Rampart 48 ft Twin Screw Motor Yacht 1975 - Sold

HIGHLAND BEAUTY is a fine example of the last days of British timber motor yacht building, when the Desty family's aptly named Rampart Boatbuilding Company was resolutely still building up to three traditionally built but contemporary-styled vessels per year, upholding wooden boatbuilding’s honour against the march of plastic. HIGHLAND BEAUTY has had few owners since launching in 1975; the first was replacing a fibreglass boat. They’ve all cared for her well and enjoyed the multiple, well thought out spaces she offers for both intimacy and privacy all at the same time; in particular, her aft cockpit; not that common in motor yachts of this size. In the present ownership of a highly experienced seaman, HIGHLAND BEAUTY has been sensibly and tastefully upgraded and looks forward to celebrating her half-century with a new, loving custodian.

RAMPART DESIGN No. d14; BUILD No. 752
It may seem reasonable that a former speedway star and high-end performance car dealer taking up marine motoring in his twilight years might buy a motor yacht designed by Colin Chapman. Yes, that Colin Chapman, of Lotus cars; he also designed motor yachts for his yacht building company, Moonraker. But for whatever reason, Charlie Oates didn't keep his fibreglass Moonraker 36 TESANG for very long before commissioning one of the last standing British timber motor yacht builders, The Rampart Boatbuilding Company of Bittern Manor, Southampton, to design and build something completely different: the magnificent Rampart 48 HIGHLAND BEAUTY.

Why the name? Well, if you live in north Lancashire and have a penchant for sporty cars, you can reach the idyllic cruising grounds of the Firth of Clyde in no time, and Charlie Oates's vacation hideaway was a chalet on the wooded slopes of fjord-like Loch Goil, which vies with the Kyles of Bute as the most beautiful of the Firth's salty arms into the Highlands. HIGHLAND BEAUTY's home port in her early years was Lochgoilhead, and both Charlie and HIGHLAND BEAUTY are still well remembered there.

The natural thing for a Scottish waters motor yachtsman would have been to go to the famous James A. Silver yard at Rosneath, but by the mid-1970s Silver’s were unfortunately embroiled in the legal dispute over a disastrous pilot cutter contract for the Humber pilotage authority that would eventually put them out of business. Commission a yacht from Silver’s then, and you would likely end up owning the yard to get it finished.

Meanwhile, far south and then quite far up the River Itchen, at Bittern Manor, Southampton, for as long as the John Bain version of Silver's had been in business, the Desty family had been quietly and industriously building their own reputation and faithful following as boatbuilders: The Rampart Boatbuilding Company, named after the Roman fort that once existed at Bitterne Manor. After founder George Desty’s son, Horace, joined the business in the late-1920s, they began designing and building a line of elegant and able displacement motor yachts, sometimes speculatively, but more often than not for a growing band of clients. In the mid-1930s they built a 30-footer for Hollywood star Douglas Fairbanks Jr as a gift for his then beau Gertrude Lawrence. Can’t have been bad for publicity.

By the time Charlie Oates came looking for a yacht, presumably in 1974, the Destys were still building impressive timber-built motor yachts; decidedly bucking the trend of the time: the march of the petrochemical industry into boatbuilding. Thank goodness for it: their legacy is a flotilla of relatively recently and well built wooden yachts. Writing in the 1990s, motor yachting journalist Alec McMullen reported: “Between 1970 and 1982… Rampart, one of the last outposts of traditional timber construction at least as far as motor cruisers were concerned, built 20 Rampart 38s and 39s.” Add the larger and smaller yachts and boats they built, and one realises that this was a very productive concern.

HIGHLAND BEAUTY might be described as a stretched version of the Rampart 39. Apart from the volume and speed benefits of the extra length, one noticeable difference is the sheltered aft cockpit which comes into its own lying at anchor cocked to the wind. As the good folk of Lochgoilhead might say, “a grand wee sitooterie.” Another benefit of 10 feet more length is that the Rampart 38/39s forward trunk cabin could be replaced by increased topsides height, allowing for a clean profile and uncluttered foredeck. Horace Desty did a nice job with the well named HIGHLAND BEAUTY.

