Topliner's Owners Club

[RealWindmill]

To fellow member,

Hi Mark (ExSurveyor)

Whitey is always looking very smart each time i pass her.

As one of the two remaining Topliner Corniche Class boats left on the Broads system here is an update on Silverwing this season. It is likely the tired old MC42 may need replacing this year. I did briefly consider going down the electric re-engining route but the weight/size/cost of the batteries made me rethink that. With a new engine I will take the opportunity to rename her to Windmill.

The Nautical and Merchant Navy types of you will know it is considered bad luck to rename a vessel. Silverwing has kept her hire fleet name since i've owned her but will now become Windmill.  My theory is hoping all the bad luck will go with the old engine !

Some recent internal changes include a wood burner, full size gas cooker , and fridge and freezer arrangement in the Lazerette store (formerly aft cabin). I now have enough solar panel capacity to stay off-grid indefinately without needing to run engines, this includes running a domestic freezer and maintaining charge to a large electric outboard motor battery.

 

Finally, I extend a welcome to our exclusive club to new owners of the Topliner Royalle Class, which have recently been retired from their hire fleet. These sturdy and very comfortable boats were latterly known as Brinks Topliners - i believe there were three. These have the distinctive Topliner style superstructure as designed and built by Jim Topliss and his team at Oulton Broad in the style of American Lake boats. His team said the original idea was to use the outside walkway to give access to each cabin as in the manner of a Mississippi riverboat communal veranda with the cabin doors opening onto it. The inclement UK weather however meant a rethink and so doors connecting the cabins internally were designed in as well, hence the reduction in usable width internally in the mid-cabin of the Corniche class and the need for the walk-through shower of the Royalle class. Royalles also distinquished by provision of the large poster bed cabin and patio aft following the experiment of carrying a caravan.

Be interested to hear any improvements new owners may be considering. P.S. don't remove any internal bulkheads or supports - the roofs are heavy !

Bob

 

[oldgregg]

1 hour ago, RealWindmill said:

As one of the two remaining Topliner Corniche Class boats left on the Broads system here is an update on Silverwing this season. It is likely the tired old MC42 may need replacing this year. I did briefly consider going down the electric re-engining route but the weight/size/cost of the batteries made me rethink that. With a new engine I will take the opportunity to rename her to Windmill.

Don't forget that the MC42 can be rebuilt. You'll struggle to find a boatyard on the Broads that wants to do the job as swapping the unit out is much simpler, but there are some diesel specialists with the right skills to do so.

A lot of components are replaced, so it's not a bad option. You can see what an overhaul kit includes https://www.parts4engines.com/perkins-perama-mc42-engine-overhaul-kit/ and it's not insignificant.

Does a Nanni N4.50 give better throttle response? Yes it does, but the MC42 is a torquey engine and there isn't likely to be a lot in it with fuel economy either...

[ExSurveyor]

Hi Bob,

I have never worried about name changes but always have a grandchild read aloud the recommended toast and splash a very small amount of fizzy on each corner. 😁

I still have the original configuration but need more berths for when growing grandchildren stay. I have a Shetland Family four that I double moor as overflow accommodation, the rangers refer to it as my extension. It doubles up as a runabout for a trip out or to the pub.

The Nanni engine is the one it came with but it doesn't get anything like the use yours does.

[RealWindmill]

Thanks olegregg for the link to the engine overhaul kit. Very useful.

My Marina manager, whose opinion and knowledge I value a lot, says as it's not smoking and doesn't have any water in the oil then i shouldn't worry too much about the good old Perkins lump. My only remaining concern is the oil pressure remaining high. Possible sensor issue ?

Anyroad, that overhaul kit looks comprehensive and may well become a future option. Thanks again.

[Hylander]

20 hours ago, RealWindmill said:

To fellow member,

Hi Mark (ExSurveyor)

Whitey is always looking very smart each time i pass her.

As one of the two remaining Topliner Corniche Class boats left on the Broads system here is an update on Silverwing this season. It is likely the tired old MC42 may need replacing this year. I did briefly consider going down the electric re-engining route but the weight/size/cost of the batteries made me rethink that. With a new engine I will take the opportunity to rename her to Windmill.

The Nautical and Merchant Navy types of you will know it is considered bad luck to rename a vessel. Silverwing has kept her hire fleet name since i've owned her but will now become Windmill.  My theory is hoping all the bad luck will go with the old engine !

