The bi-annual Alan Chinn Award was inaugurated by the WBA in 2019 to recognise the efforts, skills and passions of WBA members who have built or restored boats over the previous two years. Six members and their boats have been nominated for the 2021-23 Alan Chinn Award, which will be presented at the AGM on Sunday 23rd July 2023. To showcase the work of our members, here is a brief description of the nominees and their boatbuilding projects, which have been also presented in Shavings over the previoust few months. They show the range and variety of challenging and satisfying projects that WBA members undertake.
Click on the image to see a larger version.
CONGRATULATIONS TO PETER BATCHELOR - WINNER OF THE 2021-23 ALAN CHINN AWARD!
Teal, built by Chris Kelly
Teal is a "garvey", designed by Doug Hylan, a regular contributor to Wooden Boat magazine. A garvey is an American term for a transom bowed open motor boat used for fishing and workboat duties. Teal is 5.1 metres long with a 1.8 metre beam. Power is provided by a 20.horsepower Tohatsu outboard motor which easily lifts the boat onto a plane and gives a comfortable cruising speed.
Chris Kelly is a past President of the WBA and has built a number of boats over the years. Teal was built at The Wooden Boat Centre at Docklands using the workshop facilities provided there by Nick Atkins, a WBA member, who digitised the plans and then modified them by decreasing the rake on the transom and adding the flotation sponsons to the stern to offset the weight of the outboard, reduce cavitation wash and increase the waterline length. The panels were cut out with a CNC router to create step scarfs for joining.
The boat was built using the stitch and glue plywood and epoxy method in an external mould. The photo shows Teal on last year's WBA Yarra River trip from Williamstown to Herring Island and return.
Mini-Mars, built by Andrew Campbell
Mini Mars is a radio controlled model boat which is a scaled down 1/8th replica of Andrew Campbell's tugboat, Mars, which he built 11 years ago.
The same methods and materials (including paint) were used to build the model as to build the full size boat. Andrew also made a stand and box to contain all the items that are needed for using the radio controlled model, as shown in the photo.
Andrew is a past president of the WBA and has taken Mars to Wooden Boat festivals in Paynesville, Goolwa and elsewhere to promote the skills and the joys of boat building, particularly for children. Mini Mars attracts the interest of onlookers at WBA events in a similar way. There is even a plan for a "Micro Mars" cardboard cut out model for children to make and colour.
Derry, a Chesapeake Light Craft Skerry design, built by Gary Hardy
Gary built this boat to the plans drawn by John Harris of Chesapeake Light Craft (CLC) based in North America.
He cut out the panels from the plans and assembled the boat using the lapstitch method and epoxy glue. Gary launched the boat in July 2021. The boat is 15 feet long with a 4ft 6in beam and only weighs 95 pounds (Americans don't use metric measurements). It carries a 56 square foot lugsail on a freestanding mast. The narrow double ended hull requires a push-pull tiller so that a single handed skipper can sit near the centre of the boat for good fore and aft trim.
Gary says he built the boat as his "forever boat" because it meets his requirements for a lightweight boat that is easy to launch from a beach and is car-toppable The boat is easy to rig for sailing and is able to make good speed as an efficient rowing boat. And beyond all those requirements it is an attractive fine lined design.
Pitthirrit, a B&B Yacht Designs Lapwing 16, built by Peter Batchelor
Peter built the boat from plans provided by B and B Yachts. The only modification to the plans was to have an open "scupper gunwale" instead of the sidedecks on the plan.
He had built a Core Sound 17 some years ago, which is one of their hard chine plywood designs. The main dimensions are: length 15ft 8ins, beam 5ft 6ins. The plywood clinker epoxy construction of the Lapwing was used as a challenge to extend his boatbuilding skills. Getting the run of the clinker planks to look fair and true is no small achievement and his success is obvious from looking at the finished boat.
The masts were made from Oregon which originally came from Alan Chinn's collection, via Jim Stockton. The freestanding masts are hollow and were constructed using the birdsmouth technique, with extra birdsmouth inserts to strengthen the lower ends. The wishbone booms were laminated from the same Oregon timber.
'Pitthirrit' is an aboriginal word for plover (or masked lapwing) in the Dhauwurd Wurrung language of the area around Warrnambool.
Lily, built by Kelvin Gedye and Josephine Vaughan (Palz)
The Moyne 10 rowing/sailing dinghy is one of Nick Atkins' dinghy designs and is built using the epoxy-glued clinker plywood system. The principal dimensions are:- Length: 10ft
: 4ft 2 ins Weight: 130 lb.
Kelvin and his partner Palz built the boat at Nick Atkins' Wooden Boat Centre in Docklands. They have taken great care to ensure every detail of the boat is completed to a high standard. This includes specially purchased bronze fittings that are more in keeping with the style of the boat. The rudder, rowlocks and the mast hardware are all bronze and the ropes and cordage have a traditional look.. The name of the boat is beautifully carved into the transom.
As WBA members we will see Kelvin and Palz sailing Lily on the lake at sailing days at APYC. With a new trailer and cover Lily is well set up for travelling to all the events in the wooden boat calendar.
Iain Oughtred designed Elfyn, built by Andrew Yen
Andrew began this project in late 2021 as a project to see out the Covid period. He says he always has to have a project underway and as the saying goes 'bound is the boatless man' so a boat building project it had to be. Andrew wanted a viking style boat and Oughtred's Norwegian Hardanger Faering design known as the Elfyn is a very authentic interpretation of the type for the epoxy-glued plywood clinker style of construction.
The Elfyn's main specifications are:- Length: 16ft 6ins Beam: 4ft 9ins Weight: 180lbs
With a dedication to producing an authentic looking faering, Andrew has coated the boat in a tinted polyeurethane finish to look like the pine tar applied to the timber in Norway. He has also fitted trunnels along the plank laps although they are mainly for appearance and do not hold the planks together, the epoxy glue achieves that purpose. The intention is to give the boat a viking style square rig which should provide some entertaining string pulling for the crew and some challenges when tacking.
The Elfyn is close to being completed at time of writing. Andrew has not yet chosen a name for the boat and he is hoping to launch the boat at the WBA AGM at APYC on 23rd July.
