The Argie 15

This is one of our more popular dinghy kits, you could say its a three in one dinghy?

Nick built this Argie 15 from one of our kits.

Sail, motor and camping?

A trailer is a good idea if you wish to move the boat, if your alongside a water way you can easily move the boat to the water with just two persons.

http://sayachts.blogspot.co.za/2014/06/argie-15.html

This boat is a very fine sailer.

My thanks to Justin for use of his SA Yacht Blog on the design.

Roy

Winter weather scenes in the Cape Town area

More about the Hout Bay area really but as Hout Bay is at the rear of Table Mountain it can be said to be close enough?

This view was taken from the 1967 Hillman Imp Californian that has just been restored.

The Sentinel is the name of the peak that watches over the entry to Hout Bay.

This view is looking into Hout Bay.

The Californian with the Sentinel in the distance.

Fine winter weather !

Roy

Basils Argie 15 kit build

We supplied Basil with the Argie 15 kit earlier this year, that kit included the meranti wood, Ronstan deck package and also the North Sails.

In this picture we can see that twin pack white paint was applied before the side seats were fitted.

This really does make the end result tops and to my mind is well worth the effort.

Here the side and center seats are in place, what a nice set of lockers to store your equipment in.

These are the dagger board case and the mast step partners.

Roy

Perkins 4108 marine diesel restoration machining

This is the kind of work we can put into our engine rebuilds.

The pictures will enlarge if you click on them.

The pulley is some thirty six years old, there was a wear groove where the lip seal fits, we had a sleeve fitted to give a perfect surface once more.

The pulley will now give perfect service for many more decades.

Roy

The Perkins 4108 marine diesel rebuild

This engine was bought in as a project, there was no time frame and no end use for it, no customer either.

It was one of those things I had wanted to do, rebuild a diesel engine.

Check those timing marks.

The CAV diesel pump was fully rebuilt, the picture shows it full of clean diesel fuel I am in the process of setting the timing marks here.

The engine was started with the water cooling and heat exchanger removed, this gives much better access to the injectors and the pump.

Check the exhaust smoke, the engine is running!

Later and with the water cooling system fitted, check the flywheel, the engine has some speed on it here.

As the new piston rings bedded in the exhaust smoke stopped, check the flywheel, its spinning at about 2000 rpm, with the water cooling fitted the engine was run a good while.

Will I do another Perkins 4108 diesel ?

One, I have no second engine and two it will be to a customers order next time, this one has been sold.

Roy

Basils Argie 15 build progress

News in from Basil in Switzerland, we have sent him four CKD Boats dinghy kits now.

Hi Roy

I made progress building the argie, it makes me happy working on it.

The Hull is inside pre-sanded. I decided to put big waterproof inspection covers on the top of the seat risers. inside i put an epoxy coat, sanded it and then painted it white with 2c paint.

Basil is working very neatly and taking the time to get a good finish prior to the painting process.

Roy

Is it Brasil or Brazil?

The Olympics 2016 are now on, so a good time to raise this interesting subject.

Having lived in various parts of South Americas,Brasil, for at least a year, I can confirm that as far as the locals are concerned there is no Z in the name Brasil.

File image, my thanks for it use.

That is the huge Maracana stadium in the distance.

Please write Brasil next time! 

I have a match box here ,made by OLHO, it is marked Industria Brasilia.

Justin who is a regular viewer of this blog found a very interesting web site on the subject.

http://umanota.ca/brasilvsbrazil/

He and myself still us the spelling Brasil (smile )

Roy

Watson & Co garage in Liverpool

This picture was found on the web site ' Liverpool Picture Book '  my thanks for them posting it.

The last time I was in that garage I think my grandad was still alive, he was the general manager then.

 Click on the image to enlarge it.

My grandads name was Fred Ford, Watson & Son were Morris sales and service agents.

Was I about twelve when I was last there?

I was being primed to become a Morris mechanic, under the watchful eyes of my grandad I guess it was a good plan. I had no plans to get my hands dirty and became a joiner in the end.

Grandad passed away around that time and from TB, a terrible waste of a great man.

1929 Rolls Royce 20hp Watsons of Liverpool Tourer for sale for £62,000 by Vintage & Prestige Automobiles Ltd, Essex

A vintage Rolls Royce which was designed and created at Liverpool coach-making company Watsons of Liverpool is up for sale for the bargain price of just £62,000.

