Category Archives: Launches

Silver Spray

Image

Reply

Silver Spray

SILVER SPRAY

Story & photo by Lyn Hatrick

The above boat is the Silver Spray which my Dad has noted as being built by Joe Slattery in Judges Bay about 1925 and was 26ft long. It was powered by an Ailsa Craig petrol engine. This boat is still in existence and has been completed done up and is now moored out by the boatsheds at Orakei. My grandfather owned one of the boatsheds there which he housed the Silver Spray in. These sheds were offered to those affected by the buildingof the pipeline and who owned boats which used to be kept up on the foreshore where the Shore Road/Orakei Road intersection is. The family lived in Orakei Road at the time and then moved to Tuahere Street and loved boating

Note the above was ‘borrowed’ from a facebook page & used based on the fact they we borrowing waitmatawoodys material 😉

Alcestis

Image

Reply

Alcestis

ALCESTIS

I’m yet to see a unappealing photo of Alcestis (Mollie,Raiona), this one as Harold Kidd would say ‘going full chat’, look at the exhaust just above the waterline midship, with a steadying sail up.

Photo supplied by Graham Guthrie

Centennial Rudder Cup Winner

Posted on by
3
CENTENNIAL RUDDER CUP
Raindance the floating head office for waitematawoodys picked up another shiny thing at the CYA prize giving last night. Will sit nicely alongside the Motor Launch Trophy won last year.
This year Raindance collected the Centennial Rudder Cup, the trophy donated by Pauline & Harold Kidd to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Rudder Cup Race, one of the most significant events in our motor launch history.
Special mention should be made to my boat boy Simon Yates.

Valray

Posted on by
Reply

VALRAY TAKEN ON OWNERS FAMILY SLIPWAY1975

VALRAY 
Tale & photo supplied by Ken Ricketts
Valray,named after Mr Ray & Mrs Val Hamilton, as one would think, is 38 ft, built of fiberglass Kauri, on the family farm, by the original owner himself, who was the then Harbour Master at Sandspit, Ray Hamilton, a real craftsman & artisan at all he did, or attempted, with his son Andrew, whom I thank so much for making this the photo available to me, having carried on what he started, with the boat building craftsmanship dynasty, & who is at the moment building a fascinating launch, on the same farm in Hamilton’s Rd Warkworth.
I saw her under construction on the farm during the later 60s. I can tell you all, the quality of materials & workmanship was almost better than the best, with beautiful lines as you can see, & a superbly crafted & finished interior.
As is obvious she is of the Vindex concept.
She was powered when built by 2 unusual model 6 cyl in line Perkins Diesels in N.Z., they were the  “S6” model & the only 2 I ever saw, & they may well still be in her today. They ran beautifully.
I saw them before installation, & after, & they were lovely looking large, mid metallic blue painted, naturally aspirated motors, ideal for the job they would be doing, in my view.
She lived right off the main wharf at Sandspit, during Ray H’s stewardship, (surprise, surprise, since he was the Harbour Master), & was used regularly.
She cut through the water superbly, & at a really good turn of speed, sat very flat in the water, & did not push or drag lots of water either end — seemed to cruise circa 18 knots at least, I’d say.
BEAUTIFUL!!
All in all, as far as I know, a great well keep boating secret, until now.
Would love to know where she is now if anyone can help. My email is kenpat@ihug.co.nz
Additional info
Valray was sold in 1978 to a Mr Gilbert.
Ray H imported the engines himself from UK specailly for her & the family still have a complete engine (not running at the moment) & many spares if anyone knows of a home for them.