Charlie Oates retired to the Isle of Man in the late 1970s, and it is believed that Douglas became her new home port. He enjoyed a very long retirement, but at some point, possibly in the 1980s, he sold HIGHLAND BEAUTY to John Robinson of Pershore, Worcestershire, and in about 1995 her third owner became Stanley Ross of Dunsford, Surrey. She has been with her extremely experienced present owner since 2012.

©2021 Iain McAllister/ Sandeman Yacht Company Ltd

- Iroko carvel planking on Canadian rock elm
- Teak laid deck

Air draught: 5.0 m

From aft

SHORT AFT DECK
- Laid teak with varnished king plank and covering boards
- Wood Samson posts port and starboard
- Associated chromed fairleads port and starboard
- Chromed ensign socket

LARGE AFT COCKPIT
- Self-draining
- Seating port and starboard
- Slatted sole
- Water tank under
- Double doors to lazarette/ steering flat under aft deck
- Port locker housing generator
- Starboard locker for spare propellers and anchor
- Ladders up port and starboard to external helm position
- Double doors companionway to saloon

LARGE, RAISED AFT DECK AREA
- Teak laid deck
- Varnished covering boards and toerail
- Stainless steel stanchions with varnished handrail
- Galvanised mooring cleats port and starboard
- Boom gallows
- Teak table; 4 x chairs

UPPER HELM POSITION AFT OF WHEELHOUSE
- Windshield, glazed forward and sides
- Traditional ship's wheel with stainless steel rim
- Engine throttle controls
- Electronic navigation displays
- Steering compass
- Mast tabernacle
- Bench seat
- Liferaft and flares stowage under
- Gas locker to stbd

SUNK WHEELHOUSE/ DECK SALOON
- Mahogany/ mahogany ply construction
- 3 x Forward windscreens; 2 x with Wynn horizontal drive wipers
- 3 x Side windows port and starboard; 1 x sliding
- Painted ply roof
- Varnished grabrails port and starboard
- Running light boards
- Horn and searchlight
- Sliding door and hinged up wheelhouse entry hatch to port

SIDE DECKS
- 2 x Cowl ventilators port and starboard
- Laid teak deck
- Varnished covering boards and toerail

FORWARD DECK
- Teak laid deck nicely nibbed to coveringboards
- Varnished king plank, covering boards and toerail
- Butterfly hatch
- Offset forehatch
- Large chromed mushroom vent
- Galvanised bollard cleat
- Simpson-Lawrence manual anchor windlass
- Warping drum; chain gipsy
- Admiralty type bower anchor with 110 m chain
- CQR spare/ kedge anchor in chocks
- Chromed mooring fairleads port and starboard
- Bow roller on stainless steel plate at centreline

OVERVIEW
- 7 x Berths
- 2 x Twin cabins
- 3 x In saloon/wheelhouse
- 2 x TVs (forward cabin and saloon)
- Dimmable Calibra Marine LED lighting throughout accommodation
- Sound system with MP3 connection in saloon and wheelhouse
- 2 x Heads (main electric, connected to holding tank), shower
- Electric pumped hot and cold water supply to galley, bathroom and forward cabin

From aft

SALOON
- Double door entry from aft cockpit
- Saloon table seats 9
- Sideboards aft and forward
- Stowage under
- Hanging locker starboard aft
- L-shaped settee/ berth to starboard
- 2 x Large drawers under
- Settee/ berth to port
- 2 x Large drawers under
- Stowage for c100 bottles outboard of settees
- 2 x Sliding ports, port and starboard
- 4 x Bulkhead lights
- 2 x Lamps
- Schatz clock
- Digital TV
- Sound system

DOOR FORWARD TO FULL BEAM GALLEY
- Stainless steel sink unit to port
- Hot and cold taps
- Dometic fridge under
- Food and crockery lockers
- 4 x Burner hob + oven to starboard
- Worktop
- Stowage under
- Microwave
- Toaster
- (Barbecue with connection to upper deck gas supply)
- Full domestic sets (cutlery, crockery, glassware, cookware)
- Sliding port, port and starboard
- 2 x Bulkhead lights

