Your Guide to WIDE-BEAM - Waterways World

1 K?< <JJ<EK@8C >L@;< KF 9LP@E> FNE@E> 8 N@;<$9<8D 9F8K. WIDE-BEAM . your Guide to BOATING. 9LP@E> K?<. G<I=<:K 9F8K. N?@:? N?<I< KF =@E8E:< , . K<JK<;. N@;<$9<8D C@ 9F8KJ I<M@<N<; 8=CF8K. 8 n`[\$Y\Xd . eXiifnYfXk ]ifd . 9cl\nXk\i 9fXkj%. :?FFJ@E> PFLI ;lkZ_ YXi^\# . g e`Z_\# n`[\$Y\Xd . design eXiifnYfXk fi . n_Xk6 N\ \ogcX`e . k_\ [`]]\i\ek . kpg\j f] YfXkj%. T. he phrase Dutch barge'. has become synonymous with elegant WIDE-BEAM craft. Yet there are some 40 genuine Dutch designs never mind the countless other WIDE-BEAM craft often lumped in with them. Which one should you choose? CLO<DFKFI. This is the most common Dutch barge style. When first introduced, between the wars, they were among the first designs of motorised craft: barges had previously been sailed or hauled.

2 They had more generous and comfortable passenger accommodation at the stern. Hence the two words: luxe' and motor'. A modern-day luxemotor follows the same general design, but with living accommodation instead of 8 df[` \[ . the cargo hold purpose-built clo\dfkfi . for a new craft, or converted [\j`^e ]ifd . from a historic carrying craft. 8hlXc`e\%. The luxemotor is notable for its ) PFLI >L@;< KF N@;< 9<8D Choosing your design attractive lines, with a pointed, canal system, its simple but robust 8djk\i[Xd BXd\c\fe Xk `Zbi%Zfd# ::$9P$J8. angular bow, gently sweeping construction able to cope with rough gunwales (sides) with a slight dip, handling at locks and moorings, and and a curvaceous stern sometimes its 6ft 10in beam narrow enough referred to as a duck tail'!]]]

3 To go anywhere inland, that is. New-build luxemotors can be as The box-like cabin construction is short as 35ft a far cry from the simple to build, and makes excellent maximum-capacity carrying craft use of the limited space available. of old, which might be a full 100ft Now, many narrowboat builders or so. They are a good compromise have started to build craft to the between graceful appearance and same design but wider. These bluff practicality, able to maintain a are unable to navigate the smaller steady speed through the water and Midland canals, but do offer very undergo short coastal voyages. For spacious interior accommodation a cruising boat with excellent live- while remaining affordable. They aboard potential, there are few better.

4 Are especially popular as apartment boats', mostly residential but with KA8CB the option of weekend cruising. The sailing tjalk, sometimes Narrowboats are differentiated described as looking like a by their stern deck, whether Dutch clog, was the main sailing long and open ( cruiser'), long predecessor of the luxemotor. Its and enclosed ( semi-trad') or lineage as a sailing craft is striking; short ( trad'). The cruiser style KFG1 8 ;lkZ_ carry cargo in France, hundreds the bulbous bow and stern are an is favoured, but not universal, jX`c`e^ kaXcb% have been converted into obvious contrast to the luxemotor. for WIDE-BEAM narrowboats. One residential and pleasure craft, and Modern tjalks are generally other difference in the WIDE-BEAM a walk around a French inland not sailing craft, of course, but craft is the roof style, which can harbour will show you some rather steel cruising boats with be almost entirely flat even luxurious examples of the art.

5 More pronounced lines than a accommodating a temporary seating The word p niche is sometimes luxemotor. These are imposing area or curved to give maximum now used for larger, more modern craft guaranteed to make an headroom in the centre of the boat. French barges too, but pleasure immediate impression on the river. boats tend to be of the 38m GyE@:?<J ( Freycinet') standard, thanks N@;<$9<8D E8 IIFN9F8KJ A p niche is a French barge, known to the ready availability of craft It might sound like a contradiction in the Low Countries as a spitz for conversion and the ability to in terms, but the WIDE-BEAM barge'. They were built to 125ft cruise more scenic Waterways . narrowboat is an increasingly length (38m) especially to fit those popular sight on Britain's Waterways French Waterways which were KI8;@K@FE8C.

6 Though little favoured abroad, enlarged from the 1880s onwards. 9I@K@J? :I8=K. and with limited coastal ability. Its slab sides, blunt bow and For the true traditionalist, you could The steel narrowboat has become simple round stern are utilitarian consider a carrying barge of British the most popular craft on Britain's and hardy. Though still used to design. A few have been converted for residential use and others are preserved as leisure boats. Most have now been fitted with engines. With the near-extinction of the C<=K1 =fi traditional barges of the Mersey k_fj\ n_f (the flat') and the Severn (the gi\]\i X 9i`k`j_ trow'), the two types you might [\j`^e# X see are the Thames barge and, K_Xd\j YXi^\% more common, the Humber 9<CFN1 K_\ keel.

