Jump to content

Leaderboard

Popular Content

Showing content with the highest reputation since 22/03/24 in Posts

  1. Your reputation of falling out with tradesmen has never been in doubt
    8 points
  2. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  3. This forum has never treated the 'canal' in the forum name as a limitation on what can be discussed. All of us (or at least almost all of us) have boated sections of river as well as canal, and I see no problem whatsoever in this thread featuring the pictures of those boaters who spend more of their boating time on rivers and larger waterways. And if they make the occasional forays out onto coastal waters, and visit harbours, inlets and coastal rivers that most of us will never take our own boats to, that only adds to the forum in my opinion.
    8 points
  4. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  5. @nigel carton also moves boats. I always find it a bit sad that someone has bought a boat, presumably to go boating on, yet they can't find the time to move the boat to their new home mooring. Especially as we are about to have a four day weekend which would be enough for most of the trip. And no reason not to leave the boat moored to the towpath for a week or two if the trip can't be completed in one go.
    7 points
  6. Well, I hope Peter don’t get put off posting. It’s also been good to have a thread where there’s usually little said, certainly no squabbling, just pictures to look at.
    7 points
  7. Seemed plain enough to me. No need to be rude. PS "cant" and "can't" are different words. Please write correctly.
    7 points
  8. An update for everyone. It works! Although it’s not a job I will do again in a hurry. It was a nightmare to take apart - a fair few bolts snapped and the angle grinder was needed a fair bit to cut through old bolts and washers. Using a stud remover I was able to take most of them out and I have moved onto the boat and reassembled. No issues with listing - it’s only 400kg so not a crazy amount. The back boiler in the one I bought was leaking - but it is integral to the Rayburn so I have cut a hole in it and inserted a much smaller back boiler which is more suited to boat use anyway. Overall I am very pleased (and very worn out!) I replaced the old insulation with rockwool and have put new fire tiles on everything. Thanks again for the help.
    6 points
  9. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  10. Coming soon to this channel, the Hotchkiss Hydraulic Propeller and the Hunt for Torfrida....watch this space. Or more likely, a new one.
    6 points
  11. It's absolutely true. There used to be a boat moored at the top of the flight infested with these fly larvae. Each year, in the spring, the fly would exit the boat in huge numbers and descend the Hatton flight at great speed. The boat became known as the Warwickshire fly boat.
    6 points
  12. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  13. Agreed. David, your contributions to this and other threads are fascinating. Please continue to post, and just ignore the rest of us when the discussion wanders off in odd directions.
    6 points
  14. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  15. And there was me thinking I'd be able to help a fellow forum member sort of their spreadsheet problems... 😅😂
    6 points
  16. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  17. Thank you all for your advices! Because I don't have wet vac available at hand at the moment, I tried fishing it out and it was a success! I know it might sound like a bad idea as many of you warned me of the even worse consequences if I also dropped the hook in there. But I tested until I was confident that the attachment is strong enough but still thank you for all the heads-ups. Regards, Panya
    5 points
  18. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  19. In case it is of interest I have dug out from my files two articles specifically relating to Hotchkiss Cones and canal narrowboats. These reports in the Motor Boat magazine would have been prepared by Donald Hotchkiss himself - he had been a sub editor there. The dates are 1935 and 1936, at the peak of Cone sales. There was a report in the Trade Notes section of the same magazine in 1956 which reads thus: ' Installation of two Type 30/12 W reversing units is taking place at Braunston, Rugby, in a 72 -ft by 7-ft towing barge, with two Coventry Victor 9-11 hp Diesel engines. By fitting the engines over the cone propellers, it has been possible to reduce the normal length of engine room by several feet, thus increasing the cargo capacity of the barge.' Unfortunately there is no illustration. There is a photo of a butty which appeared in the Leicester Mercury in 1955. But this does not I think refer to a Hotchkiss installation. It seems to me to be a Gill Jet system. 'Princess' was taken over by Barlows 1957, I understand.
    5 points
  20. Is that enough bickering now? The Anchor at High Offley is indisputably nice: I rather like the deep cuttings, although the current slew of fallen trees and small landslips poised over the canal is a bit worrying.
