Islander - Seagoer

[kolosanka]

Hi,

I would like to build a boat. Last year I've been working for one NZ boatbuilder, who helped me to buy and fix an old seabird. I loved the time I spent on her. Now I am on the other side of the globe, in the middle Europe thinking about building the Harry Pidgeons Islander. Can someone help me with finding the design? thx..

[hoytedow]

I found this in Wikipedia.: In 1917, Pidgeon started constructing the Islander from plans he copied from a book in the local library. He built it in the Port of Los Angeles. The Islander cost $1,000 in materials and took a year and a half of hard work. Upon completion, he tested the yawl with trips to Catalina Island and then to Hawaii and back.

[Angélique]

Originally Posted by kolosanka

I would like to build a boat. Last year I've been working for one NZ boatbuilder, who helped me to buy and fix an old seabird. I loved the time I spent on her. Now I am on the other side of the globe, in the middle Europe thinking about building the Harry Pidgeons Islander. Can someone help me with finding the design? thx..

Welcome Kolosanka,

Harry Pidgeon's 34' Islander Yawl was built along the lines of a 25' 7" Sea Bird Yawl designed by Thomas Fleming Day*.


Here are the plans of the 25' 7" Sea Bird Yawl




There is also a modified 25' 7" plywood version designed by Charles G. Mac Gregor




Both are in the book Fifty Wooden Boats




Good Luck!
Angel


PS
* Just looked that up, the more complete info about Sea Bird Yawl's designer is: Conceived by Captain Thomas Fleming Day, drawn up by Charles D. Mower with construction details by Larry Huntington.


Attachment: Harry Pidgeon's 34' Islander Yawl

[Angélique]

The original Sea Bird Yawl was built in 1901* as a centerboarder but due to a lack of interior space she was converted into a keel craft in 1902*. The plans are now available with a choice of centerboard or ballast keel configurations.

Harry Pidgeon's 34' Islander Yawl (L 34', B 10' 9", D 5') was build as a ballast keel craft, see page 5 (I hope the link works - if so, scroll down) of his book.

I guess there is a lot of info in Harry Pidgeon's book ‘‘Around the World Single-Handed: The Cruise of the "Islander"’’, it's available by Amazon.

Harry Pidgeon spend USD1,000 in materials cost and a year and a half of hard work to build his Islander in 1917-18. Do you have any idea what it would cost to build the 34' Islander Yawl nowadays?

* Dates as stated in the book the book Fifty Wooden Boats which is mentioned in post #3. Another book says ‘‘launched in 1909’’, see post #32.


Good Luck!
Angel


PS - See also this article.


Attachment: Cover of Harry Pidgeon's book.

[kolosanka]

hi angel

thx for your answer. I already know, that islander is comming from a sea bird design. What I am looking for is a 34-foot yawl, designed by C. D. Mower for the sailing magazine "Rudder". It is based on the Flemings Seabird, but can you help me to find the rudder plan, which Harry Pidgeon used? thx

[kolosanka]

well I 'll gues it´s gonna be about 6000$

[Angélique]

Originally Posted by kolosanka

well I 'll gues it´s gonna be about 6000$

I think you are a way off base. I'll like to see a expert's vision on that.

Good Luck!
Angel

[kolosanka]

The costs always depend on the area, where you want to spend the money. I think I can build the boat very cheap, but I need the informations about this particular design. Maybe I am a way of base, but still I'll give it a try

Originally Posted by Angélique

I think you are a way off base. I'll like to see a expert's vision on that.

Good Luck!
Angel

Well pointed,

expect 8€ - 10€ per kg of the basically equipped vessel and you have a broad figure.

For such a old design that would be around 5 to 8 tonnes? There you have the figure.

(6000$ does´nt buy the engine and gear!)


Regards
Richard

[Angélique]

Originally Posted by kolosanka

....
Maybe I am a way of base, but still I'll give it a try

OK, but when you start be sure to have enough money and perseverance to finish it. And take what Richard says here as a serious advise for calculations.

Good Luck!
Angel

[gonzo]

I raced one of them in the late 70's. We got her to plane at over 15 kts.

