WAINUI
photo ex Jason Prew
Photo from Jason Prew’s during his trip up the Tamaki River with Otira to the Chris McMullen workshop CYA visit. Jason photographed some of the many moored wooden boats moored on-route.
Today’s launch is an ‘interesting’ mix of styles…………. I can just make out a shortish name on her stern starting with W, can anyone ID her & supply more details on her past?
Input from Cameron Pollard
“Wainui” 33ft x not a lot x 3ft. Two skin kauri, built around 1900 .
We have owned her for close to 20 years and was the start of our obsession / illness of collecting old boats.
Steamed from New Plymouth to Onehunga wharf after fishing down there for years.
We rescued her as a half sunk hulk at Te Atatu after the cabin had been fitted in back streets behind K’Road by previous owner.
Replaced quarter of her stern. (Counter already shortened by then)
Fitted a 3LW Gardner of course to replace the old ford. (No clapped out Jap import truck engines go in our fleet)
Used her as our taxi up and down the Tamaki river.
Got tired of the 3LW shaking the coke out of the rum so 6 or more years ago we pulled her at Half Moon Bay and gave her a birthday.
Eased up the window shapes that had previously been fitted retaining the main structure tho as room inside is ample for her size.
Removed the 3LW and fitted a rebuilt 4LK light weight high revving (2000rpm) Gardner. Engine very rare ex ww2 midget submarine but that’s another story on its own.
Relaunched and now a very smooth and quiet wee launch.
Due for her 3 yearly tidy up but will always be part of our clan.
21-07-2015 Photos added – Wainui at Onehunga wharf in 1987 after her trip from New Plymouth & 2 showing her out of the water.
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Thanks to woodys many of us learn every day, & I have just learnt about the 4LK Gardner — never ever heard of it, ever, until now. — Thanks to Cameron & woodys for continuing to educate me — Cheers — KEN R
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Amazingly this launch and its name hull shape ect match my Grandfathers launch from The marlborough sounds last seen by the family in Wanganui in the late 50s. Her stern was altered in the 30s, she has a very special place in our family history and would be very keen to talk to the current owners. She was bought by Arthur Mccauley as his fishing boat originally a mail boat in the sounds for a while before that built I believe in Picton.
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Thank you. Lovely hull.
Daniel
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New photos added, including ‘out of water’. AH
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Correct Daniel,both boats were built for the county.Gladys was sold to Len Williams and renamed Moa
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Interesting Zach, not sure where I got the 2 from then. Presumably Gladys 2 was bought by Hobson Council to replace Gladys, which then became Moa?
Daniel
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All good with me 😆😆
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I tend to think, and are seeing, there is a trend now for these vintage craft to be returned to an as built state. And rightfully so.
There are many affordable water caravans out there that provide all the home comforts – simply buy one of those.
We have that same pragmatic approach as you Cameron – of getting a boat back to the water with further improvements being made over a period of time, however I see no reason for an inappropriate cabin structure to be fitted. Those same materials can be otherwise used to make something far prettier. It only requires a little research and skill with the tools, you don’t need to be a boat builder or pay a boat builder to do this, perhaps just get some help where needed. THEN one has created something with the WOW FACTOR!! very rewarding and installing this into the youngsters is surely a good thing.
I see no harm in boats left in sheds, in a paddock, sad, but we have boats that have been tucked away for twenty – thirty years here. What little treasures they are!.
Please don’t take offense, I’m not being critical of you Cameron, just wanted to put some thoughts forward.
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Photos yes we have plenty. We didn’t go through the mission of replacing rotten diagonals and rotten stringers and shaft log etc etc without having some sort of way of remembering what we were doing instead of romancing fine women and racing fast cars ! (That came later tho)
Re the counter. Andrew and I thort about rebuilding it but that thort passed after the first 6 pack. No benefit in our eyes.
(Ports of Akland bastards wld be the only benificary as she wldnt have fitted in a 10metre berth any more.)
Re the cabin. Yes we cld have made her original and cute to look at but hey what a totally impractical boat she would be. No headroom, crampt and to us useless ! Plus the xpence wld have been barkingly mad.
Now she has 3 good berths, full galley, walk in porcelain throne and plenty of storage.
Perfect small old cruiser.
With two girls fast growing up we have decided to keep WAINUI as she is so they can learn on her comfortably. That’s what it’s about with us and our flotilla.
