Over the years there have been several mentions on WW of the loss of the 43’ Collings & Bell built launch – RUAMANO launched in 1925 at Freemans Bay, Auckland.
Let us not pussy foot around – loss is the wrong word. At the time maritime authorities used stronger words e.g. ‘crew abandoned it’ / ‘questioned the need to abandon’ / ‘vessel was not in a life-threatening situation’ / ‘crew appeared to have simply had enough’ / ‘lack of experience may have been a factor’ / they bit off more than they could chew’.
On New Years Day 2001 the NZ classic boating community lost one of its finest craft, and reading the reports it appears it did not need to have happened.
Recently WW was contacted by Denis O’Callahan, past co-owner of the wonderful Colin Wild built woody – TASMAN. Denis commented that he had been working on preparing a summary of the logbooks from the TASMAN. Nine volumes from 26 December 1971 to 12 December 2020.
In the back of Volume 6, 24 October 1998 to 27 July 2002 Denis found taped in the clippings from the NZ Herald, dated 2 January 2001, the front page and an internal page telling the story of the loss of the RUAMANO.
In the TASMAN log, dated Tuesday 02-01-2001 while the launch was cruising the Mahurangi area a note was added to the log book that read “Newspaper from Warkworth reported loss of RUAMANO on fool hardy attempt to repeat 1925 circumnavigation of NZ (see clipping at end of log)” . The photos above are scans of the original NZ Herald press clippings ex the TASMAN log, given to Alan H at WW.
I encourage WW follower / readers to take the time to read the NZ Herald news stories and make your own decision on the sad event. As always you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.
Masthead from the NZ Herald below (page too large for the scanner).
The launch CLARE fist appeared on WW back in May 2013, at the time we learnt nothing more about her, then in 2020 she popped up again and this time Baden Pascoe confirmed that she was built at the P Vos Ltd yard and still existed today (2020).
Sadly we still didn’t learn what had become of her so today we try again.
BOATS OF THE BAY – REVIEW
Early in the week I was the recipient of a hot off the press copy of Greg Philpott’s book – BOATS OF THE BAY.
The cover tag line reads – ‘100 Years of The Ferries & Tourist Boats of the Bay of Islands’ and woodys that perfectly sums up the book. Roll in the odd game fishing boat and you have an encyclopaedia of craft that have plied the waters of the far north.
I loved the flyer that that said – ‘Literally A Nautical Encyclopaedia – Good For Settling Arguments (Or Starting them)’.
At 378 pages long it should come with a safety warning – it weighs approx. 1.5kg and reading when tired could result in injuries if dropped on your face 🙂
I have already used it twice to reference intel on a few woodys, so my copy will be a keeper – no loans 🙂
Greg has self published the book and retained the services of the hot shot classic boating art director – STEVE HORSLEY to produce the book so the visual presentation is right up there with the best.
The print run is limited and given its size, good value for the $75 price tag. (+P&P)
Following on from yesterdays story on the yacht – KIATERE, WW was contacted by Ben Butcher, son of the current owner with an update – reproduced below. The gallery of photos were just too good to add to the existing story so today we have a follow up on Tuesdays story – Enjoy
“Hey guys – In relation to the recent article on Kiatere.
I grew up sailing and adventuring around the Marlborough Sounds on her. My dad has taken great care of her over the years but sadly we don’t get out on her enough these days.
She still sits on a mooring in Whatamango Bay, near Picton, and dad still goes out and checks on her regularly . We would love to see her get a few more miles under her belt as she nears her 100th birthday – so yes, still looking to pass her on.
The seven part series is viewable by the individual links below. The series was collated by Ken Ricketts and edited by Corinne Pettersen. As always we have endeavoured to be as factual as possible but there will always by matters others will either know more about or be able to correct errors – so woodys are encouraged to contribute via the WW comments section. ENJOY
AN INSIGHT INTO NZ’S UNIQUE MARINE ENGINES – Part Seven Todays WW story follows on from earlier stories – link below to Part One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six As per pervious stories in the series the content has been pulled together by Ken Ricketts and ‘polished’ byPatrica and Ken’s daughter Corinne Pettersen. As always we have endeavoured to be as factual as possible but there will always by matters others will either know more about or be able to correct errors – so woodys do not hold back in commenting.
