Category Archives: A Peek Down Below

Little Tasman

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LITTLE TASMAN
shed photos & info ex Ken Ricketts. Pt Wells photo ex Mark Edmonds. details ex Harold Kidd. edited a lot by Alan H

Back in early March Ken Ricketts dropped in to see artisan boat builder Colin Brown at his Omaha yard. Colin & side kick, Josh, have been restoring the rather pretty 26′ Colin Wild launch Little Tasman.  She was named Tasman when built in 1925 for Albert Spencer & changed her name to Little Tasman in 1927 when the bigger Tasman (photo included below) was launched by the same owner/builder. Its said she that LT was a prototype / test boat – Mr Spencer was not short of a few pennies 😉

It is such good news to see whats happening to Little Tasman as she sat on a front lawn at Pt. Wells for a number of years (photo below) & her future was at risk.

Little Tasman at Pt Wells

In Harold Kidd’s words Little Tasman is ‘pure class’ & whats happening in Colin’s shed is also pure class  – the man is one of the best classic friendly tradies out there.

You will see in the above photos that she now has a brand new 4 cyl Nanni 38 hp diesel in place, which should give her a top speed of around 10 knots, with a cruising speed, with her 2 to 1 reduction gear, of around 7 knots. Will be interesting to see her performance as the Nanni is a lot lighter than the old 6 cyl Ford diesel it is replacing.

Her restoration has seen most of her ribs replaced, a full recaulk (no splining), work on the forepeak & bow, a new dodger, very faithfully copied from the original & a full interior refit & partial redesign of the interior layout, for greater space use, & practicality.
Steering will be from the front of the tram top, as it was before, where there will be a large hatch fitted, to the newly replaced, as original, T & G cabin top. Check out the stern photo, classic Colin Wild on show there 🙂

Launch date is fast approaching so we will update on the event.

Read more on her past here      https://waitematawoodys.com/2015/04/20/little-tasman/

Below is a photo of Tasman that I took a few years ago in Sullivans Bay. She is stunner & on a lot of woodys bucket list.

Tasman @ Sullivans Bay

30-06-2016 – Another great photo update from Ken R of Little Tasman’s restoration at Colin Brown’s yard. Remember click on photos to enlarge 😉

San Cristobal (Pagan)

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San Critobal

SAN CRISTOBAL (Pagan)
photos from Peter Croft, Alan Good & trademe

Over the last few summers I have seen the San Cristobal anchored up around the gulf, she appears to be a live aboard at Matiatia on Waiheke Island & is regularly seen on the weekends in Man 0 War Bay. I understand that she is a 1943 60ft converted Scottish drift trawler & have heard that $100k was spent on reconditioning the 8 cyl. Gardner………
San Cristobal is currently for sale on trademe & the following details are ex there – she was built by the British Admiralty in Lowestoft in 1943. Built to take saboteurs and supplies to Norway. The German High Command had instructed the German submarines not to torpedo fishing boats. Bronze fastenings below the water line as not to set off the magnetic mines. After the War she sailed to NZ and was purchased by Sanfords. Name changed from Pagan to San Cristobal. Commercial fishing around NZ. Designed off the Scottish Drifter developed for the herring fleet in the North Sea. Built of larch on oak and measures – length 20m, width 5m with a 2m approx. draft.

She is a perfect example of the the magic powers of paint, from memory she was classic work boat green & looked like she had just escaped from the fishing fleet, then bang she is sporting a salmon / terra-cotta & cream colour scheme & looks a different vessel. It would have been a big call looking into the paint tin but it works a treat (in my eyes).

Any of the woodys able to supply more info on her past, must be a few woodys that have worked on or alongside her.

Update 19-12-2016 ex Ken Ricketts
She was sold by the insurance company 2 weeks ago to a Andre Botha, after she had come to grief in the Warkworth River sometime earlier this year.

He put her in the water last Friday afternoon & lifted her out again about 3 hours later, about 6 30pm, with massive quantities of water on the wrong side of the hull, which was all falling out of her, at high speed after lifting.

As shown in the photos below she is has a substantial recaulking exercise underway at the moment & the new owner hopes to have her back in the water in about a week, & will initially keep her at Gulf Harbour for a few days & will then move her to town to a mooring site in the central city area, as yet unconfirmed.

The owner told Ken he has bought her with a view to restoring her & ultimately he is considering living aboard in due course. The purchase of San Cristobal is his first ever venture in to the world of boating. He also mentioned she is built of oak & she still as the 8L3 Gardner diesel engine, which he says, has only done around 2500 hours.

 

Palm Beach Boat Show 2016

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PALM BEACH BOAT SHOW 2016
photos & comments from James Dreyer

Today’s ww post is a trip report from James Dreyer (Laughing Lady) James has kept the focus on wooden or partially wooden craft, with a little American excess and muscle thrown in for good measure. Enjoy, its a great read & interesting to see whats happening in the USA. Remember click on any photo to enlarge

The latest offering from Hacker craft.  A modern take on the classic triple cockpit runabout. I did get the feeling that the boat is a little let down by stainless off the shelf hardware.  If your forking out over $300K for a speedboat, you wouldn’t expect the same handrails as a Searay.

