Category Archives: Working Boats

Scows On The Waitemata

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Scows On The Waitemata
Late last year I was sent the two photos above by Ian McDonald whose sister-in-law was clearing out and old deceased Uncle’s stuff & came
across these photos.

Scows sailing goose-winged has a caption of 1920 Auckland Anniversary Regatta and, the other one is captioned Auck Ann regatta, 1900. Both have NZ Herald – Wilson & Horton stamps on the back. Both are about 12″ x 8″  in size.

Any of the serious classic sailers out there able to ID some of the Scows?

And a launch bonus photo today of Miss Helen on the beach at Russell c1950’s (photo ex Nathan Herbert exEric Lee-Johnson, Te Papa collection)

Russell,Te Papa, Lee-Johnson, Eric 1950's

Pania

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PANIA
Pania has had the same owners for over 25 years. She was built in 1973 using triple planked mahogany.
The get up & go comes from twin 90hp 6LW Gardeners & she measures approx. 50′.
She looks a very sea worthy vessel, no doubt one of the reasons her home port is Bluff, Southland.
Thanks to Ian McDonald for the trademe listing heads up 🙂

Can we expand on her details e.g. designer / builder & where was she from 1973 > early 1990’s ?

Input from Dick Hall

‘Pania’ was built by Jack Morgan for Rex Baldick of Picton off the extended ‘Hawaiki’ design. She was launched with a single Allis-Chalmers diesel that came out of a local fishing-boat but later when back to Jack and converted to twin screw with two four cylinder Fords. You can see the original strut with shaft hole through it in underwater photo. Rex had the Baldick families ‘Prima-Donna’ before building ‘Pania’

SIERRA 100th BIRTHDAY DAY

Sierra was designed and built by Joseph Fell of Kohukohu (Hokianga Harbour) & launched 3 May 1917. If she was a human, Sierra would be getting a letter from the Queen – as the old girl has just celebrated her 100th birthday. Owner Dennis Christopher is having a wee party for her this Sunday at  the Panmure Motor Boat & Yacht Club, 104 Kings Rd, Panmure.
Sierra will be alongside the jetty from 2.00pm on-wards. It’s a just drop-in event & any one is welcome. So woodys, if you are out & about on Sunday, call by. (photo below ex Tom Kane).

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Equinox – Lyngrae

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EQUINOX > LYNGRAE

I spotted Equinox hauled out earlier in the year (Jan2017) at Milford Cruising Club’s slip. No on around so couldn’t gather any info on her. Can anyone enlighten us on her? Those oblong shaped ports could be a give away but I will not jump to conclusions.

21-05-2017 Input & Photos ex Graeme Sapwell (edited by Alan H)

I knew Equinox as ‘Lyngrae’ (Lynda and Graeme).
She was built as a 32ft, triple skin kauri, my mum was the dolly hand for all the copper nails and rooves. The boat was sold early 1970 to which we lost contact of her until this year when I spotted here on trade me. My mum died last year at 101 and up till then had always asked had we seen Lyngrae. Unfortunately I wasn’t in a situation to buy her back then. It’s quite weird how she has now ended up in the Milford estuary where her journey started back in 1963. A mate and myself took Lyngrae to Mt Maunganui in 1969 where family had moved to. We (the family) did a lot of weekend cruising around the gulf over the years and had been in some pretty rough seas to which she handled perfectly. The portholes were probably done by the same person who modified superstructure and undertook significant alterations.
 
Shall continue following her journey now we know what it looks like now.

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KARERE
Keith Murphy in Dunedin sent me the photo below of the 1/12th scale model he built last year of the Vos designed & built boat, Karere. Very impressive & it appears to be radio controlled 🙂

Karere

Seacraft Woodys

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SEACRAFT WOODYS

I was recently contacted by Chris Laird & his first words were “are you guys interested in small woodys?”. My answer was ‘if its wood, its good’ 🙂

The above photographs show two dinghies that Chris restored  a couple of years ago. The 12ft 6in Seacraft Tuna has been stripped back and had new rib sections, one or two splines to cracked planks, seats, foredeck trim and beltings before being painted up to original Seacraft colours with original badging.

The varnished 12’6″ Brin Wilson has been stripped back, seats  etc removed, some rib sections scarfed in, several splines to cracked planks and varnished / painted up to original colours.
Chris commented that it is a lovely boat to row.

