Author Archives: Alan Houghton - waitematawoodys.com founder

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About Alan Houghton - waitematawoodys.com founder

What is Waitemata Woodys all about? We provide a meeting point for owners and devotees of classic wooden boat. We seek to capture the growing interest in old wooden boats and to encourage and bring together all those friendly people who are interested in the preservation of classic wooden vessels for whatever reason, be it their own lifestyle, passion for old boats or just their view of the world. We encourage the exchange of knowledge about the care and restoration of these old boats, and we facilitate gatherings of classic wooden boats via working together with traditionally-minded clubs and associations. Are you a Waitemata Woody? The Waitemata Woodies blog provides a virtual meeting point for lovers of classic and traditional wooden boats.
 If you are interested in our interests and activities become a follower to this blog. The Vessels Featured The boats on display here (yes there are some yachts included, some are just to drop dead stunning to over look) require patrons, people devoted to their care and up keep, financially and emotionally . The owners of these boats understand the importance of owning, restoring and keeping a part of the golden age of Kiwi boating alive. The boats are true Kiwi treasure to be preserved and appreciated.

1956 Sydney Hobart Race Film – Hard to Windward

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1956 Sydney Hobart Race Film – Hard to Windward

Lin Pardy has just posted a great youtube link on the WoodenBoat Forum for the 1956 Sydney > Hobart race. Lin’s comments below

“Kim Newstead, our hosts when we were invited to speak at the Hobart Wooden Boat Festival last year, just sent along a link to a wonderful 15 minute movie someone found in their garage. It is a professionally made program (16 or 17 minutes) from the 1956 Sydney Hobart Race, all on classic wooden boats, all with cotton sails, not a harness, pulpit or stern rail to be seen. Yes, times have changed. Thought everyone here might enjoy this.”

Valsan

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VALSAN

Poped out after the fog cleared yesterday to give Raindance a run. Spotted the 1938 Lidgard built  Valsan leaving Orams yard (Westhaven) on-route to the CYA dock at Heritage Landing. Looking very smart after some enforced surgery due to another wee oops & what appeared to be new paint & varnish. I was impressed to see the CYA burgee flying. In one of the classic wooden boat clubs in the USA if you are not flying the burgee, no photo’s are reproduced of your boat.

Its not a boat, but it floats

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Screen Shot 2013-08-25 at 10.29.57 AMIts not a boat, but it floats

Now its not a boat, but it floats sometimes & at a guess I would say age wise it would almost qualify as a classic. We do not see many of these in NZ & even fewer in Auckland.
Anyone know anything about her, make etc & what she is doing at Westhaven??

Update – website here

http://www.aucklandseaplanes.com

Update from Russell Ward

More here: http://nzcivair.blogspot.co.nz/2013/08/beaver-takes-to-water.html  I am told by an esteamed (sic) friend that her registration used to belong to a Teal Solent. You show your age if you’ve ever crossed tacks with one of those on the harbour!

Let’s hope there are many more floatplanes in/on/over the harbour -could be like Victoria (the Canadian one) where one takes off practically every five minutes. Much more fun than these noisy eggbeaters.

Cheers Russell

Arab

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ARAB

Now the caption says yacht but she looks more comfortable with the launch tag. The under-power photo is dated c.1900 & the moored one 1915.

photos ex ‘Sir George Grey Special Collections (Auckland Libraries)

Harold Kidd Update

You’ve got to worry about whoever wrote the captions to some of these recent postings. ARAB was built by Collings & Bell in September 1913 for John Ayling of Ponsonby and had a 3 cylinder 15hp Doman engine. She was 32’x8’6″. She used to winter at Henry Thode’s slip in Cox’s Creek.

Ayling sold her to W. Grundy of Onehunga in 1918-19 but she was brought back from the Manukau in the winter of 1920 by Bruce, Ferguson and Maude who raced her effectively with Ponsonby Cruising Club (see illustration on p83 of “Vintage NZ Launches”). In 1922 she was sold to Myrhe of Christchurch and shipped down. Later owners included C G Beaumont, under whose ownership she was in NAPS patrolling out of Lyttelton in WW2 as Z 127. In 1953 she was owned by M Cunningham of Lyttelton. She was alive (but not very well) until quite recently.

Paikea

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PAIKEA

Helped take Trinidad last Sunday to the Sandspit boat shed of Greg Lee Boatbuilder’s last Sunday, spied this classic – Paikea – moored just off the wharf at Sandspit. Can anyone shed some  light on her? Poor photos, facing into the sun.

On the trip north passed 4 different large pods of dolphins, the biggest pod was mooching around the moored boats at Sandspit. Photo (iphone) is of one of the smaller dolphins that kept us company for a while off Tiritir.

Harold Kidd Update

PAIKEA was built by Collings & Bell for A.H. Court and launched on 26th January 1921. She was fitted with a 120-150hp Model M Van Blerck 6 cylinder petrol engine (not a straight-eight Packard as is often said). PAIKEA had Chas. Collings’ “concave-convex” type of hard chine design which he made famous with his various FLEETWINGS and whale-chasers. Indeed she was a refinement of the FLEETWING whose image appears in the Collings & Bell section of WW.