    5 points
  21. To save you searching for it here is the Tracy D'arth method that works. "How to correctly pressurise an accumulator. You need a bicycle or foot pump which will attach to the schrader valve on the end of the accumulator. Switch off the pump electric supply. Open a tap. Pump air in, water may run from the tap,, until some resistance is felt to pumping and then a little more. How much depends on the size of the accumulator but you will not damage it unless you go mad. Remove the pump. Close the tap. Switch on the pump and allow it to pump until it stops. Very slowly let air out of the accumulator by pressing the pin in the valve, stop letting air out as soon as the pump starts up again. Pump will run and then stop. Job done, the accumulator is now correctly pressurised to a tad under the pump cut in pressure whatever that may be."
    5 points
  22. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  23. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  24. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  25. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  26. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  27. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  28. Here am I sitting in a tin can Far above the pound All the signs are blue, and there's Nothing I can do...
    4 points
  29. Trouble, trouble and toil, trouble, toil and tears. An ongoing saga of a boat person. Serialised on a forum near you.
    4 points
  30. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  31. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  32. Oh dear. I was grossly oversimplifying the Cone action. My apologies Is this better? - " If a hollow cone with closed ends, and with one side partially cut away, is held with its axis horizontal and with the cut edges below the surface of a moving fluid, the axis of the cone being at right angles to the direction of flow, an eddy forms, which causes the fluid to flow into the cone at the end nearer the apex and to be discharged at the end nearer the base. The direction of both the inlet and outlet are tangential to the direction of rotation of the fluid and in the same direction. This movement which may be termed an expanding helical flow, is capable of rotating an impeller arranged with its axis coincident with that of the cone. If the impeller is rotated mechanically the same type of flow is set up, the direction depending on the direction of rotation. A powerful reaction is then obtained, which acts on the sides of the cone so that there is a positive pressure on one side and a negative pressure on the other. A form of centrifugal pump is thereby produced , differing from the ordinary type in that it receives fluid at an initial velocity and imparts an additional velocity to a large mass of water with the minimum of frictional loss. " I hope this now makes the principle of the system entirely clear. My thanks to Engineering Aug 5 1927 and to Dorset CRO.
    4 points
  33. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  34. I do not know how much interest there is in these old systems of propulsion which blossomed from the late 1890s, although the story behind them is in itself interesting. I will try one more. This is from the Canals and Waterways Journal of 1919 and it shows the strive for innovation resulting from research carried out during WW1. This is the Kitchen Patent Reversing Rudders system. It was designed specifically with canal and river transport in mind, 'given the narrow winding courses which motor propelled craft have to negotiate'. " The principle involved is extremely simple as will be easily grasped upon reference to the perspective view in Fig 1 ( see below). The essential parts of the rudder consist of two curved deflectors formed of circular parts of a cylinder, partly enclosing the propeller. Both deflectors are pivoted at the top and bottom on common centres. One of the deflectors is operated by a solid shaft, "A", and the other by a hollow shaft, "B", concentric with the solid shaft. By suitable mechanisms the deflectors or rudders are made to turn together in the same direction or equally in opposite directions. Some of the possible positions are shown in Figs 2 to 8". There we are. Quite straight forward. The illustration shows the system installed in a 'fast Admiralty launch, 50 feet, 150 bhp, with very satisfactory results'. You can see the wheel mechanism for control of the system just to the right of the vessel's wheel. I hope that that is all quite clear. If not I have another three pages of explanation...
    4 points
  35. App, a thing that runs on a mobile phone or pad, I thought you had one of each DM, direct message as not enough posts to send one, I thought you were once a mod, sorry Forum moderator, so I thought you may have needed to know that. Info, Information software dev develops computer software BTW, By the Way.
    4 points
  36. It ain’t broke as far as I can see, so it doesn’t need fixing. Incidentally almost all of the first page of the thread revolved around a picture of a catamaran in Croatia taken a few years before the thread started and the OP replied to this positively . It was started a few days before lockdown so it’s no surprise it ended up with past years canal pictures and has carried on. Theres one thing for sure, BoatinglifeupNorth isn’t supplying much of a tonic on this thread.
    4 points
  37. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  38. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  39. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  40. I tried to assist her some time back with regards to her flat in Scotland. She was unpleasant to deal with and quite insulting so I am not surprised that anyone working for her decides to down tools and jump ship.