The stunning 1929 car had its main body fitted by the company which was founded by Liverpool-born racing driver and motoring pioneer, William Watson.

Operating out of Renshaw Street in the city centre, Watson became one of the first Rolls Royce agents in 1908 after testing the Silver Ghost Rolls Royce the previous year and being impressed with its quietness and performance.

As the firm grew, Watsons of Liverpool became one of the leading companies which built tailor-made bodies for Rolls Royce and Morris chassis and eventually Jaguar in 1930.

Watson even extended his skills to help with the war effort during both world wars.
During World War I, Watson manufactured shell cases and aeroplane propellers and repaired fighter aircraft during World War II.

The 1929 Rolls Royce was repatriated to the UK after spending much of its life in a California museum.

Amazingly the car is in a virtually original state, with the same plum-coloured paint that was painted on it in the 1920s and the original UK registration number.

Now its owner is offering someone else the chance to feel the wind in their hair as they cruise around in the vintage set of wheels.

If you’ve got a spare £62,000 to spare then it could be you sitting in the driving seat.

http://www.digplanet.com/wiki/William_Watson_%28motoring_pioneer%29

The history of William Watson!

Roy

Dabchick dinghy news update

In June 2016 we were asked to build a Dabchick, this of course would be a CNC kit built boat.

As it turned out nothing happened but today we have been asked about the supply of a good number of them and for a yacht club ?

If anyone is thinking along the same lines please make contact with me so we can discuss the idea and the way forward.

Roy

The Dabchick dinghy as a kit?

The Dabchick dinghy is mentioned in the April copy of Sailing (SA) magazine.

We have been asked to consider building one and if that was to happen we would produce a Dabchick kit.

The design is coming up for sixty years old now and depending who you ask has seen some 3000 to 5000 built to date.

Please contact me for more information on a kit.

There is lots more info on the Dabchick design in the link

http://sayachts.blogspot.co.za/2013/10/dabchick.html

Thanks to Mossel Bay Yacht Club for all these pics,

and to Tracy London for bringing them to my attention!

From the SA Yacht Blog, please view it and see the other pictures.

DABCHICK ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA

PART 1                                                      INTRODUCTION

In the year 1955 the prototype of the Dabchick was designed by Mr Jack Koper of Cape Town.  He studied the Sailfish, an American designed 'skimmer', but  arrived at the conclusion that she was unsuitable.  He then worked on a plan  to make a flat bottomed boat out of three sheets of plywood and this became  the basis of his thinking and design.  Knowing that plywood is not easy to  bend or twist the rounded bow was adopted, and so the Dabchick was slowly  planned - much of it during sleepless hours in bed.

The first boat was narrower in the beam and had a more rounded bow and a curved transom.  This design proved rather a headache for youngsters to make.  After a season's sailing where she proved herself, a small jib was added and  this improved her performance.  The designer went to work on improving the  design.  There was enough plywood to increase the beam, the bow was widened and a genoa-type jib added. The plans were first published in June 1956.

The growth of the Dabchick was phenomenal and over 3 600 plans have been  issued to prospective builders.  The boats are normally constructed of wood but G.R.P. boats are also available.

The designer handled the class single-handed until the 1st February, 1970,  when the South African Yacht Racing Association agreed to the formation of an Association to be known as the Dabchick Association of SA ( DASA. ) to promote the development of the class, the training of its members, and to  ensure that the boats comply with the rules of the class as approved by the Council of the South African Yacht Racing Association.  A Constitution was drawn up and approved by the members on the 6th January 1971, and the Dabchick was given National Status by the National Authority.

Eric Burner, commonly known as "Father Dabchick" was the first person behind the formation of the National Dabchick Class Association in 1970 and through his efforts it soon became a South African National Class.

The Dabchick has proved herself over the years to be an excellent trainer for the young of both sexes between the ages of seven and eighteen years. The Dabchick can be sailed single-handed or with a crew.

The Dabchick has helped young people to learn how to sail. A number of them have shown top form in senior classes, obtaining the award of National colours.

Since 1985 the Class Secretariat has been administered first by the South African Yacht Racing Association and from 2002 by South African Sailing.