As I’ve sed before, it’s best the old boats are on the water in wotever shape and form instead of stuk in a paddock or shed either forgotten about or sending the owner broke paying barking hourly rates to get them restored. (My thorts only of course)
Cheers
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Moa was the original Gladys.Gladys 2 was the Scindie. I have a very old log book off Gladys 2 when she was owned by the Hobson county
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Swan, I had forgotten about her.
Now Daniel your sitting on a few story’s here -Swans and Kapanui’s and Zeltics, three very worthy posts.
Not hard to restore Wainui’s counter, starts with a long very very bendy battern….
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Would love to see pictures of her out of the water Cameron if you have any.
Daniel
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Pam, Kapanui, ex Moa, ex Gladys 2 is a much more recent and much heavier looking hull than Wainui. Kapanui is 1928 (maybe 29, can’t remember off the top of my head), and much more workboat like. Wainui is much more akin to Swan, appearing to be similar vintage. Someone really should put the back of the counter back on her, and give her more appropriate superstructure, but at least she appears to be safe.
Daniel
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Cam don’t tell them about the beautiful clinker teak 32′ in your fleet
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Hmm I never saw her there, Must have another look??
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Passed Esme on. Shes resting her bones at span farm currently.
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I read somewhere that you got Esme, photos of her now? I love the old derelicts
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Need to have a count up with andrew one day. But a few.😊
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Awesome! What others do you own in/out of water? It’s a good illness.
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“Wainui” 33ft x not a lot x 3ft.
2 skin kauri built around 1900 .
We have owned her for close to 20 years and was the start of our obsession / illness of collecting old boats.
Steamed from New Plymouth to onehunga wharf after fishing down thr for years.
We rescued her as a half sunk hulk at teatatu after the cabin had been fitted in back streets behind K road by previous owner.
Replaced quarter of her stern. (Counter already shortend by then)
Fitted a 3LW Gardner of course to replace the old ford. (No clapped out Jap import truck engines go in our fleet)
Used her as our taxi up and down the Tamaki river.
Got tired of the 3LW shaking the coke out of the rum so 6 or more years ago we pulled her at hmb and gave her a birthday.
Eased up the window shapes that had previously been fitted retaining the main structure tho as room inside is ample for her size.
Removed the 3LW and fitted a rebuilt 4LK light weight high revving (2000rpm) Gardner. Engine very rare ex ww2 midget submarine but that’s another story on its own.
Relaunched and now a very smooth and quiet wee launch.
Due for her 3 yearly tidy up but will always be part of our clan.
Cheers cameron.
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Kapanui formerly Gladys, was built I think by Charlie Thompson in Dargaville, where’s Daniel when we need him?, and is very similar. She now has a steam engine installed. And operates on the Mahurangi River.
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There are a lot of WAINUIs but this one just could be the WAINUI built at Whakapirau by Arthur Forrester c1908 and on the Kaipara until recently. Most local builders turned out launches to this configuration.
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There was a similar launch at whangaroa for years but not there anymore called Waiata, with this hull shape and a tall cabin. Probably still in the area on a farm
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Sitting freezing in Otira, I think i saw the name was Wainui?
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Peter is undoubtedly on the mark. She looks to be a “Settler’s launch” of the period 1903 to say 1908. Chas. Bailey Jr reputedly built over 300 of them and Bailey & Lowe a large number too.It’s unlikely she still has her original name, but it’s possible. I have never found the real provenance for my old settler’s launch GREENBANK which got her name postwar when Jim Varney bought her and renamed her after the hotel he and his wife had honeymooned. She’s now a steamer up the Clevedon River of course.
Typically they were low wooded, heavily built craft of straight-stem, counter-stern yacht form, often three-skin diagonal with vertical t & g abin sides, tall enough to carry passengers and wool bales inside. They were used in sheltered waters, rivers and lakes, and were the trucks for settler farmers when there were simply no roads.
This one’s counter appears to have been bobbed.They tended to rot out the hood ends aft.
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She appears to be a converted settler style launch (circa 1910…ish). Perhaps even the same as the Bailey & Lowe built Pihanga (1907).
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No idea, but it does make you wonder what she is. Many, many years ago a somewhat similar counter-sterned launch was moored off the Picton foreshore. She had a similar, if even uglier “Goofy House” built on her. The oldfellers at the QCYC told us; “That’s the ‘Jessie Logan’ – used to be the fastest yacht in NZ.” Silly old b******s, we thought, that was never a yacht.
Look at her today!
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