Category Archives: A Peek Down Below

Mako

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MAKO

Last weekend at the 2015 Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Parade – I spotted a boat in the parade that really caught my eye. Named Mako, owned by Paul Adams from Tauranga. There was no details listed for her in the parade directory so I asked the organisers if they had any details on hand. They sent me what Paul had supplied them – the copy below & a b/w photo – something tells me Paul has a sense of humour 🙂

“It is a narrow wooden boat with inboard motor, built of Kauri in 1924 at Okawa Bay Boatbuilders.
It is lacking maintenance ,so not presented as well as it should be!”

I took these photos at the picnic & you can see why she appeals to me.
Needs a little TLC but the bones are there.
Anyone able to shed some more light on her past?

 

Restoring & Installing a Gardner in Arethusa

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Restoring & Installing a Gardner in Arethusa

story & photos ex Dean Wright

It not often I get sent info on a boat & it jumps the queue & appears on ww the next day. If you have been following on ww the rolling restoration Dean has been doing on Arethusa over the last few years you would know two things, Arethusa is in very good hands & Deans a very talented commercial photographer. So the links below to Deans latest project – the restoration of a Gardner 4LW & subsequent installation in Arethusa are well worth check out.

Restoration     http://deanwright.co.nz/arethusa/log-arethusa/152-gardner-4lw-diesel-restoration.html

Installation      http://deanwright.co.nz/arethusa/log-arethusa/154-installing-the-gardner.html

Some history below

Arethusa ticked over 96 this year. She started life as a gaff rigged cutter, built by Bob Brown (designer of the Z class) at Sulphur Beach, Northcote. She’s carvel planked kauri, 33′ 4″ LOA with a 12′ Beam. With the aid of a fair bit of ballast she weighs 10 tonnes. She’s had an interesting life, more details here http://deanwright.co.nz/history.html

Tradition

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TRADITION

photos ex Ken Ricketts ex boatbuilders website

I don’t know much about Tradition, as nice smart looking launch. I understand that she is owned by a couple that divide their time between Tauranga & Wellington. She supposedly originally came from Picton. Has had a refurbishment at Hutcheson Boatbuilders in Tauranga.

Anyone able to supply more details?

Summertime – Rosie Lees

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Rosie Lees & Summertime

Where it all started

Final Push / Prep

Launch Day

SUMMERTIME
photos ex Lees Family
How today being Christmas Eve I really wanted a nice, feel good post today – when the details & photos of this one started to hit my email inbox, it went straight to a file tagged 24/12/14 🙂

If you follow ww you will know that Greg Lees is a very talented boat builder & runs one of the best classic friendly boat yards in NZ, what most of you would not have known is that Rosie his 20 year old daughter is also very talented. Todays post is proof of just how talented.

In October 2013 Rosie started building a Pelin Ventura, named ‘Summertime’ – now the build timeline got a little stretched out with things like work (Blenheim) getting in the way. However a 6 week period between Sept & Nov 2014 provided the ideal window to finish ‘Summertime’ off & she was splashed in early December 2014. You can see from the above photos that the boat looked beautiful and I’m told went better than expected i.e. 45mph with ease & Rosie was thrilled.  Now this lady does not muck around,  Saturday night Summertime was wrapped in shrink wrap and Sunday morning Greg and co. towed it down to Wellington in time for the ferry to Blenheim. Seems Rosie has a Regatta to attend. By the standard of the artistry, both the boat & Rosie the builder, should scoop a few awards.

Now this is quite an achievement for a 20 year old, seems to me that the Lees gene pool is mighty strong 🙂

05/03/2015 – Rosie & Summertime In the news (Marlborough Express)

Raema

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RAEMA

Raema a 1940 Collings & Bell bridgedecker, has just changed hands & is now berthed at Port Motueka. She is 34′ LOA, 9’2″ Beam, 4’3″ Draft & powered by a 120hp 6cyl. Ford diesel.
On board there is a plaque saying ‘Raema RNZYS’ & she is rumored to have been once own by a past rnzys commodore.
Her owner would love to know more details on her past & see some early photos if they exist.

