Tally Ho - Rebuilding a 107 year old sailing yacht!!

[Tasky]

My best mate showed me some videos about what his cousin (a sailor, boat-builder and writer) is currently up to - I thought people might find it interesting...

"Well, I’ve gone and done something very silly. I’ve bought Tally Ho.
She cost me £1, and she’s not quite ‘ready-to-go’. She’s a 107-year-old Albert Strange designed Gaff Cutter, 47’ on deck, and she needs a total rebuild."


The project:
http://sampsonboat.co.uk/category/tally-ho/

The boat:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tally_Ho_(yacht)


Leo's project was recently visited by James Wright (Wood By Wright) as well:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTOi8NsbAPo
Check out the awesome bandsaw!!

 

[wallace]

I've been watching him for a while now, hes got a cracking ship saw. Very clever chap

 

[Harbo]

Yes so have I, if only I was younger!

It’s great that he’s going to all that trouble and detail to get it right.

Rod

 

[powertools]

I have to say that I have no interest in boats but I have watched all his videos and am full of admiration for what he is trying to achieve, his skill and knowledge level and his determination to do the almost impossible.

 

[El Barto]

Amazing! Thanks for sharing.

 

[MikeG.]

I've caught up with the whole thing. It's really interesting, but I find it all a bit too brutal and disrespectful of the original. When he's finished there will be very little left of the original. Just the hatches as far as I can see, and the stem and stern timbers. None of the original metal work will be re-used either. He's going to have a lovely boat out of it, and a large number of internet followers, but he'll end up with Tally Ho 2, not Tally Ho.

 

[Tasky]

I've caught up with the whole thing. It's really interesting, but I find it all a bit too brutal and disrespectful of the original. When he's finished there will be very little left of the original. Just the hatches as far as I can see, and the stem and stern timbers. None of the original metal work will be re-used either. He's going to have a lovely boat out of it, and a large number of internet followers, but he'll end up with Tally Ho 2, not Tally Ho.

Watching Leo's latest video, I was reminded of this post.
He was doing a presentation on the project to the Royal Ocean Racing Club and addressed this very matter, as he gets asked about it a lot.

Apparently most wooden boats were designed and built to have most parts replaced periodically as they deteriorated, and the only reason he's having to replace so much now is because previous owners had neglected to do so. He's basically got decades of maintenance to catch up on... That, and also the restoration of some parts that were patched/remodelled away from the original anyway.
Given the history, the use and abuse this boat has suffered under later owners, anything done to it would be an improvement.

I believe he's retaining a lot of the existing planking as well, though.

https://youtu.be/KmoriWFU-VU?t=1451

 

[El Barto]

This reminds me of an Instagram account I've been following with interest. Turns out they also have a YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAiDWn ... Cp6uuUo0VA

"We are building a 38’ sailboat from stump to ship, once complete she will take us around the world. We hope to inspire and educate as many people as possible along the way. Join us on our journey and let us show you that with a bit of dedication, good company and some old school smarts even the wildest of dreams can be made to come true!"

 

[MikeG.]

I stand by what I said. He'll end up with a new boat, with a tiny number of bits from the old one. It's a beautiful new boat he is building, and the project is extremely worthy and great watching, but he is building a replica, not rebuilding an old boat. He should have just scavenged the pieces he wanted from the old one, junked the rest, and started work on a new one without all of the old stuff in the way. There would have been absolutely no difference in the outcome, except it would have happened sooner, and for less money.

He's a really impressive young man, I have to say. I wish he would get in a video editor (as Acorn to Arabella have) so that he could spend more time shipbuilding, and so that we could have a video every week rather than every fortnight.

 

[thetyreman]

his story is interesting, I like how he started out and hustled his way into boat building by asking for a job directly instead of going to college. I'm excited about seeing the final finished boat, it's going to be special!