I'm pretty certain this is the navy yacht Franklin. Cisco might have even helped in the construction. I had the pleasure of steering her in a race around Jervis Bay about 1975. If your into steel yachts this might appeal.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Alan-Payne-42ft-Steel-Navy-Yacht-Hobarts-media-survey-sydney-Harbour-No-Reserv-/162385654097?hash=item25cef07151:g:6W0AAOSwo4pYmDoy

I was not involved in construction or fit out but did do an engine service on her 1969 or 70 when she was berthed at Spectacle Island.

Via this web site a consortium of ex Mobis was brought together who bought her for $155,000 a few years ago.

www.ran-skilledhands.org/RAN_SH2_Welcome_Page.html

With so many people having a vested interest in it I predicted it would end up being a bun fight. Looks like that is what happened. Bit of a sad end to a great yacht. Interesting vid of how we were trained back in the day.

That kind of in depth training does not happen anywhere today.

Damn. I was wrong. This is Mobi not Franklin. Franklin was 42 foot and teak. Mobi is 40 foot and steel and a small 40 footer at that looking at the photos.

arhv.anmm.gov.au/en/objects/details/173711/the-mobi-yacht-nirimba;jsessionid=090289E913D4FA88F4C1126E73EB64AE?ctx=c928e0c1-a01e-475b-a9c7-232a3f9be9a7&idx=0

I am surprised that Johnathan is talking about sheets of bog falling off the hull. The bog must be masking damage or repairs that have happened over the years.

When she was built at Nirimba the plates would have been perfectly rolled and no bog applied before she was originally launched.

It goes to show that no matter how well built a steel yacht is, without full time maintenance of paint work rust will take over.

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cisco said..
I was not involved in construction or fit out but did do an engine service on her 1969 or 70 when she was berthed at Spectacle Island.

Via this web site a consortium of ex Mobis was brought together who bought her for $155,000 a few years ago.

www.ran-skilledhands.org/RAN_SH2_Welcome_Page.html

With so many people having a vested interest in it I predicted it would end up being a bun fight. Looks like that is what happened. Bit of a sad end to a great yacht. Interesting vid of how we were trained back in the day.

That kind of in depth training does not happen anywhere today.

It's a shame your depth of training didn't include safety training! Lack off safety glasses,gloves and chemical gloves!

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southace said..

cisco said..
I was not involved in construction or fit out but did do an engine service on her 1969 or 70 when she was berthed at Spectacle Island.

Via this web site a consortium of ex Mobis was brought together who bought her for $155,000 a few years ago.

www.ran-skilledhands.org/RAN_SH2_Welcome_Page.html

With so many people having a vested interest in it I predicted it would end up being a bun fight. Looks like that is what happened. Bit of a sad end to a great yacht. Interesting vid of how we were trained back in the day.

That kind of in depth training does not happen anywhere today.

It's a shame your depth of training didn't include safety training! Lack off safety glasses,gloves and chemical gloves!

It's an old movie! They kept their caps and berets on that's the main thing!

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Ramona said..

southace said..

cisco said..
I was not involved in construction or fit out but did do an engine service on her 1969 or 70 when she was berthed at Spectacle Island.

Via this web site a consortium of ex Mobis was brought together who bought her for $155,000 a few years ago.

www.ran-skilledhands.org/RAN_SH2_Welcome_Page.html

With so many people having a vested interest in it I predicted it would end up being a bun fight. Looks like that is what happened. Bit of a sad end to a great yacht. Interesting vid of how we were trained back in the day.

That kind of in depth training does not happen anywhere today.

It's a shame your depth of training didn't include safety training! Lack off safety glasses,gloves and chemical gloves!

It's an old movie! They kept their caps and berets on that's the main thing!

A great little movie, it even had some footage of HMAS VOYAGER....and my old ship, MELBOURNE.

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southace said..


It's a shame your depth of training didn't include safety training! Lack off safety glasses,gloves and chemical gloves!

