The NZ Traditional Boatbuilding School

A Great Start to 2026 at the Traditional Boat Building School

The Traditional Boat Building School has had a fantastic start to 2026, settling into its new permanent home at the historic Percy Vos Shed on Hamer Street.

The shed has quickly become a hive of activity, with the school running a popular line-up of courses that have attracted plenty of keen boatbuilders and boating enthusiasts from across the community.

So far, students have got stuck into a great mix of traditional skills, including:

• Half Model Making
• Clinker Dinghy – Spiling and Fitting Planks
• Essential Skills 101
• Spoon Blade Oar Making
• Sharpen and Set

And there’s been no shortage of enthusiasm in the shed!

The school’s tutors say the Percy Vos Shed is a fantastic space to teach and learn, particularly with the added bonus of working alongside other boatbuilding projects.

“It has been a real hive of activity, and participants in all the courses have had a really great time.”

With the smell of timber, the sound of tools and plenty of boatbuilding knowledge being passed from one generation to the next, the shed is proving to be a great new home for traditional boatbuilding.

And there’s still plenty more to come this year, with the following classes on the horizon:

Wooden Block Making 29/30 August

Esentials skills with John Welsford 10/11 October

You can check them out online at: NZTBS COURSES