Category Archives: Military

Navy (Admirals) Barge

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Navy (Admirals) Barge
photo & details ex Ken Ricketts. edited by Alan H

The above launch was photographed by Ken while recently hauled out at Gulf Harbour for some maintenance. We understand that she is still in use by the Navy & used for cadet training. Built at the Devonport Dockyard, she is 3 skins of timber.
Her specs are – Length 14 metres, beam 4.45 metres, draught 1.2 metres.
She originally had 2 x Perkins Turbo 6 cyl diesels which have been replaced with 2 x D4 Volvos giving her a top speed of 10 knots, which seems rather slow ?

Like most service craft she has had highs & lows e.g. she was used by Princess Di on one of her Royal visits & also discovered some ‘unchartered’ (yeah right) rocks off Tutukaka 2 or 3 years ago on returning from the Bay of Islands.

I’m sure some of the woodys that have spent time in & around the dockyards will be able to expand on what we know about her.

OOPS Photos from Chris Leech

18-12-2015 Photo below ex Chris Leech of the twin Perkins HT6.354M diesels with Borg Warner gearboxes as installed when new.

Ready for re-launch – Feb 2016 – photos ex Ken Ricketts

30-11-2016 Photo of Admirals Barge below ex Jon Trimble via Ken Ricketts.

admirals-barge

Services Convalescent Hospital & Its Boats

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The Services Convalescent Hospital & Its Boats
photos ex Queen Elizabeth Hospital Community Trust – Kay Taylor Collection

Karen McGeady-Moren sent in a few photos of the hospital motor launch El Alamein (now renamed Ranui) & when I checked the web I discovered an amazing collection of boating images related to the hospital & surrounding area, most dated from the mid 1940’s.

The Services Convalescent Hospital, Rotorua was opened in 1942 under the command of Wilfred Stanley (Stan) Wallis, providing rehabilitation to soldiers returning from World War II. It was renamed the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in 1948 and began to specialize in the treatment of rheumatic disease.
Boating was obviously an enjoyable pastime for the patients.

Remember you can elarge the photos by clicking on them 😉

More recent photo on Ranui can be viewed at the link below

El Alamein / Ranui

FYI – Yesterdays ‘Woodys Weekend’ post was a record day for the number of individual people visiting the ww site & the views were the highest in over 3 months.

Kiwi – Sailing Sunday

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Kiwi 1
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KIWI  – Sailing Sunday
photos & details ex Peter Midegly

Following up on last Sundays post on the royal p-class yacht ‘Tui’, Peter Midegly sent in the above collection of photos of the 14’ sailing dinghy ‘Kiwi. She was built at the Devonport Naval Base by his late father, Eric Midgley, a shipwright, with the assistance of an apprentice, both employed at the dockyard. ‘Kiwi’ was built in Auckland for members of the royal family, this being the occasion of the wedding of the then Princess Elizabeth to Prince Philip in 1947.

Unlike the ‘Tui’, ‘Kiwi’ was well used, as is outlined in the letter below from G.A. Vince of the Sea Training Establishment at Botley, Southampton. This letter describes the workmanship of the boat as first class and her success in racing with other Naval 14 footers. In 1952 George Vince, Director of the Southampton Sailing Centre, also won first prize racing ‘Kiwi’ during Cowes Week that year.

Peter does not know whether the Royal couple sailed ‘Kiwi’ to any great extent, but from the 1950’s she was used by a number of sailing organisations & Sea Cadet Units .

Some years ago Peter made enquiries as to what had happened to ‘Kiwi’, and eventually located her at the National Maritime Museum Cornwall, Falmouth. At the time they told him she was in their offsite store in Falmouth.

Peter’s father started his boat building apprenticeship in 1923 with Joe Slattery. He later worked at Percy Vos’s during the building of the ferry Korea and from 1938 to 1950 at H.M. Dockyard, Devonport. His final employment was with the Auckland Harbour Board as a shipwright in Beaumont St. before retiring in the 1960’s.

