 30+ years of grot and grime!

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Not a pretty sight! It's been loosing more oil every year, starting was getting quite tricky without the dreaded easy start, lots of black smoke and the wiring was about as understandable as a latin classic would be to your average chav. I suspected liners/pistons, head or valves causing low compression and oil to be burnt. It also seems every point that could leak oil or fuel, was leaking oil or fuel!

 

So we started to strip it down.

 

Pistons out, you can see the scoring on the big ends and after the carbon was cleaned off the rings and pistons, lot's of wear visible.

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The liners were also shot, such a lip at the top you could feel it through a rubber glove! So they came out too.

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The Bukh is a wet liner engine, so there is a water jacket around the liners and they are very easy to remove. Crank still in place you simply drift them out from below. Here's the block from above.

 

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We decided to leave the crank in as it's a lot more work to get it out and there had been no indication of problems there. Parts are also incredibly expensive for Bukh engine, so the less we 'have' to do, the better.

 

The head was in very good nick, I think it has been worked on before, so that just had a good clean, valves re ground and put to one side.

 

Parts were ordered, at a n extortionate cost from Bukh in Poole, who were as helpful as everybody says they are. Despite the cost, i'm more than happy to rebuild this engine as their reputation is rock solid. If it's taken 30 years to deteriorate this much, bring on the next 30!

 

Charlie set to work on cleaning and painting.

 

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Most of the paint ewas so well soaked in diesle and oil that it almost fell off!

 

Painting began. High Temp enamel is great, but getting good coverage with the red took many coats!

 

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The new parts arrived:

Pistons

Rings

Gudgeon Pins

Big End Shells

Filters and Gaskets

 

New liners were pressed in.

 

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The gudgeon pins were frozen.

 

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The pistons were heated

 

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The meal was complete!

 

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New pistons back in.

 

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Head on.

 

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Almost back together now, just starter and alternator to go.

 

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While the engine was being rebuilt we still spent a few days at the boat. All the floor bearers went in. Followed by 18mm ply.

 

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Since this photo it's all been taken up again and cut so that any section between any bearer will be accesible once all the fittings are in. We'll be able to adjust ballast as the fit out continues with easy. Something we couldn't do before! It's all been painted on both sides and all the edges with floor paint too.

 

I've not got many photos of the next few stages. Lots of little things have been done. The water tank has been filled and plumbed to give us some more ballast for the journey home.

 

A hearth for the stove has been built and tiled. We had a friend tig weld a beautiful Stainless flue for us. The stove has been cleaned and blacked. This should all go back together tomorrow morning so we have heat for the cruise home.

 

The engine went in last Thursday. 4 days on and it's had all new coolant hoses fitted. A new wiring loom made. Some new diesel pipes fitted. A starter solenoid revived from dead.

 

Yesterday was the big day to get it started. Afeter a lot of bleeding, cranking, bleeding, cranking, bleeding, cranking, flat battery.......bleeding, cranking - we got all of the air out and life has been returned to the little Bukh!

 

We are planning to set off from Brinklow tommorow to return to our home mooring in Banbury. So, if you're on the Oxford canal between Brinklow and Banbury, look out for us over the next few days!

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Have a good journey. Hope the weather stays in your favour.

 

Lovely job you're doing. Bet it's satisfying.

 

Don't think well see you but give Nightwatch a wave as you pass. Virtual wave if you like as I'm not going to be there.

 

The photo of Charlie prepping the engine, is that your lounge. It's a bit untidy. No smilies here.

 

Martyn

Edited by Nightwatch
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I almost think I could get away with doing something like this in the lounge. It's actually our workshop, the sofa is an old one from my office that needs to go to the tip/charity shop. I just havent had the time to do it yet adn it's been suprisingly useful in the workshop!

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  • 1 month later...

And a BIG Well done from me as well Snail's.

Now don't forget to Keep Cruising & Enjoy.

Keep us posted, very interested reader here !.

