Category Archives: Launches

Laughing Lady Getting Dressed

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Laughing Lady Getting Dressed Photos

Todays ww post is a wee peek into the final stages of Laughing Lady’s restoration at the Whangateau boat yard. Photos ex James Dreyer’s ‘Seven Oceans Boatworks’ facebook page – click here to see more on the project https://www.facebook.com/sevenoceansboatworks/?pnref=lhc

In the last few days James has used the services of a good old fashioned master craftsman with experience in the hot rod movement to apply some of the finishing touches to LL.
Given the level of presentation that LL will have when launched one would have to wonder where her home will be – certainly not a swing mooring in the Tamaki River, probably a boat shed or maybe even one of the dry docks?

ww awaits details on the splash date, must be fast approaching 😉

30-12-2016 The original plans have just surfaced. Read more in comments section.

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04-05-2017 – Owner James Dreyer hard at work at the Whangateau Boat shed.

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WW1 Mystery Launch = Stanley

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WW1 Mystery Launch – Stanley

The photo above was taken in Wellington during WW1. Sent in by Baden Pascoe who has offered up a copy of his book ‘Launching Dreams – Percy Vos – The Boats & This Boys’ to the first woody that can ID the launch (middle) tied up along side the wharf. Entries via the ww Comments section. Its not an easy quiz but the prize deserves a toughie 🙂
Copies of Baden book can be bought direct from him – contact  badenhp@xtra.co.nz  the perfect woody Xmas present.

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The answer is – the launch is called Stanley, see below zoomed in photo. No winners 😦

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Lady Noelene

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LADY NOELENE

Lady Noelene has been a ‘rolling restoration’ for the last 4+ years & while still not complete her owner is on the down hill slopes. We do not know much about her past but she is powered by a 6 cyl Ford diesel. The photos are a mix of several people over the years, with the most recent ones, at Greg Less’s Sandspit boat yard, from Ken Ricketts.

Can any woodys expand on the little we know about Lady Noelene ?

Gold Bell

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GOLD BELL  Mystery Launch Quiz

The above 1936 photo from the Tudor Collins (Auckland Museum) collection shows a dark hulled launch in the foreground, the first woody that can correctly name her, wins a copy of the 2017 Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Calendar (still available to purchase via Rachel at  zea.rachel@gmail.com ). Entries via the ww comments section. Also keen to ID the other vessels in the bay. photo emailed to me by Ken Ricketts.

Harold Kidd Input

GOLD BELL. She was built by Alf Bell (ex Collings & Bell) at St. Mary’s Bay in September 1929. She had a hard chine and was painted gold.
Funny story about that; Dick Coughlan and I helped clear out Alf’s basement in St. Mary’s Bay after his widow (Dick’s great aunt) died. It was a treasure trove of automotive parts going back the early 1900s including an incredibly early single cylinder Cadillac engine which we gave to John Stewart of St. Heliers, a bandsaw using two 1905ish De Dion Bouton car wheels, the major components of a 1914 Wolseley and yards of launch gear patterns, mostly borer ridden.
On Alf’s workbench was a very large wax vesta tin which was extraordinarily heavy, weighing at least 25lbs (11kg). I opened it and found it full of glittering metal grains.We knew Alf had done some panning at Coromandel (as did most early yachtsmen). The Estate Duty had been paid on the estate, so there was an ethical problem.
Anyway, eventually it was analysed and found to be just bronze filings that Alf had used to mix into the paint for the hull of GOLD BELL!

Lady Gillian

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LADY GILLIAN
John Burland sent me the above photos of Lady Gillian moored at Nelson. She appeared on ww back in Oct 2014 (link below) & at the time her owners (Beatson family) commented that she needed ‘a bit of a tidy up’, by all appearances she has had that 🙂 The the 3rd photo we see her berth near Lady Karita, while LK is undergoing a re-fit.

We still do not know much about her – given there is a much bigger ww audience these days, maybe someone knows more about her past?

Lady Gillian

17-06-2017 Update – new photo below ex Andy Beatson

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SEABIRD
Check out the link below to a cool youtube clip that features Steve Thomas’s 1908, John Reid designed classic launch – Seabird, in the musician Greg Johnson’s music video for the song ‘Never turn back’. It was filmed at Cable Bay near Nelson. Nice to see the CYA burgee flying on Seabird. Enjoy.