Meola

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MEOLA

Meola is one of those boats that no matter what angle you view her, she just looks right. Built in 1961 by Miller and Tunnage at Port Chalmers for the Ministry of Works. Her job was the servicing of Marine Dept. & Navy installations around Waitemata Harbour & the Hauraki Gulf. She is 42’6″ LOA with a 12’7″ beam. Her engine is a 4L3 Gardner that sees her comfortably cruise at 7.5>8 knots, using 1L of fuel per mile.

In 1976 she changed hands & was taken over by the NZ Navy.
When decommissioned by the Navy she was converted to a pleasure boat & is now a very salty launch capable of coastal cruising. Her current owner has recently rebuilt the wheelhouse, rewired her, installed new ‘plastic’ water tanks (700L). She carries 600L of fuel (s/s tanks).
Her galley & engine room have also been revamped. As you would expect she sports all the electronic & safety gear needed for coastal passages. Also installed are solar panels & 12v refrigeration to support the engine driven compressor frig / freezer.
Sleeping is a very comfortable 4 berths, being 2 forward bunks, a skippers Queen size bunk & a very cosy ‘winter’ bunk alongside the Gardner.

If you wonder why I’m being a little OTT with details, thats because her owner has decided that sail is really his thing & wants to see Meola move onto a good owner.
You would struggle to find a vessel better suited to either mooching around the gulf or coastal cruising to the Bay of Islands or Marlborough Sounds. Most of you have heard me rabbit on about the concept of the ‘floating bach’ – well Meola is a boat that fits that role perfectly & you could own her for less than a 1/4 the price of a bare coastal section. AND – she is a serious looker 🙂

If any woodys out there are looking for the perfect floating bach or know someone that is – contact Bram Cone at     coneco@xtra.co.nz

01-10-2015 Additional Photos ex Owner

The Meteor

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THE METEOR
photo ex Mac Taylor collection

Until seeing the above photo I was not aware that we built anything like this sedan runabout in NZ. The Meteor was owned by Mr. W. Goodfellow & cost approx. £1,600 to build. She was 30′ long & capable of a speed of 30 mph. The forward closed cockpit had seating for 8 persons & was upholstered in grey leather.

So woodys – who built her, when, what powered her & what became of her?

Harold Kidd Update

METEOR was built for William Goodfellow in May 1931 by Sam Ford. She was 30ft x 7ft and constructed of Honduras mahogany with a double-skinned bottom. Her original power was a 225hp Kermath. She was capable of 30mph. He kept her in one of the sheds in Ngapipi Road where her nameplate is still on the wall.
Goodfellow sold her to the NZ Coastguard Service just before WW2 when she was taken over by the military. The Government disposed of her by tender in May 1945. Lanes remodelled her for Beamish-White for use on Lake Okataina where she was kept as a tourist attraction for many years. I have a nice pic of her there which I’ll send to Alan.
She’s still around; no doubt other WW followers can bring her up to date.

I took the photo below, of her old name board – while visiting one of the Ngapipi Rd boat sheds to view Matareka II, back on March 2014.

P1160971

Lake Okataina photo below ex Harold Kidd

29-05-2016 photo below ex Nathan Herbert

Meteor ex NH

 

Auckland Woodys Welcome His Majesty’s Ship

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AUCKLAND WOODYS WELCOME HIS MAJESTY’S SHIP
photos ex Russell Ward. details ex Harold Kidd

During the discussions on last weeks post on the very fast CMB, Russell sent me the above impressive photos from when HMS Renown (tbc) visited Auckland. An impressive number of woodys featured. How many can we ID? – I have attached a numbered, L>R (1>7) photo below.
There is potentially some confusion as to the date/year of the visit & whether in fact it is HMS Renown or her sister ship HMS Repulse.
Renown came here solo in 1920 with the Prince of Wales and again in 1927 with the Duke & Duchess of York.
Maybe it’s Renown in 1927 but it could be Repulse in 1924 or Renown in 1920 (fyi Luana that can be seen in the photo was launched in late March 1920 only a month before the 1920 visit).

