I first saw this boat in 2000 on a mooring in Paremata harbour looking very sad and half full of water, she had been fibre glassed and was bright orange. Someone had added a small fore deck and lifted the shear at the bow and stern so they could put a outboard on her and give her more freeboard, most of this was rotten.
I tracked down the owner but he would not part with her as he was going to use her, all he did was bail her out occasionally. She did not move. two years later she sunk.I contacted the owner again and told him that She had sunk. We meet down at the harbour and he agreed to give her to me. She was sitting in 10 ft of water, he had no way of salvaging her. 6 hrs later we had her on a trailer and in our workshops some of the mussels were 5″ long I striped the fibreglass and left her to dry out for the next 9 months.
The Boat (Heather)
The hull, ribs, floors and seats are all kauri.
The stem and all the knees are puriri. She is 18’2 long 4’6 beam a double planked shear,
no inner gunnels 2 inches off shear over 18ft.
she did not look right. She was very lightly built and having so little shear it looked like she dipped at the bow. Once I had removed all the add on’s. I found the stern was rotten, the shear planks /stem inner and outer were also rotten.
Heather as she is nowThe first job was to replace the transom, then the inner and outer stem and the shear planks.I lifted the shear at the bow by 3 inches and what a difference. Next I removed all the ribs, seat and foot blocks and repeard the planks, fitted the new floors and primed the interior. I then re ribed and re fastened her and top coated all the interior.
The new stirn knees, outer stem and breasthook are pahutakawa as puriri was not available. The seats and shearplanks are kauri and are to be varnished. I am now fitting the new seats.
Heather is now finished!
(Ready to rib) 
(Putting in the seats)