Kowai

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KOWAI
Kowai was spotted on the hard at Half Moon Bay las week by Alan McDonald. She lives up the Tamaki River at Panmure, on piles.

Thats all we know about her – so can any woody supply more details? One of the river rats must know the boat.

Input from Peter Morton (ex Ken Ricketts)

Help needed – I have been contacted by Kerry Costello with a question. I’ll let Kerry tell it.

“Recently I found a small wooden sailing dinghy (below) at an op shop – unintentionally – and now I’m trying to piece her together and get her in the water. I really want to find out what the make and model is. My partner and I are taking the paint off and want to fix her up nice – figure out the correct paint, put fiber glass on the seams and a of couple dents, and find a mast for her!
It seems that knowing the make and model would be helpful in finding the right mast. I’ve looked on trade me and someone told me that the lumber yard might mill one for me? But it seems that finding a used one would be more appropriate than anything else; using something made by a boat builder rather than milled by someone who doesn’t know boats. So as I said before any advice that you can give me would be so so appreciated.”

So woodys, can we ID the yacht design & any chance someone as an old mast in the garage rafters ?

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No Salt – 4Sale – All Offers Considered

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NO SALT

NO SALT IS BACK ON THE MARKET – I UNDERSTAND A LOT OF WORK & MONEY HAS BEEN SPENT ON CORRECTING THE ISSUES SHE HAD. NOW 4SALE & ALL SENSIBLE OFFERS WILL BE CONSIDERED. CONTACT ROGER – 021 02546184

I have spoken before about the emergence of what I call ‘the floating bach’ – well No Salt fits that category perfectly. I predict in the next 5 years we will see more & more of this ‘trawler’ style classic motor boat on our harbours & lakes. Just look at the camper van scene, it has exploded but camper vans only appeal to a % of the population & the biggest negative is  you have very little control over who your neibour is 🙂

No Salt is the real deal, a genuine wooden Grand Banks, from the desk of the renowned American designer Ken Smith. She was built / launched in 1973 & is one of the last wooden Grand Banks before they switched to GPR production 😦  40′ on the water (the yanks assign the LWL length to their craft so she is a GB36) she is mahogany carvel planked on sawn frames & features a full length keel that provides protection for the twin props/rudders – perfect for nudging into that secluded bay.
Powered by twin Ford 120hp (non turbo) engines she cruises at 9knots & would run on the smell of an oily rag, this efficiency combined with 720L fuel tanks makes her perfect for extended cruising. While she carries 800L of water if I owned her I would drop a water maker on board & then there would be no stopping you.

The Americans can be a little OTT in terms of safety but in No Salts case her high bulwarks & all round teak railing make her very family / older person friendly. Another bonus is the window / seating height in the saloon – few boats get this right, with No Salt you can be seated & enjoy brilliant exterior views.

Yes No Salt is for sale & would have to represent the best value for money in the leisure / lifestyle market.
Who will buy her? with her 7 berth layout there are lots of options with this floating bach & while I would not like to see her leave the Waitemata, what a low-cost lake pad she would be & you have the best view on the lake + you can fish from your door step.
As always click on any photo above to enlarge.

Tarata

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TARATA

Today’s ww story one of the ones that makes it all worth while – Alan Sexton contacted me a while ago trying to track down a launch his father (Howard) owned in the 1970’s – Tarata. Never confirmed but the family believed the 32′ sedan launch was built by Snow Waters, possibly to a Couldrey design. Alan had not photos of her & the last known where abouts was that she was moored in the Tamaki Riv just up from HMB.
Alan’s father sold her to a Wayne Kidd (the broker at HMB) and a partner in 1979.
Now Alan works overseas & returned to NZ last week from Chile & was in the Pakuranga area last Thursday and having been advised that Allan Keane at HMB Brokerage had some history on Tarata, Alan took the opportunity to drop into to his office. He kindly searched thru his sales records and found  the last transaction he had done in 2003 and gave Alan his display photos (as above). Attached are scans of the photos.
As a result of Alan’s time with Allan Keane & other sniffing around he has been able to assemble the details below on Tarata. Still very keen to learn details on her recent history & current where abouts.
” Tarata was built by Snow Waters and launched in 1962 for Lloyd Kitchen (of the H.C. Kitchen formica family). Designer is believed to be Bill Couldrey but this is not certain. She is 32’ x 10’6” x 3’, hull is 7/8” single skin kauri on steam bent ribs with solid timber floors, decks are one diagonal and one fore and aft tongue and groove sheathed with canvas & fiberglass. Cabin coamings are solid timber and cabin top appeared to be plywood over solid beams with the surface between the beams Formica lined. Original engine was a marinised 60hp Fordson Super Major with a Paragon 2:1 mechanical gearbox. The engine installation was quite cunning, the engine is mounted forward of the main cabin and offset slightly to starboard to allow sufficient width for the passage to port and a narrow bunk. The drive train consisted of truck assembly double universal and sliding spline shaft, with thrust from the propeller taken by a rigidly mounted thrust bearing. All tanks were copper as were the bow rails and cabin top hand rails. She has a mast approx. 6m tall fitted with a jib used as a steadying sail.