Vicem yachts of Turkey builds all mahogany, cold molded up to 140’  Beautiful craftsmanship with a long history.

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Hinckley Yachts is famous for their jet driven Picnic boat, but this is their latest model, a 36’ open.  Built in glass but with some really lovely styling cues from downeast.

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This little Grand Craft spent most of her time doing cocktail cruises of the Intracoastal waterway between Palm Beach (Holiday spot of the wealthy and retired, including DL Gardiner who owned Laughing Lady) and West Palm (home of the normal folk.)

Trumpy yachts Flying Lady.  Lovely solid lines on her wheelhouse.

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My favorite boat of the show, a modern commuter and tribute to Aphrodite.  Vendetta was built for Billy Joel out of a high tech blend of carbon and kevlar and runs twin 1300 MANs with Arneson drives in tunnels.  She will do 50 knots and doesn’t have a stateroom, just a lovely big salon area with kitchen and seating for many.  Totally impractical but oh so cool.  I was very lucky be invited onboard and shown around once the guy heard I had a commuter yacht.  He even knew laughing lady from his original design research.  She’s for sale at $1.3 million if anyone is looking to tour the East coast in style.

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Honey Fitz, the 1931 Defoe built ex-presidential yacht named after John F. Fitzgerald and once chariot for Truman, Eisenhower, JFK, Johnson and Nixon.

A 1960s era Bertram offshore race boat.  Sporting close to 800hp and Ray Hunts game changing deep vee hull design, she’s a thing of beauty.  Almost like a vintage Nascar.

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Maybe I am biased, but the whole express cruiser (open) sport fish really does it for me.  Totally impractical in anything but fine weather, but oh so cool.  Registered to Montauk at the tip of Long Island – Laughing Ladys first home port and serious Bluefin Tuna grounds.

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Jarrett Bay build some of the finest cold molded SFs on the market, this being about as small as they come.

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Seven Marine are the newest outboard on the American Market and are just ludicrous.  627hp (!!!) each, from a Chevrolet 6.2L supercharged V8.  At 500kg each, you want to have a pretty robust transom to hang three of these off!

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76’ Sportfish provides a pretty big aft cockpit.  Again cold molded.

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Rybovich is the name most synonymous with classic sport fish designs and this modern express model has a lot of classic styling cues from original Rybo’s like Release and Bolero

A few for the yachties 🙂

Wild Horses – the 70 odd foot W-class Spirit of Tradition sloop designed by Donald Tofias.

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I’m not sure if this is Herreshoffs Bounty or Ticonderoga, but she has incredible and unmistakable lines.  Pretty cool little yard tugboat on the left too.  This helped us park the large yacht I work on.

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Everything is big in America – to give you an idea of the scale, this has 3 x 350hp Outboards and is 41’ and note the tow rig.

Some nice wheels on display:

Sometimes you really have to wonder 😦

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And a funny to finish – Some people don’t hide it.  Apparently he owns a chain of Laundromats.

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Easter Weekend Cruise – Photo Gallery

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Tasman

Wairiki on-route to Coromandel
Wairiki on-route to Coromandel
Spirit of New Zealand
Silens with load of driftwood aboard
Rorqual looking very smart
Ngarunui
Allergy
Chris McMullen on patrol
Dinner on Raindance
Name escapes me
Marie J
Trinidad waking up
Harmony a very salty launch, nice pad
Idler
Man o War Bay Sunset
Man o War Bay Sunset
Kathryn Ann
Kathryn Ann
Lady Margaret (CW)
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Raindance at Man o War Bay (photo Andrew Miller)

Easter Weekend Cruise – Photo Gallery

Headed to the bottom end of Waiheke Island for the 4 day easter break. Nice to see so many classics out & about. There were a lot more than the above photos, these are just the ones we mooched past. Everyone was graced with almost perfect weather & the water temp is still in the comfortable range.
See captions for details.
ps I got to practice my fuel filter changing / system bleeding on the way back………….. fun in a busy seaway 🙂

Moerangi – 4sale

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MOERANGI
photos & story from NZ Life & Leisure magazine

Today we feature the Logan Bros ex work boat Moerangi. When launched in 1901 she was schooner rigged & also had one of the first oil engines in New Zealand.
Built for Archibald Weir Jnr. she started her working life towing the commercial fishing fleet in & out of Moeraki, as the fleet started installing engines her role became redundant & she became a passenger ferry with the Peninsular Ferry co. in Otago. Around 1920 she was converted back to a fishing boat & moved around several ports – Port Chalmers > Lyttlelton > Akaroa. Her past is a lille cloudy after 1920 until the early 1980’s when she was converted to a pleasure craft. Her owners Alice & Mick Sinclair would love to know more about the ‘missing’ years.
ww has a great relationship with the crew at NZ Life & Leisure magazine, the #1 selling magazine in its field & we thank them for sharing this story with ww readers. You can find out more about the magazine here    http://nzlifeandleisure.co.nz/

