fcrammond
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Well I did warn you.It's arrived and it doesn't look so bad in the flesh. The hull is a quite sophisticated steel pressing with a reasonably early ME1 in it. Not quite as early as Athene but the brass vapourising burner and flip top oiler. There is a displacement oiler as well but I think this is an addition. The topsides and rudder arrangements are a bit crude and the fairly recent spray painting has been a bit careless but the overall appearance is not too bad. I feel the hull has a story to tell, it seems older than the engine but it ain't telling.
It's a bit of a change from my usual boats but it looks as though it could be fun.
Hope to christen her at Tilford.
Fred
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spug103
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very nice i was going to bid on that, but other projects took over,
i hope you have lots of fun.
cheers
ben
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Spokesmann
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I did see that one for sale Fred, nice early ME1 and it certainly is different Popeye of Steamboat Willie is style!
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steamyjim
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That is very very nice mate 
I was going to bid, but forgot...not far from me either 
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silverfoxsteam
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That's really cute if you don't mind me saying Fred.
I'm lucky enough to have a 5.5 metre trail boat and I deliberately steer clear of the model boats that I see on OFAS 'cos I just know I'll be tempted!
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fcrammond
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That's the Flagship coming down the Oxford shortly before shearing the crankshaft, she's called Owl. The first of the small steam powered ones was Athene being the latin name for the Little Owl (in joke there!}
The trouble with the new one (provisionally christened Daphinia) is that she's too fat for my test tank. Her main advantage is her steel hull. If she sinks I can recover her with my big magnet. The downside could be problems with RC unless I fit an external aerial.
Yes, I know it should be Daphnia (pond flea) but there is another play on words there also.
Where do you trail to? Sea, rivers, lakes or canals?
F.
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silverfoxsteam
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You like your puns Fred - and your boats!
I've hired narrow boats for holidays in the past, when the boys were younger, it was one of the few things that seemed to stop 'em arguing! Had some great times on the Black Country Ring. I've had a couple of small cruisers (not at the same time) on the Calder & Hebble and cruised that waterway and most of the links, going to Ripon via York, Sheffield via the New Junction Canal - really exotic places!
Now I'm trailable, I go to the Lakes, Loch Lomond (wonderfull) and our favourite place - Kielder Water. I've fitted the boat out for inshore use (VHF, GPS etc) so hoping to launch into the briney this year!
Here's a picture of 'Free Spirit' taken moored up at Ripon in 2007...
She's got a pram-type cockpit cover but as the sun was shining it's folded away - that doesn't happen too often!
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fcrammond
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Nice boat. If its trailable the world is your oyster. We set out from Leicester every year but usually end up on the Thames, sometimes in time for the Trad Boat Show at Henley but not always. The year before last the river rose and we spent nearly three weeks there. A trailable boat would have been well worth while. Owl can be a bit of a problem, too big to tow but too small for a permanent double bed but at least we can turn anywhere and we don't have a canopy (our old Dawncraft did......it leaked).
I've just squeezed Daphinia into the test tank and she goes well although the pretty paint job is clearly very recent and is now seriously blistered
Happy Boating
F.
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