Tag Archives: Dick Lang

My Girl

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MY GIRL
photo & details from Jason Prew, Harold Kidd & Ian Gavin

At ww we love restoration projects, anyone that commits to saving one of your old girls is a good friend of waitematawoodys.

Todays classic launch is My Girl, built by Dick Lang in late 1925 for C.B. “Tui” Waldron of the Wade who commuted with her. The square-bilge design was based on one by W.H. Hand. She was fitted with a 6 cylinder 100hp Scripps that pushed her along at over 18 knots. Waldron later took her to Whangarei and she was in NAPS as Z32 out of Whangarei in WW2. She survived at Te Atatu owned by Trevor Davies.

The photos above show her in days gone by & being transported from Te Atatu Boating Club to her new home where her new owner Jason Prew , who recently purchased her from the Davies family, will commence her restoration. Jason has both done himself & supervised some of the best restoration projects in the CYA fleet so we will follow My Girl with great interest. I think I might need to re-power Raindance to keep up with Jason (My Girl) & Nathan Herbert (Lucinda).
You can follow the project here http://www.my-girl.co.nz

Interesting statistic – there are 9 CYA members on the CYA General Committee, myself being one of them, of those 9, 6 of them are now launch owners.  Owning a classic wooden launch is the hot new boating trend 🙂

Lady Jule

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LADY JULE RIP

photos & details ex Kerry Clarkson (owner)

Lady Jule was built in 1939 for the Pollard family ( Henderson & Pollard ?) of Auckland by Dick Lang. I understand that she was built just before Lady Margaret (Peter Boardman’s stunning Dick Lang launch).
Kerry Clarkson purchased her in 2008 and along with a friend brought her down the coast from Houhora to Clevedon in August of that year.
She is 38ft plus duck board  making her 40ft LOA. Her beam at the widest point is 11ft 4inches making her a very beamy old girl for her age. She is an extremely seaworthy and strongly built  vessel of single 1.1/4 kauri plank carvel construction.
She is powered by a 6 cylinder 120hp Lees Marine Ford, installed new in 1976, and will cruise all day at 18-1900 rpm. (8-8.5 knots).
Currently hauled out for some rib sistering, recaulking, anti-foul & hull paint job. I understand her owners have relocated outside of Auckland & she is for sale & is very well priced. Interested parties could contact Kerry on rooclarkson@gmail.com or on 0274574 756 .

Harold Kidd update

Sorry to rain on this man’s parade too, but that history is not right. LADY JULE was indeed built by Dick Lang in 1939 but not for the Pollards. It was a tumultuous year with the outbreak of war so launch building news was not high priority in the newspapers. My best guess is that she was built for Gordon Hunter and was his first boat. Gordon’s son Don provided that info. Gordon sold her in 1944 to buy ROYAL SAXON. I think the purchaser was Edward Morrison of Herne Bay. The Frankham brothers, Jack & Stan bought her in the early 1960s and kept her until c1984. Their brother-in-law Noel Pollard (of Henderson & Pollard) crewed on her extensively during that time and again when his mate Jack Allen of L.R. Allen Ltd had her briefly. That’s the only Pollard connection, and it’s extremely tenuous.
Her original engine was a petrol Buda (for which my father was agent)

23-07-2016 Update – Lady Jule wrecked at Rocky Bay, Waiheke Island

Very sad to report that on July 19th 2016 Lady Jule broke free from her mooring in Rocky Bay & was wrecked on the rocks. See link to story below

http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/82376436/waiheke-couple-left-in-tears-after-gale-sinks-new-home

26-07-2016 Update

Photos of the ‘wreck’ below. When first reported on ww there were no photos available, the below have now appeared, perhaps the term wreck is a little too severe, some (like Jason Prew) would consider that hull a good candidate for restoration 😉

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Lady Jule wreck2

 

Rahemo #2 Post

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c1948

RAHEMO #2 Post

ww was contacted by the present owner of Rahemo & the information & photos the Rod Turner has supplied deserves its own post, read below
“The Chrysler Crown 125s I replaced were “mirror” or a contra-rotating handed pair. They were rugged and reliable, dedicated marine engines. No change of rotation occurred in the gear boxes. They were supplied and installed by Todds as New Zealand agents, not the Navy. Rahemo never had diesel engines before 1987. The “one family from new” is my mistake as I was not aware of Mr Butchers 2 year ownership. I thought the Todd family owner her from new. The Trademe listing was done by Vinnings Brokers. Rahemo returned to Auckland in the 1950s to be used for deep sea fishing in the Bay of Islands before making a second trip back to Wellington.“

Richard has supplied 2 photos of Rahemo on the hard showing her under-water hull shape & a stunning black and white is of Rahemo and another family boat, the “Maroro” taken in Onahau Bay, Queen Charlotte Sound in about 1948. Maroro is a Chris Craft from about 1932 still in his families ownership awaiting restoration.

Rahemo #1 Post

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RAHEMO #1 Post

Described as a Laing bridge decker & built in 1935, her kauri hull is 42′ long. Powered by twin 4 cyl. Volvo 130hp engines she has no trouble cruising at 10>12 knots. Her 4 sale listing states that she has had one owner from new.

Any one able to confirm & expand on what we know about Rahemo ?

Harold Kidd Update

RAHEMO was built in Auckland in late 1936 by Dick LANG (not Laing) at St. Mary’s Bay for R.W. Butcher of Hamilton as STRATHMORE. She was 42’x10’9″x3’6″ and powered with twin 90hp Chryslers. In 1938 she was bought by the Todd family of Wellington and motored down via Tauranga and the east coast in December 1938. The Todds renamed her RAHEMO. She was in NAPS out of Wellington in WW2 as Z76 and fitted with diesels. One TradeMe recently she was advertised as “one family from new”…………………….. not really.

