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What "Vintage" narrowboat hulls should I look out for


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Don't be tempted to build your own shell unless either:

You have made two shells before and perfected your technique.

or

You are very confident in your metalwork skill and have a good eye for what makes a pleasing boat.

I have seen quite a few owner fabricated shells and most are pretty naff where the builder has taken the easy option in forming shapes, rather than the harder option that looks good. I saw one last week that was seriously wobbly. I have also seen a couple of good ones, and have probably seen others that were so good I did not realise they were home made.

On a general note, boatbuilding is a cottage industry where all boats are hand made and there has been no serious attempt to go down the automotive route of reducing production costs by adopting "bendy plastic engineering" etc. So, boats are one of the few machines where quality has actually increased over the years; a mid range boat built now will actually be better quality than a mid range boat built twenty years ago, though in some cases might be a less interesting shape.

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

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8 minutes ago, dmr said:

Don't be tempted to build your own shell unless either:

You have made two shells before and perfected your technique.

or

You are very confident in your metalwork skill and have a good eye for what makes a pleasing boat.

I have seen quite a few owner fabricated shells and most are pretty naff where the builder has taken the easy option in forming shapes, rather than the harder option that looks good. I saw one last week that was seriously wobbly. I have also seen a couple of good ones, and have probably seen others that were so good I did not realise they were home made.

On a general note, boatbuilding is a cottage industry where all boats are hand made and there has been no serious attempt to go down the automotive route of reducing production costs by adopting "bendy plastic engineering" etc. So, boats are one of the few machines where quality has actually increased over the years; a mid range boat built now will actually be better quality than a mid range boat built twenty years ago, though in some cases might be a less interesting shape.

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

I agree with all that.  Some years ago I looked at a boat which turned out to be a very early attempt by a well known, and respected, boat builder, now retired.

In many respects it was awful, though you could see elements of what became his trademark style.  Of the current crop of narrowboat builders I wonder how many boats they made before arriving at an acceptable product.  

I had a conversation with another well respected fabricator a couple of years back and he agreed that in 90% of cases there was no point throwing money at restoring a boat with a knackered hull when there are some really good budget builders now producing excellent shells at incredible prices.  Most people need look no further.  But I agree quality has improved at the expense of style.   Look, for example, at some of the early Colecrafts,  Barney Boats, Pipers, all mass market builders but with a lot more character than you get today. 

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  • 6 months later...

Malcolm Braine and Dennis Cooper both based at Norton Cannes built handsome traditional boats for many years.

Just over a year ago I brought a 45foot Malcolm Braine trad with a rotten wooden cabin for well under £10k. Using traditional hand tools and a few thousand pounds worth of timber and materials I have restored the boat whilst afloat.

Still got a fair bit to do but she’s come. A long way!

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6B99D47D-2CD5-41E9-A620-83A965FF6E13.jpeg

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On ‎29‎/‎03‎/‎2017 at 15:16, dmr said:

 boats are one of the few machines where quality has actually increased over the years; a mid range boat built now will actually be better quality than a mid range boat built twenty years ago

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

 

On ‎29‎/‎03‎/‎2017 at 15:33, Neil2 said:

I agree with all that.  Some years ago I looked at a boat which turned out to be a very early attempt by a well known, and respected, boat builder, now retired.

In many respects it was awful, though you could see elements of what became his trademark style.  Of the current crop of narrowboat builders I wonder how many boats they made before arriving at an acceptable product.  

 

Both comments are spot on.

Here's a picture of the sort of thing Harland & Wolff were churning out around 1912, and then around 25 years later. :closedeyes:

 

 

Titanic-sinking.jpg

BW%2033%20Callisto%20at%20Blisworth%202005.jpg

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Nice that. Proper bit of cabin building. I like timber tops but I agree with the comments about Masonite, it goes all bulgy and horrible unless you seal the edges, I never found a way to do that. I wouldn't leave that statue of a lurcher on the roof though, it'll get knocked off at the first bridge.

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On 3/24/2017 at 19:52, Darrenroberts said:

Haha London isn't as bad as people think but it is expensive, iam from grimsby but moved to south London as iam a cabinet maker, unfortunately London is an are where people buy heigh end work so I get good money down there. Down side is my rent on a flat combined with my workshop rent sort of left me a bit stuck, making more money but spending more too. Hence the boat iam intending on moving back up north but want to use the assets I have down here to finance the buying of a boat so I can move my business and life, if that makes sense lol

If you are into Wood why not a wooden boat? you could  search for A Lenny Walton built boat  there was one on Apollo Duck a couple of months back that needed interior refit NoIdea if it's still on the market

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28 minutes ago, X Alan W said:

If you are into Wood why not a wooden boat? you could  search for A Lenny Walton built boat  there was one on Apollo Duck a couple of months back that needed interior refit NoIdea if it's still on the market

From what I have seen of the mount of maintence a wooden hull requires, it becomes a full time job.

He wouldn't have time to run a cabinetbmsking business and maintain an elderly wooden hull. :mellow:

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