7 Numerous keels survive in =i\eZ_ YXi^\ various states of conversion and fi g e`Z_\% make spacious residential craft. ;Xm\ ?Xdjk\i Xk `Zbi%Zfd# ::$9P$J8. bkpc\iZfeb Xk `Zbi%Zfd# ::$9P$J8. PFLI >L@;< KF N@;< 9<8D 9F8K@E> *. 9lp`e^ pfli boat DXb\ jli\ pfli gliZ_Xj\ `j X jX]\ fe\ n`k_ fli \jj\ek`Xc eXeZ`Xc Z_\Zbc`jk A. barge is possibly the second extra time and money will be as biggest investment you'll nothing when you're buying an Jargon-buster make in your life and like 150,000 boat that might take six buying a house, there are certain months to build. 9JJ1 K_\ 9fXk JX]\kp . safeguards you should take to protect These points are for people buying JZ_\d\# X c`kkc\ c`b\ . yourself. a new, fully-fitted boat. You will need k_\ DfK% Fgk`feXc# Ylk.

8 Boat purchases can go wrong on to take different precautions if you're ^ff[ giXZk`Z\# ]fi e\n . occasion, just as with any comparable buying a second-hand boat, a share YfXkj% :fdglcjfip . purchase like an overseas holiday in a boat, or (of course) fitting out a ]fi Xcc YfXkj fm\i ]fli . home, a house extension or a sea- sailaway or shell yourself. If you are p\Xij fc[%. going craft. But although house- buying a 100% off-the-peg boat in ?@E fi J@E1 ?lcc fi . buying advice is easy to come by, one lump sum, the need for staged J_\cc @[\ek` ZXk`fe . boat- buying advice is rarer. To get the payments may of course not arise. EldY\i X eldY\i . full picture, make sure you have all Remember, too: you're more likely le`hl\ kf pfli YfXk# . the information to hand.

9 Start with: to have a successful purchase if n_`Z_ j_flc[ Y\ . k_\ :XeXc I`m\i Kiljk you are a good customer. Just as a \jkXYc`j_\[ Xk k_\ . ZXcc '*'* '+' +'+'# fi m`j`k minority of boat-buyers have horror jkXik f] k_\ Yl`c[%. nnn%ZXeXci`m\ikiljk%fi^%lb&YfXk`e^& stories about unscrupulous builders, X$YfXk$f]$pfli$fne so will builders occasionally tell you I:;1 K_\ I\Zi\Xk`feXc :iX]k ;`i\Zk`m\# X . k_\ 9i`k`j_ DXi`e\ =\[\iXk`fe j about the customer who wanted the Zfdglcjfip j\k f] <lifg\Xe YfXk$Yl`c[`e^ . ?fn kf 9lp X 9fXk ]fi :XeXc fi windows moved after the shell was jkXe[Xi[j kf n_`Z_ pfli YXi^\ dljk Y\ Yl`ck% . I`m\i ZXcc '(./+ +.**..# fi \$dX`c cut, or who cancelled an order after 9\ ZXi\]lc `] pfl \dgcfp k_\ j_\cc$Yl`c[\i Xe[.)]]

10 Gfjkiffd7Yi`k`j_dXi`e\%Zf%lb all the materials had been ordered YfXk$ kk\i `e[`m`[lXccp# pfl d`^_k Y\ [\\d\[ . k_\ NXk\inXpj Nfic[ 8eelXc and the workshop booked. A healthy, k_\ gifa\Zk dXeX^\i # Xe[ Y\Zfd\ [`i\Zkcp . ZXcc '()/* .+)0.'# fi m`j`k respectful relationship between i\jgfej`Yc\ ]fi k_\ I:; [fZld\ekXk`fe%. nnn%nXk\inXpjnfic[%Zfd customer and builder will maximise your chance of getting the boat you JkX^\[ gXpd\ekj1 GXp`e^ ]fi \XZ_ gXik f] pfli . Do as much research as possible: want, on time, on budget. YfXk Xj k_\ nfib `j [fe\# iXk_\i k_Xe ^`m`e^ X . read magazines, scour the Internet, And most of all do enjoy buying cXi^\ cldg jld lg]ifek%. and buy every book you can. The your boat. + PFLI >L@;< KF N@;< 9<8D buying your boat Choosing a builder M`j`k Xk c\Xjk fe\ YfXk j_fn# Yi`e^`e^ pfli c`jk f].]]]]]]