Small craft
Buzzards Bay 14
(REF: 18397)£SOLD
Full specification
Wooden ships comments on this Buzzards Bay 14
This respected American day boat was designed by the great L. Francis Herreshoff as the Buzzard’s Bay 14 being 14’ wl. 17’ overall.
The design is a development of the designer’s father’s Haven 12 ½ and has proved very popular due to her ease of handling, her increased capability, her sparkling performance and her ability to carry up to 6 crew making her a perfect family day-boat. She is a sit down inside boat so ideally suited for small children or timid sailors. While she is obviously not an off-shore sailing yacht, she is very capable in the right hands of taking really quite rough open waters making her a very versatile craft.
Length overall 17’9”
Lwl 14’1”
Beam 5’10”
Draft 2’6”
Sail area 103sq’
Displacement 2000lbs approx
As seen in the out of water photos the design features a steeply raked stern post with the rudder hung on the back and a cut away fore foot allowing her to turn readily while still retaining a long keel for directional stability.
The cross section, freeboard and marked sheer all give her the stability of a stiff, dry boat that does not heel to every gust.
Built by one of Cornwall’s best known and most experienced boat builders, David Walkey for himself and sold after he found he was too busy to sail her. (He was rebuilding Bristol Channel Pilot Cutters!).
Sold to the present owners about 12 years ago she was sailed on Lake Windermere in the Lake District, launched as required and dry stored ashore every winter.
She has a custom made road trailer with a launching dolly so that the road trailer itself need never go in the water. It also is dry stored under cover all year.
For health reasons and unwilling to give in, she has been ashore for the past 3 years and only now has the owner reluctantly accepted that she is unlikely to sail again. It can happen to the best and fittest of us.
Construction
Cold moulded approx 1” thick in mahogany. This form of construction involves building moulds (or formers) of the cross section at several points down the length of the hull and mounting them upside down with the laminated back-bone on a frame to stabilise the whole structure. Numerous stringers are then attached the length of the boat to give a ghost shape to the hull.
Mahogany boards are then machined to approx ¼” thick and 4” wide and laid diagonally over the hull shape. A second layer is glued to the first in the opposite diagonal and so on with several layers to a total thickness of 1”.
The hull is then faired off, turned over and fitted out with deck and cock-pit structures.
The result is a structurally stable hull, totally water-tight and very strong without excessive weight.
She carries a long external lead ballast keel of around 600kg secured with stainless steel keel bolts through the oak “floors” or cross sectional members in the bilge.
The deck is laid in marine play and covered with glass cloth in epoxy resin to give a very low maintenance surface.
Varnished mahogany coamings and a varnished deck edge rubbing strake give her the class of a wooden boat, otherwise easily mistaken for a plastic hull which a proud owner would never wish.
To add to the charm the transom is also varnished!
The gleaming perfectly fair white enamel topsides, blue antifouling and scarlet red boot top give her a stunning look.
The cock-pit has wide varnished mahogany bench seats set well down within the coamings to give a secure sense of sitting in the boat rather than perched on top of her and teak gratings in the well.
Rig.
Fractional bermudian sloop rig setting 100sq’ in mainsail and jib on a rectangular section varnished spruce mast stepped through the fore deck onto the keel.
Stainless steel standing rigging to internal stainless steel chain plates.
Standing back-stay for ease of handling.
Original white terylene mainsail and jib by Dolphin Sails in excellent condition have seen relatively little use.
Equipment.
Legs.
Mooring warps.
Fenders.
Boom tent
Cock-pit cover.
Road trailer.
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Disclaimer:
These particulars have been prepared in good faith from information provided by the Vendors and are intended as a guide, Wooden Ships cannot guarantee or warrant the accuracy of this information nor warrant the condition of the vessel. The Purchaser should instruct his agent or surveyor to validate all details as necessary and satisfy himself with the condition of the vessel and its equipment.
