Category Archives: For Sale

MAGGIE – A CLASSIC CLINKER DAY BOAT

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MAGGIE – A CLASSIC CLINKER DAY BOAT

Back in March 2013 we ran a brief story on the classic day boat – MAGGIE, at the time we learnt that MAGGIE was designed and built by Roy Parris in 1982 as a small work boat. Originally she had a large hatch in the foredeck and a doghouse aft-end. 

After an early life transporting supplies to & from Kawau Island she was refurbished in 2004 as a small clinker built day boat, being 18ft 6″ overall.

Her stem and keels are heart totara with a hull built of rewa rewa ribs and kauri planks.  A Sole diesel engine gives her a comfortable cruising speed of 7 knots at 2100 rpm.

Back in 2013 she was berthed in Auckland’s Viaduct Harbour Basin. MAGGIE attended several woody cruises to the Riverhead Tavern.

A change of ownership saw her relocating to Lake Rotoiti in the central north island, where her owners participated regularly in the Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Parades for the last 12 years.

A change in personal circumstances saw MAGGIE appearing on tme where she has sat for the last two years – probably a result of the asking price.

Putting the price to one side MAGGIE is a stunning vessel and desires a new owner – hell if I lived near a lake, I’d buy her. Sitting on a top end trailer, you can say goodby to the marina robber barons.

(photo ex Toby Hyman)

SILENS – A CLASSIC BOAT OWNERSHIP  OPPORTUNITY – WHO WILL STEP UP

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Post Sinking

SILENS – A CLASSIC BOAT OWNERSHIP  OPPORTUNITY – WHO WILL STEP UP

Yesterday WW was contacted by the owners of the 1912 Harvey & Lang built, 38′ classic wooden launch – SILENS and advised that post her recent sinking (refer WW story link below) they had made the decision to walk away from SILENS. https://waitematawoodys.com/2026/04/01/an-update-on-the-sinking-of-classic-wooden-launch-silens/

WW has been asked to help locate a suitably woody enthusiast interested in taking her on as a project, that has the time, resources and space to work on her.

A lot of people buy an older wooden boat and do not bother with a survey and subsequently discover they own a black hole that they are constantly tipping money into. SILENS could be the opposite eg you know exactly what you are acquiring and any surprises have been identified.

SILENS was/is great boat and probably just needs a systems upgrade. Do not let a couple of days under the waves put you off – the membership list of the ‘Classic Submariners Club’ is not as exclusive as most would think. Even my own woody has spent time (weeks) sitting on the bottom.

Interested parties to initially make contact via email to facilitate the process re liaising with the insurance company. Contact Leigh-Ann leighann.newton24@gmail.com

CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH YASAWA NEEDS A NEW HOME

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CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH YASAWA NEEDS A NEW HOME

Last week WW was contacted by Julie Eccles advising that she was selling her late husband (Ken) classic wooden bridge-decker 33’ launch – YASAWA.  YASAWA has appeared on WW several times over the years, starting back in January 2014, link below. At the time we learnt from Harold Kidd that she was built by Charlie Filmer.  WW Jan 2014  https://waitematawoodys.com/2014/01/10/yasawa/

More recently John Burland photographed her moored at Motueke Marina – last photo above. In this photo she looks very smart. Below is an excerpt from the Nov 2025 edition of the Motueka Yacht and Cruising Club newsletter.

YASAWA – Yasawa was built in 1952 when bridge-deckers were a very popular style of launch.

The term ‘bridge-decker’ refers to boats with a higher level deck to the fore of the boat that sits over the engine bay. The first bridge-deckers were built in the1920s in the USA and reflect a transition from stern steered sailing vessels to motorised launches.

Yasawa is carvel kauri construction and is 32.8 feet (10 metres) long. Its first owner and builder was Charlie Filmer who lived in Penrose, Auckland. The boat’s history is well recorded in a popular classic wooden boat site called ‘Waitemata Woodys’. For many years it was well known for its varnished topsides, since painted over. Originally the boat was called ‘Doraleen’ and changed to its current name in 1957. The boat’s first engine was a petrol V8 marinised Ford Mercury. It is currently powered by a D-Series 6 cylinder Ford diesel, which was reconditioned with Phil Fry’s help about 5 years ago.