The Kitchen’s sold her about 1967 to Arthur Wagner and my father, Howard Sexton bought her in 1971, owning her until 1979. She was then bought by Wayne Kidd and a partner who owned her until approx. 1983. She has had a number of owners since and last record is that she was sold to Barry and Jane Radford from Kerikeri in 2003.

She was re-engined sometime in the 80’s with a slightly larger 85hp 4 cyl Lees Ford and a hydraulic gearbox. Otherwise she appears virtually unchanged, at least in 2003 when the photos were taken. She was a tough little launch and would plug on thru just about any sea. There is at least one sister ship, Yin Yang at Westpark, who has had her cockpit extended. At one time we were told Snow had built up to 6 of this design but this is not certain.”

Input from Robert Brooke – Tarata was built by Snow Waters to a modified ” Mapuna” design of my fathers

Jade – Sailing Sunday

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JADE – A Herreshoff style weekend/daysailer

Jade fits into the classic category that we call ‘spirit of tradition’ – a gaff-rigger that not only sails well but also has none of the maintenance headaches that other wooden boats have.
Specifications: LOA: 7m, Beam: 2m, Draft: Centerboard up: 650mm, CB down: 1.5m Sail area: 20sqm, Ballast: 300kg, Displacement: 1300kg.
She is 4sale on trademe. With her custom trailer & cover + being a center-boarder she would make a great lake boat. You could even troll for a trout with the 8hp outboard 😉

Kia Ora

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Kia Ora
A 43 foot wooden boat powered by a Gardner 6LH through a Gardner gearbox.  Kia Ora is an ex fishing vessel converted to a pleasure boat for her well deserved retirement.
Built in 1939 at Kaikoura by local fishing legend Syd Cormack & launched on the foreshore at Kaikoura.
She is very well known along the South Island east coast, not many places you won’t bump into a fisherman thats worked on her.
With her Gardner ticking over her cruise speed is 7 to 8Knts and fuel usage is around 5 to 6 liters per hour.

Any of the woodys able to tell us more about Kia Ora, Ian McDonald alerted me to the trademe listing, hopefully she survived the earthquake & tidal activity that it the area this week.

Harold Kidd Input

KIA ORA was built by Syd Cormack in Kaikoura and launched in 1940. Her first engine was a 50hp Bolinder. Her dimensions are (official reg) 41.2′ loa x 12.7′ beam x 5.6′ draught, 13.03 tons gross and 3.88 tons net. Cormack was her first owner. She was registered as LN 93.
When Ainsley Sinclair of Akaroa owned her in 1950 he steamed her up to Auckland for the Sanders Cup contest. During her life she has been sunk and salvaged three times.

Sheds at Clyde Quay Wellington
The capital has also been suffering the effects of the earthquake, Gavin Pascoe sent me the photo below. This is the result of earthquake surge + king tide + torrential rain. Hopefully the water did not do much damage to the sheds contents – click this link to view the sheds on a good day 😉 https://waitematawoodys.com/2013/12/31/ever-wondered-whats-inside-those-sheds/

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Around the Yards – Opua

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Around the Yards – Ashby Boat Yard, Opua

Dean Wright has just had his classic Arethusa hauled out at Ashby’s, thats her in the first photo above – she is one of those vessel’s that look fast even when stationary, very pretty lines. You can read all about her provenance here https://waitematawoodys.com/2013/11/01/arethusa-winsome/

Dean is a pro photographer & snapped a few other woodys at/off the yard. There is Waitete from Russell, see/read more here https://waitematawoodys.com/2015/12/24/waitete/  & the ‘spirit of tradition’ classic boat hauled out is Southern Star, owned by ex Fosters darling 🙂 Craig Pippen. These days both the boat & Craig reside at Opua. Craig can be found at Cater Marine Opua – check out their website – lots of classic friendly bits & pieces there 😉  http://www.catermarine.co.nz/

The moored boat is Waimana & normally kept in Opito Bay.

Looking for an on-the-water buzz this summer?
Have a go rowing a St.Ayles skiff @ St Heliers beach, most Saturdays this summer. Check out the flyer below or visit http://www.nzcoastalrowing.org

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St. Mary

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ST MARY

Today’s post features the launch St Mary, seen here transporting an Anglican Home Mission priest on the Hokianga River. The church used launches to undertake church work in the Far North in areas inaccessible by road. The photo was spotted at the Pah Homestead in Hillsborough by John Burland & is ex the Sir George Grey Collection (Auckland Library) & taken by Barry Bennett.

Any woodys able to tell us some more info on the launch & what happened to St Mary?