By 1966 when I joined up everybody was wearing safety glasses. Nobody working on a lathe, milling machine, radial drill etc.etc ever wears gloves, surgical gloves maybe but certainly nothing thicker than that. Wearing gloves while doing machine work can get your arm ripped off.

In the military it is training, training, training and more training and a big part of it is always safety.

Fire fighting as taught for USL Code tickets has got nothing on Navy "Fire Fighting and Damage Control" Training.

If you could not extinguish a blazing diesolene fire in a 1m x 1m x 150mm tray with a 2 gallon gas/water fire extinguisher, you did not pass the course.

Think about how you might do that.

A good video. I reckon it was early 60s, the Venoms were last at sea on MELBOURNE in about 1965/66.
I was going to join NIRIMBA at the end of 1969 but my parents insisted I matriculate first. I joined in 1972 as aircrew so got to spend my life in the Navy flying rather than maintaining.

That video was almost enough to make a person nostalgic ..... could almost hear people calling out "focus Marks"

Ramona, she was named Nirimba, but built by MOBI's ..... and did enjoy sailing on her and Franklin, think Franklin was my fav tho

enjoyed vid ... and yes Cisco, our training was second to none, I have a laugh each time I have to do the AMSA fire course and think of the DC and Fire training we got there.

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dkd said..

That video was almost enough to make a person nostalgic ..... could almost hear people calling out "focus Marks"

Ramona, she was named Nirimba, but built by MOBI's ..... and did enjoy sailing on her and Franklin, think Franklin was my fav tho

enjoyed vid ... and yes Cisco, our training was second to none, I have a laugh each time I have to do the AMSA fire course and think of the DC and Fire training we got there.

I was a Staff Officer in Canberra in the late 80s when the decision was made to close NIRIMBA and keep CERBERUS. A bloody stupid decision, CERBERUS has historical significance but is a long way from anywhere while NIRIMBA was close to Sydney, the Fleet and centres of industry. And it produced outstanding tradesman and sailors. The best Fleet Air Arm maintainers and many officers were NIRIMBA products.

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MorningBird said..
I was a Staff Officer in Canberra in the late 80s when the decision was made to close NIRIMBA and keep CERBERUS. A bloody stupid decision, CERBERUS has historical significance but is a long way from anywhere while NIRIMBA was close to Sydney, the Fleet and centres of industry. And it produced outstanding tradesman and sailors. The best Fleet Air Arm maintainers and many officers were NIRIMBA products.

Exactly right MB. Both Leeuwin and Nirimba continued academic training of their recruits as a method of assessing who were the bright ones and selecting them for higher training. Many a Naval Officer joined up initially as Junior Recruits or Naval Apprentices and were sent to Creswell for officer training.

At my intake's 35 year reunion in 2001 our guest speaker was one of our academic training officers who told us that the selection process for Naval Apprentices was such that all who were accepted were capable of achieving a Bachelor's Degree.

When the Navy went from Sail Struc to Rat Struc in 1973, I think the whole professionalism of the Navy was downgraded. It may have been corrected since.

That year, 1973 was when the job market In Australia started to dry up as well as when the Arabs pulled the false "oil shortage" con job.

Not just in the military but nationally the apprenticeship system has been hung out to dry. "Skilled Hands" are an extremely important national asset.

Absolutely, agree with both M'birds and Cisco's comments, the closure of Nirimba was another stupid decision by the government/defence whoever and the change from Rat Struc to Failstruc (oops Sail Struc) and the change with training was equally as dumb.

With 2 sons who went thro' the "new" style of training one at Cerberus and the other at Wagga (birdies sent there for training) it has all gone backwards ..... maybe that is progression or just us getting older. But it has become the basis of the National Broad-based training system that TAFEs use now.

What do my kids say, "double redundant" dad.

Am amazed how many of the guys at sea as Chief Engineers are/were products of Nirimba, maybe I shouldn't be.