Boats


SIGNET 20 Price from £1,000


HURLEY 22 Price from £1,600


The Signet 20, a Ray Kaufman design


Signet 20 The Signet 20 was designed by American naval architect and yacht designer Ray Kaufman in around 1963, following several years of research and prototype testing. Signet 20s were built in many countries and by several yards in the UK, although the majority of the UK boats were moulded by Hurley Marine between 1965 and 1967. It’s likely that Hurley produced the mouldings and other yards then completed and sold the boats. Signet 20 with sail number 15 was built by Hurley and was used in publicity shots for other builders. Standards of construction and fi nish varied signifi cantly from builder to builder, as did interior layout, but accommodation was usually open plan with forward V-berths, a galley with worktop amidships and two settee berths which ran under the cockpit coamings. Some had a sea toilet between the forward berths. A strong and seaworthy little yacht, the


Signet 20 is similar in concept to the Felicity and Hurley 20.


Folk Dancer


The Folk Dancer is a development of the Folkboat (see PBO Summer 2011) and was designed by Fred Parker and built by Hurley for Russell Marine. This was a


FOLK DANCER Price around £6,500


long-term and


carefully conducted development project, employing a


prototype for two years before moving to production, the intent being to produce a


thoroughbred


offshore cruising yacht but also with the needs of racing enthusiasts in mind. Two interior layouts were offered, four and


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Fred Parker’s Folk Dancer design is a development of the Folkboat


Margret Hurley takes a Hurley 22 on the water for PBO in 1967


The Hurley 22, a ‘proper little yacht’ and perhaps the most famous of Hurley’s Ian Anderson designs


fi ve berth. The four-berth plan placed the sea toilet in a separate compartment. A galley advertised as ‘de luxe’ and a clothes- hanging space for fi ve people were a distinct attraction for the cruising family. A number of features of the build refl ect the Hurley style: for example, the


construction of lockers and use of


woodwork are clearly similar to that used in Hurley’s own


boats. Likewise, the upper deck


moulding, windows and coachroof bear a striking


resemblance


to the Hurley 22. Hurley 22


Referred to as a


‘proper little yacht’ by PBO in


December 1996 and perhaps the most famous of Hurley’s Ian


Anderson designs, the Hurley 22 went into production in 1964 and was still being built by various companies until 1991. The 22, offered with fi n or bilge keels, became an instant hit. Aside from her pretty lines, she is solidly built and a good performer. From the outset, the boat was intended to be raced as well as cruised: a 22 won the Round The Island Race in 1967, and 22s acquitted themselves well on the Junior Offshore Group (JOG) circuit. However, it has been the 22’s cruising


performance that has won the respect of many yachtsmen over the years. The boats have proved themselves on long cruises, several 22s have crossed the Atlantic and at least one has cruised the Pacifi c. In the late 1960s, the yacht was successfully raced and marketed by SHE Yachts, which produced the 22S version with a slightly taller Proctor rig, different winches and altered central cockpit mainsheet traveller, for racing under JOG rules. During the 1970s the Royal Navy bought more than 30 Hurley 22s and used them for training purposes. They were mostly fi n-keelers and were named, so the story goes, after the girlfriends of senior naval offi cers!


Practical Boat Owner 539 September 2011 • www.pbo.co.uk


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3/8/11 15:02:17


David Harding


David Harding


David Harding


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