Category: Small boats

Simon Papendick’s latest personal project – a Kenneth Gibbs 14ft Halcyon dinghy

Simon Papendick Halcyon Class Dinghy restoration

Simon Papendick of J-Star Boats is currently restoring a 14ft Kenneth Gibbs-designed Halcyon class Dinghy.

Readers may remember an earlier series of posts from Simon recording his restoration of a small gaff cutter, Gadfly II, that was built by well known Whitstable boatbuilders Anderson, Rigden & Perkins. The posts record his work in restoring the boat and preparing her to sail again, but also his success in researching the boat’s history. To find that series of posts, click here and follow the older posts links.

The latest posts on Simon’s weblog show stages in the job of replacing cracked planks, and putting in new green oak ribs.

There’s some information and photos of a Halcyon dinghy sold by the auctioneers Bonhams here and a restoration project of a similar boat here (you have to scroll down quite a way to find it).

Fife Regatta and the Bosham Classic Revival – two corking events for 2013

Fife Regatta 2013

The Fife Regatta 2013 (28th June-5th July) and the Bosham Classic Revival (6-7 July) are at different ends of the boating spectrum – but they both look great fun.

And of course the Fife Regatta has the best poster we’re likely to see this year! I gather it will shortly be on sale from the website.

The Fife Regatta is an invitation-only in which beautifully restored and maintained William Fife-designed and built sailing yachts return to their birthplace on the River Clyde to take part in a regatta. It will be a stunning sight.

Over at Bosham in Hampshire, the aim is to see as many classic dinghies and keelboats as possible racing around Chichester Harbour. It sounds damned fine to me…

 

Boat Building Academy students build an Iain Oughtred Humble Bee dinghy

Humble Bee clinker built dinghy photo by Emma Brice 1

 

Humble Bee clinker built dinghy photo by Emma Brice 2 Humble Bee clinker built dinghy photo by Rebecca Joseph

Photos by Emma Brice and Rebecca Joseph

Boat Building Academy students Kyle Paternoster and Rob Hounslow made a traditionally-built clinker pram dinghy to plans by Iain Oughtred and sailed it for the first time on their course’s student launch day.

The 7ft 9in dinghy made to Oughtred’s Humble Bee design is planked in sweet chestnut with a Dorset-grown oak centreline and fore and aft transoms, and green oak ribs.

Her name, Rubee, is a play on words based on Kyle’s grandmother’s name, Ruby, and Humble Bee. The red sails were made by students on a weekend sail-making workshop at the academy run by Jeremy White, managing director of Elvstrom Sails.

Kyle started work as an engineer on one of the biggest yachts in the world the week after leaving the Academy – the role is based on three-month rotations, and will allow Kyle to work as a boat builder in the months he is at home, building and selling his own boats.

He’s a qualified dinghy instructor and in his spare time plans to teach members of his family to sail in Rubee.

Rob, who worked with Kyle on the build, grew up around water on his father’s fish farm on the River Kennet. Rob had done almost every job there is around a fish farm, including making jetties and bridges and working with green oak, but he wanted to master a craft and so decided to join the Academy to learn boat building.

Rob will be using his newly acquired skills at Cockwells Modern and Classic Building at Falmouth, where he will be working alongside fellow BBA graduate Jack Livesey, who graduated in June 2012.

The BBA website has a photographic diary of Rubee’s construction.