THETIS with her twin Graymarine 4 stroke 6cyl diesel engines
These are a very rare model of the Graymarine range, that was originally produced in WWII for the US military. All Graymarine diesel engines for general and normal marine use worldwide, including NZ, are based on the GM Detroit two-stroke engine, marinized by Graymarine. I believe the THETIS engines were the only two that ever came to NZ and were specially imported by Jack Butland for his 1955 Lane Motorboat built launch, THETIS. Here is a copy of previous comments I made regarding these engines, on Woodys.
“Ken Ricketts reports that having recently spoken with Thetis’s owner that the 2 in line, 6 cyl, 4-cycle, 120hp Gray Marine engines, installed in 1960 (still there today) are a very rare model & type. They were manufactured during WWII for the American forces & could possibly be the only 2 in NZ. The owner believes her original owner Jack Butland in the later 1950’s probably reconditioned, & war surplus imported them.”
BELOW IS A REPRINT OF THE HERCULES SETION IN PART 2 WITH ADDED TEXT I HAVE TAKEN THE LIBERTY OF REPRINTING IN THE CIRCS.
HERCULES 6 CYL c100HP DIESEL ENGINE AS FITTED TO THE FAYE
HERCULES 275 HP DIESEL ENGINE, SIMIALAR TO THAT PREVIOUSLY IN THE RAKANOA
FAYE WITH HER 6 CYL HERCULES HOME MARINISED DIESEL ENGIINE
RAKANOA WITH HER 275 HP 6 CYL. MARINE/HOME MARINISED DIESEL ENGINE
Hercules was a manufacturer and supplier of a large number of basic engines to many marine engine companies for marinization by each company to its own specifications. This included names such as Kermath, Chrysler, Graymarine, Scripps, Chris Craft, and many more. However, engines sold under the Hercules name, based on my research, are comparatively very small compared to their total manufactured units.
There are two boats I know of in New Zealand that have engines both labelled under the Hercules name and are diesel engines. One is the FAYE, which is equipped with a home-marinized C100P 6-cylinder Hercules diesel engine. This engine replaced her original Willys Jeep petrol engine when she was about 4 or 5 years old. FAYE’s details are noted in her Willys Jeep listing in part 2 of this post.
The other is the beautiful 56-foot RAKANOA, built in 1946–47, which had a 6-cylinder 250HP Hercules diesel fitted after she had been in the water for one year. This engine replaced her original GM Detroit 165HP 6-71 diesel.
Her original owner, Stan Parker, was a brilliant engineer and owned a very large precision engineering business.
I am not sure if the Hercules engine was factory or home-marinized, as he would certainly have had the ability and equipment to do this. Stan, the original owner of RAKANOA, owned a large heavy engineering factory in Auckland. This business passed to Ross when his father passed away in 1961. RAKANOA retained this engine until 1981. Ross told me, after he inherited her many years ago, that they had always had trouble starting the Hercules engine, especially when hot. Many years after he inherited her, he eventually replaced the Hercules with a Gardner 6L3 diesel engine, which she still has to this day.
The Hercules engine was fitted because original owner Stan P., could not tolerate the very loud high pitched geartrain noise of the Rootes blower, combined with a loudish exhaust noise, she had with the G.M. Detroit
Unfortunately, I have not been able to find on research to date, any images of the 250 HP marinised version of the Hercules engine, however I have found what may be an unmarinised version, of RAKANOA’s engine.
RUSTON HORSNBY DIESEL ENGINES.
HAIMONA ex MANGA, WITH HER ORIGINAL TWIN 6 cyl, FODEN DIESEL ENGINES
RUSTON HORNSBY TWIN CYLINDER MARINE DIESEL ENGINE AS USED IN THE MANOWAI
HMNZS MANGA AS ORIGINAL.
HAIMONA IN HER PLEASSURE CRAFT GARB WITH HER 2 RUSTON HORNSBY DIESEL 200HP ENGINES, ON THE KAIPARA HARBOUR
MANOWAI IN HER RUSTON HORNSBY DIESEL ERA, AT HERALD ISLAND
There are only two of these I know of in New Zealand in pleasure boats. One was in the 32 ft MANOWAI, during the second part of Claude Atherton’s era, from 1949 until at least the 1960s; it was a twin-cylinder version of the engines.
The other boat was HAIMONA, formerly HDML MANGA, which was based in the Kaipara Harbour. Eventually, after a few years there, the only slip she was able to use for maintenance became unavailable, and she deteriorated badly before being destroyed by her last owners.
When they bought her, a massive coaming structure was added, and they also replaced her original Foden engines with twin 200 HP 6-cylinder Ruston Hornsby diesels, which they removed prior to dismantling her.
