Monthly Archives: July 2013

Corinthia & new Arran Bay Wharf

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IVAN GUTHRIE.AT ARRAN BAY.AGED ABOUT 80.
CORINTHIA 1ST BOAT TO TIE UP TO THE REBUILT JETTY AT ARRAN BAY ABOUT 1990
FROM LEFT; PETER JORGENSON,ROGER GUTHRIE,SHONA ELLINGHAM,MARY GUTHRIE,HELEN BUCHANAN,DEAN ELLINGHAM.

CORINTHIA. 

A Shipbuilders design c.1960, purchased by Ivan Guthrie in 1987, his last boat. Sold to CYA member (now MV Kailua ) Graham Guthrie who re-powered her. Seen here tied up to the new (c.1990) wharf in Arran Bay, Waiheke. Rotorua Island & Ruth Passage in the background.

Click photos to enlarge & see captions

photos ex Roger Guthrie

258 Stunning Classic Boat Photos

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258 Boat Porn Photos

 
The few above are to tease you to view all the 258 stunning  photos from the Bell Street Harbour Classic Rendezvous, pull the cork on a nice Pinot, find a good chair & click the link below. Enjoy 🙂

Atatu

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An update on Atatu
words & photo from Frank Stoks
Here are a couple of fresh pictures of Atatu (1919, Bailey and Lowe) mentioned on this site about a month ago.
The new hardwood aerofoil rudder (installed 3 years ago) replaced the flat steel plate in order to eliminate all zincs and stop delignification of hard to repair timbers.
Moreover the rudder still works drifting into the berth at 1 or 2 knots whereas the flat steel rudder didn’t work at low speed.
She was a luxury launch for Holloway, then Nathan family, war service in Wellington, converted to fishing vessel in 1947, has had several wheelhouses the last of which (shown) by us about 15 years old now. Present engine is a Caterpillar D330B installed new in 1968 still going strong [touch kauri].
I have an extremely detailed history of her, concerning owners, incidents, activities, conversions, and engines – with photos starting from before she was launched to the present day. Unfortunately the Atatu embossed Royal Dalton China, cutlery, carpets and etched glass have long disappeared.
And yes the funnel is a folly – but I’m proud of it!

Adelaide

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ADELAIDE

An interesting example of how quickly the classics were ‘modernized’. The photo on the left above was taken in 1914 & the second in 1916. In two years she gained a low tram top & the broom stick mast is now a proper mast.
Harold Kidd Update
Well, not so, actually. There were 5 Adelaides built by Collings & Bell for Charles Palmer between 1912 and 1924. The 26 footer ADELAIDE I was launched on 22 February 1913 and fitted with a 6hp Bridgport two-stroke marine engine. Palmer soon grew out of her and sold her to A Rogers in June 1913 and replaced her with the 26ft ADELAIDE II in September 1913, this time with a Doman engine, for which Collings & Bell were the agents. It is ADELAIDE II in the January 1914 image where the launch carries the number 8 and has foliate engraving at the bow. She was sold to H B Washington in Whangarei and renamed ISABEL ANDREA. 
ADELAIDE III was launched in August 1915 and was a 36 footer. Palmer was heavily involved in the NZPBA and the Motor Boat Patrol so the much bigger launch was built for serious work. This is the launch in the 1916 image, bearing her wartime number 1, (numero uno because Charlie Palmer was Numero Uno in just about everything to do with motorboating in Auckland) without foliate engraving and with a clerestory (tramtop). She had a 30hp (rated) Doman. When Palmer had Collings & Bell build him the 32ft ADELAIDE IV in 1922, he sold ADELAIDE III and she became GEISHA (II)…confused?
ADELAIDE III was clearly a development of ADELAIDE II, lengthened and with a clerestory, much along the lines of Collings’ RONAKI for the Harbour Board, so the two images DO actually show the changing face of Auckland launches in the two years between 1913 and 1915.

Not quite the Waitemata – but very cool wooden boats

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Not quite the Waitemata but this video of the Classic Yacht Association USA /Pacific Northwest Fleet’s traditional kick-off to the boating season is a great parade of gorgeous motoryachts. Of particular interest to me is the new PNW Fleet Commodore, Jessica Freeman, seen onbard aboard her Flagship, PEACEFUL, leading the fleet.

