Surf-class lifeboat

Class overview
Name	Surf-class
Builders	J. Samuel White, Cowes Groves & Guttridge, Cowes Alexander Robertson & Sons, Sandbank
Operators	Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Cost	£3,000-£3,800
Built	1935–1941
In service	1936–1965
Completed	9
Retired	9
General characteristics
Displacement	4-5 tons
Length	32 ft (9.8 m)
Beam	9 ft (2.74 m)-9 ft 3 in (2.82 m)
Propulsion	2 x 12 bhp Weyburn F2 2-cyl. petrol
Speed	6.5–7.5 knots (7.5–8.5 mph; 12–14 km/h)
Range	~40 nautical miles (45 mi; 75 km)

The Surf-class was a light non self-righting displacement hull motor lifeboat built between 1935 and 1940 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) between 1936 and 1965.

History

Designed by RNLI Naval Architect James Barnett, the Surf-class was the smallest and lightest offshore motor lifeboat produced by the Institution. Intended for stations where launching heavier boats would be difficult, the Surf-class enabled the RNLI to replace pulling and sailing lifeboats and plug gaps in motor lifeboat cover. The boats however, were only really suitable for inshore work in moderate conditions and they only had long service lives at two stations.

Description

The first two boats were completely open with no shelter, not considered to be a problem for the kind of services that they were intended for. The boats were powered by two 2-cylinder Weyburn F2 horizontal petrol engines and whereas the first boat had twin screws, the second was propelled by Hotchkiss cones, a kind of water impeller. While this was a benefit in shallow waters, the cone powered boat was around 1 knot (2 km/h; 1 mph) slower than the screw version.

The first two boats served for less than ten years before being sold off. The second batch appeared in 1938 and had 3 inches (7.5 cm) more beam and were fitted with a shelter ahead of the (tiller) steering position. All but one featured Hotchkiss cone propulsion, RNLB Kate Greatore (ON 816) was fitted with Gill water jets. These boats served for 10 to 12 years at most of their stations before being replaced by standard carriage launched boats, but at two locations, Poole and Newburgh, Surf-class boats continued into the sixties. RNLB John Ryburn (ON 837) was withdrawn from service at Newburgh at the end of September 1965 after more than twenty four years on station during which it launched on service only eleven times. With its withdrawal, the Newburgh station was closed.

Fleet

ON[a]	Name	Built	Builder	In service	Principal Station	Comments[1]
779	Rosabella	1935	J. Samuel White	1936–1945	Ilfracombe	Sold in June 1946 to the Dutch lifeboat service. By June 2012 it was restored at Aalsmeer, Netherlands.
780	Royal Silver Jubilee 1910-1935	1935	Groves & Guttridge	1936–1945	Wells	Sold in June 1946 to the Dutch lifeboat service June 1946 but sold again 1959.
810	Augustus and Laura	1938	Groves & Guttridge	1938–1950	Newbiggin	Sold October 1950. Renamed Betsy Lyn. Destroyed Ouseburn Quay, Newcastle upon Tyne, in 1995.
811	Thomas Kirk Wright	1938	Groves & Guttridge	1939–1962	Poole	Sold 1963. On display in the Old Lifeboat House at Poole.
816	Kate Greatorex	1939	Groves & Guttridge	1939–1951	Minehead	Sold March 1952. Reported in December 2021 as being stored for restoration on River Yonne at Migennes in France.
817	Laurence Arden, Stockport	1939	Groves & Guttridge	1939–1949	Barmouth	Sold December 1951. Last seen in the 1970s at Saundersfoot in Wales.
				1949–1951	Reserve fleet
835	The Gordon Warren	1939	J. Samuel White	1939–1949	Rhyl	Sold January 1952. Reported in August 2021 to be the fishing boat Welsh Maid (CO332) at Conwy in Wales.
				1949–1951	Reserve fleet
836	Norman Nasmyth	1940	Alexander Robertson	1940–1950	Montrose No.2	Sold in 1966. Reported in August 2021 to be the yacht Montrose at Lamlash, Isle of Arran,
				1950–1966	Reserve fleet
837	John Ryburn	1941	Alexander Robertson	1941–1965	Newburgh	Capsized on service 26 January 1942, two crew lost. Sold in 1966, believed to have been broken up.

1. ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.

References

1. Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2023). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2023. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society.

External links

• RNLI