Kailua Refit – The Final Chapter

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Kailua Refit – The Final Chapter

Regular visitors to ww will have followed Kailua’s winter haul out at the Nautigue boat yard at West Harbour. Not long after new owners Jacquie & Stephen Langton purchased Kailua off Graham Guthrie, the decision was made to give her an extensive make-over. Stephen choose the Nautique yard to complete the work & reports that with the team of Ben & Neil the craft work and project management was great & he  only has good things to say about them – he joked to me that in the past he has built a few houses, & it’s hard to rave about your builders at the end of the project, but with these guys its been the exception.
Kailua was designed & built in 1960 by Bob Salthouse, when launched she was named – Lady Beryl.

Kailua was relaunched in late November 2016 & her first public outing was the CYA Xmas BBQ weekend at Patio Bay.
Enjoy the photos – you can view more on the project at the link below.

Kailua 2016 Refit

Taihere

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Taihere

Not sure of the correct spelling, her name appears to be either Taihere or Tairere, but we do know that she is a 32’8″ kauri bridgedecker. Same owner for the past 13 years but in the last 3 years she has had little use & as you can see in the above trademe photos what was once a smart classic is now crying out for some TLC.
She is powered by a BMC 4 cyl diesel. Thanks to Ian McDonald for bringing her to our attention.

What do we know about her past?

How Much Is My Woody Worth?

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How Much Is My Woody Worth?
That’s a question ww gets asked on a regular basis, the answer sadly in most cases is a lot less than the owner thinks. People get confused with ‘worth’ & what some one will pay i.e. the sale price, with classic wooden vessels – for worth think replacement cost, for sale price think less than 25% of that.
As I have pointed out before in NZ there is a growing demand for quality classic motor boats, a high % of this market do not have the skills, time or funds to restore one, so importing will become more appealing.
Today’s post features ‘Wando Lady’ a 1966, 65′ Stephens Bros motor yacht from California now calling the UK home. She sleeps 12 & is powered by twin Detroit V71 12 cylinder diesel engines rated at 495hp. Its on the market for approx NZD$400k (asking price) – I post for 2 reasons – its a great looking woody & I think most of you will be interested in viewing her. Secondly as an indication of whats available on the international market compared to NZ prices.

If you want to read more on her http://www.ybw.com/boats-for-sale/5091568?currency=GBP&utm_campaign=20161130_YBW-B_NWL_EO&utm_medium=email&utm_source=ET

Mystery Launch at Nelson

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Mystery Launch at Nelson

My woody spy in Nelson, John Burland sent me the above photo with a note saying the vessel could named Kaituna – any woodys able to ID the vessel &/or supply more details on her.
To confuse us there appears to be a few additions added over the years 🙂

FREE TO GOOD HOME
No not a box of kittens – this gift is both useful & valuable.
ww woody Jason Prew who is currently restoring (aka rebuilding) the 1925 Dick Land launch My Girl ( https://waitematawoodys.com/2016/08/08/the-restoration-of-my-girl/ ) contacted me with the offer below.
” I have a heap of leftover wood cut down to size to use for ribs, it’s red beech and takes to steaming well, a very durable NZ hardwood.  32mm x 16mm x 2.5m is the cut size, but i also have a heap of 8mm x 32mm, free to a good home, also use of a steamer that fits if you wish”

Te Arahi

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TE ARAHI

ww only knows a little about Te Arahi but as they say in the architecture game, she has good bones – being a Percy Vos bridge decker. She was launched in 1965. Her owner Graeme Finch was at the CYA Patio Bay weekend & the photos above are from both mine & Chris Millers camera’s. Photos also ex Brian Worthington & Ken Ricketts.
Graeme’s  father built the speed-boat Mystic Miss, pictured below and was a life member of the Manukau Speedboat Club.

Keen to learn more about her past.

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Input from owner

Hi – we are the current proud owners of Te Arahi, and thoroughly enjoying the transition from fibreglass yacht to classic wooden bridgedecker. I am only the 5th owner of this vessel, the previous owners shown below.

Owner    Name    Position    
1    Roy V Gibbs    South Auckland timber merchant    1965 – 1968
2    Capt Williams    Harbour Master at Whangarei            1968 – 1974
3    Colin Armiger    Manager at Bendon                      1974 – 1999
4    Cpt John Martin    Airline captain with Air NZ.     1999 – 2015
5    Graeme Finch    University of Auckland                    2015 –

As mentioned boat is built from a kauri tree milled at Helensville in 1963, built by Percy Vos and launched in 1965 – it is powered by twin 120HP Ford diesels, and electrical system was upgraded by previous owner John.

I would be interested to learn when the flybridge and walk through transon were added, plus any other history.

Graeme & Maggie Finch

12-01-22 UPDATE – photo below of Te Arahi at anchor at the bottom end of Waiheke Island, xmas/ny 2022