PAIKEA was good for 20 knots and can still do it with her present big Iveco/Fiat, as I experienced not long ago at Sandspit. She goes like hell and stable with it.

Alf Court sold her to Hec Marler in 1925 and he sold her to R B & S S Wilson  just pre-WW2. She was in NAPS during WW2 as Z17. .

 

Bill’s Boat

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Bill’s Boat – this story needs a happy ending

Over fifty years ago I regularly helped a friend in Gisborne who was building a Tahiti ketch.

He was a most fastidious person and stories associated with his obtaining a
kauri tree in Coromandel, shipping the trunk to Gisborne where he milled it
into ten metre long planks, and then going about construction are legendary.

When it was fully planked, bulkheaded, decks and cabin tops fitted, along
with lead keel, Bill had to vacate the premises he was working in. He bought
an industrial property, built a workshop and accommodation on it, and
shifted the boat there as well.

At that stage Bill had other distractions and covered the boat hull under a
corrugated iron roof at the back of the property, and never did any
more work on it.

He recently passed away at a ripe old age and his Executors have asked me to
assist with its disposal in view of my knowledge of its history and
background.

I have recently inspected the boat closely and can confirm it is in the same
perfect condition it was in when I helped Bill  move it fifty years ago
(albeit suffering from a thick layer of dust and cobwebs which have accumulated
over that time)

It was primed with a coat of red lead primer, inside and out , prior to
moving. The boat was well caulked and there appears to have been absolutely
no movement in any of the planks since, and I suspect if dropped in the
water today, the hull would barely leak a drop.

In its current storage situation it is impossible to photograph it properly
but I have done what I can to illustrate aspects of its construction. The photo on                   the trailer was taken during its removal about fifty years ago.

Many of these boats were built worldwide, and Googling “Tahiti ketch” 
accesses a huge amount of information on them. They are not every
yachtsman’s cup of tea, but for someone with a taste for classic
yachts, and the ability to complete the fit out, acquiring this boat could be
a dream come true.

Ian Miller

09 4250952

Tiromoana – a peek into her past

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A peek into Tiromoana’s past

photos ex Ken Ricketts

A collection of photos assembled by Ken Ricketts showing Tiromoana in the 1940’s, 50’s & 60’s.

Photos: In Police ‘grey’ – 1943 / With steam ferry in Tamaki River c1960 / On the slip at Okahu Bay c1950 / Okahu Bay c1950 with Henry & Mrs Allen in cockpit / In her modern livery at Coggan jetty c late 1960 / Rickett family aboard xmas 1945

Building a sawn frame boat

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Building a sawn frame boat

This mini movie of a stunning timber boat being built in Scotland, it is a fishing boat but the craftsmanship & finish is amazing to see & a real insight into the trade. Sawn frame boats were built in New Zealand as most of our early shipwrights were from England, Ireland or Scotland. Most of the ships built by the likes of Lane & Brown, Henry & George Nicoll and many more use this method. In small boat building it died out by about the late 1930’s. For example W.G. Lowe built most of their 40-50 fishing boats with sawn frame, Kia Ora, Moata. Percy Vos only ever built two, Waipawa and Waimana. Plank on steam bent frames (ribs) and three skin suited this size boat better and they were far more economical to build like this. The boat in the video was built in 1963 right at the tail end of the wooden boat era.

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Grey Witch

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GREY WITCH

Given the budget & a free hand the old masters could create something pretty special, Grey Witch from the T M Lane yard must have turned a few heads + 24 knots. Would have look amazing at that speed.

photo ex ‘Sir George Grey Special Collections (Auckland Libraries)

Update ex Harold Kidd

This image is reversed. T M Lane & Sons built her for C.A. Whitney of the Colonial Ammunition Co in December 1905. CAC had done rather well out of supplying .303 ammunition for the Boer War. She was originally fitted with a single 50hp (rated) Monarch engine but that was replaced by twin Antoinette aircraft-type V8s of 55hp each in late 1907. They were English-made by Adams & Co and were set up in line to drive in tandem, the forward one being de-clutched for economy running.

In the image, Whitney is taking the current Governor-General Lord Plunket for a blast around the Waitemata. She caught fire in her shed at Ngapipi Road in December 1916 and was completely destroyed.

Update #2

She did 17 knots on the Monarch, 24 knots on the two V8s (reputedly). The forward V8 was taken out and kept as a spare but she still did 17 knots with just one. I am sad that there is no recording of the sound she made at max (1400) revs on the two 7 litre side valve 90 degree Antoinettes, 2 V8s wuffling away like caged lions.The Adams-built Antoinettes had a reputation for breaking crankshafts but that doesn’t seem to have afflicted Grey Witch.

PS The Antoinettes had an early form of fuel injection which makes sense in an aircraft engine.