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Harold Kidd Update

RAEMA was built in late 1923, not 1940. Her first owner was Gordon Bartleet, who had REHIA built by Colin Wild in 1939. I can find no contemporary reference to her builder, but Collings & Bell is almost certainly correct because she had a 4 cylinder Doman engine for which they were agents.
In March 1924 Bartleet sold her to Moller who was then Commodore of the Takapuna Boating Club and bought her back from him in September 1928. In October 1930 Percy McGill of Rotorua bought her, keeping her until the winter of 1933 when Horsley bought her. She then appears on the Kaipara in 1938-9 owned by Bo Bogle and then R. Smith (unless that’s another RAEMA). Then nothing in Auckland. She does not appear in the RNZYS records up to the mid 1960’s (which is where I’ve got to in transcribing them).

PS The only photograph I know of is at the Matakohe Museum and numbered PAHI 88. It shows her at the 1938 Pahi Regatta.

Moerangi

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MOERANGI

Moerangi is a 1901 Logan Bros 55’ 9” trawler style classic launch that spent most of her life as a fishing boat and ferry before undergoing 2 separate restorations the last in Whangarei costing I understand over $300,000.

Being royalty i.e. a genuine Logan, she has a wonderfully documented pedigree of ownership and escapades detailing her life over the last 113 years, which makes my life very easy when doing a ww post. Click the (blue) links below to view/read. Built in the Logan style triple skin heart kauri she has been restored by the expert shipwrights of The Wood Shed in Whangarei who obtained suitable heart kauri and replaced in the traditional manner all that was required, its interesting reading & you can see where the $300k went.

Powered by a 1950 Gardner 5L3 reconditioned in 1986 she has traveled approx 500 hours since and cruises 7-8kts at 750 rpm using approx 8 liters per hour. Accommodation is in 2 double staterooms forward with ensuite and aft plus 2 single berths. The wheelhouse has a large saloon and dining area, aft galley with 2 burner stove grill & oven, 3 way electric fridge, pressure H&C water, 1 heads and a separate full size shower. Electronics VHF, autopilot, GPS radar, depth-sounder & TV/DVD.

Moerangi is for sale (sales brochure below) & this really is one of those situations where someone can ‘profit’ at the expense of someone else e.g. all the money has been spent & the work done to sympathetically modernize this unique classic motor launch while retaining her graceful lines. Her next owner gets to enjoy the vessel without all the hard work & I’m sure at a discount to what was actually invested in her restoration.
Older photos

Akaroa Mail article 15/1/1988 click to enlarge

October 2014 ‘The Wood Shed’ shipwright work summary / report link Shipwright report October 2014 (2 pages)

Boating NZ Oct 2007 feature link Boating NZ Oct 2007 Article (5 pages)

Ownership history link Some Ownership history

Ethel – Sailing Sunday

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ETHEL
I took the above photos of Keith Munro’s 1896 yacht Ethel at the CYA Patio Bay Weekend. The close ups where when she was rafted up to Dave Gidden’s Allergy.
Hopefully Harold will chip in with details on Ethel.

Harold Kidd Update

ETHEL was built by Logan Bros for Herbert Dawson who owned Mercury Island. He used her for carrying supplies to the island and wool and stock to the coast, usually Whangapoua. She was therefore more generous in beam than most yachts of her time which proved useful when she was later used for racing on the Waitemata by W.J. Quelch and W.R. Ingram after Dawson sold her in 1912.

