Classic St Ives Herring Drifter Pioneer PZ277 for sale in Devon United Kingdom

Wooden Ships Comments on this St Ives Herring Drifter Pioneer PZ277

Pioneer PZ277 was built by Paynters of St Ives for local fisherman Henry Hendy. She remained in the Hendy family until 1988.

Some records state her build date as 1891, some a little later in 1899.

She was the first steam fishing vessel in west Cornwall and by all accounts was not well received by the local fisherman as her steam propulsion enabled her to reach fishing grounds more quickly and gave a distinct advantage over the traditional sailing vessels. It seems this animosity towards the boat forced her to move to Penzance where she worked out of as a drifter for many years.

She was a steam boat until 1947 when a Kelvin diesel was installed, followed later by a Lister and now a Ford.

Her history is a rich and varied one, from her days breaking new ground in the fishing industry, mustered for the D-Day landing evacuations, used in the clean up of the Tori Canyon oil spill clean up and she has even had a children's book written about her. The reason that she was not used in the D-Day evacuations was that the volume of coal needed aboard would have taken up too much space and not left any room for soldiers.

Bought by her current owner and refitted with some new planking, new wiring, new sails and general improvement and upgrading.

Length on Deck: 47’

Beam: 9’10”

Draft: 4’10”

• Carvel planked in pine, possibly pitch pine.
• Iron fastened to sawn oak frames. New planking fastened with stainless screws.
• All internal ballast.
• Solid straight laid pine deck, caulked and payed then finished in grey deck paint.
• Bulwark all round on stanchions mounted through the covering board.
• Fore and aft coachroof with wooden coamings.
• Central wheelhouse in painted T&G pine.

• Gaff ketch rig on deck stepped masts.
• Solid wooden pine masts, booms and gaff yards all finished with oil.
• Rigging is solid galvanised rod tensioned with galvanised rigging screws.
• Brand new sails from Rowsells in tan. Mainsail, jib and mizzen.

• Ford 6cyl 120hp diesel engine.
• Fixed 3 blade bronze propeller.
• Steel fuel tank to port in the engine room with a copper day tank above the engine. Total capacity of approximately 500 litres. Fuel pumped up to the day tank with an electric transfer pump.
• 4 x 12 volt batteries, (2 x 115ah and 2 x 110ah).
• 2 x 12 volt batteries in forepeak linked to give 24 volts for anchor windlass.
• Victron 25 amp battery charger when connected to shore power. 2 x engine alternators (1 x 12 volt and 1 x 24 volt).
• New plastic 120 litre water tank to starboard in the engine space.

• Accommodation split between fore and aft areas.
• All new upholstery throughout.
• Forward cabin accessed via the fore hatch with 2 single berths and sitting headroom. Storage space in the bows.
• Main saloon cabin accessed from the wheelhouse. Galley to port and heads compartment to starboard.
• Galley has a Calor B700 2 burner gas stove with oven and grill. Single sink with pressurised cold water. Top loading 12 volt fridge to starboard.
• Heads is a Jabsco manual sea toilet which discharges directly overboard.
• Main saloon has a settee either side with a centreline table.
• Outboard under the side decks is a pilot berth each side.
• Wood burning stove against the forward bulkhead.
• Wheelhouse has doors either side with the helm to starboard and a thwart across the aft end.
• Engine space is under the wheelhouse with a ladder down under the aft wheelhouse thwart.
• Aft cabin accessed through the aft hatch and has 2 single berths with sitting headroom.
• Doors from the aft cabin through into the engine room.

• ICOM IC-M330 DSC VHF
• Garmin chartplotter
• Navigation lights

• Plastimo 6 person offshore life raft
• 2 x auto electric bilge pumps

• 4 x 12 volt batteries
• 2 x engine alternators
• Victron 12/25 240 volt battery charger

• 24 volt anchor windlass
• Galvanised anchor chain
• CQR anchor
• Warps
• Fenders

• Calor B700 galley stove
• Pressurised water system
• Jabsco sea toilet
• New Upholstery 2023