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.

Miss Lidgard

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Miss Lidgard in 1960.
Fishing in 1978.
2011
2012
2012

MISS LIDGARD

Owned by Whitianga idenity Don Ross who landed alot of game fish as a charter boat. Powered by 2 Austin Skipper 100h.p.. Miss Lidgard was in the Tamaki up to last year in a very plastic looking form. Don thought she was the best boat he ever owned and was a very stable boat to fish from. From what I can remember she had a big open cockpit and she was built to take light cargo to the whaling station at Gt Barrier. Dad extended her cabin aft over the cockpit for Don to give more shelter for passengers and anglers.

1st photo & story ex Baden Pascoe. Remaining photos ex current owner

Update 27/01/2015 from Don Ross via Merv Stockley

“Below is a photo of new Perkin’s 4-154 engines going in Miss Lidgard when the Austin Skippers came out.  Strongman’s from Coromandel did the adaption of the existing Parsons gearbox’s to these Perkin’s engines before they went in. As mentioned under Miss Lidgard on Woodys the Skippers were close together and the Perkin’s were too under a single engine box. These two 4-154’s were manufactured by Mazda in Japan and I always wondered why that was as I don’t know of any other Perkin’s which were manufactured in those days out side Peterborough. Recent research I have done on the internet has showed Perkin’s designed the 4-154 and sister engine 6.231 but they were only produced by licencee Toyo Kogyo (Mazda). Later developed into 4.165/6.247 family of engines”.

 

Lady Margaret (Colin Wild). Chapter two

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Lady Margaret (Colin Wild) Story 

CHAPTER 2  (story & photos ex Ken Ricketts)
 
In chapter one, I referred to her as possibly a “Shakespearean tragedy on the water”.
 
Even Shakespeare had some happy parts to his great works, & as with Shakespeare, there I’m thrilled to say, is also a happy part to the Lady Margaret #1 Story.
 
Herewith a picture of Colin Wild’s classic 1927 master piece taken 2 weeks ago after having received a few months of hard work.
 
Besides what is visible in the pics., she has been rewired, & had various other internal work upgraded, & has had at the very least, a little refurbishing, I am told.
 
I hope to see her for myself, in the near future, & will report appropriately at that time. The most important thing at the moment however, is that she has certainly been saved, from the maritime graveyard. HALLELUIAH!!!
 
The above before & after pics tell the story to date
 
This most beautiful & classic part of our maritime history is going to live through another day. Long may she live.
Update on Chapter 2 – 14/05/13
I was aboard her last Tuesday, 6.5.13, at a little jetty in a creek at Kaingaroa Northland, & can report & update as follows.
She is looking “tidy” inside, but still needs fairly substantial galley maintenance & replacement of stove, carpets throughout, etc, likewise the shower room, & the full forward section of the boat. The hull has had all paint removed & she has had a reasonable paint job but is still showing seams on the topsides,
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As one can see in the pics, some of her beautiful teak has been painted, (at least at the moment), which someone will hopefully restore to original in the future, but at least she is “usable,” & one of the owners & crew are, as I write this, away on a “shakedown cruise,” to Whangaroa.
On a short 1 hour run down the tidal estuary, the 150 HP Lees converted Turbo Ford, started & ran particularly smoothly at idle, with zero vibration, on her hard mounted engine beds, however the engine peaked at 2400 RPM, with propeller vibration at the top end of the range, & a top speed of 11 .9 knots governed, in my opinion, to at least a reasonable degree, by the 3 metres of water below the boat, as she buried her bum at the higher end of the range, (she has no trimtabs), & only increased speed by 3/4 of a knot in the last 700 RPM.
In my view there is still much to be done to her.
However, whilst there is much “elbow grease,” & much money, still needed to bring her back to her most wonderful, original, self, nevertheless, most importantly of all, she has been “saved from a watery grave.”
WONDERFUL!!
 
