Gypsy Moth IV plans

Discussion in 'Boat Design' started by KZ007, Feb 13, 2016.

  1. KZ007
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    KZ007 New Member

    I'm looking for some line drawings of Gypsy Moth IV. Done a bit of digging around online, but haven't been able to find anything. Can anyone point me in the right direction, hopefully some line drawings must be out there some where, right?
     
  2. Tad
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    Tad Boat Designer

    Haven't seen anything much in the public domain, apart from the perspective cut-away and representational sail plan which appeared in the book. The Illingworth and Primrose drawings might be in a museum by now. You could ask Bill Dixon, he took over Primrose's office in 1980 when the designer drowned.
     
  3. RHP
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    RHP Senior Member

    Beware though, Francis Chichester cursed her to the moon and back, she was not a good design.
     
  4. tom28571
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    tom28571 Senior Member

    I remember his term for her behavior in waves was "pig jumping". Not that I know what that means but it does not sound good.
     
  5. Tad
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    Tad Boat Designer

    Presumably the original poster wants drawings to build a model from, as such the actual boat's performance is irrelevant. The human propensity to endlessly repeat nasty gossip seems to have found a home on the internet.......That's disappointing and I know we can do better........
     
  6. upchurchmr
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    upchurchmr Senior Member

    Tad,

    Is there better source of more pertinent evaluation of the boat?
    One way to avoid "gossip" is to get better facts - or at least those straight from the mouth of the expert.
     
  7. RHP
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    RHP Senior Member

    If Sir Francis criticised the design and performance in his book then that's straight from the horse's mouth...? Surely every schoolboy of our generation read it?
     
  8. upchurchmr
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    upchurchmr Senior Member

    Well I don't remember, might have, just asking where Tad thinks truth and authority comes from.
    A little bit of a challenge to justify his complaint.

    Of course now you have certified your statement, good enough for me.
     
  9. KZ007
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    KZ007 New Member

    I was hoping to get some line drawings to build a half model. I've read she heels to extreme angles, which is not great for a single handed ocean going boat... But, dam it's a good looking machine. I'm really surprised there aren't any line drawings of such a famous boat floating around on the internet?
     
  10. gonzo
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    gonzo Senior Member

  11. Tad
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    Tad Boat Designer

    I know I've written in other places about the design of Gypsy Moth IV, but I don't have a handy link. I'll make a blog post some day. On every thread I've ever seen on the boat or the voyage there are a bunch of people repeating Chichester's criticism. But this forum is called Boat Design, in theory the denizens of such a place might know something about the subject. Therefore rather than "Chichester said it's a terrible boat." I would hope people would say, "I think she is tender because xxxx." or "The way to fix GM IV is xxxxx".

    GM IV's design was the result of some very strict and limiting requirements laid out by her skipper and part owner, Francis Chichester. At the time Chichester's experience was pretty limited, having started sailing about 5 years prior to the construction of GM IV, and all of his sailing experience was in the 39' Robert Clark designed GMIII. He had no experience building custom yachts, or sailing a 54' ketch. That both those things were difficult should come as a surprise to no one.
     
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  12. gonzo
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    gonzo Senior Member

    I think the amount of sailing Chichester did on her is a reasonable trial. Further, he was never known to be a whiner, so his criticism can be believed. We may theorize about the merits of faults of the boat, but I rather take it from the horse's mouth.
     
  13. peleg7
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    peleg7 Junior Member

    GMIV plans

    The GMIV Plans can be found other to the Greenwich National Maritime Museum or by Colin Sylvester in Southanpton UK
     
  14. SukiSolo
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    SukiSolo Senior Member

    Gypsy Moth IV is currently in Cowes according to this....

    http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/de...284/mmsi:232667000/imo:0/vessel:GYPSY_MOTH_IV

    For many years she sat down at Greenwich next to the Cutty Sark. I've read the Chichester book(s) and it is apparent that she was not an easy boat for a single hander in her early days. However Ben Lexcen significantly altered her in Sydneyfor Chichester and she became much more manageable. For all that, she was still less than ideal for the type of voyage. Strange in some ways as there are quite a few decent handling older craft from earlier than her era.

    In fact looking at her hull down at Greenwich it became obvious why she was less than ideal. However she did the job asked...
     

  15. upchurchmr
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    upchurchmr Senior Member

    If it became "obvious why she was less than ideal" why don't you tell us who don't recognize the obvious?

    Which boats do you think were OK?
     
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