Thanks, gents, for your kind welcome, nice to know.
Firstly, may I ask how to put pics up on posts. Is it the usual photobucket type of thing?
Secondly, I never found out why she was called Vanity. She was built by Dan Brown in the old Hatcher yard in Southampton in 1885 and was launched as the "Mary", a C class racer, then was sold on and became "Madrena" (with a Spanish wobbly thing over the n). Then she was renamed Vanity and remained that ever since about 1915. The chap I bought her from's Dad (who put up the money for him, I think)thought he'd be clever and called her Pegotty as in Dickens and her tender Barkus, because he was tender ON Pegotty in the novel. Never read it, but Vanity she quickly returned to being.
She had a largely original maple walnut and mahogany interior, lacking only her saloon stove and bronze dolphin head, but her lady cabin right aft had the original drawers in the berths with "bosun's papers" hand written on the bottom! She carried a forest of sail and was 64'-6" from deck to flutter, 61'-6" on deck, 25 Thames tunnage. Got her Lloyds number and entries from Lloyds themselves.
She was teak on doubled oak frames but iron fastened, although fully copper sheathed. I even still have a piece peeled of the stempost when I saw her out last.
The last I heard she was waiting for restoration at Bristol, in a yard next to the Great Britain. Gas street, I believe, but I can't bring myself to go and look.
I even have a drawing of the gun which started her first race!
One day I will make the model.
Currently restoring a wooden ex working canal boat which my wife and I lived on for a while. But that's a whole different story!
Back to trying to make a living at modelmaking to pay for some very expensive exotic bottom boards..ain't no elm no more!
Pics when I can work out how.
Bye for now,
V