                                

Scamp

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SCAMP
(another stunning yacht project that I just had to share)
Scamp was designed and  built by Roy Parris for his own use in 1943 while he was working at Shipbuilders building Fairmiles for the war effort. She was sold not long after and taken over to the Manukau by Jim Jenkins and consequently lost her launching registration number of V28 as Manukau boats couldn’t then be registered in Auckland. On Scamp’s return to the Waitemata she was re registered as V45.
I don’t have much history but know she was owned by Glen Trainer at some stage before she eventually went north to Tinopai on the Kaipara Hbr and sailed there for several years by Rod Neels. Ironically when I was looking for a restoration project I discovered her back in Auckland and owned by John Tattersfield and brought her back here to Tinopai. I knew Rod at the time but was totally unaware of the connection until he casually mentioned one day that he has once owned an 18 footer……….snap!
Early on I decided there wasn’t enough original boat left to consider a restoration so the project began as a  four year rebuild. Scamp was relaunched at Tinopai in Jan 2013, seventy years after she first touched water down on the Waitemata
Anyone interested in more detailed information on the rebuild or with any further history on Scamp is more than welcome to contact Greg Schultz  itzgreg@xtra.co.nz
Story & photos ex Greg Schultz
Footnote: Greg is looking for an N-Class to restore, if anyone can point him in the direction of a ‘good’ one, contact him at the email address above.

Karamana II

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Karamana II

KARAMANA II

I have always known her as just Karamana, but I guess she has to be Karamana II, as I’ve now read this morning, the original one, which was built for the Cadman family in the 1920s. has been created before her. The name, I read also, is, to quote, a “pig Maori,” interpretation of the name “Cadman.” — lovely name anyway, sounds good.

KARAMANA II is a WW II 105 ft Fairmile converted to a pleasure craft circa 1945-46 by the Cadman family powered by 2 x 6-71 GM Detroit diesels, or the Graymarine version of them, & was undoubtedly, the very best pleasure craft Fairmile conversion, I ever saw. From the outside she was, in my view, aesthetically lovely. I took this pic circa1948 on her moorings in Hobson Bay. She was always immaculate & hardly used, Disappeared from there in the early 1950s, & I never saw her again — I think perhaps she may have gone to the Pacific Islands.
Any news anyone has would be great, just email me at kenpat@ihug.co.nz

story & pic ex Ken Ricketts

Harold Kidd Update

Andy Ryland was my uncle. This Fairmile was sold to his mate Cadman after Andy was killed in the NAC Lodestar crash at Paraparaumu. Bob McDougall’s book tells the story about Fairmiles more than adequately.

Shenandoah

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Built in 1929, by Chas. Bailey & Son for Mr H R Jenkins, who did well making rubber products for the milking industry. She has had a few additions since then 😦

She had  Cummins diesel when new.

The early pic is scanned from the book by Jenkins’s daughter. The other pic is a wartime Navy pic.

Brooke & Co

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Brooke & Co

 The name above should be hanging above a boat shed. The Brooke family are an amazing group of people with skills that make most of use feel a little lacking. The recover & rebuild on the 1927 Colin Wild designed & built launch Linda is proof of those skills. Above is collection of photos of Linda from her early days -pre fire, during her recover at Waiheke Island & today + ‘Grace’ one of Roberts exquisite clinker dinghies.
Every boat, big or small that Robert & Russell ‘touch’ is a very lucky boat.

Karamana (Waitangi)

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Karamana (Waitangi)

KARAMANA

She was built as KARAMANA for F.B. Cadman in 1923 by Bailey & Lowe to a design by Hacker. KARAMANA = CADMAN in pig maori.
She was later bought by Auckland Grammar School teacher P A S Stein and rebuilt as per the pic below. She was fitted with a war surplus 6 cyl Green sohc aero engine producing 120-140bhp, bore 5.5 ins, stroke 6 ins (you work out the capacity). She was pretty radical, a far cry from her current. configuration.

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Waitangi

Bandit – Sir Peter Blake’s First Keeler

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Bandit - Sir Peter Blake's First Keeler BANDIT

Bandit was built by a young 18 year old Peter Blake in the family’s Bayswater backyard & just recently been discovered in a shed at Warkworth. The Classic Yacht Charitable Trust have purchased her & post restoration she will be on permanent display at a suitable Auckland’s waterfront location. Click for more details on Bandit & to view the CYCT’s fleet of classic vessels.

Ngatira

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NGATIRA
Designed & built by Chas Bailey Jnr. 1904

One of the many things I like about Steve Horsley (Ngatira)is he does not hold back on putting his pride & joy into the nasty stuff, but when you have rebuilt her with your own two hands, you can back the workmanship. To view the story of Ngatira’s restoration click on this link, its a great tale.