 

ps – seems even back then, boaties had ideas around building a ‘block of flats’ 🙂

Harold Kidd Input – Jack Harker wrote a great little book about this Anglican clergyman “Soldier, Sailor, Priest”. ST. MARY was based in the “Roadless North” at Kohukohu in 1914, was 24′ loa and had a single cylinder 4.5hp Standard engine. I don’t think he did a Jasper Calder and preached from the boat.
By 1923 it was said to be the only launch the Anglican Church owned in NZ. The minister, the Rev. J.C. Hawkesworth conducted 276 services, performed 34 baptisms, 8 marriages, 9 funeral services and 41 candidates for confirmation. The northern shore of the Hokianga is largely Roman Catholic with a superb church at Te Karaka, visible for miles, set up by Bishop Pompallier, so there was a bit of inter-denominational rivalry going on.
I can’t find a whiff of her provenance in the book or anywhere else.
The Anglican Church did build other launches, one in 1909 for use at Stewart Is and Ruapuke and a 40 footer in 1914, G.A. SELWYN, (later just SELWYN) by E.R. Lane for use at Nelson for the Church’s Sounds and Tasman Bay communities.

Fisher Lassie

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Fisher Lassie
Built in 1938 by Miller & Tunnage, Fisher Lassie is a 39’3″ converted fishing boat that is powered by a 1952, 3LW Gardner with a 2UC gearbox & a keel cooled dry stack. The Gardner has done 3380hrs in the last 17 years with no grief using about 3 litres per hour.
She cruises at 6 kts, her ex work holds provide lots of storage & combined with her extensive fit out, has the basics to be a nice live-a-board.

Given the amount of interest / chat on trademe, a northern woody might have trouble getting her North 😉 those southerners do not like losing boat north 😉 Current bidding is in the low $3k’s so a good buy. Thanks to Ian McDonald for the heads up on the vessel.

Any of the work boat woodys know anything more about her?

A Woody Dilemma – Buy original & restore? Buy restored? Buy an import?

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A Woody Dilemma – Buy original & restore? Buy restored? Buy an import?

Given the current state of the 4sale market for our wooden classics, whether they are original or restored, at some stage woodys will start to consider importing a woody from the USA – why?
#1 reason – the price
#2 reason – the high standard of presentation
#3 reason – the volume of ‘stock’
#4 reason – readily available parts & specialty service outlets.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Today’s woody was brought to my attention by Pauline Evill & is currently listed for sale on craigslist.com. She is a  28′ 1960 Chris Craft Constellation, made with mahogany planked batten seam construction on the topsides and double planked below the waterline. In excellent condition, having been restored in 2010, which included a new a single prop 307 engine. Her condition reflects the fact that she has always been kept in a covered slip. Asking price is NZD$25,000.

The Sinking of Lady Sandra

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The Sinking of Lady Sandra

Lady Sandra was built by the Lane Motor Boat Co in 1947, details on her past can be viewed at the link below. In previous ww posts Ken Ricketts was of the belief that Lady Sandra sank off Devonport but recent photos ex Ken Jones that have surfaced have revealed that the location was in fact Birkenhead, c.1948-49.

Lady Sandra

The tale goes something like this –  Lady Sandra had stopped to tow a grounded yacht on Auckland Anniversary Day & in the process managed to get the tow line around both of her propellers & pull them towards each other, thus pulling the propeller struts out of the bottom of the boat. They quickly managed to beach her, as the above photos show.

Interested to hear more details on the yacht rescue & subsequent sinking of LS, as there is still uncertainly around what happened.

Post the sinking & refit (mid 1950s) she was sold to Ken Woodhead, an Auckland businessman, who sold her late 1950’s > early 1960’s, to a Eddie McGoram, now aged 88 & living in Vancouver. In discussions with Ken Ricketts, McGoram confirmed that when he  purchased her, the original 2 Scripps flathead 6’s had been replaced with 2 x 120 hp Hercules 6 cyl flathead petrol engines.  Most likely the Scripps were replaced post sinking after she sank. McGoram only kept her for approx. a year & during this time replaced the Hercules engines with 2 x 4 cyl Ford diesels. He sold her to Owen & Margaret Cleave in the early 1960s & they kept her until well into the 1960’s.

The Cleaves did substantial remodelling of her coamings c.1966 & interior layout. At some stage she was lengthened & her engines were moved back to the new tuck position.  During the Cleaves ownership c.1964,  LS ended up on the rocks at Pakatoa Island & had to wait for the tide to re-float, other than bruised egos, there was no major damage.

Lady Sandra was  sold to a friend of KR’s (John Richards) c.1966-67. Richards also modified the previously modified coamings. According to Richards son, Ian,  John sold her to an overseas (Vanuatu) owner in the late 1960’s. Sadly she was wrecked on a reef in a storm – some would say that given her past dices with death, it was a only a matter of time 😦

Below are a selection of Lady Sandra photos that show various moderations undertaken by her owners.

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Peckham ownership

 

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As Built

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Richard ownership

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McGoram ownership