This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
CHUCK PAINE DESIGNS PART 3


than eleven months’ time – an ambitious schedule but, with a lot of hard work by everyone concerned, just possibly achievable.


I sent him my preliminary sketch and he asked to change virtually nothing- just reminding me that he needed drawings as fast as humanly possible if we were to accommodate his timeframe. He hired a company in Ipswich to build the hull mould and would build the deck tooling in his own factory. I began drawing the hull lines in early February and put my draughtsman Chris Davis to work on the other drawings. By early March the lines were completed and shipped off to Ipswich so that the hull plug could get going. Peter and the company in Ipswich, which shall remain nameless, kept in touch by phone with Peter constantly chiding and urging that they progress at all deliberate speed. They assured him that the first hull would be delivered on time. In mid-August with four months left in the schedule I was asked to fly over and inspect the tooling. By then transatlantic flights were just part of my routine, though this was before American Airlines thought up the morning departure from Boston which got you into London in time for a late dinner and a welcome bed. Before then, travelling to Britain was more than a bit gruelling from a lack of sleep point of view. On this occasion I inspected the deck mould in


Warsash, which was coming along nicely. Peter and I discussed other details of the new boat and made plans to drive to Ipswich the next day to inspect the hull mould. The air was full of optimistic anticipation. Victoria Marine had laid out extensive pre-debut advertising for the new 34. There was going to be a glossy full-colour brochure. The stand at Earl’s Court would be the most elaborate ever. They’d hired young female greeters with perfect smiles and matching figures. They would want me there in a sales role of sorts, imperfect face and figure notwithstanding. We left for Ipswich at six in the morning in Peter’s latest high-powered Autobahn cruiser. It didn’t matter that the thing would happily top 150 without feeling a


CLASSIC BOAT JULY 2011 53


strain as the Romans had placed one of the world’s largest cities inconveniently in the way. After half an eternity crawling around London on the M25 we arrived at the boatyard well after noon. The management met us at the gate. They appeared uncomfortable. Peter introduced his famous designer who had come all the way from America to see his beautiful hull. This presented a bit of a problem. It seems they hadn’t actually started it yet! I was amazed at Peter’s composure. Had it been me I’d have gone ballistic. Perhaps he’d had a suspicion that something was afoot and prepared himself mentally. But for sure we had a problem. A huge problem. We discussed it all the long way home. He had invested so much by this point that any delay in actually selling new boats would put Victoria Marine under. To debut at the Southampton show – eight months later – would not work on two counts. He had rented the space at Earls Court and it was too late to get his colossal deposit back. And there was only one London – beside it Southampton paled into insignificance.


“There was no choice – that first boat had to be at the London show”


There was simply no choice. That first boat had to be at the London Boat Show! We parted company that evening. I had a flight out of Heathrow the next morning. Peter was dejected. He was hung up on the fact that until that time in his experience you had to have a hull


before you built an interior inside it. I’d seen the way Tom Morris was building boats in America. He’d build the interior from the drawings to the point of near completion outside the hull, usually finishing it in a few large ‘units’ before the hull came over from the moulding


VICTORIA 34


LENGTH OVERALL 34ft 3in (10.4m)


WATERLINE 28ft 4in (8.6m)


BEAM


10ft 7in (3.2m)


DRAUGHT 4ft 10in (1.5m)


DISPLACEMENT 12,719lb


SAIL AREA 568sqft (52.8m²)


Above: The Victoria 34 Below: The 34’s accommodation and lines


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100
Produced with Yudu - www.yudu.com