Benledi 1954

[ruud]

Ahoy,
Will post 2 photos, in where I do have any doubts, as both are named Benledi 1954, so help needed from the BEN "experts"; I do believe the first one is the Benledi 1954, but not sure if the second is the same vessel;
Who can shed a light on these, any details are most welcome and appreciated.
Btw bought these via auction,so no idea where or when taken.

[gdynia]

Rudd
Looks like same vessel but different angle

[thunderd]

Hi ruud, if this helps neither of these is the Benledi I joined in December 1956, the one I was on was the heavy lift ship as posted by Roymuir a few days ago.

[ruud]

Ahoy,
Just had a look in the gallery, and believe indeed that the Benledi (VII) ex Ballarat posted by Roymuir, could be this one?
As for the 2 posted vessels here, I don't think they are the same, the bridge section on the 2nd photo is far too different as that on the 1st.?

[Frank P]

Hello Ruud, I don't think that they are the same ships, look at the funnels the second ship has a an extension on top, and look at the stern's (poop deck) they are a different shape.

Cheers Frank

[roymuir]

G'day Ruud, the first one is correct, ex BALLARAT. The second is BENAVON (III) of 1949. I will post her tomorrow so you have all the info.
Regards, Roy.

[dom]

definitly not the same ship,no doubht about it

[ruud]

G'day Ruud, the first one is correct, ex BALLARAT. The second is BENAVON (III) of 1949. I will post her tomorrow so you have all the info.
Regards, Roy.

Ahoy Roy,
Thanks for this added info, will change her in my files;
Here another shot of the Benavon[3] 1949.

[Roddy Munro]

Rudd I dont think your Benavons are one and the same.Counting the stanchions along the prom deck they dont match up.Also the metal plate at the fore end of the accomodation looks different.
Regards roddy.

[roymuir]

Hullo Roddy and Ruud, have just checked up on these two photos.
They are in fact the same ship. In the 21 years that Ben Line owned her there were a few modifications made. The most obvious is the extra set of gear at the fore end of No.1 hatch, the addition of awning spars etc., to the boat deck and monkey island. All the usual little things that make you sit and scratch your napper.
I have posted her today with the extra gear but have her in a book as built.
She is definately Benavon (III).
Regards to you both, Roy.

[dom]

not having the two photos side by side to compare,but just take a look at the accommodation block, mast and jumbos on the foredeck sampson posts on the afterdeck ben line bought many ships and renamed them

[roymuir]

I think there is a wee bit of confusion here. The two pics Ruud posted at the beginning of this thread are not the same ship. The ship on the right at the top of the thread is the same one as Ruud has posted futher down 21:56.
Regards, Roy.
I have both these ships posted in my gallery with their full histories.

[Alistair Spence]

Fine vessel on the left is without any doubt the Benledi VII ,launched in 1954 as the Ballaraat, but she was renamed the "Pando Cape" before Ben Line bought her in 1972. When I joined her in Singapore in 1974 we couldn't use the "big" derreck cos it was knackered, but that didn't matter. I think she was only a temporary solution to a shortage at the time and she was scrapped sometime in 1978.There,s a hold just aft of the bridge making life hell for the occupants of the cabins lining the trunking. No air conditioning either!

[roymuir]

Arrived Inchon 26/4/1978 for breaking.

[dom]

Ballarat in P+O colours before she became Pando Cape

[Eltel]

Did 2 trips 2/O on the 'Ledi in 1977. Happiest ship ever - Captain Ron Thomas - a pure gentleman.

[Roland Bradley]

Ahoy,
Will post 2 photos, in where I do have any doubts, as both are named Benledi 1954, so help needed from the BEN "experts"; I do believe the first one is the Benledi 1954, but not sure if the second is the same vessel;
Who can shed a light on these, any details are most welcome and appreciated.
Btw bought these via auction,so no idea where or when taken.

Not sure of the name of Ben boats in your photos but they are not of the Benledi. The Benledi was a heavy lift ship and it's engines were aft.

Roland Bradley.

[binliner]

the second drawing could possibly be the bencairn which was bought from city line and had previously been a "pando boat". in one of alleys was the line drawing of her as a pando boat.

[roymuir]

G'day Roland, there were infact 8 different "Benledi"s owned by the company and one was a heavylift job with engines aft but this is not her.
Regards, Roy.

[forthbridge]

The second ship in the first posting is not Benavon III which was built by Thomsons of Sunderland in 1949. If you look at the stern it is different than in the posting by Roy. I think we can narrow it down to one of 3 similar ships built by Connels Benalder V in 1949, Bencleuch VI in 1949 or BenvenueIV in 1948

[Willie Mac]

The second ship in the first posting could possibly be the "Benmacdhui"

[captkenn]

Derek Blair's Benledi is the former Peter Dal II of Dalhousie SS Co. My friend Thomas Summers was Apprentice on it as the Peter Dal II pre 1953. He later became a Customs Officer in Sydney.

[binliner]

photo of "macdhui" attached showing extension to funnel similar to ship in second photo

[john fraser]

Macdhui.Venue.Cleuch.Vorlich.Cruachan.were all fairly similar Bens.I don,t think the Lawers had the Samson posts added on to her f.castle.If you blow up the photo you can see its a fairly long name on her bow.

[Enri]

The problem with the Jumbo on the Ledi,when you joined Alistair, was the pin on which the goose neck sat was cracked. I did three voyages on her just before you joined, as extra and then 2nd Mate. I cannot remember why the goose neck was lifted, it was something I have not seen since, tho my latter deep sea career was on bulkers. The 1st off at the time was Ian Hamilton. The picture on the left above is the Benledi (VII), the only Ben Line ship I sailed on.