Car licence plate for Mozambique in 1975?

Mozambique in 1975 may be incorrect but it will be a fair start?

I am trying to find out which town or city and in which province the number plate MLH-27-23 belongs to?

The picture was taken in a Johannesburg police pound prior to an auction when the 1967 Hillman Imp Californian was sold. The date is not known but circa 1980/82 as the car was then licenced on the Transvaal roads by the new owner in 1982.

It is known that M is for Mozambique and the next two letters for the town or city that licenced the car, which town is that?

A further clue may be the red tax disc on the windscreen, does the red disc denote a month?

The car as it is today.

Roy

Flemings jeans from Liverpool.

Circa 1963 before and after, these well made jeans were sold close to Tysons Building Contractors of 5 Dryden Street where I worked and just off Scotland Road , Liverpool.

They can now be bought once again!

A Brief History of Flemings

The first and possibly the most credible name in jeanswear to come out of Merseyside. W H Fleming founded his clothier company in the Scotland road area of Liverpool in the year 1881. Eight years after Levi Strauss won the patent for riveted pants in the USA, W H Fleming had imported the idea and began manufacturing similar work- wear for the seamen of this fair port.

http://www.flemingsjeansliverpool.com/about.html

Size 34 will cost you just GBP30.00

Postage to RSA is only GBP14 so still less than you will pay for Levi's in the UK today?

http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/mol/exhibitions/liverpoollives/william_henry_fleming.aspx

They offer a logo with the Liver Bird on the pocket or without it, also the name on the back of the jeans as we normally find.

A letter head and a note as a reference?

Dated 12 /01/1911, does 150 Scotland Road in Liverpool still exist, it was on the city end of the road and a lot of road re planning has taken place down there over the years.

The shop that Flemings opened further out of the city can be seen here, the Astoria  is the building on the left, the area is known as Walton Road. The date was in 1973.

My thanks to http://www.liverpoolpicturebook.com/2014/09/Picsoftheday.html   for the use of their picture.

There is a new brand logo now, is it new or a copy of the old one?

My thanks to the Liverpool Picture Book for posting the photos.

This one  was taken on Walton Road in 1973.

In case your wondering, I have no association with Flemings and I have never owned a pair of their jeans either, maybe one day?

Roy

Huguenot Monument and two classic cars

This will have been circa 1970 or thereabouts?

The grey car is a 1964 Hillman Imp, the Mini will date from about the same period.

Jean Paarman is inside the Imp, that is George and Colleen standing on the lawn, the Mini belonged to George.

The monument still exists but I doubt that the cars do?

http://www.hugenoot.org.za/huge2.htm

Roy

Judy Reid, at the RCYC in 1982

This was the year that the Cape to Uruguay ocean yacht race was on, Judy was selling the race programs.

Picture taken by Ivor M (name obscured in the cutting)

The picture was taken from one of the Cape Town news papers, I have kept it all these years!

We are still in touch with Judy (now Timms)  who now lives down on the island of Tasmania.

She was in Cape Town last month  ( June 2016?) 

Roy

Restoration of a Hillman Imp Californian car

The 1967 Hillman Imp Californian took some 24 months to restore,

The car is now close to complete, the fitting of new disc brakes on the front may be the next job to do, the discs are in stock, so an easy job to fit.

This is how the front disc sets look when fitted to the Imp car, this one has extra length studs to accept Supalite alloy rims, which were fitted on a race imp in 2012.

The calipers are Ford and suit the Imp when it has the 13" rims fitted.

With the Imp Sport engine conversion this 875cc engine gives a good acceleration over the standard Imps engine.

Roy

British Seagull 102 series restoration?

This will be my last 'customer ' restoration of a British Seagull?

Click on the images to enlarge them.

I say 'the last' as the cost to parts and labour just is not cheap, time taken is countless hours, which if I charged on a normal mechanics or a plumbers hourly rate would escalate my charges beyond affordability?

I have one more 102 series similar to the one in the picture, that will be done as an in house stock motor and for sale.

The engine above came in last February 2015, that is over six months ago, the time to source spare parts comes to much of that time and of course the final cost to the restoration.

The same engine, bench tested and ready to be collected?

Roy