Best 40' yacht...

[Ex Machina 390]

1 hour ago, Tamure said:

I know  someone who got a boat for a song after a well known surveyor condemned it, they've been enjoying a very sound boat now for 10 years and toasting that surveyor ever since!

There’s a 50 something footer up here went thru a very similar process ....they only ever sail it under Genoa on nice days for some reason ? 

[Island Time 1,294]

Agreed BK, boats are usually tougher than their crews, but there are exceptions. As you said, in heavy conditions, the last thing you need to be worried about is if the boat is going to have a structural failure.....😱

[marinheiro 365]

6 hours ago, Tamure said:

How so? Ive seen treated kaihikatea, heart kauri, treated sap kauri, macrocarpa. All have been fine, the method and quality of construction is important. Epoxy is better that resourcinal in some respects, detailing, watertraps, ventilalation etc. I would find it hard to believe that Des who was pretty anal about how his name was used and detailing on peoples builds would not be all over that boat.

I was talking to Barry Jones today (we are marina neighbours) about edging on plywood (I have a plywood locker door that has sucked up some moisture as it does not have edging on the end grain) , he said that treated timbers can still go soft over time if they are in a damp/wet environment. He said heart kauri was an exception and as we know even it can be susceptible to dry rot if fresh water gets in its end grain.

Des produced very good designs but he did not supervise the construction of boats built by others. There are plenty of Twilights  (and other wooden boats from that era) around with soft decks and other problems and Waimanu's loss shows how there can be hidden problems.

[Bad Kitty 324]

26 minutes ago, marinheiro said:

I was talking to Barry Jones today (we are marina neighbours) about edging on plywood (I have a plywood locker door that has sucked up some moisture as it does not have edging on the end grain) , he said that treated timbers can still go soft over time if they are in a damp/wet environment. He said heart kauri was an exception and as we know even it can be susceptible to dry rot if fresh water gets in its end grain.

Des produced very good designs but he did not supervise the construction of boats built by others. There are plenty of Twilights  (and other wooden boats from that era) around with soft decks and other problems and Waimanu's loss shows how there can be hidden problems.

Agree, Designers rarely supervise Construction. Look at all those Given powercats, built by Silver Tiger! Great design, built by gib stopping labourers! One of NZ boatbuilding's great horror stories. 

[marinheiro 365]

16 hours ago, Bad Kitty said:

Agree, Designers rarely supervise Construction. Look at all those Given powercats, built by Silver Tiger! Great design, built by gib stopping labourers! One of NZ boatbuilding's great horror stories. 

BK, I think you are being a bit unkind to Gib Stoppers there, most of them take some pride in their work. Really feel for anyone stuck with one of those cats, absolutely disgraceful what went on!

[Ex Machina 390]

Seen some horrific gibstopping done by boatbuilders ! 

[Wayne-o 12]

Bad Kitty, who are the two surveyors you use?

Also, interested in what people say about fijian kauri, as used in this Dickson 45 https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-marine/yachts/keeler/auction-2587783128.htm  Faster growing and softer than kauri, and apparently used alongside nz kauri in a triple skin build.

[Bad Kitty 324]

53 minutes ago, Wayne-o said:

Bad Kitty, who are the two surveyors you use?

Also, interested in what people say about fijian kauri, as used in this Dickson 45 https://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-marine/yachts/keeler/auction-2587783128.htm  Faster growing and softer than kauri, and apparently used alongside nz kauri in a triple skin build.

PM me a phone number if you want a chat, 

[Straight Laced 12]

21 hours ago, Tamure said:

Plenty of anecdotes about Des visiting some builds to make sure the windows were spot on etc, cant comment on specific boats. As you say treated timber can go soft (I've seen it personally) but it's an exception and probably other factors come into it, if you put enough CCA into pine for example you can build a wharf out of it! Heart kauri like any timber is susceptible to delignification through bad electrics, it can also get brittle with age and loses strength. Glued multi skin hull construction should be viewed more as a modern composite. Provided its sealed preferably with lots of epoxy and designed well it should retain integrity indefinitely. Water ingress is the enemy. 

I firmly believe that those 70's timber boats are the under appreciated classics of NZ boatbuilding (well at least some of them  )

My father bought the plug used for the production Townson 34s and finished it off himself. Although he never got a visit from Des, he did get a phone call regarding the shape of the cockpit coamings and a request to redo them to the exact design. The relationship then completely degenerated when Des found out that dad had installed the engine under the cockpit and not up by the mast. From my recollection, the method of construction was not necessarily a problem, rather than how the boat looked. He certainly had his spies out keeping an eye on things.

[muzled 140]

What about this?  Shallow draft, how would it go upwind?

https://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=2621272070

Looks like Balvenie the Townson 47 has sold?  It's been delisted from TM.

[Island Time 1,294]

good boat, but engine is likely nearing end of life.