FORD FALCON 4.1 LTRE 6 CYL. PETROL ENGINES
FORD FALCON 4.1 LTRE 6 CYL. PETROL MARINE ENGINE
VALSAN CHRISTMAS 1948 IN HER PRE-FORD-FALCON, PETROL ENGINE ERA
The 1938 Roy Lidgard-built VALSAN was bought by Arnold Baldwin around 1947, complete with her original engines, which were 2 x 100 hp flathead Graymarine petrol engines. He owned her for many years, and the time eventually came, after many of those years, when they had to be replaced, around 1970.
I was amazed that he chose 2 x Ford Falcon 4.1 L petrol engines as replacements, as these were engines usually associated with small day boats or runabouts, often equipped with stern drives or jet units. There were a total number of such engines unknown to me, and she is still the only launch I have ever heard of with these engines.
Things have, of course, moved on since then, and the last I heard, she had 2 x 4-cylinder Mitsubishi diesel engines post 2000.
CHRYSLER-MITSUBISHI CN-55TI 200HP 6CYL. IN LINE MARINE DIESEL ENGINES
THE CHRYSLER-MITSUBISHI CN-55TI 6 CYL. DIESEL ENGINES PRODUCING 200hp @ 3150 RPM INSTALLED IN ALIBI
ALIBI’s 2 “STERN POWER” STERN DRIVE UNITS, & NOTE BOTH ENGINES EXHAUST OUT THE SAME SIDE AT THE TUCK
As readers of this series may recall, ALIBI made a cameo appearance in part 2 when I was seeking information related to her sistership, which I now know is or was called CRESCENDO, seen below on launching day, as I have seen the two V8 Chrysler-branded diesels CRESCENDO had when new.
Thanks to the input of others, I have now also discovered that these engines were manufactured by another company, and simply sold under the Chrysler label, which seems to me to be a continuation of Tony Mason’s apparent tendency to use engines with the Chrysler label, as in ALIBI.
However, since the previous cameo appearance of ALIBI, I now have full details of her engines, thanks to a lady named Juliet Hindman, who is very knowledgeable about the Mason Clipper range of boats.
Her family has owned one of the two only 33-foot versions of the Mason Clipper, and she has now contacted me.
As a result, and with the information she has provided, ALIBI now definitely falls into the “Unique” class of engines category, as specified above, as far as I’m concerned, and she now has her place in the group in her own right.
ALIBI’S two CHRYSLER-MITSUBISHI CN-55TI DIESEL ENGINES, producing 200 HP at 3150 RPM, are driven through Warner gearboxes to “Stern Power” make, cream-painted counter-rotating outdrives. While the engines and gearboxes are both left-handed with a 1-to-1 ratio, outward turning counter-rotation of the propellers has been achieved by the gearing system in the stern drive units, which are also acting as reduction gears with a 1.5-to-1 ratio, driving Volvo 16 x 17-inch propellers.
I feel the engine-to-stern-drive setup with these engines, is superior to many others, in that the engines are obviously primarily produced for conventional drives, having the gearboxes attached to and as part of the engines, but can still be used either way, for stern drive units, or conventional drives, with the stern drives simply providing the drive to the propellers.
Many manufacturers combine the gearbox and stern drive into one unit, which makes them much more complex and quite possibly much more expensive to maintain.
Additionally, the combination drive/gearbox units are often very “clunky” and jerky when selecting forward or reverse, whereas there would not be this clunk with the smoothness of hydraulic engine-attached gearboxes.
I have spent a great deal of time, trying to source a good clear image of these engines, but they seem to have disappeared from historical public databases, and the only image I have been able to source, is of ALIBI’S own engines installed in her.
It is, however, wonderful that she still has these original engines after all these years since she was built in the later 1970s. A great testimony to Mitsubishi. Here are her details as received from Juliet H.:
“Released in 1979, the Clipper 42 was 12.8m x 3.7m with a draft of 900mm and, fully laden, displaced around 9 tonnes. Alibi was the prototype, built with a sandwich construction of strip-planked cedar, fiberglass on both sides. A mould was taken off the prototype so that all future boats could be full GRP with a balsa core. However, Crescendo was the only boat ever pulled from the mould.”
I would recommend that readers revisit ALIBI’S cameo appearance in part 2 of the series to see some wonderful images of her exquisite finishing and interior.
A final note re CRESCENDO. – She has been seen reasonably recently, in the South Island, I have been told, so any further help with information about her in any way, would be much appreciated.
