… together with his wife and other family members. See the rest of the videos he’s made here.
Tag: boat restoration
Ian Baird writes up his first boat restoration job after studying at the BBA – and it was quite a challenge
Some time ago Ian Baird got around to finishing writing up his account of the restoration of Yoma II – the boat restoration that was his first professional project after completing his course at the Boat Building Academy, and it’s in this month’s issue of Water Craft.
He tells me that he had what he described as the ‘rather wonderful’ pleasure of having a reader of the magazine, unknown to him, ring him up to congratulate him on the restoration job. It quite made his day.
Yoma II, I should explain, is a 1961 Burnham on Sea Motor Boat Company-built motor tender based on the company’s rather longer Sturdy 16 model, but built at 14ft to the owner’s specification.
Tackling such a restoration as a first professional outing as a one-man outfit sounds like a nightmare to me. Little Yoma’s bottom had rotted out, and everything from the fifth plank down from the gunwales had to be replaced.
But with a little help from some of his BBA ex-student friends she’s now back in the water, powered by her original 1.5hp Stuart-Turner engine and working as a tender to the motor launch Yoma, and if you read the Water Craft piece, it’s clear Ian is just a little misty-eyed about her and hopes she’ll now make her full century…
Read an earlier post about Yoma II here.
PS – Water Craft this month also includes a great interview with the charming and brilliant French designer François Vivier, together with a feature about a boat built to his sweet little 12ft 6in Morbic design.
PPS – the issue also has a piece about North Quay Marine’s spirited and clever little gaffer, the Spitfire 18.
National Historic Ships network Shipshape East Anglia meets for the first time at Lowestoft
Shipshape East Anglia members network at the International Boatbuilding Training College, Lowestoft
Over 40 boatbuilders, historic vessel owners, suppliers and trainees met as a group earlier this month for the first time at a meeting organised by the Shipshape Network in East Anglia.
The forum took place at the International Boatbuilding Training College (IBTC) at Lowestoft, where they were addressed by National Historic Ships UK policy and project manager Hannah Cunliffe.
The event marked the launch of a series of new Shipshape East Anglia pages for the region – these list and detail 85 historic vessels in the area, and over 50 boat building companies and specialist suppliers. The IBTC is to act as local hub for network and is to provide local support and advice to members, a regional base and access to facilities.
Regional projects presented at the event include:
- services and facilities at Excelsior Yard, Lowestoft
- the regeneration of the Whisstocks boatyard at Woodbridge, Suffolk
- Stem to Stern Heritage Training and work experience
- Rescue Wooden Boats, the charity set up to restore, maintain and use examples of heritage maritime wooden working craft in North Norfolk
The Shipshape Network is managed by National Historic Ships UK, the independent government funded organisation representing the interests of historic vessels in the UK. The Network provides a framework for all those with an interest in ship conservation and is home to the National Directory of Skills & Services, promoting the regeneration of traditional maritime skills and techniques.