Renuhou

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RENUHOU details ex Ken Ricketts, John O’Meara Jnr., John Bennett, Bob Roach & Dave Stephens. edited by Alan H Now this is a great tale, its believed that she was built c.1904 as a single skin double-ender, with single mast. In the b/w photo above, Renuhou was moored in Mansion House Bay, Kawau Island. Now like so many of these old girls there are big holes in her past but this old girl has lived an ‘interesting’ life. She had been in Tauranga & was sailed by her owner, Pat O’Malley, back to Auckland in the early 1970s, who refurbished her & later sold her to John O’Meara. We understand that O’Mera owned her approx. 43 years ago  (from the mid 1970’s). When he bought her she had a 40hp Ford diesel & bilge keels. She also had had a fire aboard & was badly burnt prior to O’Meara owning her. O’Meara sold her to a Michael Kirkwood, who had her moored in Okahu Bay, for quite some time. During his ownership Kirkwood fitted a permanent wheel house hatch and another mast, to her cabin top. This new aluminum mast was fitted along with a replacement for the original by a John Bennett (secretary treasurer of the PYBC). O’Meara later bought her back off Kirkwood while she was moored in the Tamaki river for 8 > 10years. O’Meara sold her to an out-of-town owner who lived in the Raglan area. They did not look after her & during his ownership she was hauled out on the Panmure Yacht Club  hardstand and stayed there for quite some time. John Bennett has advised that she was more or less abandoned & as the hard stand fees were not paid she was eventually sold by the P.Y.B.C. (under the terms of their haulage agreements, to defray costs). The club sold her to Dave Stephens on 2.2.2011. Now this is where the story of Renuhou makes a big U-turn. Ken Rickets had heard that she might now be a child’s plaything in a kindergarten, so Ken did a bit of detective work & jackpot – turns out Dave Stephens had transported her (permanently) to his lifestyle property at Albany & spent the last 4+ years restoring, refurbishing & altering her to suit his needs i.e. a permanent sleep-out / accommodation that is part of his lifestyle property that features all sorts of artifacts & bits & pieces. Whilst the Ford diesel engine has been removed & sold, the well made bronze strut, shoe, rudder, & stainless steel shaft, are all intact. Whilst she is presently not seaworthy it would only require a small amount of time & money to do the essentials to get her back in the water. The photos below show Renuhou during her relocation / restoration – its a better option than what Colin Pawson calls a Beehive* restoration *for the overseas readers Beehive is a brand of matches/fire lighters 😦

Banshee

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BANSHEE

Built by Allan Williams & launched in 1972, this 34 ft launch is built with a mix of kauri and teak. The story goes that Williams built the boat for his personal use and  due to its popularity the design was replicated several times in the following years.
Banshee was re- powered in 1994 with a 210hp Cummins that gives her with a max speed of approx. 14 knts.
A very practical ‘modern’ classic, her varnished coamings get a big tick from me. Currently for sale.

16-07-2021 Update – for sale again – photos ex May 2021 at Sandspit Marina

 

Arohanui

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AROHANUI

Designed by Andrew Donovan & built by the Lane Motor Boat Company in 1966, as launched she was LOA 45′. Beam 13’8″, Draft 3’5″. In 1991 the Salthouse yard lengthened her to 48′.
When launched in the mid 1960’s Arohanui was leading edge in terms of hull design, you can see the influence of the USA Hacker marque in her hull. As a comparison – the Salthouse yard were turning out the likes of Trinidad at the same time.
Her interior fit out & styling was the best money could buy & amazingly she has survived almost ‘as-original’, refer to the photo of the bulkhead storage layout. Her original condition was one of the key factors the helped Fiona & Rod Marler make the final purchase decision.

As launched she had twin 120hp Perkins installed, in 1993 these were replace with twin 300hp turbo Iveco’s – thats 600hp of zoom = 20+knots. A big step up from 7.5 knots Rod’s 1934 Arch Logan yacht, Little Jim will run out at 🙂 Now if you or a group of classic friendly buddies are looking for a classic yacht – Little Jim is on the market & to quote one of the saltiest yachties I know –  “is arguably NZ’s best classic yacht afloat in terms of pedigree, condition & sail-ability” view here http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-marine/yachts/keeler/auction-795988279.htm

Now I have a few kooky interests in my life, one of them is marine instruments / gauges – the collection on Arohanui caught my eye, I tried to convince Rod to “pull those old things out & fit new digital instruments” but he saw through me on that 🙂

Arohanui was the cover / feature vessel on the April 1966 issue of Sea Spray magazine

Andy Donovan’s Original Drawings

22-10-2015 Update

Arohanui is currently hauled at Sandspit & in the shed at Lees Boat Builders where Greg Lees & his team of artisans are giving her a makeover. The standard of work is A+ & the yard have belong the go to location for classic vessel’s. The next project is outside on a swing mooring waiting patiently for Arohanui to slide out.