The Sydney Wooden Boat School ran classes from 1989 to the early 2000’s. The School was set up at River Quays Marina, Mortlake in July 1989 with the encouragement of Adhesive Technologies, the promoters of WEST System Epoxy Resins and the encouragement and financial backing of Marina owner John Wood.  Ian Smith, Shipwright Manager at the Marina ran the first class in WEST System Strip Planking, and more applicants than we could handle meant we ran over two nights per week for 20 weeks, and then ran another soon after the first classes had finished. These classes remained the most popular for the whole period in which the School operated. Other classes such as Traditional Clinker Construction, Plywood Clinker Construction, Repair and Restoration were also regularly featured, and other instructors included Rick Wood, Nigel Shannon, Michael Staples, Fraser East and Larry Pardey.

In 1992 River Quays Marina changed hands and in 1993 Ian Smith moved the School up the road to the old Mortlake Post Office and factory building behind. This was the most productive period in the School’s history, with weekend, weeknight and Summer School classes in which more than fifty boats were produced over a three and a half year period. With plenty of space we had a number of people building their own boats in the shed as well resulting in another twelve boats from a small nesting dinghy to a 25′ Vertue yacht.

Real Estate costs meant that the School had to relocate to the Blackwattle Studios in Glebe in 1996, and discontinue all but the Summer School classes which ran until 2000 when that complex was demolished. In the meantime Ian had been involved in daytime and weekend classes for at-risk teenagers in the outer suburban areas of Sydney, and at the inner-city South Sydney Police and Community Youth Club. Also in the late 1990’s the Federal government started the Work-for-the-dole scheme and Ian became involved with the Salvation Army’s Oasis Youth Centre and helped teams of young unemployed folk build two 24′ yachts for Sailability the organisation that helps disabled folk go sailing, the Salvo class. After that there were more Work-for-the-dole projects including two lifeboats for the square rigger James Craig as well as other projects for the Sydney Heritage Fleet on the steamship John Oxley  and the restoration of the 45802, the Captain’s launch from HMAS Sydney.

Only a few classes have been run since 2000, mostly for youth groups and at-risk kids, except for a period in 2013-14 when Larry Eastwood set up the Pittwater Wooden Boat School which ran for about 13 months. Larry hopes to revive that School, and it appears to be the only hope for boatbuilding classes in Sydney in the future.

After the first few years of running classes Ian Smith produced five manuals on different methods of boatbuilding based on his experience of explaining the processes to first-timers, as well as several plans for small boats. The manuals have now been combined into one volume Wooden Boatbuilding-The Sydney Wooden Boat School Manuals available on our SHOP Page. The Sydney Wooden Boat School exists today only as an online presence to sell books and plans.

Ian Smith

In a forty-plus year career, Ian Smith has built wooden boats in carvel, clinker, strip planking, cold-moulded, plywood clinker, sheet plywood, tortured plywood, and stitch and glue and repaired countless others. Since the early 1990’s he has been involved with the Australian Historical Sailing Skiff Association which preserves the history of the Australian Open Racing Boat, and built and races his own historical 18 footer replica Britannia with the historical fleet at the Sydney Flying Squadron every Summer Saturday. Now retired from commercial boat work, he maintains his small fleet and is building a 24′ Ranger-class sloop. For more details see smithysboatshed.weebly.com