Interested parties to initially make contact with Julie Eccles via email julieeccleskina@gmail.com 

(photo ex Toby Hyman)

CLASSIC LAUNCH – LADY GAZELLE – A Peek Down Below

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CLASSIC LAUNCH – LADY GAZELLE – A Peek Down Below

The classic wooden launch LADY GAZELLE , designed by Jim Young,has made several appearance of WW, link below to those stories. https://waitematawoodys.com/?s=LADY+GAZELLE+&submit=Search

Sadly back in March 2023 during Cyclone Gabrille, LADY GAZELLE ended on the rocks in the Coromandel Harbour, photo below .

We next saw her in August 2023, being relaunched at Clevedon, photo below.

Today thanks to Ian McDonald spotting a tme post, we get to have a gander down below. The rebuild of LADY GAZELLE isn’t completely finished but it would be a great winter project and then you would be boating next summer.
Do not normally quote $$ but at around $25k its a bargain.

CLASSIC WOODEN 1930’s SPEEDBOAT – WINTER PROJECT

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CLASSIC WOODEN 1930’s SPEEDBOAT – WINTER PROJECT

Todays vintage woody recently popped up on tme with a $1 reserve (thanks Ian McDonald).

 Now hush my mouth but the chrome fittings would be worth buying her for. But there’s the bones of a nice lake boat there – 20’ in length, made from mahogany , stored under cover its whole life.  Designer / builder unknown.

OFF CENTER HARBOR WEBSITE

Regular WW readers will be familiar with the USA based website – Off Center Harbour, but if you aren’t already a member I would encourage you to subscribe.

A day wouldn’t go by when I do not log in to view one off the 600+ video’s from the back library – for advice, inspiration of just entertainment.

At the link below you will find a short video on what the site is all about . https://www.offcenterharbor.com/what-is-off-center-harbor-regular-join/

Below is a random collection of screen grabs showing some of the content.

CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH – MALUA – NEEDS A NEW OWNER

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CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH – MALUA – NEEDS A NEW OWNER

During the week WW was contacted by Jeff Giddens concerning the classic wooden launch – MALUA. Jeff tells her story below – 

“We have sort of acquired the above named vessel “Malua”. At this stage make and builder unknown.Story goes……there was a brand new 65 Volvo marine diesel engine fitted in the boat some 25 years ago, it did very few hours, then was put into a slipway cradle and has been on the slipway ever since (approx. 17 years).

Someone may know some history on this vessel. We would love to see this old girl be restored, hull is 98% sound, but unfortunately the decks and cabin sides need work. Be nice to know there is someone out there that wants her. Not free but her price will reflect the buyers commitment to restoring her.”  

What we know – approx. 26’-28′ in length and very beamy for her length. Constructed from single skin, most likely kauri planking. 25+ years ago, she was on a swing mooring in Ivy Bay, Paremata, Pāuatahanui Inlet, then she went to Tauranga, then came back to Ivy Bay, Paremata, and has been on the slipway cradle ever since.

From the photos we see that her cradle sits above the water at high tide so this should have helped reduce the ‘drying out’ effect over the years.

If you have room and the passion for a classic wooden launch like MALUA in your life – initially contact Jeff at j.giddens@xtra.co.nz

And it saddens me to add that if we can’t find a new owner, she will face an appointment with a back-hoe…… 😢

CLASSIC JOHN SPENCER WOODY RUN-ABOUT

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CLASSIC JOHN SPENCER WOODY RUN-ABOUT

Todays woody gets to be on WW because its just so cute – as Harold told me once re classic wooden boats “dear boy do not be under any illusion, it is a beauty contest” .

What we learn from her recent tme appearance is – designed by John Spencer, launched in 1960, 16’ 5” in length powered by a40hp Mercury outboard. I wonder who built her, most likely a home / DIY project.

