Category: Traditional carvel

Traditional carvel plans and boatbuilding

An appeal for information – what’s the background to the Solveig yacht design?

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Martin Cooper has written to ask for any information on the Solveig design; he’d like to contact owners and to learn about other examples of this strikingly good-looking double-ender.

Here’s what he says:

‘I have owned her for 19 years now but in this time I have only limited information of the design. I know she was built by George Durr in Switzerland, but despite visiting the yard and meeting with George and his son Philippe, I have only found out that they recall her as a Solveig design. We believe the designer was Maurice Amiet but this information and extensive surfing the web has not lead to any further information.’

If anyone can please shed some light on this boat, please contact me at gmatkin@gmail.com, and I’ll pass the information on.

There’s more on the Gadfly II story – but can anyone fill in the ‘missing years’?

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The Kent-built Gadfly II

Simon Papendick has written to give us an update to the earlier posts about the small cruising boat he’s currently restoring, Gadfly II, and to ask for help in finding more information. (For more on Gadfly II, click here.)

Here’s what he has to say:

Hi Gavin:

Thanks to Classic Boat, I now have some new information about my yacht Gadfly II.

It would appear that the boat was build in the 1930s in Whitstable, Kent for a local builder, and that she was the second of three boats he commissioned. I have information about her first years in Kent from the 1930s through to 1949, and then I have more details about her whereabouts in the early 1960s – but then the trail goes cold from 1964 until the early 2000’s when the last owner purchased bought her.

If anyone has any information about Gadfly II’s whereabouts in the missing years, could they please let me know?

During the World War II I gather she had a small mishap when she was almost destroyed by German bombs that where dropped near where she was being stored.

The original owner of the boat only passed away a few years ago, as did the foreman of the yard that build her.

If any of your readers can come up with more information about the boat it would be most helpful.

Regards

Simon

Have you got a story to share or is there some information that you seek?

It could be about an interesting boat you own or are repairing, or a boat-building or repairing skill, or an adventure in a traditional or traditional-style boat? Why not do it through intheboatshed.net? Contact me at gmatkin@gmail.com.

Jaques Molinari’s Mouseboat project in Vietnam continues

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Jacques Molinari has sent in some more photos of his impressive Mouseboat, including a strengthened and raised mast step, and a self-bailing cockpit – he says he expects rough water in Nha Trang Bay.

See the last post and a link to the free plans for this little scow here.