Norton Canes Boat Services

12/10/2026

Loving the new kit Tamworth FC Women 👌

09/10/2026

We were hoping for a bit of respite with winter approaching, but things are as busy as ever. Can’t complain really!

The crane was with us on Tuesday, and we launched Felix, while Moose is now out of the water and has been gritblasted. Today’s job was the big clean-up, ready for some pit welding followed by two-pack epoxy blacking.

Work on the galley in our new build Wenda is underway, with the oak blockboard carcassing taking shape.

Over on Pride of Holderness, the cooling system is now installed, along with new drain channels, gas locker and uxter plate protection.

Thisuldo is having the finishing touches applied to her paintwork, while Signy Steve has been back with us this week. The new diesel tank has been installed in the front well deck, and the removable sections of seat supports have been painted and fitted.

We’ve also been machining some lovely padauk hardwood for Siskin, ready to be turned into a new TV unit and bookcases.

And finally, our latest new build, Déjà Vu, is on the dry dock this week for blacking and signwriting by Charlotte Hopwood. We’re keeping that one under wraps now until she’s finished, though!

Phew! And that’s not even everything we’ve had going on this week — just the bits I’ve managed to photograph!

04/10/2026

We had a great weekend on Lamprey at the Black Country Living Museum with the Historic Narrow Boat Club Gathering.

Really good to see the museum full of historic boats, with plenty going on across the weekend. Thanks to everyone who came along and said hello!

30/09/2026

We’re looking forward to the Black Country Living Museum’s Home of Industry weekend this Saturday and Sunday.

It’s lovely to see LAMPREY featured in the Museum’s promotion for the event — she’s already there and ready for what should be a brilliant weekend.

A celebration of industry, innovation and heritage ⚒️

Join us for Home of Industry this weekend, 3-4 October and celebrate the region's rich industrial heritage:

🚂 Steam engines in action
🚢 Over 30 historic narrow boats, including Peaky Blinders-featured boats Lamprey and Sandbach
⚒️ Live industrial demonstrations
⛓️ Chainmaking and strike activities
🎶 Live music and entertainment
🏘️ Historic characters and storytelling

A fantastic day out for all ages, included with standard Museum admission and FREE for UnChained Annual Pass holders.

25/09/2026

🧡 ROSIE – 1974 AND PROUD OF IT 🧡

Some boats get modernised.

Some get “updated”.

And then there’s Rosie… who appears to have simply decided the 1970s were perfectly good enough. 😂

Built by Fernie in 1974 and owned by the same family from new, Rosie is an incredibly original 50ft traditional narrowboat, complete with an interior that is an absolute riot of period colours, tiles, patterns and proper old-school boating character.

And she’s no static museum piece either — Rosie has travelled all of Britain’s navigable canals and waterways across Europe during her life.

She now needs some sympathetic recommissioning and updating, but after more than 50 years with the same family, her owners’ biggest wish is that she goes to someone who will love and cherish her just as they have.

📍 Stretton Arm, Oxford Canal
💷 £17,950

https://www.norton-canes.co.uk/boat-sales-brokerage/rosie/

23/09/2026

🚤 New to brokerage – Wild Otter
💷 £32,450

A proper traditional boat with bags of character! Wild Otter is a 59ft Norton Canes, built in 1987, with a traditional engine room and back cabin and a Lister HRW3 at her heart.

She has a lovely quality fit-out with plenty of solid oak and mahogany detailing and, while she’d benefit from a little TLC and updating to bring her back to her best, there’s a really good boat underneath. The Lister was rebuilt by MES Midlands in 2024 too.

📍 Lying at Glascote Basin, Coventry Canal

👉 Full details and photographs are in the advert.

22/09/2026

A 1970s TIME CAPSULE…COMING SOON 🧡

I went out today to photograph our latest brokerage boat and completely fell in love with it.

Owned by the same owner from new, it has survived gloriously untouched — the floral tiles, curtains, furniture, crochet, lamps, telephone… the lot!

Stepping aboard really is like stepping straight back into the 1970s. It’s absolutely magnificent — some of it belongs in a museum! 😍

Full details coming soon, but in the meantime…

What’s your favourite original detail? 👇

I’m struggling to choose, but those tiles are pretty special. 🧡🤎💚

20/09/2026

A little sneak peek from the boatyard… 👀

Our latest new build is getting very close to completion, and we’re now onto those all-important finishing touches.

We don’t want to give too much away just yet, but we thought we’d share a little glimpse of what we’ve been up to.

There’s been a huge amount of work gone into the details on this boat, with bespoke oak joinery throughout and plenty of those little touches that make a Norton Canes build what it is.

Not long now until we can show you the finished boat properly…

18/09/2026

Love it or hate it… you won’t forget Marmite. 😄

Now for sale at £109,950, Marmite is a 60ft semi-traditional narrowboat built in 2011 by Tim Tyler and professionally fitted by Braidbar Boats. She has a smart ash interior, solid burnt oak flooring and a practical layout that makes her a very comfortable boat for cruising or spending longer periods aboard.

Specification includes a Beta Marine 43, Lewmar bow thruster, Victron 3kW inverter/charger, Webasto central heating, Morso Squirrel stove and a generous 660-litre water tank. She was repainted by Andy Russell in 2021 and grit blasted and two-pack epoxy blacked by Norton Canes in 2025.

And yes, she even has the full Marmite treatment in the signwriting. You really do either love it or hate it… but we think she’s rather hard not to like.

Marmite – £109,950
Lying at Glascote Basin, Coventry Canal
Full particulars: https://www.norton-canes.co.uk/boat-sales-brokerage/marmite/

15/09/2026

Craning day at the boatyard today!

Onto lorries went Koi and Ta-ra-a-bit 👋🏼, while Joshua went back into the water following gritblasting and two-pack epoxy blacking.

Taking Joshua’s place out of the water was Felix, who we’ve now got all wrapped up and ready for blasting tomorrow, before receiving the same two-pack epoxy treatment.

We’re also working on a traditional-style front cloth for Rocket’s working boat-style cloths area, which has steel underneath, adding a nice finishing touch to her traditional appearance.

And with a nice clear quay and a rare bit of blue sky ☀️, I took the opportunity to get some new brokerage photos of Marmite, which will be advertised for sale very soon! 👀

If you’re looking to have your boat taken out of the water, our next craning day is Tuesday 6th October. Get in touch to book a space.