Tucker-Brown Kim Holman Bermudan Cutter Kim Holman Bermudan Cutter

Wooden Ships Comments on this Kim Holman Bermudan Cutter

Kim Holman Bermudan Cutter built by Tucker Brown of Burnham-on-Crouch in 1963. Designed for RORC Class II and launched in time for the 1963 Fastnet Race. She was the reserve yacht for the 1963 British Admirals Cup team. Holman to many people in the know is considered one of the most talented UK yacht designers of the period, producing some extremely successful yachts and class designs that have become iconic boats, such as the Stella and the Twister. His designs were without exception superb sailing vessels, always did exactly what they were designed to do and frequently took others by surprise with their pace and ability.

This yacht, one of a small handful built to the same lines, exudes a subtle beauty and elegance found in very few other designers work of the time. She is also fast and very seaworthy, proven by her impeccable racing record against some of the well known yachts of the era such as Bloodhound and Lutine. She has since crossed the Atlantic to cruise and race and various parts of the globe, turning heads everywhere she goes.

In the present ownership since 2012, she underwent a major professional refit in 2013 and has since cruised extensively, visiting not only the usual haunts of the West Country and Brittany, but also a trip to Norway via Ireland, the Western Isles and Shetland, then around the North Cape and through the White Sea and the Belomor Canal to the Baltic and St Petersburg. During this period she received 3 separate awards from the Royal Cruising Club. In this time she has also competed successfully in classic yacht regattas and holds a JCH rating of 8.6993.

Now back in her home port of Salcombe, she is undergoing some more refit work prior to another busy schedule next season. With many improvements, upgrades and repairs over the last 10 years she is in really good sailing condition and has proven that she is not just a classic regatta winner, but also a superb cruising boat. The owner likes to think of her as an Aston Martin Grand Tourer, fast and elegant but very comfortable with it. She is everything that is required of a classic yacht for the modern world. She rewards being sailed well and forgives being sailed less attentively!

Specifications

• Length on Deck: 41’6” / 12.65m


• Length Waterline: 30’ / 9.14m


• Beam: 10’10” / 3.3m


• Draft: 7’2” / 2.19m


• Displacement: 11.9 tonnes


• Thames Tonnage:

Refit Work

• Mast step extended


• New laminated wooden floors under the mast step


• All original galvanised strap floors replaced with cast bronze


• Underwater seams raked out and re-caulked


• Engine removed and overhauled


• Engine bearers replaced and new stern gland fitted


• New Balmar smart alternator fitted


• New AGM batteries


• Solar panel fitted


• New Lewmar self tailing winches fitted


• Mast stripped and painted


• New standing and running rigging


• New alloy boom with Stack Pack system


• Harken MkIV furlers fitted to yankee and staysail


• New mainsail and yankee


• New carbon fibre spinnaker pole


• Diesel fired hot air cabin heating fitted


• New Jabsco heads


• All navigation instruments replaced with B&G + NMEA 2000 connections

2018

• All external varnish back to bare wood and built up


• Coachroof windows removed and re-bedded


• All new interior varnish


• New Whitlock steering gearbox and fully serviced steering system


• Engine removed and fully serviced


• Bilges painted stem to stern


• One short shift of plank replaced port side


• Various topsides splines replaced


• Backstay quarter plates removed and checked

2024

• Underwater hull stripped to bare wood


• Loose plugs replaced and a few graving pieces fitted


• Planking treated with preservative and primed.