LISTER MARINE DIESEL ENGINES
I had considered including LISTER MARINE DIESEL ENGINES in the group, however, there are quite a good number of these engines that are or have been in use in NZ., in many work boats, fishing boats, tugs, & a few pleasure craft, & in the end I decided they fell just outside the scope of what I was about, so will just make a general mention of them, with a few images of the odd pleasure craft, all of which had these engines installed by Roy L.
Roy Lidgard used quite a number of them in various types of craft, the 1940s & 1950s, mostly 4 cylinder, & also had a 4cyl version of the Lister Diesel driving the Smeltinghouse Bay Kawau island sawmill, he set up & ran on his property, in the later 1940s & 50s, the remains of which are still there today.
As just a brief mention, he installed Lister diesels, in the ROSE, (2 CYL) (later LA ROSA) Clive Power’s WAINUNU, (4 CYL) & TAWHIRI, a lovely sedan topper R Lidgard built in the mid/later 1940s (4 cyl)
THE ROSE (NOW LA ROSA)
TAWHIRI BUILT BY R LIDGARD 1940s WITH 4 CYL LISTER MARINE DIESEL AS ORIGINAL
WAINUNU WITH CLIVE POWER AT THE HELM, WITH HER 4 CYL LISTER DIESEL, WITH THE EXHAUST OUT THE TOP OF THE MAST. c1940s
Screenshot
ROY LIDGARD’S SAWMILL, SMELTINGHOUSE, BAY KAWAU ISLAND c. LATER1940s
LISTER 1940s 3 CYL MARINE DIESEL ENGNE AS AN EXAMPLE OF THAT ERA
EPILOG:
Well, readers, we have come to the end of this seven-part journey, and I can only say that for me, it has been a wonderful ride, to share with all of you who have taken the time to share the ride with me, and to follow the seven parts of what I’ve learned throughout my lifetime.
So often, you know as much, if not more, than I do. While some may have learned a little from me, I have, in turn, learned much from many of you, as we have shared this journey together, & I thank you all, for the opportunity to gain this new knowledge from you.
I especially want to express my humility and gratitude, for the kind words of thanks and appreciation, in some of your comments directed towards me personally.
I have done this most of all, to encourage us all, to share and record publicly, what we know about our New Zealand-based boats, with each other, and most importantly, to provide a public record, for the benefit of the boaties of the future. Those who will come after we old wrinklies have all gone, & will become the stewards of tomorrow. As a result of what we all write now, they will hopefully have the chance to understand what has gone before in all or many aspects of what will become their boats, the majority of which will surely live on long after we are not here.
Back in 2023 WW was contacted by Tim Munro regarding the classic 16’ run-about MARE-EE-AN, at the time Tim was trying to locate a copy of her original Carl Augustin plans to help with an upcoming restoration. Thanks to Cam Malcolm at The Slipway Milford we were able to track down a copy. Last week Tim contacted WW to update us on the project – Tim tells the story below:
“The boat was in pretty good condition other than needing a new transom and the top windscreen being constructed as at some time it had been taken off and replaced with a curved perspex one. The plans WW found for us came in handy for this. The boat was refurbished in 2023/24 and re-launched back into the Kaipara 60 years to the day after it first being launched.The two black and white photos are of her when she was in the Epiglass 40 regatta in late 60s. The photo with the 1970 Atlantic 100 sticker is it in this race. (For the 100 miler race Bryan McLeod (Tim’s father) needed to have a number in the 100s, so he just stuck some black masking tape either side if the number 8 for the 40 miler to turn it to number 181.) The older photo of it in front of the house with Bryan and his daughter is with them holding the trophies from these races. (Economy Class). The remainder of the photos are on the day of the re-launch into the Kaipara River.”
Tim also commented that that his wife, Janette McLeod had written an article for a local Helensville newsletter as Bryan lived his whole life in the area. I have reprinted the article below.
“Our Dad, Bryan McLeod, built Mare-ee-an in the woolshed at our farm in South Kaipara Head in 1964. Built out of marine ply to a Carl Augustin design my older siblings (I was only one year old at the time) would be commandeered after school to hold the ‘dolly’ under the upturned hull while Dad banged in the copper nails, bearing Dad’s stern words when the dolly was out of position. My understanding is that Mare-ee-an’s name came from the song ‘All Day All Night Marianne’ (Dad’s spelling slant applied) as opposed to being named after the neighbour’s daughters Mary and Anne.
