1933 Ernest Collins Valkyrie River Cruiser Class #423 - £8,000

Status : SOLD

Lying : Norfolk Broads - Viewing strictly by appointment through Topsail

(Please scroll down to the 'Images' section below for more photos.)

General Specification

Designer : Ernest Collins
Builder : Ernest Collins, Wroxham
LOA : 9.14m (30ft 0in)
LWL : 8.53m (28ft 0in)
Beam : 2.74m (9ft 0in)
Draft : 1.07m (3ft 6in)
Air Draft : 1.98m (6ft 6in)
Keel : Fin

Construction

• Wood carvel construction
• Larch boards on oak frames
• Oak hog
• Iroko transom
• Decks relayed with 19mm marine ply, covered in epoxied fibreglass cloth and finished with 3 coats Jotun Hardtop two pack paint
• White topsides & bright varnished cabin sides & coaming
• Full length side lifting roof with gas struts for easy lifting
• Full comprehensive restoration over 25 years from virtually derelict
• Annually wintered ashore or stored in wet shed
• Condition report from 2021 for insurance purposes

Rigging & Sails

• Gaff rig
• New hollow mast (2016)
• Original wooden gaff and boom (good condition)with pine boom on self-tacking jib
• Counter-balanced mast stepped in wooden tabernacle for easy lowering/raising (re-balanced as part of restoration)
• Mast step & tabernacle renewed in oak and reinforced
• Standing rigging replaced 2016
• Running rigging replaced to synthetic hemp rope (2016)
• Gaff mainsail (old but in good condition and sets well)
• Jib (old, but in good condition and sets well)
• Full length sail cover and snood for boom end
• RCC handicap: -22%p

Mechanical & Electrical

• 6hp Tohatsu 4-stroke ultra long shaft petrol outboard (approx 45 hours)
• Engine professionally serviced annually (last serviced 2022 as very little use)
• Plastic 12L fuel tank
• Remote throttle and gear selector with charging system (as yet unused)
• 12v leisure battery and small solar panel
• Tiller steering

Accommodation

• 4 berths in 2 cabins
• 2 x single berths in forecabin
• 2 x single berths in saloon
• Galley with Flavel Vanessa cooker with 2 burners, grill and oven and small sliding hatch above cooker for ventilation
• Ample storage for pot & pans, food and crockery etc
• Heads compartment with new (2023) Jabsco sea toilet (no holding tank)
• Sink in forecabin with cold supply
• 30L Polyethene freshwater tank
• 12v LED lighting above all berths, and in heads and galley
• 2x paraffin lamps in saloon
• Mahogany drop leaf table
• Traditional bronze opening portlights
• Full length side lifting cabin roof providing good headroom

Equipment

• Boom tent zipped to summer cover (made in 'Topgun' by Creative Covers, 2016)
• Boat Safety Scheme certificate to July 2027
• 2 x fire extinguishers (not guaranteed in date)
• Carbon monoxide alarm
• All deck fittings replaced including stem head & cleats (2016)
• Mast/boom crutches
• Mud weight
• Rhond anchors
• Quant pole
• Boat hook
• Mop
• Various warps
• Various fenders

Remarks

This beautifully traditional River Cruiser Class yacht was rescued from an unthinkable fate in 1990 by her previous owner who lovingly restored her over a period of 25 years.

Replacing nearly everything except the main beam, stem, forward part of the hog and cabin sides she's been fully rebuilt with great care and attention and is well maintained by her current owner of the last couple of years.

Owing to age and ill health, she is now looking for a new custodian to love and cherish her!

An account of restoration works by her previous owner:

• Hull and Superstructure:
• The hog, from stern to saloon, was replaced with oak, the rest from saloon to stem was replaced in 2021 (by a well respected boat yard).
• New ribs were constructed using laminated, epoxied Khaya in the saloon area, all 66 other ribs were replaced with steamed oak.
• All floors and cabin sole replaced and hull ceiling covered using mahogany strips.
• A new iroko transom and oak transom knee was fitted and all deck beams replaced with oak.
• The deadwood was replaced with scots pine and new keel bolts installed.
• All hull planking was renewed using larch, with topside seams epoxied and underwater seams caulked with cotton and then filled with Sikaflex.
• The decks were re-laid using 19mm marine ply covered in epoxied fibreglass cloth and three coats of Jotun Hardtop deck paint, which was coloured by the manufacturers to match the colour of the Trakmark used on the cabin roof.
• The large cabin roof was refurbished, covered in Trakmark and adapted to lift sideways. It had new material fitted (2016) along the side, front and back. It also has gas struts to enable it to be raised and lowered with one hand.
• During the time of restoration the hull was supported to the correct shape and a new beam shelf was inserted below the old one to retain the shape and then the old beam shelf was removed and replaced, hence two beam shelves.

• Cockpit/Well:
• The well bulkheads were constructed using cedar and the internal bulkheads using marine ply with cedar facings.
• The well, which was completely rebuilt, has three drop-down lockers on each side, two of which also have access from above and there is a large locker under the afterdeck, which houses the outboard petrol tank.
• The well was extended by using a curved coaming at the stern such that with the boom tent up(new 2016), the well is a very spacious area. A new summer cover over the cabin was also made at the same time by Creative Covers of Catfield.

• Rigging:
• The mast step and tabernacle were renewed in oak, with the tabernacle being "beefed up" with the addition of extra lodging knees to the upper beam shelf and two hanging knees fixed to main beam and tabernacle.
• The mast counter weight was adjusted such that the mast is perfectly counterbalanced and can therefore be raised and lowered, easily, by one person with heel tackle if required.

• Accommodation:
• The original cabin sides and fronts were refurbished and refitted.
• The accommodation layout was converted back to the original, with two berths in the saloon and two berths in the forecabin.
• The forecabin bunk fronts and drawers were reused and new ones made for the saloon.
• A small wardrobe was constructed between the heads and the forecabin.
• The two cabins are separated by the heads to port and galley to starboard. The forecabin has a washbasin, with a foot pump and the galley has a small slop basin with a hand pump and cupboards for storage of provisions and a hatch under the side deck for storage of pots and pans. In the saloon there is a sideboard under each side deck for storage of cutlery and crockery.
• There are shelves under all side decks, including in the well.
• The saloon is carpeted the forecabin has vinyl flooring and the well has Meranti floor.
• A comprehensive photographic record of the restoration can be viewed on request.