Te Rauparaha

Posted on by
19
For Sale in Noumea May 2013
TE RAUPARAHA
Te Rauparaha was built by Chas. Bailey and Sons Ltd in 1938 for Harry Mills and was requisitioned in WWII as coastal patrol on the Northland Coast bearing the insignia of Q07. Te Rauparaha represented a departure to a more ‘contemporary look’ for the Bailey yard, featured in her beam and obvious elegance. She was 55 feet overall (53’4” on the waterline) and her bow was 14ft off the water and sported a magnificent flair, that can be seen on the later, albeit in reduced proportions, vessels that followed Te Rauparaha out of the yard.
Harry Mills turned over the ownership and running of Te Rauparaha to his fourth son Graeme (my father) in about 1962/3 and she was, until the late 1970’s our much-loved family vessel. I was practically bought up on her and still hold a half model of her crafted for my grandfather by Charles Bailey jnr.
Te Rauparaha was, for some years in New Caledonia where they ran tourist excursions with her. Her name was changed to M V ‘Tamara’. I do not believe that she is in New Zealand waters, but stand corrected on that. However, should anyone have any information as to her current whereabouts, and any other information, the Mills-Hillyer family would be very pleased.
The images above of our much loved family vessel are:
a) Sea trials off Brown Bay post launching.
b) As Q07 during wartime.
c) A more contemporary version (from my childhood) moored in Smokehouse Bay, sporting a flying bridge that my father had built in the 1960s.
Story & photos ex Pamela Hillyer, Harry Mills’ granddaughter
Harold Kidd Update
A true “Express Cruiser”, TE RAUPARAHA was the product of the late flowering of Chas. Bailey Jr’s genius, exemplified too by his design of the 94ft ketch NEW GOLDEN HIND for his old customer H.R. Jenkins (SHENANDOAH, 1929),which was built by Deeming Bros of Opua in 1939 and several outstanding sweet-lined contemporary fishing boats like KATOA, JOAN and MARGARET.
TE RAUPARAHA was fitted with twin 110hp Buda diesels which were becoming very popular at the time, supplied by Seabrook Fowlds and fitted by Allely Bros. They were replaced with Graymarines after her extensive wartime patrol work in WW1, often well off the Northland coast.
A motor launch to make the pulses race if ever there was one!
Update 22/05/13 – this is scary, just posted the above & CYA member Andrew Pollard (Aumoe) spots her for sale on trademe, appears to be in Noumea, listed yesterday click link to view http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=595731758
Update from John Senior
Mark williams and myself delivered her from Auckland to Noumea in 1979 to a kiwi owner who lived there and ran a buisnes of taking tourists out to Amede Light. She had extra seating installed and carried 80 pasengers, i think from memory she had two Grey Marine 6 cylinder diesels. It was a good trip taking 4 days to the hour.
 

CYA Riverhead Launch Cruise – Parade of 26 Classic Boats

Video

1

CYA Riverhead Launch Cruise – Parade of Boats

Thanks to the camera skills of Jason Prew on Whistleblower, we have a ‘drive-by’ of the fleet off Lucas Creek on-route to the Riverhead Hotel.

Lady Avis

Posted on by
3

LADY AVIS

Built in late 1910 by James Reid Snr. b/w photo is dated 1914

Harold Kidd Update

AVIS was built in the winter of 1910 by JAMES Reid and was built on the same moulds as SEABIRD (and probably) MAVIS B so she was an advanced hull for her time and proven by SEABIRD being first on line in the Rudder Cup race around Sail Rock in December 1908 of which the CYA did a rerun in 2008 of fond memory. Her first owners were W & E Currie and B A Keyes. She had a 14hp Regal originally, the same engine as SEABIRD, for which Reid was Auckland agent, a well-made marine engine of US origin. She was re-engined with a 24hp Brennan by 1919. R Johnson joined in ownership in 1923. She was used extensively for racing with RNZYS, PCC and NSYC. She was kept in a shed at Mechanics Bay in the winters next to Lanes. In 1927 she was fitted with a new 35hp Stearns. By 1928 her owners were E Currie, R Johnson and A M Gilmour. Gilmour dropped out in 1935. Currie and Johnson still owned her in 1943 but I lose track then as they either sold her or resigned from the RNZYS.
David Collett owned her 1972-6 with a 4cyl Ford diesel, replaced with a 6 cylinder Leyland. Later she was moored at Mahurangi.
The LADY AVIS thing is pretty recent.
So her pedigree is brilliant.

PS Of course she was built as a racy raised-foredeck flushdecker in the latest vogue for 1910. The clerestory/tramtop, the funnel and the dodger aft are modern excrescences.

A photo update ex Ken Rickett, who also advises she has been renamed Matahari.