long time lurkewr now joined

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piquet95971
Posts: 713
Joined: 15 Oct 2009, 19:39
Location: Forest hill Melbourne

long time lurkewr now joined

Postby piquet95971 » 16 Oct 2009, 19:31

Hi guys Allow me to introduce myself and tell you a bt about myself
I have been watching this board for quite a while and have finally joined
I am a Naval Shipwright by trade and did my apprenticeship at HMAS Nirimba where we learned all sorts of trades including Boat Building. We had many really great instructors in the mid 1960's when I did my apprenticeship. One of them was the foreman on the Dame Pattie 12 mtr Americas cup boat. So we ahd some of the best. We worked on all sorts of wooden boats that the RAN had at the time many were clinker including 27' Whalers, 14' Dinghys, 32' Motor Cutters and lots of other strange things. We had a couple of double diagonal motor cutters and the like to learn on as well.
My last job working on boats was running the slipway at HMAS Cerberus where we were maintaining the NAVY 40'wooden work boats and the 60Tow Boat. This was interesting as it was carvel construction and copper sheathed. I have also worked on the old SDB WW2 wooden patrol boats that the NAVY had in use upto the late 1970's. We also had lots of plastic boats which were better as they required a lot less maintenance and were easier to keep clean.
I am very interested in the type of boats to which you guys are dedicated. Some where I still have the notes from my apprenticeship and will try and find them as they may be a source of info for anybody interested.
The boat that quite takes my fancy at the moment is the boat in Portland but it really doesn't look like the lewis boats that we saw in the 60's or is that just my old age fuzziness.
cheers for now
Peter neddon

Jeff
Posts: 61
Joined: 12 Mar 2009, 06:48

Re: long time lurkewr now joined

Postby Jeff » 16 Oct 2009, 20:06

Hi Peter
I am guessing the HMAS Nirimba is at Quakers Hill NSW.

Jeff

piquet95971
Posts: 713
Joined: 15 Oct 2009, 19:39
Location: Forest hill Melbourne

Re: long time lurkewr now joined

Postby piquet95971 » 16 Oct 2009, 20:44

Yes that is correct. It was the site of the old schofields areodrome and the home of the Fleet Air arm during WW2. Many a sauturday was spent watching the trainee pilots on the DCA side of the air strip and waiting for them to trip over the barbed wire fence in their planes: only happened one though to the great amusement of the assembled apprentices!!!! we were poorly paid so that was considered great amusement. What the saying about small minds!!!
After the Navy decided to not train their own apprentices in the 1980's the whole place was sold off to the NSW Government and it is now Nirimba TAFE

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bootlegger
Posts: 1472
Joined: 09 Mar 2009, 20:18

Re: long time lurkewr now joined

Postby bootlegger » 16 Oct 2009, 20:59

Welcome to the forum. Are you in Sydney if so give us a call some time. Dave 0413766501


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