Established in 2021 – Morwenstow North Cornwall
Home of a small workshop for boatbuilding, restoration and other matters……
Building of “Piety”
“Piety” is a 10’6’’ launch for The Rose of Devon which I built with a team of students on the Boat Building Academy course in 2020/21. She is based on the design of Morgan Giles circa 1922 and features a Stuart Turner single cylinder engine. She was launched on Oct 6th 2021.
Byzantine Ikons & Occasional Homilies
Margarita Kerdelas paints these in her studio in Chania Crete. Each year I add to this collection, using a particular theme from scripture…also occasional Sermons from Morwenstow Church…see menu below.
Rose of Devon “Rosey” 50 year Rebuild
John Foster Yeoman commissioned Edgar Cove of Salcombe Devon to build an ocean going Cruiser, tough and functional for exploration. I have been the owner for over 25 years and it’s time to rebuild her ready for coastal fishing. See menu
Rebuilding Rosey’s engine. The Gardner 5LW
John Yeoman as a Quarryman would have built the boat around the engine! So we have a beautiful 80hp slow speed 5 cylinder engine weighing 1.8t! It’s time for a full rebuild – see menu
The new Wheelhouse for Rosey
Simon Holman is a professional shipwright and marine designer responsible for the design and construction of the wheelhouse – based on this trawler – see menu
Black & White
Photographs taken the old fashioned way.,,
Crosstown Branch GWR
New for 2025…
At the turn of the 20th century circa 1905 a branch line reached the town of Crosstown in Cornwall… an outdoor model railway in scale 7 o gauge is under construction!
- Summer 2025
I will be 67 in September and have set myself the goal of relaunching Rose of Devon on my 70th Birthday. This seems to allow a great deal of time but there is much to do and it is driven by funding. However if money was unlimited I am not sure whether much time would be gained and I am enjoying not subcontracting the love of rebuilding carefully and well this lovely vessel.
This year should see the hull being fully planked and faired, possibly the engine reinstalled and most importantly getting on paper a marine design for the vessel, rigging and out fit.
This design will allow Rosey to sail with the wind as well as integrate the new wheel house with the accommodation.
This is now definitely not just a restoration project nor just a rebuild but a “new build with attitude” and flavour of the old.
Once we launch she can be based in Cornwall but also spend extensive periods in the high arctic…
I am starting a diploma course on Theology in September for the next two years so that fits in nicely with the pace of the rebuild.
Please look at each section for more detailed updates.
Richard
- Winter 2024
The 30’ long Iroka planks have been transported from storage in St Mawes to the Rose of Devon in Gweek and this month L’David, Simon and James start the hull planking. Rosey has been a consummate but rewarding project to have her stripped right down and now we are doing the rebuild – see Rose of Devon page.
Piety has been on “Sea Trials” to Ireland and this little gem is starting to come alive as you can see on her page..
I have added a new page on a Railway project at home called Crosstown GWR which will expand gradually as the boat building reduces.
Otherwise please enjoy the site and I will very regularly update the RofD site this winter in particular.
Richard Oct 10 24
- Spring 2024
Piety is being worked on at the moment as I fitted a new water pump to the Stuart Turner and put the garden hose into the bilge to run the engine and test the pump…all good except in the morning I found I’d forgotten to turn the hose off and the boat was full to the brim! Didn’t leak a drop but the engine is being squeezed out and all good. The main project is now to build an engine box to keep rain the off it. It’s happening..
Rose of Devon is awaiting planking and we will redo all the timbers or frames this spring.
Otherwise the most active page is “Black and White” currently and the camera is a gem. Richard
- Summer 2023
It’s been a great summer! I have been to the high Arctic with Ocean Warrior and there are some new photos of the trip in “Black and White”.. I am beginning to learn how this camera works and have had a great deal of encouragement to stop faffing and take photographs! So once you can put away the functions and just concentrate on the subject the old film method is really enjoyable and I can easily lose an hour wherever I am just looking around and snapping.
The tender Piety has been out a couple of times on trial this year and she is certainly a handful on the Helford estuary. We’ve found a rowing position aft and stabilised the motor… the Stuart Turner is really very good and she can steam at 5 – 6 knots. The problem was the water pump and the engine was often producing steam so that’s been replaced and it pumps well now…in fact I did a trial at home with the garden hose pipe feeding water to the pump and all was spot on..but I left the hose on overnight and the entire boat was full with water and not a single leak..Piety has a very strong hull..! The ST engine is used to getting wet from heavy rain and the gear box takes in water requiring a flush out and oil change; so this winter the engine box will be built as well as finishing the sole boards etc. I visited Morgan Giles original boat in Falmouth Maritime Museum recently called “Schh” and will follow some of its internal structures in due course. See below
Margarita in the Byzantine Ikon section has been struggling with the “Palm Sunday” Ikon for 2023 as the paint is coming away slightly and she wants to redo this entirely… its interesting to see how durable traditional Ikons are as they often suffered extreme conditions in unheated Churches so getting it right is a great skill as they need to last centuries. More to follow!
The real challenge this summer has been the rebuild programme of the Rose of Devon…(shall I rename her Havet?!) This has involved enormous work from Simon, David and recently Sean…see below
We have had the vessel in a workshop in Gweek to carry out the backbone and re-planking works and this has involved David working on site for a month at a time with Simon and Sean – wonders never cease as they put this old girl together again..
For much more details look through the menus.
Richard
“Houses are but badly built boats so firmly aground that you cannot think of moving them. They are definitely inferior things, belonging to the vegetable not the animal world, rooted and stationary, incapable of gay transition. I admit, doubtfully, as exceptions, snail shells and caravans.
Arthur Ransome
The desire to build a house is the tired wish of a man content thenceforward with a single anchorage. The desire to build a boat is the desire of youth, unwilling yet to accept the idea of a final resting place.”
For enquiries please contact Richard at richard.painter1[@]icloud.com
For the Menu …. see bottom right corner
Shipwright At Morwenstow by Richard M Painter 