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rbrtcrowther

By rbrtcrowther
in New to Boating?

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rbrtcrowther Engager

rbrtcrowther

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Just a note to Say hello peeps, we are about to start looking for a narrow boat to use as a holiday boat. Having worked in the ocean going marine industry for many years the last thing I wanted was a sea going boat.. So... A narrow boat it is... You can stop at a pub on a sailing boat. We still have about a years more saving to do but hope to have about £18000 to spend.... Will that get us a decent boat to holiday on? I would also prefer some kind of lister thumper engine.. Any advice welcome.. Its years since I joined a forum and look forward to starting a new adventure with new friends.

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NB Lola Rising Star

NB LolaDonate to Canal World

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Welcome to the forum.  Try some forum searches about Springers,lots to gleam about them in our message archives.  Some people would say £18k is plenty, others not nearly enough.  It's all down to age and/or quality as well as what you, as a buyer, wants.  I personally would review the adverts in narrowboat magazines and also wander around a few boats for sale in marinas to assess whether your budget is in tune with your wants/needs.  You will then know if £18k is enough.

once again, welcome.

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Heffalump Rising Star

Heffalump

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Just now, Laurie.Booth said:

Yep, Bristol, spent many a happy time there in my youth.

:)

Realised a dream a couple of years ago, having always caravanned at Baltic wharf, by narrowboating past the SS Great Britain and the Matthew.  Lovely area :)

Sorry OP :offtopic:

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rbrtcrowther Engager

rbrtcrowther

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There are a couple on Apollo duck site that seem viable... One called Sherborne that come with a full overplate.. And one called truly scrumptious that would fit the bill. I could live with a wooden top if I had to perhaps a bit more maintenance but all part of the fun.... Just need to spend the year getting a feel for the selling prices ect..

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magictime Experienced

magictime

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The obvious question to me is: what size boat are we talking about here?

A 60ft boat at £18k is likely to be a serious 'project' with multiple issues just waiting to consume all your time and money for the foreseeable future, whereas a 30ft boat at the same price might be very nice indeed.

Personally, as the former owner of a 24-footer, I'd much rather compromise on length than on age, quality, amount of work needed etc. Some smaller boats are very well-planned indeed, and 'cabin fever', storage space etc. should be non-issues if you're talking about holidays of a week or three at a time, with much of that time spent on deck cruising, in the pub etc.

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rbrtcrowther Engager

rbrtcrowther

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we would be looking at anything from a very well planned 25 footer in good nick all round... Up to a 40 foot with a good hull but needing an interior spruce up for now.. Not too bothered about the engine condition as its well within my abilities to rebuild or fit another... I did have a JP3 knocking about till a few years ago but sold it to someone with the perfect boat to put it in.. I think the long term plan is one day to semi retire and become a floating mobile marine engineer... Pottering about doing shaft alignments and servicing..ect..... . The big dream is a 70 footer with a workshop.... And a wine rack.... A really big wine rack...

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Laurie Booth Veteran

Laurie BoothDonate to Canal World

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54 minutes ago, rbrtcrowther said:

we would be looking at anything from a very well planned 25 footer in good nick all round... Up to a 40 foot with a good hull but needing an interior spruce up for now.. Not too bothered about the engine condition as its well within my abilities to rebuild or fit another... I did have a JP3 knocking about till a few years ago but sold it to someone with the perfect boat to put it in.. I think the long term plan is one day to semi retire and become a floating mobile marine engineer... Pottering about doing shaft alignments and servicing..ect..... . The big dream is a 70 footer with a workshop.... And a wine rack.... A really big wine rack...

Forget the workshop and concentrate on the wine rack

:)

  • Greenie 1
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rusty69 Veteran II

rusty69

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On 10/08/2017 at 12:39, croftie said:

Priorities!!

The big dream is a 70 footer with a wine rack.... A really big wine rack...  Ohh and a workshop....

Our boat cost 17k,but it was nearly 20 years ago and it did need a lot of work :)

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rbrtcrowther Engager

rbrtcrowther

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32 minutes ago, frangar said:

Bear in mind that a fully restored engine like a JP2 or Gardner twin could be £10k-£15k on its own out of any boat...3-4 cylinder units do fetch a bit less. Good luck in your search. 

The one I sold was an industrial one I took off a compressor set.. It ran perfectly but had no marine parts.. I bought it for 100 quid on the condition it started.. I sold it three years later for 800 quid..

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frangar Veteran II

frangar

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4 minutes ago, rbrtcrowther said:

The one I sold was an industrial one I took off a compressor set.. It ran perfectly but had no marine parts.. I bought it for 100 quid on the condition it started.. I sold it three years later for 800 quid..

Even industrial twins get daft money...plus you can now get the parts to make an attempt to turn them into a marine version....I'm all too aware that my JP2M is worth half the value of the complete boat! 

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