Mare-ee-an has been involved in many fun filled escapades over her 60 years including fishing, waterskiing, diving, gathering mussels, regattas, ‘Epiglass 40’ and ‘Atlantic 100’ races (winning the economy classes), overnighters and various explorations – the Northern Wairoa and Hoteo River being particularly memorable. A terrifying crossing of the Kaipara Heads also lingers in my mind when an extra large wave came her way giving no time for us to turn around. Thankfully Dad was a skilled enough boatman to ride her over it…scarily, looking back on the event, none of us were wearing lifejackets at the time.
Over time Dad had made various alterations such as replacing the windscreen with a more protective one and attaching alkathene – I assume left over from one of his farming jobs – around the bow as a protector, all the time keeping up with other necessary maintenance. A new motor was required when Mare-ee-an’s was stolen while moored overnight in the estuary at Mangawhai Heads. Roller doors were fitted – too late – to the garage under the house after a second motor was stolen from her.
During my teenage years in the 70s it came time for Mare-ee-an to have a repaint and I suggested to Dad that we change the colour to the more modern tone of the day, orange. Mare-ee-an remained this colour until we recently had her refurbished (by Brendon Driskel of Sea to Shore on East Coast Rd, Albany) and returned to her original turquoise, the windscreen made as close as possible to the original from what could be gleaned from various photos and the alkathene removed. It’s thanks to my husband Tim for encouraging the refurbishment rather than putting Mare-ee-an out to pasture even though it has used up my inheritance.
The varnished timber sections at the stern have remained. Dad loved the timber grain and could not bring himself to cover it all with paint so left this region as a feature.
It was so very special for Tim and I to relaunch Mare-ee-an 60 years to the day in the company of my brother and sister-in-law Graeme and Janet and our nephew Lee along with one of Dad’s favourite tipple – Velluto Rosso.
Mare-ee-an is ready for another 60 years of adventures! I know Dad would be pretty chuffed.”
Todays woody photo was sent in by John Dawson who found the photo on a Paul Lishman fb post. Paul commented that the location was Vine Street, St Marys Bay, Auckland and taken by M. Friedlander.
In the comments section there was debate on both the design of the yacht and the possible date. Paul commented it was 1970 but others felt based on the cars shown it was more likely in the 1950>60’s period.
Comments that the yacht looked like a Townson design, possibly 30’.
Any woodys able to help confirm the approx. date and design.
A scary observation – when this photo was taken you could have bought a house in Vine St for around $5,000 – did a search on a random number e.g.10 Vine St = $3,650,000 …………
INPUT ex JIM LOTT – Definitely a Townson 30 with higher freeboard than the 26 ft earlier design. Looking in the Townson book, Magic Flute was finished by Alan Warwick who took delivery of the hull in 1966 and lived in Herne Bay. Des built all the hulls himself. Owners finished them off. Names include Firebird, Mercury, Falcon, Anitra, Finesse, maybe about 4 others, so probably 1967 or 68.
Earlier in the week, Rob Watt drew my attention to a YouTube video by Darren Guard on the life of his grandfather Jack Guard, one of New Zealand’s great boat builders.
Pour yourself a coffee and sit back and enjoy the video, lots of wonderful historical photos and footage.
Make sure you hang in there to the end – there is a terrific poem titled – ‘Making It Back’ penned by poet Sam Hunt, a Jack Guard boat owner.
The classic wooden launch – SEAFORTH has made several appearance on WW, links below. In the 2015 story she was on a mooring in the Orakei Basin, then in 2022 we saw her hauled out at the Clevedon Cruising Club. Fast forward to Sept 2022 and she’s hauled out at the Stillwater Boating Club. That story prompted her new owner, Mikaela Thwaites, to make contact and update us on the status of the launch and supplied a few photos of the work undertaken. All in the links below.
In 2024 Bryce Symonds made contact and advised that he had photos of SEAFORTH from the 1984>1986 period when he owned her. On one of my infrequent trolls thru the WW back files, I saw that Bryce hadn’t responded to the request to share the photos, so pinged off an email and jackpot Bryce shared the photos you see today. Quite a looker in her day with the varnished / painted coamings.
Despite lots of chat in the previous WW stories we haven’t been able to put a builder and launch date to her – anyone able to help.
AN INSIGHT INTO NZ’S UNIQUE MARINE ENGINES – Part Six Todays WW story follows on from earlier stories – link below to Part One, Two, Three, Four and Five As per pervious stories in the series the content has been pulled together by Ken Ricketts and ‘polished’ byPatrica and Ken’s daughter Corinne Pettersen. As always we have endeavoured to be as factual as possible but there will always by matters others will either know more about or be able to correct errors – so woodys do not hold back in commenting.
