When a classic woody has had the same owner for over 50 years, not a lot of people have popped their heads down below, today we get to do that.
The 43’ yacht Tuahine was designed and built in 1957 by the Dickson family, lead by Roy Dickson’s father (grandfather to Chris Dickson). Dickson senior along with Roy and twin brother had all sailed on Ranger with Lou Tercel and got many ideas from Ranger – longish with narrow beam (9’).
Stepping aboard Tuahine is like entering a time capsule being almost unaltered from new, always a sign that the designer / builder got it right first off. Tuahine even has the original Crown Lynn dinner set and on her bulkhead the pennant / decals recording her off-shore races (1977 and 1979 Auckland > Lautoka).
Home for most of the last 40 years has been the Bay of Islands, where she still resides, upstaging her plastic neighbours in the bay.
Her owners have followed a regular maintenance schedule that has included – recently removing the teak decks and plywood substrate laid and the deck relaid. The windows have also been removed and re-sealed. Other work has included the installation of a new Lombardini engine, new stove, new batteries and new main sail.
If the above sounds like an advertisement, it is – the Wooden Boat Bureau has been tasked with finding the next custodian of Tuahine. Her owners are motivated to sell so if you are looking for true blue classic with one of the best pedigrees in the fleet – contact waitematawoodys@gmail.com for more details on Tuahine, and then make an offer.
Todays 30’ wooden launch has made a recent appearance on tme – at first glance you would have to assume that a previous owner has been an automotive glazier and had access to low cost windows. There is a lot of glass action going on. Forward motion is via a BMC Commander diesel engine.
The hull looks a tad modern so maybe I’m being too generous in the use of the ‘classic’ term. Home is Picton
WHANGAREI MARITIME HERITAGE FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND
Hopefully as you read this I’ll be pointing the German peoples car north and visiting the Whangarei Town Basin for the festival. Expect lots of photos on Monday.;-)
Back in Jan 2023 (linked below) we shared some photos of the 40’ Keith Atkinson designed / built wooden launch – SHANGO anchored in Little Oneroa, Waiheke Island. Today thanks to Ian McDonald and tme we get to have a gander below decks. Construction is stripped plank kauri. Built c.1970’s.
SHANGO is powered by a Ford 200hp 2728T diesel engine that gives her a 9 knot cruising speed. At some stage in her ownership life someone must have done some serious cruising her her – she has 1000L fuel capacity.
CAN CLASSIC VESSEL – VECTIS BE RESCUED + Details On Labour Weekend Woodys Happenings at Kawau Island
At the recent Woodys weekend cruise to Clevedon I ws chatting dockside with Jim Lott and he alerted me to the plight of the 1929 Bert Woolacott Keeler – VECTIS that these days resides on San Francisco Bay, USA. I’ll hand over to Jim to tell the story –
For the past 45 years, VECTIS has been sailing the waters of San Francisco Bay. Her current owner, Louis, has lavished TLC on her after a major restoration of the cockpit and aft deck. He now says his racing days are over and he is looking for someone who will appreciate and look after this fine little ship as she turns 100.
Louis has not found anyone in the Bay and has asked me to see if there is some way she can come home to where her life began in 1929.
“VECTIS” is 31ft plus bowsprit and 9ft 6in beam displacing seven tons. She is planked with 1¼ inch kauri over bent ribs, with every 4th rib sawn pohutukawa. She is fastened with copper rivets and treated with red lead, the well-tested standard at that time, and has bronze keel bolts. The deck was laid kauri, fore and aft over diagonals, and caulked with cotton and tar. Coamings and bright work are mahogany, with oregon spars.
She was built in 1929 and was probably the first Bert Woollacott keeler built in New Zealand. While the Registration Certificate named Percy Vos as the builder, other sources credit her build to Woollacott. Unlike Bert Woollacott’s later designs, she had a spoon bow and a bit of a counter aft, and was masthead cutter rigged.
She was well known around Auckland with owners including the Colebrook family and Alan Doull who was the manager at the RNZYS. She competed in one Suva race.
Karin and I bought her in 1970. At that time, a 32’ (9.5m) yacht was considered the ideal size for ocean sailing. The survey showed some areas of decayed timber in the deck, coamings and carlin just forward of the cockpit.
The deck was cut away exposing more extensive decay than expected and we also decided that the Morris petrol engine would need to be replaced with diesel. The cockpit was wider than the cabin trunk, so with the rot removed, it made sense to carry that width forward and incorporate a raised doghouse in the style of later Woollacott designs, giving more room below and some shelter at the forward end of the cockpit. We also added a small amount of headroom in the forward cabin, but left the original athwartships coaming in place just abaft the mast.
After a voyage in the Pacific, we sold “VECTIS” in 1975 and a few years later we heard she had been sold to San Francisco.
Simon Smith, who was tragically killed during the 2023 ‘Coastal Classic’, recalled happy times sailing on “VECTIS” as a youngster. He introduced me to the current owner, Louis who is delighted with “VECTIS”. He purchased her in a run-down state and undertook a two-year restoration , which he detailed. He describes the hull as like new, in spite of the past 95 years.
Louis is realistic about the value of VECTIS and is mainly interested in ensuring she goes to the right person. Getting her to New Zealand is a challenge, but she is very capable of making the voyage where fair winds can be expected along the route.
Even for such a historic yacht, finding the right owner is more of a challenge and we all know the cost of keeping a vessel in Auckland.
I am in touch with Louis and anyone who can help or be involved can contact me jim.karin.lott@gmail.com
Labour Weekend Just 20 Days Away – Join Us At Kawau Island
Commencing this year the Kawau Boating Club are celebrating the start of summer with the SPRING SPLASH REGATTA. A weekend of fun and friendship on and off the water. KBC are holding hands with Ponsonby Cruising Club to run the on the water sailing events – full details in the Notice of Regatta at this LINK WW encourages all yacht owners to consider participating in the Regatta.