More details & photos on Moerangi’s past here https://waitematawoodys.com/2014/12/15/moerangi/

 

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House Boat

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House Boat
photos by Jose Campos

Ok its not a classic but its very cool & given its a long weekend, a few of you will be away at the bach or better still afloat so I thought it would be a good time to post this floating home.
It is a modular design that lets you choose a cozy studio or a fully-furnished three-bedroom house, all of which float. Living in a cool, modern house would be pretty great, but imagine taking that house and placing it in the water so you can have your very own waterfront property with 360 degree views. The house boats come in a range of sizes from 10 to 18 meters (approx. 33 to 59 feet) with a set width of 6 meters (19.6 feet) Propulsion comes from two small outboard motors that give you the flexibility of moving it to a new place every day. It’s even built so that it can easily be stored in two standard containers and shipped to you anywhere in the world.
Simply charge the boat and your house is self-sufficient for at least seven days. It produces up to 80% of its own energy needs for the year. It was also designed with a reduced carbon footprint using materials and technologies that have little impact on the environment.The kitchen comes fully equipped for all your daily needs. The house is also outfitted with a heat pump and AC generator, and a barbecue on the upper deck.

Tomorrows ww post will feature another ‘house’ boat but this one was built in 1901 & has the impressive ‘Built by Logan Bros’ builders plate.

The Kiwi Version 🙂

photo ex Dean Wright of Bay of Island marine scientist, John Booth’s ‘Waka’ 😉

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Buzzard

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BUZZARD

Buzzard is 1989 22’6″ spirit of tradition launch with a Holmes displacement hull, ply glassed 😦
Powered by 21hp Volvo Penta diesel motor that pushes her along at 5>6 knots. A perfect speed for her home waters of Lake Taupo.

Any of the lake woodys able to tell us more about her?

The rebirth of Juanita

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The Rebirth of JUANITA
photos Greg Lees & Alan H

Yesterday I was privileged to be asked by Greg Lees to attend the re-launch of the 32′ classic launch Juanita, a 1951 Allan Williams (Milford Creek) built beauty that has  just spent the last 4 months in the Lees Boatbuilder shed at Sandspit. In Greg’s words she was in for a ‘refresh & to bring her back to her original appearance’ – well Mr Lees, I do not think she has ever looked this good before so you have exceeded the brief, but we have come to expect that from the yard. Greg commented that Juanita’s new owners (Nick & Anna Davidson) contribution to the work was huge, every weekend for the 4 month period.

Juanita has had a busy life having called numerious places home – Auckland, Whangarei, Lake Taupo, Whitianga & now Sandspit.

Juanita’s past has been well documented on ww – some links below for details & photos

Juanita

Juanita

I took the photo of her below late last year, moored off Greg’s wharf looking very sad & tired as she awaited her turn in the shed. Arohanui was in-residence at the time mid restoration. One of the reasons Nick chose the Lees yard was the long association the yard & Greg personally has had with Juanita, in fact Greg told me that he once got very close to adding a flybridge to her, luckily that never happened 🙂

Again I’m so pleased to see so many of our classic launches being returned to their finery – so woodys who’s next in the shed?

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Took the opportunity to have a  peek at Karros hauled out & chat to Dave Jackson, with a 14′ beam she is a rather pretty big bottomed old girl 🙂

Aqualeda

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AQUALEDA

Aqualeda was launched in 1948 & built using Canadian oregon timber. She measures 33′ & is powered by a 75hp 4 cylinder Ford diesel. Looking at her I’m not sure if she was originally a sedan & later converted to a bridge-decker or started life as a bridge-decker, I suspect a later conversion. Home is Nelson so hopefully one of the southern woodys can tell us more about Aqualeda.

08-12-2022 Input ex ‘Larry’ – below is a photo that Larry took on 07-12-22 of Aqualeda on the Kaiapoi river: For overseas readers, Kaiapoi is a riverside town, just 20km north of Christchurch in the South Island 

Lion

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LION
details ex trademe

MV Lion was commissioned in (1908) 1912 for use on Lake Wakaptipu, serving the family and owners of Walter Peak, Fernhill and Mt Nicholas Stations.
Constructed from kauri planking to a canoe stern design she was designed to handle the choppy and unpredictable conditions of Lake Wakatipu. Her spec are – Length: 38′,
Beam: 9′, Draft: 3′ & she is powered by a Yanmar 51hp.
Has previously operated as a charter vessel on Wakatipu.

Anyone able to supply details on the designer / builder etc?

Harold Kidd Input

LION was built by James M’Pherson in Dunedin in late 1912, NOT 1908, for Hugh McKenzie of Lake Wakatipu and fitted with a 21hp 3 cylinder Clifton engine.The 1908 is a constant myth, despite my efforts to persuade various owners to get it right. Hey, the guy who owns a boat is entitled to create or perpetuate his myths. It’s always the way.