PS R.W. Butcher sold ALCESTIS/RAIONA to Alf Seccombe when he had STRATHMORE/RAHEMO built and had RAWEA built when he sold STRATHMORE/RAHEMO. When RAWEA was  requisitioned for RNZN patrol work in 1940 he bought RONGO. You can’t keep a good launch man down!

Photo below ex Paper Past – 15 Dec 1938 just prior to departing for Wellington, insert photo i of A. R. Clarke who skippered her.

Strathmore (Rahemo) 15 Dec 1938

The Dawn

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THE DAWN

photo & details from Riwia Fox

Have had a request from Riwia Fox on behalf of her aunt who is looking for any details on her fathers kauri launch – The Dawn. Excuse the very low res photo, hopefully a better one will be found. The war time ‘345’ number should help jog some memories. Riwia’s aunt believes it was built by Dick Lang in 1935.

Updated details (25/07/2014) from Riwia Fox – her Aunt has advised her fathers name was Bill Hogan, a member of the Ponsonby Cruising Club & The Dawn was built in 1935.

ETHEL C (Ethel Clare)

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ETHEL C (Ethel Clare)

Some days ww rocks – yesterday was one of those days, the planets lined up & everything fell into place.

Last weekend Nathan Herbert was out & about nosing around the Whau Creek with Jason Prew in one of the classic picnic boats when they came across the very neglected tram topper, Ethel Clare,  sitting on a pile mooring. Ethel Claire (as spelt on the name board) became the ww posting on Wednesday.

Next thing I get an email from CYA member Neil Chalmers, SY Gleam, telling me a RYC member, Colin Clare, has been trying to track down his father’s old launch – ‘’Ethel C’’. Neil had spoken to Colin and described the launch in photos that appeared on ww. In Neil’s words “I think you may have struck gold !.”

Next I contacted Harold Kidd who confirmed that ETHEL C was built by Leon Warne in late 1922 for Billy Clare. HDK thinks she was in fact started by Leon and finished off by Dick Lang as Leon went to Russell at that time and Dick took over his premises.
Ethel C was 30’x8′ and HDK supplied two b/w images which leave no doubt that Ethel Claire is in fact Ethel C. The close up shows a young Colin Clare sitting on the salon top.
HDK commented – “that she has a provenance a couple of yards long!!!”

Next I contacted James Mobberley at Moon Engines & Transmissions who is a member at the Te Atatu Boating Club on the Whau Creek & a classic nutter. James advises that the boat is known around the club as Ethel C & is owned by a Te Atatu Boat Club member who has owned her for between 10 >12 years. The current owner bought her off a gent by the name of Jimmy Sands who had her sitting on his front lawn in Avondale for 20 years.

Now I want this to have a happy ending – wouldn’t it be great to see her rescued & back in the hands of the family of the original owner 🙂

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Rata

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RATA

Rata was built by Dick Lang in 1926 in St Marys Bay. In todays world she is rather unquie in that her owner is only the 2nd since 1936. Rata has recently completed a lengthly keel up ‘rebuild’.

She is 35′ long with a 3′ draft & powered by a 85hp Lees Ford engine, she cruises at 8knots.

Currently 4 sale on trademe. Hopefully the price of $45k includes a chainsaw to remove the ‘carry handle’ 🙂

Anyone able to provide any more details on Rata?

Jeunesse

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JEUNESSE

b/w photos ex Keith Munro

Built & launched by Dick Lang in 1919, LOA 39′, Beam 11′, Draft 3′. Powered by a 180hp Hino, she is rather quick 🙂

Currently owned by John Wright

Colour photo was taken in November 2013 during the CYA Launch Cruise to the Riverhead Hotel.

Jeunesse

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Jeunesse

JEUNESSE

‘Probably’ built in 1927 by Dick Lang, the owner is looking for anymore details on her past. Previous owners include a Dr. McFarlane?? & TG Shaw from the cartage contracting firm.

Photo taken by AlanH on July 7 2013 as she was heading up the upper harbour. She is rather quick, from memory having had the same zoom zoom transplant as Falcon i.e. a big Hino (turbo?)

Harold Kidd Update

The 37 footer JEUNESSE was built for W J Harper and launched in March 1919 as RAMBLER. Harper changed his mind and renamed her JEUNESSE by the start of the summer of 1919-20. None of the magazines or newspapers say who built her but Dick Lang seems a fair bet as she was built in St. Mary’s Bay. Reportage on such things was pretty scant at that time because of the Spanish ‘Flu outbreak. She was fitted with a 40hp Reutenberg 4 cylinder engine. Harper sold the launch KOTIRO when JEUNESSE was built. He kept her until 1923 when he sold her to H Hewson. N C McLean & R Kirkwood owned her in 1926. She spent a lot of time in Whangarei after that. In 1951 she was owned by S H R Smith of Onehunga, Richard Leary in 1990, John Wright in 2003; that’s all I have.

Lady Margaret (Dick Lang)

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LADY MARGARET

I post this as pure eye candy on a wet & windy day. Lady Margaret has to be one of the prettiest vessel’s in the CYA fleet, no matter what angle you approach her from she is dam near perfect to the eye. Her owner cares for her like a 73 year old lady should be.
Designed by Dick Lang in 1940. Powered by twin Fodens.