BENZ DIESEL ENGINE – BENZ OM59 55HP 4CYL DIESEL ENGINE PROBABLY SIMILAR TO THAT IN THE MANUNUI
MANUNUI WITH HER 55HP 6 CYL BENZ DIESEL ENGINE DURING WWII
MANUNUI AS BUILT AT SPEED WITH HER BENZ DIESEL ENGINE
The MANUNUI was built for Percy Colebrook in 1939 by Bill Couldrey and had a medium / slow revving 6 cylinder 55 hp Benz Diesel engine fitted when built, which she retained until 1963 when it was replaced by a 100 hp Perkins Diesel.
CRUSADER V8 MARINE PETROL ENGINES
TWIN CRUSADER ORIGINAL V8 PETROL ENGINES HAVING SERVICING, FROM THE RIVA TRITONE “LOLA,” WHICH ARE STILL IN HER TODAY.
Crusader engines, while major marine engine suppliers in America and other countries, have only made a cameo appearance in New Zealand, with only a handful of these lovely engines in use here, as far as I can ascertain.
Overview: The only craft I personally know of for certain is the stunning 1962 Italian-built Riva Tritone, LOLA.
However, WINSOME II may have had one, back around the 1950s when owned by Andy Donovan. I know her previous Chrysler 8-cylinder inline engine was replaced around that time by a V8, that was either a Crusader, Chris-Craft, or Flagship. However, the memory banks have failed me, making it impossible to determine which of the three it is, so come on, you WINSOME II experts, help me out here!
In the 1960s, Crusader Marine Engines was a prominent brand worldwide, providing inboard power for many boats, particularly cruisers and sport fishermen. They were known for their premium quality and reliability, used by leading boat manufacturers like Chris-Craft.
Crusader engines were based on standard automotive engines, but were marinized for marine use, with many of them based on Ford engines, and later with Hercules and Chrysler base units.
LOLA WITH HER 2 X CRUSADER 270HP PETROL ENGINES
LOLA, the 1962 Italian-built Riva Tritone Aperto, has a LOA of 27 ft and is one of only 15 in the world.
It is believed to be the only original Riva in New Zealand and a stunning example of boat restoration, all completed in NZ. Only 3,000 Rivas were built between 1950 and 1966, and she still has her original engines. She lives, or did live, in her own, purpose built, fully air conditioned boat shed, on the banks of the Marlborough Sounds.
WINSOME II – MAY HAVE HAD A CRUSADER V8 PETROL ENGINE IN THE 1950s /60s ERA – POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVES ARE FLAGSHIP & CHRIS CRAFT
CHRIS CRAFT PETROL ENGINES.
CHRIS CRAFT 1950s 6 CYL FLATHEAD PETROL 135hp ENGINE SIMILAR TO THAT IN THE GLENIFFER IN THE 1950s
These are another brand of engine that is sold in huge numbers worldwide, particularly in America, where all genuine Chris-Craft boats are built. However, they have only made a cameo appearance in New Zealand, with most of them coming here in imported Chris-Craft boats.
There are a few New Zealand-built boats that have or have had them. I have only ever seen a petrol version, although naturally, they do produce diesel engines in their lineup. All the engines they produce are based on other major engine manufacturers’ base engine blocks and are marinized by them. Hercules is a major engine block supplier to them.
GLENIFFER WITH HER CHRISCRAFT 6 CYL FLAT HEAD PETROL ENGINE RUNNING ON KEROSENE IN THE 1950s – OWNER PERCY JENNINGS IS AT THE HELM.
Input copied from previous post, ex Harold Kidd. – “Trevor Davis sold GLENIFER to P J Jennings of Paeroa in 1937 and he sold her to George Manktelow of Paeroa in about 1959. The Gleniffer was replaced by a 6-cyl Chris Craft (Hercules block) during the 50s, converted to run on power kerosene with a Model A Ford Zenith carb.”
FLAGSHIP MARINE ENGINES
FLAGSHIP 1958 250HP V8 PETROL MARINE ENGINE – BASED ON A CHEV BLOCK
There were a number of these engines that found their way to NZ in the 1950s/60s era and this is one of the possibilities for the V8 engine that was installed in the WINSOME II in that era by Andy Donovan who may also have had an agency for them, around that time.
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