Tag: wykeham-martin

How to build a punt by Captain RF Wykeham-Martin, with plans

 

Wykeham-Martin sailing punt sailplan

Wykeham-Martin’s sailing punt. In his description he remarks that the leeboard could have been a little bigger

I was very pleased today to find this description of how Captain R F Wykeham-Martin built a sailing Thames punt.

It comes from a splendid collection of Thames-related material provided by Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide, an informative site sponsored by the River Thames Society. By the way, if the name Wykeham-Martin is familiar, it’s because this great gentleman also devised the widely-used foresail furling gear still known by his name.

If you’re at all interested in the Thames, check out the source of this material, Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide, which has links to many fine on-line books, including the stunning Our River by George D Leslie.

For more intheboatshed.net posts on Thames-related matters, including plans for a Thames skiff and a racing punt, click here.


L illo from George D Leslie’s Our river

A good read for a winter’s night

If you don’t already know it, Moray McPhail’s Classic Marine website is an excellent resource. There’s an extensive catalogue for all the nice bronze and gunmetal bits and pieces that traditional boats require, including a wide range of fittings for rigging, as well as navigation lights, portholes and lamps, rowlocks and the rest, and there are also boat plans from Iain Oughtred.

Classic Marine homepage:

http://www.classicmarine.co.uk

With Christmas coming up, I’d say the navigation and cabin lighting sections are well worth a look for possible presents.

Moray’s site offers more than a fascinating catalogue, however, for he has written a series of essential articles on every detail of a traditional boat’s running and standing rigging hardware. Perhaps the most useful to many will be his article Using Wykeham-Martin Furling gears – an Unofficial Guide.