Traditional Narrowboat Shell Building

At Norton Canes Boatbuilders we pride ourselves in being able to develop a special relationship with our customers by building a boat which fully meets their needs.

We are fortunate to occupy a historic boatyard where traditional canal craft have been constructed for generations, using both traditional and new techniques. In 2002 we were invited to join the Waterways Craft Guild, and were accredited as Master Boatbuilders.

Glyn Lewis today maintains the tradition of boatbuilding to the very highest standards, having a wealth of experience and working with Graham Edgson over a number of years to produce an exceptional product.

The Norton Canes shell is the ultimate base for the ideal narrowboat, built with care and meticulous attention to detail seldom achieved by other boatbuilders.

We also maintain a strong working relationship with a handful of reputable shell builders, and we manage our outsourced shell building with the same care and attention to detail that we employ in our own boatyard.

We enjoy an enviable reputation for building boats of impeccable pedigree and are able to offer a complete range of services from steel shell building and repair to boat fitting, coach painting and sign writing, for the discerning boater.

You can see some examples of recent builds in our Gallery.