I have followed the ‘rolling renovation’ of PEACEFUL for several years (seasons) on the WoodenBoat forum. Link below
http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthread.php?110427-Restoration-of-a-1939-Richardson&highlight=Peaceful

Millie II

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MILLIE II

story & photo ex Russell Ward
Photo taken in 1960. Our first trip to Kawau in the old man’s 17′ boat Millie II (in foreground).
She was built in 1959 by Joe Wheeler at Bayswater and had an 8 hp Stuart.
The ship behind is Makura and behind her I think it is one of the Shipbuilders ’50s launches.
When we dropped the hook –Schoolhouse Bay- the guy on Makura, towering over us, asked if we had a nice trip across (from Sandspit). To which the old man said, “No we came up from Okahu Bay.”
“What?” said Makura. “You didn’t come up here in that?”
I had been a lively trip up, I must admit. But from then on, we always used to chant out whenever a big boat came into a bay “What? You didn’t come up here in that?”
It was an equally lively trip back and the navy Fairmile Kahu came slowly past us –she was taking a real hammering and rearing up out of the head sea and slamming down on it. We just bobbed from wave to wave in Millie. We could do 5 kn and I don’t think Kahu was doing much more than 7 or 8. It was a blowy day but we were comfortable enough.
I think Millie went over to the Manukau when the old man sold her to a chemist by the name of Furniss in ’62 when he bought Ngakiwa. She was one of three boats built about the same time, the other two were 18′. I think the last one is up at Kawau and is moored a bit west of the K Y C wharf.
Harold Kidd Update
I went to Takapuna Grammar with Joe’s daughter Cherie who was a great cricket and hockey player and now lives up north. Her mother was a Braund, a younger sister of Mavis Braund after whom their father named the launch MAVIS B. Unfortunately Cherie has very little in the way of photographs of Joe but I’m keeping in touch as I know her aunt, Rive Grant, now in a home, had copious Braund and Wheeler images. Another Braund sister married R W Grant who had the launch THETIS (I) (24hp Ailsa Craig) in the 1940s and 1950s. Grant bought THETIS in 1943 and sold her in 1957. He changed her name to THETIS when he bought her and it was changed when he sold her. Does anyone know what she was built as and what became of her?

Jeunesse

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Jeunesse

JEUNESSE

‘Probably’ built in 1927 by Dick Lang, the owner is looking for anymore details on her past. Previous owners include a Dr. McFarlane?? & TG Shaw from the cartage contracting firm.

Photo taken by AlanH on July 7 2013 as she was heading up the upper harbour. She is rather quick, from memory having had the same zoom zoom transplant as Falcon i.e. a big Hino (turbo?)

Harold Kidd Update

The 37 footer JEUNESSE was built for W J Harper and launched in March 1919 as RAMBLER. Harper changed his mind and renamed her JEUNESSE by the start of the summer of 1919-20. None of the magazines or newspapers say who built her but Dick Lang seems a fair bet as she was built in St. Mary’s Bay. Reportage on such things was pretty scant at that time because of the Spanish ‘Flu outbreak. She was fitted with a 40hp Reutenberg 4 cylinder engine. Harper sold the launch KOTIRO when JEUNESSE was built. He kept her until 1923 when he sold her to H Hewson. N C McLean & R Kirkwood owned her in 1926. She spent a lot of time in Whangarei after that. In 1951 she was owned by S H R Smith of Onehunga, Richard Leary in 1990, John Wright in 2003; that’s all I have.

The Collings and Bell bridgedeckers

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MAKURA, KAWHITI, TAMAROA
 
story & photos from Russell Ward + details & photos from Harold Kidd
 
In the early ’50s –1951 or so, Collings and Bell built Makura, Kawhiti & Tamaroa. They were nicely lined and all the angles were right (for a change).
 
MAKURA
She was built in 1949 for W D C  & C H Leighton and fitted with a 6 cylinder Chrysler Crown. They sold her to Phil Seabrook of Seabrook & Fowlds in 1957. He fitted the Nordberg a year or so later. Phil Seabrook had Billy Rogers design and build LADY DIANA for him in 1950 and fitted her with the Austin Skipper from new, replacing it with a 155hp Nordberg sleeve-valve engine in 1956 shortly before he sold LADY DIANA to Monte Winter and bought MAKURA.
 
 
Later owners were V F Adams (1966) and W G Boughtwood (1973). She’s now in Picton.
The photo of Makura I took in ’61. Fine looking ship. Note the four scuttles to stb unlike the recent pix posted of Kawhiti. Ahead of her you can see one of what I think is the Shipbuilders boats that were produced when Roy Steadman was OC. Also shown is a photo of Makura as built from the July 1951 edition of Sea Spray. Very like Tamaroa.
 