Update from Barry Davis

Robin Elliott is correct in saying that this is the 1920 visit of the Renown. Below are a couple of photos from the Auckland Weekly News dated 29 April 1920, unfortunately they are not that clear. The small steamer in the foreground and to the left in the second view is the Onewa, the tug closing in on the bow is the Te Awhina.

24-09-2015 Photo of Te Awhina below – ex Russell Ward

Te Awhina

 

 

J I Thornycroft Coastal Motor Boat

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J I Thornycroft Coastal Motor Boat
photo ex Peter Loughlin ex Historic NZ Photos

Today’s mystery motorboat could be a real challenge – what I can tell you is  (1) its obviously the inner Waitemata with the Devonport Naval Base in the background (2) the launch is fast, very fast (3) the Historic NZ listing says c.1930 but I’d say its earlier than that (4) the seagull above the boat almost definitely had a bowel movement when the boat went by 🙂

All Is Revealed Thanks To Harold Kidd

Harold says that the solution was to identify the cruiser first (REPULSE) and with a little help from Papers Past the rest fell into place. The news clip from the Auckland Star 13 May 1924 below explain all.

 

19-09-2015 Further reading below (ex Peter Loughlan). The first link is for CMB9 which is under restoration, the second link some specs for the entire series.

http://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/register/2430/dcb1

http://www.navypedia.org/ships/uk/brit_c_f_cmb40.htm

Thetis

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THETIS
photos & details from Luke Richardson

Thetis (Greek for Sea Nymph) was launched in Dunedin on the 31st August 1929.  She was built by Mr J McPherson boat builder of Dunedin for Mr Charles Sundstrum.
Thetis was designed by renown naval architect Mr William H Hand Jnr of New Bedford USA.  William ‘Bill’ Hand was the originator of the V-bottom hull type per Thetis.  In addition Hand was an early pioneer of the motor-sailor type. Thetis was designed as a fast day cruiser.
She is 35’1” in length with 8’1” beam, 2’9” draft and a total height of 6’9”. She is a British Registered ship dated 16th August 1929.  The official number is 127819. Her registered tonnage is 4.68 with a Gross Tonnage of 7.57.

Thetis was originally powered by a Chrysler Imperial 6 cylinder petrol engine producing 160hp at 2800rpm.  Later she was re-powered by a Chrysler Royal engine with 140hp.  With a Ford diesel in between she was subsequently re-powered in 2003 with a Mercedes Benz 5 cylinder diesel engine.  That motor is to be replaced now. Documents show Thetis was originally good for 18 knots.  A bigger engine was installed around the war years and its said she has seen 26+ knots.  In current configuration she’s more like 12-13 knots.

Construction is of kauri hull planking and Kowhai frames with teak decks. The cabin was subsequently modified and enclosed by Magnus Smith of Lyttelton, Luke believes the work was done  for Bruce Stewart of Pigeon Bay.

Known Owners
Charles W Sundstrum                         1929-37
Bruce F Stewart (later Sir Bruce)         1937-50
William Carey                                      1950-54
Clarey Beaumont                                1954-57
Des Sinclair                                         1957-67
Laurie Wales                                       1967-1997?
David Martin                                        1997-2006
Brendon Leech                                    2006-2014
Glenn Tod                                            2014-2015
Luke Richardson                                  2015-

Known History
Dunedin to late 1930’s
Pigeon Bay for some 20 years
War Service – she was commandeered by the NZ Navy Naval Auxilliary Patrol Service (NAPS) in WWII and used as a coastal patrol boat.  She commenced service 9th May 1942 and was relieved of duty 23rd February 1944 when the NAPS formally disbanded.  She was assigned the pennant number Z125 and served in the unit based in Lyttelton.  The owner at that time was B.F. Stewart.

Luke purchased her in July 2015 and she is now hauled out of the water for some long overdue TLC.  A period of neglect following the Christchurch earthquakes meant she was long overdue for some maintenance.  Luke would love to know more about any of the owners over the years and any of her history not covered above.