Cheers

 

 

Oh, Ment to say, I have posted a cpl of pictures of My PRE Filters ref Watermaker, as you asked on the PM you sent me. The reason for thease is The Cleaner you can make the 'Supply or Doner Water' the less problems you will have with your Main WaterMaking Unit,As it's got Less work to do, Less Maintenance to carry out ect. And the whole unit Pump, 3 years Filters and Ultraviolet Bulbs was only in the region of £500. This took the pressure of my VERY OLD AN OBSOLETE fore runner of my main Electomaax Water Maker, Approximately £4,500 that I have had for about 8/9 years, took it off my last boat and re installed it on this one. Although probably a lot cheaper now, with higher out put, I haven't looked.

But will be fitting A New modern one, that is Belt driven with a variable Clutch if I decide to keep this boat.

Edited by Paul's Nulife4-2
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  • 4 weeks later...

It's been a little quiet for a while because we've been very busy on the boat. Sadly not too many photos taken during the last month or two. I'll share a few below and try my best to take some more over the next few weeks.

 

The stove base went in before we left Brinklow to head home. It' s made from off cuts left over from the floor.

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We're lucky to have a friend who fabricates exhaust systems from Stainless tube, so after taking a length to the boat to mark up, this appeared a few days later.

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We didn't actually manage to fit the stove before setting off for home, so an enforced early stop on the first night was in order to fit and seal the stove, before it got dark or cold! Here's a pic of the dry run, before sealant and tiles.

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Thejourney home was quiet smooth. The weather was with us and early March felt like Summer. Only a slight oil leak caused any panic, but it was just the pressure sender needing to be tightened up. After 4 very easy days cruising we arrived back on our mooring in Banbury. Our mooring always used to be too big for the boat and the Wharf had agreed to extend our current space to 57'. We did have to trim the bush at the end a little, just to stop it scratching the paint. With the aid of a shoe horn and ratchet strap we squeezed back in!

 

The next few weeks were dedicated to getting linings up. Often only roughly cut and fixed in place so that they could come back down and be properly cut or have wiring fitted behind them. This started out quite enjoyable, seeing the boat quickly transformed from a snowy white shell into a wood grained box, but it soon started to drag. The largest width of board we could get into the boat was 38", so every 8' x 4' sheet of ply had to be cut down off site, then carried in. Eventually we had most of the linings up.

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Next job was 12v wiring. All the ceiling boards came back down, were drilled and had cables attached to the backs, then refitted. Tails for switches were run down the back of the cabin linings to the wall switch positions. Cabling will be run under the gunwhales on both sides, leaving it readily accessible for the future.

 

We spent a few weeks fitting internal bulkheads, moving them a bit, measuring again, scratching our heads and finally fixing them in place. Constructing carcassess of seats, showers, cupboards, etc as we went.

 

The last week has seen the start of the decorating!

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Yesterday I started work on our bed. Based on a pine bed frame from a second hand furniture shop, it's slowly been raised to create more storage and will evntually be a 4 poster with pelmet.

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The theme for a lot of a furniture will be on reuse of old things. I've been collecting assorted doors and bits of furniture for a few years now, with the intention of using them in the boat.

 

You've probably spotted by now, we've taken the painted route over veneered ply. Neither of us wanted to live in a wood grain box and I didn't fancy trying to line the boat in ply without damaging the veneer. So we've gone for painted ply on the cabin sides. This will be framed with 3" x 1/2" oak framing to match much of the furniture. Below the gunwhales is mostly vertical tounge and groove in pastel colours. Except the bathroom and kitchen which will be tiled.

 

We've also got most of the kitchen carcases in place now and just await the gas to be fitted before moving on with that end.

 

Last night was a big step forward with the electrics, we now have all of the circuits and 2 way switching working, a temporary 12v distrbution board and well over half the ceiling fittings up. Finally we can put away the flood light and work at night without shadows everywhere!

 

Finally, for today, I thought i'd share with you an internal plan:

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Hi ya,

It's just dawned on me, the post I made earlier (Number 46 ) was infact, ment to be a reply to a PM that I received from 'Wandering Snail' & ofcourse I made a mistake in the sending of it to you 'Water Snail' !.

So sorry for confusion, my bad, (I hate to think what you thought) so sorry.

Cheers for now.

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