Month: November 2010

Raids, Gartside designs, treenails, small dayboats and a Mirage drive in a homebuilt canoe – it’s all in the latest Water Craft

[ad name=”intheboatshed-post”]

Click here to order your subscription now!

A little late, here’s Water Craft editor Pete Greenfield’s summary introducing the November/December issue of his splendid magazine:

‘There have been small boat raids in Portugal, Scotland, Finland and the Netherlands, with similar events in Wales and France. This summer George Trevelyan and friends organised an English Raid on the Solent.

‘The English Raid attracted some fascinating craft from around Europe, including designer Andrew Wolstenholme’s and boatbuilder Colin Henwood’s deceptively simple 20’ (6m) gaff sloop Kite… which just flew

‘From Nova Scotia, our regular contributor Paul Gartside sends complete build her yourself plans and offsets for his traditionally built 16ft (4.9m) double-ended gaff sloop – just right for the next English Raid.

‘The Paul Gartside design which Ben Harris is building down in the deep West of England is a ‘proper project’: a classically-proportioned 30ft (9.1m) gaff-rigged cruising yacht inspired by Falmouth’s famous working boats.

‘You wait for ages for an article about treenails, then two come along. Nigel Sabin builds a clinker dinghy without glues or metal fastenings, and Topher Dawson enhances a St Ayles Skiff kit by fitting open gunwales.

‘Our Grand Designs series always introduces inspiring new boats. This time we have two. Selway Fisher’s sleek update of B B Crowninshield’s Dark Harbor keelboat and French designer Francois Vivier’s wholesome family dayboat Jewell, created for Maine boatbuilder Clinton Chase.

‘Plus pedalling the Avon in a Walt Simmons canoe with a Hobie Mirage drive; Ian Nicolson’s series on designing an eco-motorboat; tool and product reviews; and reports from the most active of the national associations.’

Click here to order your subscription now!

An airborne lifeboat on the Isle of Man

[ad name=”intheboatshed-post”]

Mk 1 Airborne lifeboat

Mk 1 Airborne lifeboat Mk 1 Airborne lifeboat Mk 1 Airborne lifeboat

Mk 1 Airborne lifeboat Mk 1 Airborne lifeboat

Martin Birchenough’s Mk 1 airborne lifeboat

I’ve posted about Uffa Fox’s fascinating airborne lifeboats several times now (see post 1, post 2, post 3, post 4, post 5). They had an amazing story in saving downed airmen’s lives during World War II, and after the war their lovely lines enabled them to be converted into sporty big sailing dinghies. Old Uffa could certainly draw a hull!

I’m delighted to be able to post some more photos, thanks to Martin Birchenough, who lives in the Isle of Man.

Here’s what he says:

‘My airborne lifeboat was one of four Mk1 boats that were based at Ronaldsway Airport in the Isle of Man during the Second World War.

‘It ended up in the grounds of a house at Castletown near Ronaldsway where it was damaged by cattle but was rescued by an elderly chap who patched it and then painted it with bitumen and moved it to his property in Kirk Michael where it lay for some years.

‘I had reason to visit him and saw the boat, spoke about it and he said he had been trying to find a home for it for some time but no one would take it on and I eventually took it on as a restoration project.

‘It was in pretty bad shape and after scrapping the bitumen off and repairing the holes the only way to save the hull which had become springy was to use West epoxy and clad it. I obtained plans from the RAF Museum at Hendon and had the dagger board and rudder fabricated locally and It is now solid but obviously not original.

‘I have added a fore deck and gunwales and had a rig designed by Jeckells and have made a mast. I sailed it with a bit of a jury rig prior to making the mast and it went like a scalded cat – it was so quick that it was in danger of sailing itself under water while close-hauled.

‘I am hoping to have it back in the water set up for the Peel Traditional Boat Weekend in July 2011.

‘Regards, Martin’

That’s fabulous thanks Martin. If you get some sailing photos sometime I’d love to see them please!

Gavin

PS Do check out the Uffa Fox website – there’s a terrific film clip narrated by him that includes Drumbeat cracking along in a good breeze, and even a snatch of the old boy singing.

Sea songs from Gavin Davenport’s new CD

[ad name=”intheboatshed-post”]

Gavin Davenport concertina and sea songs

My musician and singer friend Gavin Davenport has kindly agreed to let me publish a couple of MP3s of two sea songs from his new album Brief Lives, which is available from the shop section of his website. In each he accompanies himself using a beautiful old ebony-ended Wheatstone anglo concertina.

The songs, British Man Of War and On Board Of A Ninety-Eight come from the Navy’s wooden walls era, are striking and are really two sides of the same coin.

In the first, a swaggering and excited young tells his worried lover that he’s joining the Navy and will return covered in glory; in the second an old sailor tells the story of his heroic career as a sailor in the Navy, and finishes by explaining that he has been well looked after, and is now nearly 98. The ninety-eight of the title is a ship with 98 guns, by the way.

Neither really engage with the downsides of war and, like many sea songs, contain strong elements of boasting and wishful thinking. Well, I guess they had to have something to keep them going.