KAWHITI was built in 1952 for D A Wilkie, later owners J M Simpson of Beach Road, Howick (1958). Terry McAvinue owned her from 1968 to 1997 when Harold Kidd took the above colour image of her in Matiatia.
Kawhiti seems to be for sale just now and has a Ford diesel. She has a screen fitted and a flying bridge. The studious will note that the fwd screen is a three piece. The pic of Kawhiti shows her to be a straight front. Also, if I use my imagination, I can read her name.
 
TAMAROA was built in 1953 for A E Fisher of Whangarei with a 100hp Austin. I guess that was the 4 litre truck engine that was so refined in the Austin Sheerline.  She was sold to Dell of Whangarei and came back to Auckland in the late 90s when Harold Kidd took the above colour image in Woody Bay. Eric Stevens bought her in the late 1990’s  and the picture of her in Squadron Bay (?) c.1996 is before he did a major makeover.
 
Makura & Kawhiti differed in the line of the cabin tops:  Kawhiti’s had rather more camber and was sharply brought down to the coaming sides.Kawhiti had a slightly shorter raised deck fwd and has one fewer scuttle than her two sister. It was a bit clumsier than Makura’s IMOH. The picture of Makura behind the 17′ Millie II shows how this scuttle opens into the deck space behind the break in the gunwale and was thus put in purely for style to make them good looking. The guy that designed those three ships (not Alex Collings) had a good aesthetic sense. They were cool!
 
It was an old trick to put that extra scuttle in to give better looks –Lady Karita has the same effect. Her aft scuttle is also sham –it opens into the deck space beside the wheelhouse.
 
In my youth, Kawhiti was painted cream on the tops, Makura blue. Both had bright finished coamings.
 
Harold Kidd Update

It’s sadly true that Alex Collings had little skill in designing superstructures and did not appear to have much of a sense of humour or a sense of aesthetics (nor did his father IMHO). Are these launches too early for Peter Peel? Dave Jackson will know.

HK Update 2:

Dave Jackson was unimpressed with my slur on Alex Collings’ sense of aesthetics. Dave worked on TAMAROA and was familiar with all three of these Collings & Bell bridgedeckers. He categorically states that they are 100% Alex Collings’ designs. Peter Peel may have done some drafting work but had no hand in their design. Dave also worked on the 1957 43ft flushdecker MATIRA for N S Hopwood, again 100% Alex Collings.

 

 
 
 

Old style family sailing

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Old style family sailing

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An early 1980’s montage of how cruising used to be. CYA member Graham & Roger Guthrie aboard Michelle II, a 38′ Chris Robertson sloop during a 5 days Easter 1981 cruise around Waiheke. Looks like everyone had a great time.

Comments from Roger Guthrie

THE YACHT IS CALLED MICHELLE 2.BUILT BY CHRIS ROBERTSON.PURCHASED BY ROGER GUTHRIE 1981.BUILT FOR A CHAP SURNAME OF ROBSON.WAS MAKING MARINE WINCHES ETC IN AUCKLAND. HE HARDLY USED IT BUT LOVED THE WORK HE DID ON IT.IT HAS A KAURI HULL AND LOTS OF VARNISHED TEAK IN THE COCPIT AND CABIN SIDES.ENOUGH TO DRIVE ANY OWNER TO MOVE ON. I SOLD IT TO A CHAP CALLED FOWLER IN AUCKLAND WHO LIKE ME WAS GOING TO KEEP IT FOREVER BUT LIKE ME FOREVER IS NOT LONG WITH THAT AMOUNT OF WORK.SHE WAS A VERY PRETTY BOAT AND WAS ONE OF ABOUT 10 36 FOOT TO 38 FOOTERS BUILT AT ABOUT THAT TIME.I UNDERSTAND IT WAS SOLD TO AN AMERICAN WHO GOT IT TO THE U.S. AND SPENT A YEAR GETTING IT CLEARED FOR IMPORT BECAUSE IT WAS MADE FRON AN INDIGINOUS TIMBER OF N.Z…HE ENTERED IT IN A COMPETITION AT SAN DIEGO MARINA AND WON “PRETIEST BOAT OF THE SHOW’ SO I WAS LATER TOLD

30-01-2025 INPUT ex Rob Rowdon – Built by Chris Robertson finished by Robert Rowdon for himself. Rob went on to build Townson yachts Sonnet and Caper. 
We owned the Michelle II for three years and was well used