Also included are photos of a 6hp Norman and original cone clutch that is in a 16′ Seacraft cabin boat that Chris is currently rebuilding. I have asked Chris to send in photos of that project.

OOPS THAT IS EMBARRASSING
Over the Anzac weekend a lot of the classic fleet headed north to Kawau Island. Anchoring room near the Kawau Boating Club is always at a premium on long weekends & no one likes a long row in the dark……….. but even the old salts can get it wrong – the crew on the  1905, Logan Bros, ex pilot boat ‘Ferro’ must have been in a hurry to make the KBC as they anchored rather close in. As it turned out, too close in – the below photo was 1/2hr before low tide & mid Sunday morning – would have been a long / embarrassing day waiting for the tide 😉

Ferro @ Kawau April2017

Bondi Belle – Relaunched

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BONDI BELLE – Relaunched

A couple of days ago I was alerted by Baden Pascoe to the recently relaunched Bondi Belle, ww readers may recall that back in February 2014 Baden alerted us that her owner at the time Ted Carter was looking to sell the old girl. Well she was bought by Dan Abernethy, the photo below of her resting on the poles was taken on the day Dan bought her from Ted at Sandspit.

I’m pleased to be able to report that she has undergone a very sympathetically rebuild at Pine Harbour & looks wonderful. Dan asked that I give a special mention to his brother-in-law’s father, John Waterman, seen in one of the photos above. John’s has spent numerous hours on the boat doing all filling and fairing and spray painted the boat. Happening this week will be the addition of her mast 🙂

Bondi Bell was built as S.S.Whakapara, at Whakapara (North of Whangarei) by Charles Bailey Jr. for the Foote family who were saw millers at several Northland locations . Launched in 1901, initially she was a steamer and was converted to diesel in the 1920’s. You can view / read more details on her past here https://waitematawoodys.com/2014/02/17/bondi-belle/

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15-11-2024 UPDATE – photo ex John Sloane below of her hauled out at Half Moon Bay marina for some TLC

Primadonna

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PRIMADONNA

Primadonna is a 36′, 1905 whale chaser built by Lanes for a family with a farm in Tory Channel. Was used as a whale chaser until the end of the whaling era and then became a farm transportation boat for the same family who owned her till her current owner bought her.

She is built out of double diagonal kauri and powered with a 72hp Ford. Cruises at about 8 0r 9 knots at 1500 revs. She has accommodation for 2 and a small wheel house which you can steer from inside of the weather goes bad. Currently 4sale on trademe- thanks to Ian McDonald for the heads up.

Harold Kidd Input
There’s a bit of manufactured history here. Ernie Lane didn’t come to Picton until 1907 and doesn’t appear to have built PRIMA DONNA. Most authorities say she was built by Alf Baldick between 1910 and 1915 for himself and Derbyshire as a whalechaser to compete with the Peranos. She remained in the ownership of the Baldick family until at least 2001.
She’s been on WW before; see https://waitematawoodys.com/2017/02/27/welly-woodys/

PS the “second generation” of whalechasers used by the Baldicks were SUSSEX and PEERLESS, in competition with the Peranos’ CRESCENT, BALAENA and CACHALOT. Ernie Lane built SUSSEX and PEERLESS for the Baldicks in 1916. Lane built the Peranos’ CRESCENT and BALAENA but CACHALOT was built in 1916 to a design by Chas. Collings by Kensitt at Picton. She was the THIRD generation of whalechaser and had a 130/150 hp Van Blerck, typical Collings’ concave-convex hard chine planing hull.

Update 24-05-2020 photos below added ex trademe listing

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Wairangi

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WAIRANGI

Wairangi has appeared before on ww (link below) but has recently had a big dose of TLC. The above photos are a mix of some taken by owner Owen Foster (via KRickets) while anchored at Rakino Island & mine that show her over Easter anchored in Man o War Bay, Waiheke Island. The newly varnished cabin/wheelhouse looks stunning & combined with a lot of other work, she looks very special – in fact I would be happy to call her mine 🙂

Also looking very smart in one of the photos is Safari, her owner Neil took the below photo of Raindance during the Sunday afternoon squall that hit the bay mid afternoon – rain, hail, wind = boats dragging their anchor all over the bay – fun & games but no damage.