Home is Kaitaia, Northland so hopefully someone in the BOI buys her.

 BUDGET BOAT BLING

There is a secret to buying well on trade me , I have bought ace clinker dinghies for $200 and an embarrassing amount of bronze hardware for next to nothing.

The waitematawoodys Slipway Milford car boot sales are also legendary.

Aside from the clinkers I think this weeks buy is the best to date. A pair of bronze/chrome 1/2 vents for $25. A quick clean up with a scotch pad and WD40 and almost like new. Have I a need for them ? – of course not, but better in my glory box than sold for scrap. 

The reason for the bottle of wine in the photo below (size comparison) is when I told Jason Prew what I’d bought and the price, his reply was “I bet they are 1” high and from a model boat kit” if I’m honest I was concerned when the seller wouldn’t answer my question re what size they were (post buying) 🙂

1942 EX OTAGO HB CLASSIC WOODEN WORKBOAT – MARORO

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1942 EX OTAGO HB CLASSIC WOODEN WORKBOAT – MARORO

When I get an email that has the boat name MARORO in the subject panel, it gets opened straight away – lots of classic boating history surrounding that name. Turns out todays woody is an ex Otago Harbour Board workboat, that started life as a tender to a OHB dredge. 

MARORO was launched c.1942 and she is 30’ x 9’3” x 3’ and built from kauri carvel planks and rebuilt in 1990 and still owned by the family that rebuilt her. Powered by a Mazda 4cyl HA 76hp diesel engine, she has a cruising speed of 7>8 knots.

Home is still Dunedin and she looks like she could handle a sporty weather day + very well fitted out.

Each to there own but the mahogany interior doesn’t get a tick from me – a tad too perfect for an 80 yr old classic. (Thanks Ian McDonald for the tme heads up)

Remember – if you are at a loose end tomorrow (Monday), head down to Westhaven / waterfront to watch the Auckland Ann. Day Regatta – Classic MotorBoat Inner Harbour Racing.

Race start off RNZYS / Westhaven > Orakei and return > RNZYS

CLASSIC LAUNCH – RAMOE – NEEDS SAVING

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CLASSIC LAUNCH – RAMOE – NEEDS SAVING

At the end of last year WW was contacted by the owners of the launch – RAMOE, who advised that the planned restoration had stalled and the tough decision had been made to find a new owner to take on the project.

Back in 2022 we ran a story on her (link below) + below undated photo  https://waitematawoodys.com/2022/03/31/ramoe-a-project/

We believe there is a newish Volvo Penta 75hp engine fitted, so that addresses the big $$ item.

Any woodys looking for a project in 2026.

Screenshot

CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH – NGARUNUI – A PEEK DOWN BELOW + NOW FOR SALE

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CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH – NGARUNUI – A PEEK DOWN BELOW + NOW FOR SALE

Today’s featured classic wooden launch is the impressive 48’ NGARUNUI, designed and built by Jim Young and launched in 1959. With a generous 12’ beam and 6’6” headroom, she’s a big, comfortable girl – in fact, she sleeps nine.

Constructed in kauri, 1 1/4” carvel-planked, NGARUNUI carries all the hallmarks of a serious long-distance cruiser.

Power comes from a 200hp Doosan L136T, and she’s backed up by a Yanmar 20hp auxiliary driving its own shaft and prop. Combine that with what I’d call a new ‘sail-assist’ rig, and you’ve got one of the best “get me home” configurations you’ll find on a classic wooden launch.

Yes, she is for sale, and her spec sheet is both extensive and impressive. Most WW readers don’t need every last detail here, but rest assured – it’s all there: autohelm, radar, bow thruster, 1200L fuel, 800L water, and a long list of quality gear. Full details reserved for genuinely interested parties.

So, two options today:

  1. Buy NGARUNUI now and be cruising the gulf this Christmas / New Year.
  2. Walk away, knowing she’ll sit quietly in the back of your mind – with the very real risk that someone else snaps her up first.

The owner’s price expectation is market-realistic, and NGARUNUI represents exceptional value for a vessel of this calibre.