In 1937 she finished third in the Channel Race and heigth in the Fastnet race in a fleet of 28 in the big class . In this fleet were : LATIFA, MAID OF MALHAM, BLOODHOUND and AILE NOIRE .
68' long she is one of the last evolution of the british cutters with a deep V narrow hull and high ballast ratio .
In France for a long time (the name is word to word the translation of the english one), she belonged a long time to the COINTREAU family and was still taking line honours in Brittanny in the seventies . After having been seized in the eighties, she was abandoned .
In 1990 she has been purchased and trailed from la rivière du BONO near the Golfe du Morbihan to St Malo for a rebuilt by Raymond LABBE and Guy RIBADEAU DUMAS as Naval Architect .
Raymond LABBE is one of the most famous wooden boatbuilders in France . He built more than 20 John ILLINGWORTH and Angus PRIMROSE designs such as ORYX, MAÏCA, MERLE OF MALHAM and many Eugène CORNU designs . His last launch in 92 was LE RENARD, a Surcouf corsair cutter (18th century). He also converted the British twelve meter IKRA, ex KURREWA V, as a cruiser racer for Jean REDELE president of Alpine Renault and rebuilt PEN DUICK for Eric TABARLY .

For OISEAU DE FEU, by chance, the very accurate original drawings were still available from the Maritime Museum in London .
It is not the kind of rebuilt were nothing remains of the original and anodized aluminium, stainless steel and plastic replaces brass and galvanized steel outside, where the wood disappears under one millimeter of two component varnish inside . Some changes were done, but the main objective was to keep her as a 1936 design and construction .
The planking is of teak under the waterline and mahogany over, wooden frames and keel were in good condition . A few planks had to be replace, but about one third of the steel frames and the mast foot . As ever in composite construction, the main problem was steel .
Splines were glued between planks to strengthen the hull .
The leaking pine deck has been rebuilt in teak over plywood and the original beams, replacing the original bulwarck after . The mahogany roof and skylights were restored, the forehatch had to be rebuilt as a Goïot hatch was in place of the original .
There were many sail plan configurations over the years, we did new varnished Oregon Pine spars to the original area of the yawl rig . All the original steel fittings were regalvanized and GOÏOT aluminium ones replaced with stainless steel .
Most of the original deck fittings were just rechromed and kept . It includes some original winches but the main ones dating from the sixties were replaced by new chromed brass Barient ones .
Unfortunately, most of the interior disappeared in the sixties and only the main companionway, the aft cabin and the dog house remained original . We kept this part and rebuilt the other to a modern arrangement in the original style . The new owner wants to cruise the boat with his family and friends . The old one, with owner's and ladies cabin and a professional crew and cook forward the mast, is from another era . We now have the galley by the companionway, an owner cabin, three comfortable double cabins with three large toilets plus the two quarter berths in the deck house  .
The original Blake heads were completely rebuilt but the water tanks are now in the bilges with electric pumps and no longer on the deck with gravity . The engine was not the original one and has been changed to a new lighter Yanmar .
The new sails are all from Victor TONNERRE as he did the sails for OISEAU DE FEU for thirty years .

After two years, OISEAU DE FEU has been relaunched in St Malo in june and sailed the whole summer in Britanny . Her home port is La Trinité Sur Mer  . She is still very fast, nice to sail and able to take the line honors .  The next year she will come to the Meditérranean sea and race the NIOULARGUE .