[TeddyDiver]

Originally Posted by gonzo

I raced one of them in the late 70's.

Islander or Sea Bird? Centerboard or keel?

[Angélique]

Originally Posted by TeddyDiver

Islander or Sea Bird? Centerboard or keel?

My guess is a centerboard Sea Bird, but I like to hear from Gonzo

The plywood Sea Bird, design 2 in post#3, has a little keel* and a centerboard. The weight saved by the use of plywood is in that little keel and is additional to the ballast wich is in the original carvel planked centerboard Sea Bird.

So if it was a centerboard Sea Bird, wich version . . ? ? ‘‘late 70's’’ the plywood one I guess . . . . . . . ?

*the difference in draft of 7" is caused by that little keel (see for the basic specs the links in post#3).

Cheers!
Angel

[Angélique]

Originally Posted by kolosanka

What I am looking for is a 34-foot yawl, designed by C. D. Mower for the sailing magazine "Rudder". It is based on the Flemings* Seabird, but can you help me to find the rudder plan, which Harry Pidgeon used? thx - - (* = Thomas Fleming Day ~ Tom Day)

I looked into Harry's Harry Pidgeon's book ‘‘Around the World Single-Handed: The Cruise of the "Islander"’’ for that, page 6 reads....

-- This link (I hope it works) gives a preview of the book, but many pages are missing for copyright reasons, it gave me page 6, scroll down to see it. --

‘‘ . . . . . . Three safe and handy cruising boats wre brought out and the plans published in the Rudder. They were Sea Bird, Naiad and Seagoer. The Islander was built after the lines of the Seagoer and the general construction plan is the same, but I used ideas from each of these boats and added some ideas of my own as suggested by material at hand and my limited resources. All the information I had when building the Islander is contained in a booklet published by the Rudder Publishing Company, of New York (How to Build a Cruising Yawl), containg instrictions for building Sea Bird, Naiad and Seagoer. . . . . . . ’’


Google on ‘‘How to Build a Cruising Yawl’’ gave me a book that looks to be the book that Harry Pidgeon used to build his Islander.

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‘‘ HOW TO BUILD A CRUISING YAWL -- Sea Bird, Seagoer and Naiad -- by Rudder Magazine.

When Thomas Fleming Day built Sea Bird and sailed it across the Atlantic to Rome, he created a sensation and enormous desire for the plans of this shoal draft , centerboad cruising yacht. They were produced and many, many derivations of Sea Bird were eventually built and many are still sailing and building today. Following the great success of the original, as per usual, many requests were received for "just a little bit bigger boat." Seagoer and Naiad were the result. We offer the plans for Sea Bird as a booklet and are now pleased to be able to offer the plans for all three in one convenient publication; Sea Bird, Seagoer and Naiad ’’

- -

The book is for sale for $ 19.95 on this page (I don't know if it's reliable).




-- As the boats are related here also the info about Sea Bird from the same website. See the quote below for the required skills. --

‘‘ BUILD THE FAMOUS SEA BIRD -- a comfortable, seaworthy cruiser of moderate draft. The original sailed from New York to Rome -- Reprinted from Rudder.

"Sea Bird", herself, needs little introduction to the yachtsmen of the world as her record is well-known and her name will echo down the corridors of time for many years to come. We will therefore dispense with any unnecessary palaver and get down to business. In the first place, "Sea Bird" is designed primarily for the professional builder but, as already stated, a great many duplicates have been built with considerable success by amateurs. If you are handy with tools and know a little something about boat building, you ought to be able to complete her, but if you have had little or no experience on the subject, consider something simpler to start off with; a dinghy for instance. ’’




There is a lot of info on the D.N. Goodchild website of wich the above also came.

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This source said that the Naiad is 38'.

Keep us posted . . . . ! !

Good Luck!
Angel

[gonzo]

It was a keel Islander built in 1948 or so. I was onboard her last year and it is still in great shape but they changed the masts to aluminum and the sails to Dacron. That day it was blowing about 70 knots and we had the mizzen and the smallest jib up.