JF Boat Building

Having our boat built by JF Boatbuilding, up to now a great service , he and the guys have taken the time to listen to what we want and make our dream happen . Offering expert advice and fantastic guidance .

Jamie showed me his recent build, and, quite frankly, I was blown away with his finish and attention to detail. I manage a fleet of 40+ narrowboats, and this is how I would like to see the finished standard in them.

I am over the moon. I have had my boat blacked and a new kitchen fitted.From start to finish the staff were very hepful, hardworking but above all honest. Even when they knew I hadn't got a clue they gave me money saving options and guided me through the whole process. The qualty of their work is superb and to a very high spec. I can highly recommend them. I wouldn't go any where else now.

Two solar panels fitted, very neat and tidy work. Price exactly as a quote given 6-months previously. Highly recommended.

Turned up with a small problem with my boatRob went out of his way to help me straight away and didn’t even charge meReally pleased

Had boat blacked with j f a very good service

Can’t recommend Jamie and his company enough , as a new boat owner I didn’t have much idea on cost and what my boat needed to keep it safe and looking good .Fantastic advice given and apart from doing a wonderful job , Jamie communicated with me throughout working on my boat , he was extremely fair with his charges and picked up and dropped off my boat which was also such a great help 10/10 will definitely use again and recommend to my fellow boaters .Genuine and trustworthy bloke .Regards Alison

I needed repairs doing to my stern gear on the boat and Jamie and the team at JF got me in the dry quickly and did an excellent job at a good price. Really pleased with the service and would recommend them without hesitation.

We called in on spec in need of some emergency welding to refit damaged front fender. Amazingly, JF fitted usin there and then, carried out the work to a very high standard and we were on our way within the hour. All staff were extremely helpful and friendly. Many thanks to all at JF.

In 2023, Jamie Franklin (JF) Boatbuilding built the narrowboat “Silken Mist” for us to be sold for shared ownership under the management of BCBM. Jamie and his team were professional and friendly throughout, and showed a high degree of skill at the different trades involved.Jamie was receptive to the concept of shared ownership and the layout required for that, together with knowing that we needed to strike a balance between our total spend and specification level, and the price that could then be asked for each share upon completion of the boat. We agreed the layout and specifications together before having the hull built. Jamie showed us other boats he had worked on to help with our ideas on layout and fittings. While the hull was under construction, Jamie and the team worked on interior cabinetry so some of this was ready to be fitted on delivery of the hull, which saved time. For other internal fittings (kitchen, bathroom, etc), Jamie helped with our decisions so we had a workable solution for the layout and specification we wanted. We live about 200 miles from the boatyard, so visits were infrequent and much of the communication with Jamie during the build was by phone or Whatsapp.The build quality is very good. The joinery is particularly impressive, with real skills shown by Jamie’s team. Excellent thought has gone into providing access panels to everything needing maintenance, and control panels and gauges. The boat is nicely balanced, without the movement we were used to on our previous boat as people moved around. The engine runs very smoothly and quietly, thanks to the silencer. The boat handles beautifully.Jamie and team showed the boat at the Crick Boat Show in May 2023. This needed some rush by his team in getting her ready for showing, meaning some tasks were not done in the ideal order and there was some catch-up work afterwards, which we understood.We took the boat out for a couple of snagging trips before ownership transferred over to the syndicate of owners. We did find some snags, inevitably, but Jamie was swift and helpful at dealing with the issues we had identified.Overall, we are very happy with the build and the interactions with Jamie and the team, and we would recommend JF Boatbuilding for building your narrowboat.