Wairangi – heads north

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11-08-2018 Update – Photos below taken by Owen Foster using a drone, while at anchor at Oneroa, Waiheke Island. emailed in by Ken Ricketts

Update 19-07-2019 ex model maker John Whyte

Back in February I was contacted by John Whyte seeking info on Wairangi, John was doing the drawings of Wairangi for model maker Paul Berntsen (Havelock North). Earlier today John sent me the photos below of Paul’s finished model. John commented that the wharf behind it is a 1.34 scale model of the Opua wharf which measures just over 6 metres in length. John plans to build a lower wharf for the pilot boat with a ladder coming of the higher wharf.
The boat measures around 450mm long and 110mm wide.
Paul is obviously very talented, I struggle maintaining my own boat – building  something like this would be a recipe for disaster for me 🙂
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Lady VIE

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Lady VIE

The above photos were sent in by Nathan Herbert, along with the questions – who is she & who built her – not often that Nathan draws a blank so keen to ID this launch & learn something about her past.

Once again Auckland was spared the worst of the weather predicted from ‘Cyclone’ Cook, there are some +’s to the high rates we pay. Must be time to go boating………. well maybe soon.

Update – Thanks to Ken Ricketts sending in the below photos (c.1939) from the Tudor Collins collection (Auckland Museum) we now know the boat is the Lady VI, so now woodys – who built her & where is she today?

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Leonardo

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LEONARDO
Leonardo started life in 1960 as a fishing trawler, last of Island Bay Italian fishing fleet. She has fished Cook Straight, Nelson, D’urville island and Marlborough Sounds. Has been moored in Purau for the last 20 years. Measuring 21′, carvel planked kauri and powered by a 20hp Ford diesel, Leonardo is a very pretty little ship that has had major work done on her & now is looking for an enthusiastic new owner.

Situated currently in Christchurch, at 21′ you could easily truck her anywhere in NZ. (Asking price is $6k)

Do we know any more about her? the work boat group must be able to chip in.

Taramea

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Brian Lows had her at this time in Timaru in 1993

TARAMEA

Recently I was contacted by Sharon Beer who had seen a comment on ww concerning a fishing boat named Taramea and her wee mishap while steaming north from Auckland with her new owner Mr Rob Clarke.
Sharon suspected that this boat may well be the boat that her Grandfather built in his back yard in Riverton.  Sharon has been trying to contact Rob Clarke to get confirmation and maybe share with him launching photographs of her Grandfathers boat, (Sharon’s father has the original photo album). Also included are some photos of later reincarnations that I Sharon on-covered over the last three years.
Sharon is keen to link / confirm the Taramea connection with her grandfather boat. Any woodys able to help?

Below are some comments that have been placed on a facebook page Sharon started – I reproduce them only for reference as we are unable to confirm the content.

June 2014:
Allan Mcmillan ( Other wise known as ZZ ) purchased her from Timaru around about late 90″s. And gill netted out of Picton for a couple of years before the bank took it away. It had been fully refurbished from top to bottom, inside and out just before he bought her. (That picture may have taken when the work was being done ). After leaving Picton I saw it briefly up on the hard in Nelson. That is the last time I sew her.
 
April 2017:
From the man who sold it to Mr Clarke, the photos are his.
“She ended up in Auckland named Maureen Anne. I owned her briefly (about 2008) after she sunk at her mooring in a storm. My brothers and i got her running and called her Taramea again.
Was powered by a 6bd1 Isuzu. Sold her to the current owner Rob Clarke . He managed to hole and sink her on his way up north.
Shes mostly restored now and last i heard in his driveway, way up North…. Rangasomething or other harbour….”
 
And from the brother of the above – “Boy was she tender. Had hundreds and hundreds of lead ingots in her bilge from stem to stern. We took every one out to clean out her bilge and then re-stacked them. Could steam very well tho”.

From Sharon’s father:
“Taramea was her original name . Power was from a O/e engine, then a  2 cyl Bolinder, followed by a 3 cyl National, and next a 4 cyl Fordson, were there any others ?
 Had a name change to ‘Gail I’ and kept at Leasks Bay , Stewart Is. “Hurricane ” John Leask. Powered by Fordson then.”
 
April 2017
From a fisherman – “Last that I can remember the Gail she had a black painted hull and at Moeraki. Was leaking badly and had a 4 cylinder Ford diesel engine.”

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