Halvorsen Heritage

[Andy G]

Bruce, have you been fiddling with the Halvorsen descriptor?

That prompted me to check some of the dates etc. According to Randi Svensen,'Wooden boats, Iron Men', from 1975 to 1990 there were several hundred boats built under the Island Gypsy brand by Kong & Halvorsen.

Somewhere prior to 1990, Halvorsen ceased building their own boats, and sub contracted their designs to boatyards in China.Post 1980 boats were built in Shekou(20 miles from HK) by Jiang Hua Marine then finished and shipped by Halvorsen in Hong Kong.

A bit of history for anyone who may be interested.

 

[Peter B]

Andy, one of the other mods, Craig, has been researching and updating the individual owners sub-forum descriptors with more accurate information. Are you saying he has got a bit wrong re the Halvos..? If so, could you PM him with the correction so he can fix it. I'm sure he would be most happy to do that. He was doing his best from what he could find out, but was aware there might be more recent and accurate info out there, discovered by enthusiasts. I'm sure he would be delighted for the assistance.

 

[CPseudonym]

Andy, I hear ya about not being constructors anymore. Honestly this one was the most difficult one for me to edit. Space is limited and the Halvorsen story is very intriguing.

You're correct of course but the original title for this section was Halvorsen Designs so I decided to edit out the two lines of text I was down to describing their current status.

Frankly this exercise has stretched me, anyone who has read my posts knows writing is not my strong suit. Part of the reason I participate here is to practice my writing skills.

I'm open to any suggestions from anyone regarding changes to these descriptions. Honestly, no ego involved on my part at all.

 

[Codger2]

.Somewhere prior to 1990, Halvorsen ceased building their own boats, and sub contracted their designs to boatyards in China.

Mine was built by Jet Tern Marine (Selene) in 2004.

 

[CPseudonym]

Andy, I renamed this thread and made it a Sticky in this sub-forum. I think You and Walt have the right idea in sharing info about the company and your personal boats. While researching I found the Halvorsen story to be quite fascinating, the company website really provides just an overview.

 

[Andy G]

Oh, don't worry about me, it was a slow Saturday morning. Actually, I would be interested in finding more about the Island Gypsy Hong Kong story.I have come across a few blokes that were involved along the way,just bits and pieces.

Must have been a lot of fun setting up a boat building company in Hong Kong during the 1980's, using a largely unknown material. Don't forget the Halvorsen's name was founded on building wooden boats.Throw in a local financier and Chinese ship yards,there must have been some interesting stories.

 

[BruceK]

There is good information on the Halvorsen history at Halvorsen Club of Australia. plus a list of the vessels on the Club register. I considered joining but was only welcome as an associate because we are an IG; we would not be allowed to raft up at Club events though we could have anchored nearby at a respectful distance. We did not join.

I would like a reference to Island Gypsy in the Halvorsen Heritage if possible.

Halvorsen built a wide range of boats. Apart from the eponymous cruisers, many of which went into a large hire fleet of maybe 50 boats, ranging from 25 to 40 ft or thereabouts,( I hired them a couple of times), they built racing sailboats we call yachts, tugs, air-sea rescue boats, water police boats. I read that the Ryde factory in Sydney was sold to the Armed Forces, interesting, it now operates (just) as a decrepit boat repair facility pending a residential site redevelopment. The old cruisers are treasured and restored, like vintage cars, a good one is a joy to see at a boat show. I have seen one built in steel.
Mark Halvorsen has been at recent Sydney boat shows with a Selene. For a while he had the brokerage at the ex hire cruiser base at Bobbin Head on the Hawkesbury river after it was sold off, but not now. I think Harvey Halvorsen, credited as designing the IG, is living in northern Sydney.

 

[malagari]

malagari /36 europa 1983

greetings fellow boaties, i have just joined your forum because i have been working on my kong halvorsen for the past 3 yrs after purchasing and bringing her down the coast from hope island to western port melbourne , where she has a new home , she has ernt a lot of respect from me after our faithfull journey together down the coast in which we both saw at differant stages our lives flash before us , both boat and owner , and not to mention a much higher respect for the sea ?? , we have just come off hard stand 2.5 yrs , into our new berth at yaringa harbour vic ,while doing exstensive restoration i have gone through a massive learning curve in how to tackle osmosis , and egg shelling of the gel coat , which ive been lead to believe is common of this hull being laid up in high humidity enviroment, 1983 hong kong region , i have had to plain the hull from water line down , big job but good end result , i wuold be very interested in hearing from any one out their of what they think of ther halvorsen please thanku all for a good forum regards david

 

[BruceK]

Welcome aboard David, and Congratulations.
I`m pretty sure it was Malagari I flew up to inspect at Coomera on the Gold Coast. Twin 135 Lehmans, Lectrasan (smelly,half working) 2 sleeping compartments? I was told the osmosis had been fixed after some months drying out on the hard in the hands of a previous owner. Same boat?
Mine is 1981(hull 39), single sleeping cabin, twin 120 Lehmans, bought in Sydney. I had to fix osmosis, and it had clearly been "fixed" before. Also had to replace teak decks. She is a comfortable well equipped boat to spend a week, but not as good a seaboat as my previous Masters 34. Overall, we are happy, I hope you are too, great you can at last begin to enjoy her.

 

[Andy G]

Yes indeed welcome David.

You must have some good photo's of the work Malagari has undergone, so post away.

By the way what does Malagari stand for?

 

[malagari]

malagari is i believe a small fishing village in greece ,