Some recent internal changes include a wood burner, full size gas cooker , and fridge and freezer arrangement in the Lazerette store (formerly aft cabin). I now have enough solar panel capacity to stay off-grid indefinately without needing to run engines, this includes running a domestic freezer and maintaining charge to a large electric outboard motor battery.

 

Finally, I extend a welcome to our exclusive club to new owners of the Topliner Royalle Class, which have recently been retired from their hire fleet. These sturdy and very comfortable boats were latterly known as Brinks Topliners - i believe there were three. These have the distinctive Topliner style superstructure as designed and built by Jim Topliss and his team at Oulton Broad in the style of American Lake boats. His team said the original idea was to use the outside walkway to give access to each cabin as in the manner of a Mississippi riverboat communal veranda with the cabin doors opening onto it. The inclement UK weather however meant a rethink and so doors connecting the cabins internally were designed in as well, hence the reduction in usable width internally in the mid-cabin of the Corniche class and the need for the walk-through shower of the Royalle class. Royalles also distinquished by provision of the large poster bed cabin and patio aft following the experiment of carrying a caravan.

Be interested to hear any improvements new owners may be considering. P.S. don't remove any internal bulkheads or supports - the roofs are heavy !

Bob

 

I for one , having hired a Topliner in the past, many many years ago, would love to see some photos if you have any that you can share with us.

Our Topliner was the version which we referred to as the floating bed and people seemed to pass in other boat and be fascinated by the fact that the main part was the bedroom.   Lovely and comfortable I must say.

 

[oldgregg]

12 hours ago, RealWindmill said:

My Marina manager, whose opinion and knowledge I value a lot, says as it's not smoking and doesn't have any water in the oil then i shouldn't worry too much about the good old Perkins lump. My only remaining concern is the oil pressure remaining high. Possible sensor issue ?

@Vaughan is the best man to tell you about the MC42, but certainly if it's not losing fluids, has good compression and is generally running well then there's probably not much need to overhaul.

There is a perception that old=bad when it comes to marine diesels. The thing to remember is that they are very unlike car engines.

Sure the principles of an internal combustion engine are there, but the sort of engines which usually get fitted to Broads cruisers don't have timing belts or chains to fail. The valvegear is gear-driven, and in some engines it's still pushrod rather than overhead cam. That's how car engines used to be decades ago.

I think people have got conditioned into expecting sudden engine failure because of the absolute junk being produced by european car manufacturers over the last couple of decades in order to meet ever-tighter emissions legislation.

Now of course marine diesels can go pop if not looked after, but the newer ones are at least as likely to do so. I've heard of numerous Nannis letting go, but there are many boats on the Broads with BMC and Perkins lumps which are decades old.

[RealWindmill]

Sounds like you had the 4 poster bed version Hylander.

Despite their quirky looks and the marmite effect they have on people they invariable got good reviews on their comfort levels and practicality and safety, especially for pets or kids. I'm sure many on here may have hired them during their years of hiring.

Some of you may recall this - many years ago on the forum a poster by the name of ReadyAbout wrote an excellent series of posts called Chippings from the Log. His anecdotes were about his experiences of Broads and Blue water cruising and sailing and they were always interesting and entertaining yarns. I always thought they should have been made into a book.

One of his classics was when he described how he and his wife hired a Topliner. When they went to pick up the boat they were horrified to see a boat that looked like a shed, had a wash basin in the wheelhouse and a walk-through shower room and the fact that he had to shuffle like a gorilla to avoid banging his head in the alleyways. However by the end of the hire period he could not praise the boat enough for the comfort and ease of handling it had given them.

As for photos Hylander, i'm based on Southern river and sometimes in the Beccles/Geldeston area. Feel free to knock on the door and say hi and have a look around.

Bob

[ExSurveyor]

I did look at the 4 poster style a couple of years ago with a view to redoing it to a twin cabin. It worked out uneconomic.

The one that is being remodeled is interesting, some nice design ideas.

[RealWindmill]

Which one and where is that Mark ?

[ExSurveyor]

Broadsboatrenovation, on instagram.

I think it was the last one from Brinks.

[RealWindmill]

Ok. Thanks Mark. Thats how i missed it. Don't do Social Media sites. Have a good B/H W/End.

[ExSurveyor]

Hopefully coming up today for a week 🤞