FadeToScarlet

Can I play as the Great Mattress of the Tame Valley?

So the back cabin on my boat wasn't proper, then? ? edit: and even more pedantically, butty back cabins aren't "proper" either?

And I believe the stern end was tied up next to it over the weekend, as it is now the foreend of a new boat.

How about a BW year- boats in BW blue and yellow, or blue, or green, regardless of original company? That would be interesting.

MILTON, ex-MILTON PRINCESS, is still very much carrying today- albeit self-loading cargo. It handles nearly as well as PERSEUS.

Half open the first, pause for a second until the flush bounces off the bottom gates and the boat moves forwards again, then fully open it.

That's not in their risk assessment!

Between the 5 of us at the wharf, we have 11 boats..... And some canoes.

Can't remember where the nearest winding holes are, but is it worth going down backwards?

We took Willow through (7' 3/8" at the widest point) with no problems about 5-6 weeks ago. It's worth a go!

It's much easier to overplate a baseplate rather than the sides.

You need: -A suitable boat, and the gear for it (Merchant on the Thames cost nearly £200,000 all in!) -A patch or round that isn't already covered. The margins are thin enough without people competing. Failing that, an area such as London where there's enough customers to support more than one. -A Boatmaster licence (CRT requirement for hazardous cargo) -to become a Registered Dealer in Controlled Oils and know all the paperwork requirements Enough savvy to use social media to contact your customers and arrange your deliveries Places to load (Harder than it seems, Jules on the Southern GU has to run a pair as there aren't enough loading points any more for regular resupply and she needs to carry enough stock. Either a willingness to cover a large area and work almost every day, or a side interest or job e.g. fendermaking to top up your income A willingness to get more acquainted with poo pumps and their contents than you thought likely- often just before your lunch The skills, fitness and willingness to load many tons of coal and gas bottles manually, and heave it up onto cabintops; to fight a loaded boat through shallow cuts, bladefuls and bunged up bridgeholes to get to your customers The knowledge that you will never make a fortune doing it, it's bloody hard work over long hours for little financial reward. But then again, not all rewards are financial! It'd work well on the Thames, the prices are high enough that you can undercut the boatyards. Talking to the operator of Merchant, he sells almost entirely diesel, very little coal and gas. Or run it with fuel on the motor and a butty with the coal, gas, and pumpout!

That's a straight 30 oil, a monograde, rather than the multigrade 10w/30 which is thinner when it is cold for easy starting and then thickens as it warms up.

Bargus (technically Beta - argus) - Small Woolwich. Owner is a member here- Jay4472 but rarely posts.

#notallexworkingboats

Yes, "decompression lever" is the correct name for the decompression lever which is at the top of the engine. This is a separate and different fitting on the fuel pump, which opens the fuel rack further than in normal use, to provide more than the usual amount of diesel to aid cold starting, then unlatches itself and allows the fuel rack to perform as usual.

That won't happen. It will be full not of bolts, but rivets, obviously!

You'll probably be much better off joining the "London Boatwomen" group, which my wife tells me is significantly more sensible and less full of tongue-in-cheek abuse of newbies than the main group.

Keith was muttering about borrowing lots of butties to tow through with Hasty at one point.

10th is pretty good for a first attempt, but we'd've scored more had the draft bonus been in place still. It does really slow you down- e.g. we took 4 and a half hours going down Ryder's Green to the junction and back up again, because of the shallowness. Lockworking was efficient (although I wasn't strapping in by that point, I was too tired to do it safely!) Our route was: Cambrian Wharf, down Farmer's and Aston to Salford, up Perry Barr, Up Rushall, around to Pelsall, up the Cannock Extension (with a photo of the foreend touching the end of the colliery basin), around the Curly Wyrley, up Holly Bank, around via Factory to Pudding Green, down Ryder's Green to the junction with the Tame Valley and return, up Spon, strap the boat around the turn, up The Crow. 26 and a bit hours, 2 and a bit hours "rest" whilst I fixed the engine. No sleep until afterwards We were originally going to go down the Walsall, but heard dreadful tales of woe as we were approaching, so went the other way around.

I would use this or something of the same spec: https://www.limekilnchandlers.co.uk/morris-golden-film-sae-10w/40-5ltr.html (I wouldn't buy from there though! Cheaper elsewhere) The important thing is that the oil is mineral oil rather than synthetic, and the API spec is CC - I.e. API CC. Modern oils have all kinds of additives and frills that you don't need and could do your engine more harm than good.

It is a lot harder doing it to a shallower drafted boat though, you have to go in at a very shallow angle. Tried using the cabin shaft to clear the blades on a friend's 2' 4" draft boat but could barely get near the prop.

No, because "working boat" is generally taken to be synonymous with "cargo carrying boat". It isn't the best term, but it is one in popular use. I tend to use "historic" or "ex working boat" when talking about mine to avoid confusion. What won't avoid confusion is that I heard the gate was lifted off its pintle by a work boat owned by contractors.

A very different funnel though- the trip boat funnels held gas bottles!

LEE kept the Harbourmaster until as recently as 2009/10 I think it was, when the owner, despairing of getting parts for it, had it removed and a conventional stern and modern engine installed. Which was a shame as it was I believe the last surviving one.