    3 points
  41. My husband submits several large invoices a year and similarly has never issued or been asked for a receipt, but that is not the problem here as I understand it. I don't think anyone would be threatening to damage the reputation or try and cause a small business issues with HMRC/VAT over a lack of receipts! I agree that we will probably never know the full details of Lady G's dealing with her tradesmen, nor do we need to. However she chooses to make it the forum's business and if she can be guided to less acrimonious and stressful outcomes - for all concerned - surely that is a good thing? Sometimes it is hard to stand back and see another point of view and as a solo mature boater (who might at times feel slightly vulnerable?) it must be helpful to get other perspectives, or else she wouldn't air her issues in this way. Edited to add: I have been following the forum for a good few years now and briefly met with Lady G a few years ago when she was in Lincoln. She was great company and I think she is admirable for what she manages to do her own - not without a little drama here and there admittedly, but I have much respect for her.
    3 points
  42. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  43. Who else popped in to see poor quality boats.... ?
    3 points
  44. Thank you David, you have been there many years ago, possibly before this side was built. Well done to Francis - it’s Sharpness Docks. You can watch much of the action from a car. This image below was taken from our car before I realised you can get out 😂 The ship then sailed straight into the lock next to us. There are websites advising when ships are expected and match these up with anticipated high tides and you will see them. Like West Stockwith lock on a huge scale in reverse these ships come up with the tide swing and turn round just upstream of the lock and then edge against the tide and swing in. Ships exiting the lock set off at a significant speed and watching them swept sideways as they turn is an incredible sight. The pilots are picked up at Barry apparently. It must be exhilarating doing this in such large vessels. It’s not beyond getting it wrong. Two weeks ago one ship ended up beached on a sandbank until the next tide of height came in a few days later. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-68479684.amp The lock isn’t long enough for many ships (many around 100metres long) as the whole of the outer lock needs draining which must waste a moderate amount of water pumped in with mud at Gloucester. I suspect there’s reasons for this apart from financial but I don’t know. and shortly after the first photo I’m not sure what the lever Francis has pictured is for. The old paddles on the original dock are strange ones and I can’t see they are related to the lever but that’s all I can think of. It looks more to do with the dock or locomotive related though
    3 points
  45. This post cannot be displayed because it is in a forum which requires at least 10 posts to view.
  46. 7 amps at, say, 14V is about 100W. That seems reasonable to me for a 150W panel in direct sunlight. There's a significant temperature coefficient for solar panels, so I actually see higher peak outputs early in the year than mid-summer, although my often-angled panels will benefit less from the sun being high in the sky than your flat one. Solar panels get very hot in direct summer sun - up to 75°C or so, losing about 1% of output for every 3° of temperature per the datasheet for mine. That's more than enough to outweigh the more favourable angle. Of course total output is still much higher in the summer thanks to longer days and generally better weather.
    3 points
  47. Ive just finished moving a narrowboat- the new owners run their own business and have a young daughter at school so time is somewhat short and they need their new home quickly. Monday I collect a widebeam for the newish owner that has had heart problems and is unable to do anything strenuos. After that Im over to Wigan to move a boat down the Flight for a single and relatively inexperienced single lady boater. Could give you several more quite understandable reasons why people do although I do still chuckle at the widebeam I once had to move off the mooring , turn it round and put it back on the opposite way. I dont find it sad at all- I really appreciate it 😀
    3 points
  48. "...not old photos of 10 years ago" Oh dear, I'll try harder with the 50+ years ago photos then. On this day in 1971 Curdworth locks B+F. Jumping off before lockladders earlier in the day at Tolson's Footbridge B+F - Steve climbed from the front of the boat on to the bridge, then over the bridge and returned to the boat further back. Which all goes to prove that fewer people wear jackets to go canalling these days ...
    3 points
  49. I've got to sort the camera mount out as it's a bit wobbly. Most of you won't have been on this canal but it's the second closest to my home, nearest one is closed for dredging but will follow later All are raw video as recorded, haven't learnt to edit yet 🤔
    3 points
  50. Although probably supplied by Kuranda, the stove in question is likely a Wallas 87D stove. I had one in a previous boat and I loved it. Very economical and clean as it uses a sealed flame with it's own flue. The oven is much better than a gas oven as it's fan assisted and works just like an electric oven in a house. The hob also works just like an electric ceramic cooker. I used to run the oven as a heater as it was so economical on diesel! I never had any trouble with it although I was not living aboard. The down sides are the hob isn't as quick to heat up as a gas hob, and it does require 12v to operate. IIRC it draws about 8 amps when starting but once it's running it draws only 1 amp or so. They cost an absolute fortune so if your friend decided to sell it and go to gas they'd probably get a couple of grand for it! In summary, definitely not a no no.
    3 points
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.