Tag: sloop

F B Cooke on Single Handed Cruising

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The mystery of Gadfly II’s origins and her link with the Blackwater sloops reminded me of yachting author F B Cooke, who I seem to remember owned a Blackwater sloop in the 1920s.

He had strong views on the size and type of yachts that should be used for cruising, for as he says:

‘To be dependent upon the assistance of friends, who may leave one in the lurch at the eleventh hour, is a miserable business that can only be avoided by having a yacht which one is capable of handling alone… The ideal arrangement is to have a vessel of sufficient size to accommodate one or two guests and yet not too large to be sailed single-handed at a pinch.’

I’d go further, and say that even with friends and family aboard, it’s safer and better if all the basic sailing tasks can be carried out by a single pair of hands.

I thought readers might be interested to see what he had to say about what size and type of  small yacht seemed most desirable in those far-off days.

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Gadfly II – coin evidence could make her older than originally thought

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48-470Gadfly II under restoration – she may be considerably
older than originally thought

Simon Papendick, who is working on Gadfly II (see earlier posts here and here), has written to say that he has found a 1908 Edward VII penny under a grown frame below the mast, which strongly suggests the boat is rather older than previously thought.

She was previously understood to have been built in Kent along the lines of the Blackwater sloops, which I believe were built in Maldon by boatbuilder Dan Webb from the 1920s. (See an example for sale here.)

Simon says: ‘It was the custom to put a coin under the mast step on the top of the keel in a sailing boat or under the base of the stem on a motor boat, so that if the the boat should ever be rebuild of destroyed it will be possible to find out the year it was built.

‘I have always kept this up in all the wooden boats I have been involved in building since the custom was explained to me by my first boss, who was himself told that this was a long standing custom when he was an apprentice. He always did this to continue the custom handed down to him.’

So it seems Gadfly II may well be considerably older than was first thought and, if so, she predates the Blackwater sloops build by Dan Webb at Maldon in Essex. Could it be that Webb saw this boat, liked her and copied and then modified her lines to create his famous Blackwater sloop?

Certainly this story is becoming more and more interesting – can anyone out there shed any further light on Gadfly II’s mysterious background and her obvious connection with Webb’s series of Essex-built boats?

Simon Papendick, who runs J-Star Tuition & Boat Services, can be reached at 07799401650 and info@jstartuition-boatservices.co.uk.

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More information about the Kent-built ‘Blackwater sloop’ Gadfly II

We’ve had a short message and a few more photos of Gadfly II from boatbuilder and restorer Simon Papendick.

‘Since I contacted you last on the website, I have found out more about the boat’s history and type of boat she is – or at least the design she was built to.

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Gadfly II – she’s fairly clean, but there’s still plenty of work to do!

We’ve had a short message and a few more photos of Gadfly II from boatbuilder and restorer Simon Papendick.

‘Since I contacted you last on the website, I have found out more about the boat’s history and type of boat she is – or at least the design she was built to.

‘It appears that Gadfly II was built in Kent, as was I was lead to believe was the case. However, she was built to look like a Blackwater gaff sloop called Iolanthe and has the same hull design and dimensions.

‘The only different between the two boats is that my boat has an extra 3in depth in the iron keel. I have attached a few photos of the work in progress to restore this fine old lady to her former glory.’

Iolanthe appeared in Classic Boat magazine September 2004. I should get my copy out and have a look!

For an earlier intheboatshed.net post about this boat, click here.

Simon Papendick, who runs J-Star Tuition & Boat Services, can be reached at 07799401650 and info@jstartuition-boatservices.co.uk.