The main reason for todays post is to confirm that WW has been working with KBC and PCC to involve the classic launch fleet and classic cruising yachts in the weekends activities. Aside from enjoying the overall ambience of Kawau Island and the recently renovated clubhouse which is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner on all days, we have two events for woody boaties.
1. On Saturday 26th waitematawoodys invites classic boat owners to gather ashore at Lidgard House (deck) at 4pm for a meet up – BYO
2. On Sunday 27th waitematawoodys will be mustering classic vessels to convene off KBC wharf at 11am for the Classic Woodys Parade ,a circuit of Bon Accord Harbour. As with all good WW gigs there will be plenty of booty to be won – eg longest travelled boat, best dressed boat, etc + spot prizes and all classic boats flying either a WW burgee or KBB / PCC burgee will go in the draw for a complimentary haul out (3days) at the Slipway Milford yard. More details on Saturday afternoon.
With WW life is simple – no entry forms – just turn up on the day and enjoy the company of the classic wooden boating community.
In the 2017 story thanks to a previous owner – Nigel Drake, we received a wonderful insight into the vessels past.
Today thanks to a Ian McDonal and tme we get to have gander below decks.
Some intel – designed and built in 1962 by Brin Wilson, 39’ in length, built from kauri, carvel construction. Forward motion is by the ever popular Ford 120hp, 6 cyl, diesel engine.
CLASSIC WOODEN LAUNCH – GLENIFFER – A Peek Down Below
Todays woody is the 39’ classic wooden Bridgedecker – GLENIFFER. A recent addition to tme (thanks Ian McDonald) – as always seems to be the case a few factual discrepancies, so in the interests of getting right on WW , we will go with what Harold Kidd advised in a previous WW story (linked below – great b/w photo there) that she was built by Chas Bailey & Sons and launched in October 1930.
GLENIFFER also made a cameo WW appearance in April 2017 (linked below)
Many moons ago when I was launch captain at the CYA I had a lot of dealings with the then owner of – FORTUNA, the 35’ Henry Scheel designed motor sailer. As you will see from the photo gallery above FORTUNA is very well fitted out and in great condition for a 1949 built wooden craft.
Her tme listing (thanks Ian McDonald) states over $580,000 spent on her, which is possible but I have no memory of the boat being in Peter Brookes yard……… 😉
Back into 2007/8 she had a back to bare timber refit, which included a re-power with a 135hp Lees Ford.
For a 35’ woody that has a 11’6” beam she is more than capable of extended cruising, with all the fruit e.g. water maker, auto pilot, 600L fuel and of course rigged to sail.
Going about her business on a calm Wellington Harbour
1954 at the start of her 18,000 pound refit, which included a new wheelhouse
Classic Wooden Work Boat – ARAHINA
Back on August 24th WW draw attention to the Wellington ex Pilot Boat – ARAHINA and how she was desperately in need of a new custodian – At the time Paul Drake commented as below, then sent in the above photos from the past.
ARAHINA arrived in Wellington from Bailey and Lowe’s yard in Auckland on 31st October 1925. On trials she achieved 10 knots with her 100HP Fairbanks Morse engine. In 1954/55, ARAHINA had major work done on her structure and a new wheelhouse added. This was done by Wellington Harbour Board shipwrights, at a cost of 18,000 pounds. In 1979, she went to Jorgensen’s in Picton for another refit, and on her return (under tow) she had the 193HP Kelvin engine fitted. She was sold into private ownership at the end of 1987 and relocated to Picton.She is remembered by one Wellington pilot who knew her well as “a narrow gutted single screw vessel.
She was a seaworthy vessel but tended to broach severely in a following sea, as was often experienced off Pencarrow in a southerly”. On one such occasion when she picked up speed on the face of a large sea astern, her stern picked up and over she went, throwing her Launchmaster into the corner of the wheelhouse as he tried but failed to keep her on course. The pilot and engineer eyed each other as they made for the open wheelhouse door. But ARAHINA recovered herself and all was well enough.
MERLE – 1956 CLASSIC KAURI CLINKER This very smart looking 14’ Sea Craft built kauri clinker runabout popped recently on tme. In the last 18 months we have seen several of these woodys hitting the market . This one is named MERLE and appears to be one of the best.
She was rescued and restored by retired Fairlie boatbuilder Dick Guard as a retirement project. His father, in turn, was also a boatbuilder in the region who helped create Jomo Craft, which built some of the country’s most beautiful old timber boats.
Her owner has correspondence between the restorer and Lionel Sands of Sea Craft – which went on to become Haines Hunter. Sands talks about working in the family’s 1,000 acre forest where for two years he milled the kauri timber used to build this boat. His father believed you must appreciate the living tree before you could build boats.
The original construction of these boats is detailed in the correspondence and the restoration detailed in hand-written notes.
The owner purchased the boat but a growing family has meant MERLE has not been used she she should be and the decision has been made to pass her onto an appropriate new owner.
She’s fitted with a 30HP Mercury two-stroke and an auxiliary Mercury outboard.
Todays woody recently popped up on tme (Ian McDonald ✔️), while the cabin house is calling out for a facelift more in keeping with her hull, as the architects say – she has got great bones.
A woody sympathetic craftsman could easily turn ORMPAPERE into a real looker.
Some background – 22’ in length built by Alf Sanders in the carvel planked method. Forward motion is via a Nissan SD22 4cyl. diesel engine.
Home port is Waikawa Bay, Picton – the perfect base and craft for cruising the Marlborough Sounds
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