2 x STEPS UP TO WHEELHOUSE/ DECK SALOON
- Engine space under
- Sideboard/ chart table and bookshelves aft
- Chart table folds out to accommodate full size chart
- Clock and barometer
- Sailor Radio
- L Settee to port aft
- Settee/ berth to starboard and coffee table
- 2 x Steps up to deck companionway to port
- Helm position to port
- Traditional ship's wheel with stainless steel rim
- Sestrel steering compass
- Morse type engine throttle controls
- Perkins engine instrumentation
- Navigation and communications units
- Navtex
- Autohelm control
- Smart battery management display
- Fuel gauge
- Tank minder
- Rudder indicator
- Eberspächer control
- Ship's bell
- 1 x Deckhead light
- 1 x Lamp

MIDSHIPS COMPANIONWAY DOWN 2 x STEPS TO FWD ACCOMMODATION

SHORT PASSAGE
Shower room to port
- Inset sink unit; stowage under
- Ceramic tiled
- Mirror
- Towel rail; soap dish; wet shelf
- Locker and fiddled shelf outboard
- Sliding port
- Deckhead light
WC compartment to starboard
- Electric toilet
- Locker and fiddled shelf outboard
- Sliding port
- Deckhead light

FORWARD TO MASTER CABIN
- Sideboard to port
- Berths to port and starboard
- Stowage drawers and lockers under
- Mirror
- Clock and barometer
- 2 x Sliding ports, port and starboard
- 4 x Bulkhead lights
- 1 x Lamp

DOOR FORWARD TO FORWARD CABIN
- WC to starboard
- Wash basin with hot and cold taps
- Lockers to port and starboard
- V-Berths
- Open stowage under
- Chain pipe to chain locker
- Fiddled shelves port and starboard
- Access panel to chain locker
- Digital TV

MECHANICAL
- 2 x Perkins 6.354 115 hp Diesels
- 2 x Borg-Warner 72 CR/C Gearboxes; 2:1 reduction
- Volvo D1-13 (Perkins) 8.3 kVA generator
- Cruising speed: 11 knots
- Cruising range: 480 nautical miles
- Max speed achieved: 13 knots

ELECTRICAL
- Switchable (shore/generator) AC 240 V
- 24 V and 12 V DC systems
- Pro Charge Ultra battery charger

HEATING/ HOT WATER
- Water calorifier (5 Gal/ 22.7 L)
- Eberspächer air blown heating all compartments

TANKAGE
- 2 x Fuel tanks - 485 L each
- 1 x Fresh water tank 850 L; under cockpit sole
- Pressure water system galley, bathroom, fwd cabin
- 1 x Black water holding tank - 193 L
- Shower tray sump pump

NAVIGATION/ ELECTRONICS
- Garmin GPSMAP 923 GPS Plotter (late 2021)
- SIMRAD CR50 nav system; upper bridge repeat display
- SIMRAD Anritsu radar
- Raymarine ST40 depth sounder

COMMUNICATIONS
- RO4800 DCS VHF radio with remote
- ICOM AD 95 back-up VHF

ENTERTAINMENT
- UHF aerial for DTV reception
- 2 x TVs (forward cabin and saloon)
- Sound system with MP3 connection in saloon and wheelhouse

- Spruce mast with spreaders
- Radome on plinth (no longer on wheelhouse roof)
- Spruce boom/ derrick
- Steadying sail
- Lazy jacks and stack pack

Covers for:
- Hatches
- Wheelhouse
- Upper bridge
- Aft cockpit

- Steadying sail stackpack
- Cockpit cushions

BILGE PUMPING
1 x Auto
1 x Switchable
1 x Manual

LIFESAVING
- 10 Lifejackets, harness
- Ocean Safety liferaft

FIRE
- Fire extinguishers in every compartment
- Including CO2 in wheelhouse in case of electrical fire

SECURITY
- Intruder alarm system

- 2 x Spare propellers
- Electricity cables and connectors
- Warps, 8 x fenders, hose, boathook
- Flag outfit
- Charts outfit and chartwork navigation implements
- Sundeck tables, chairs, loungers
- Remus wet/ dry vacuum/ blower

- Drawings by John Cadley
- Loch Goil by Ian Gilchrist