To view more photos & to follow the work, Thetis has a facebook page –  Friends of Thetis

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1608024876125109/

See below an article on Thetis’s launch from the Australasian Motorboat & Yachting Monthly from October 1929. Its a good read 😉

Harold Kidd Input

Charles William Sundstrum was a Dunedin dentist who was a key figure in Dunedin yachting circles for many years. His first launch was the 31ft clinker double-ender VALMAI of 1910 which had a Dunedin-built 5hp Viking engine. He raced her with the Otago Yacht Club including one of their Ocean races to Timaru.
He replaced VALMAI in 1913 with the 40 footer NORANA designed by Joseph Gillanders and built by Miller Bros at Port Chalmers. She had a 16-18hp Jersey Standard marine engine and was a handsome craft. He sold her to Arthur Brett of Auckland in 1927. During WW2 she was taken over by the RNZAF and sent to Fiji for towing work.
THETIS was NORANA’s replacement. Photo of Norana below.

13-05-2017 – Additional Photos ex trademe (Ian McDonald nudge)

 

Ngaio – Sailing Sunday

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Ngaio – Sailing Sunday
photo ex Nathan Herbert

Todays photos were taken in early Jan 2015 by Nathan & are from Tutukaka. The hauled out ‘yacht’ has an interesting set up – 2 masts + game poles 🙂
I have to say it looks a great spot to haul out.

Anyone able to shed some light on the boat?

No longer a mystery – its Ngaio, designed by Jim Mason in 1941 – photos below from Dean Wright

Harold Kidd Input

In case Ian doesn’t post, she was designed and built by Jim Mason at Grey Street, Whangarei from a half model and launched in 1941. She was partly mobilised in 1942 by NAPS and crewed by Jim Mason, skipper, Tom McKinnon, deputy skipper, and Jack Carpenter, Bob Baker, Peter Roberts and Ian Crawshaw. Her NAPS number was Z40.
These NAPS boats did a great job during wartime when German commerce raiders and minelayers were busy around New Zealand at the start and were followed by Jap submarines checking us out. The Whangarei boats were in the most likely place for trouble.
Lovely boat.

Input from owner & son of builder, Ian Mason

A following up on Harolds post on Ngaio,all correct I might add. She was built over a two year period. She is carvel planked in kauri over kowhai ribs and pohutukawa stem, stern and floors. Her first engine was a 6 cylinder Delage out of a car owned by my father. When it was replaced in 1957 by an air cooled Enfield they got more for the scrap than Dad originally paid for the car. When she was built kauri was 3 pound 15 shillings per 100 super feet and the copper nails were the equivalent of 75c per pound. The original suit of sails cost 25 pound from Sails and Covers. In those days she carried 750 sq ft of sail. Since the Enfield she has been powered by a Ruston, Bedford and now a 6BB1 Isuzu. I installed this in 1995  and we have had 7000 trouble free hours since. I first went aboard Ngaio when I was 4 months old. I have 4 children and 9 (to date) grand children and they all love her as much as those  that have gone before. I think she will keep the same name and family ownership for a while yet.

 

Betty (Achernar)

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Betty 1947

BETTY  (Achernar)
photo & details ex Betty Black (Stewart)

Today’s post is an example of what makes ww so special & motivates me to keep doing it. I received the email below last week.

“Dear Alan
 
My son in Sydney was browsing on the internet presumably looking up about his grandfather Bob Stewart, when he came across your blog about Achernar.  I was most interested to read this as I had no idea what had become of the launch “Betty”. It was  requisitioned by the Americans during the war. My grandfather died in 1943  and my father became the owner.   He got it back after the war in an appalling condition.  I remember him saying there was oil all through the bilge.  We had a number of family holidays on it  until the yacht Helen* was built.  The photo was taken by me in 1947 (on a Box Brownie camera).
Kind regards
Betty Black (Stewart)”

To read / see more on Betty / Achernar click here https://waitematawoodys.com/2013/10/14/achinar/

*Photos below of Helen (K1) during 2015 CYA Classic Yacht Regatta

Update 29-07-2019 Oct 1939 photo below

Betty Oct 1939

Helen 2015
Helen 2015