Model Boat Mayhem
The Shipyard ( Dry Dock ): Builds & Questions => Yachts and Sail => Topic started by: Little Rascal on September 02, 2010, 11:24:08 am
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Hi all!
I was hoping someone on the forum might be able to tell me about Model Yacht designs by Oliver Lee?
He was a full scale yacht designer too - I own one of his 19 foot Hunter Europa class, she's beautifully balanced and fast - just what you would expect from a model designer!
I've been trying to find out more about his model designs - apparently he made kits at one point and also raced radio yachts in the 80's.
Sadly he died in 1994.
I'd be glad if anyone could help me with information on his model designs or any stories from those who knew him or sailed his models?
Thanks in advance,
Jon - Little Rascal
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Hi Jon, I remember Oliver Lee was thought to be a leader in the Marblehead class of yachts at that time with his 'Trapper' design of which there were new updated designs, if I remember correctly up to around a Trapper Mk4. He also designed a restricted class yacht a little larger than the Marblehead and of a similar hull shape. A few in my old club, including myself, owned one one of these but the design name escapes me. Apart from a small fleet at the Chelmsford MYC and ours (Three Rivers MYC) the design never took off and faded away. I think this was possibly the last model he designed before his death Hopefully there may be forum members from the Chelmsford Club who can supply you with more info.
regards
Mike
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As a postnote to the above, you may be able to get more information from Graham Bantock, owner of Sails Etc www.sailsetc.com/ who is also a yacht designer and (is/was ?) a member of Chelmsford MYC and may well have known more about Oliver Lee
Mike
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Hi. Jon - Little Rascal.
I seen to remember he had I think it was a 36r design callled the pronto @ in the 1980`s you would probably find it advertised in the boat mags of that time.
cheers Frank
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Thanks very much guys!
That's given me somewhere to start looking. Very little on google (other than his full scale yachts), I suppose because he was around pre-interweb.
If anyone has any pics of OL nmodels I'd would be very intersted.
Thanks
Jon
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Hi jon, just had a quick Google for Oliver's model yachts without much success. This is an item on another forum which discusses the Hunter and only a fleeting mention of the models. It also has some links contained which may be interesting, but I didn't follow them
Oops nearly forgot to attach the link !
http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?t=221774
Mike
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Hi MikeK,
Thanks for the link - that's actually the forum where the question came up originally as it happens! %)
Many thanks
Jon
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Hello Jon
I knew Oliver, raced at CRYC and up until a couple of weeks back owned two of his mid 80's marbleheads, I spent hours with him in his workshop in Burnham on Crouch while my boats were being born, if you would like photos of the boats, let me have your email and I'll bang a few off to you, do you know, I don't recall them ever have a "type/model" name just simply oliver lee marblehead, he was way ahead of his time then and everybody knew him, he produced the F1 of the model yacht world in my opinion.
It was whilst doing some of my own enquiring research into Oliver that I came accross your interest. I was looking for something that he, Oliver, once designed and produced in small numbers................a fascinating mini half tonner or one tonner, may even have been a Dragon I think, I can't remember, also can't recall if it was keel or centreplate but, the helm would lie down in the hull and operate the rudder with their feet whilst operating the sheets in the same way as a full size boat...........brilliant and I want one if anybody has any idea of one available.
Anyway, let me know if you want some Pics
Chris
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Hello Jon
I knew Oliver, raced at CRYC and up until a couple of weeks back owned two of his mid 80's marbleheads, I spent hours with him in his workshop in Burnham on Crouch while my boats were being born, if you would like photos of the boats, let me have your email and I'll bang a few off to you, do you know, I don't recall them ever have a "type/model" name just simply oliver lee marblehead, he was way ahead of his time then and everybody knew him, he produced the F1 of the model yacht world in my opinion.
It was whilst doing some of my own enquiring research into Oliver that I came accross your interest. I was looking for something that he, Oliver, once designed and produced in small numbers................a fascinating mini half tonner or one tonner, may even have been a Dragon I think, I can't remember, also can't recall if it was keel or centreplate but, the helm would lie down in the hull and operate the rudder with their feet whilst operating the sheets in the same way as a full size boat...........brilliant and I want one if anybody has any idea of one available.
Anyway, let me know if you want some Pics
Chris
Is this what you meant, the Illusion Mini 12 metre?
http://www.sailboatlistings.com/view/16326
Chris
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Aaaah! I see one of those on the back of a trailer a few months back and I think other members on here thought I was mad http://www.modelboatmayhem.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=26194.0;topicseen I knew the yacht could fit a person in it thanks for the pictures I'm going to do some more inverstigation on one. :-))
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Brilliant, thank you, that's it........now, I always thought that looked great fun and seeing a gentlemen of around my years with a big grin on his face confirms I just must have one, any for sale?
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I was hoping someone on the forum might be able to tell me about Model Yacht designs by Oliver Lee?
He was a full scale yacht designer too - I own one of his 19 foot Hunter Europa class, she's beautifully balanced and fast - just what you would expect from a model designer!
(http://s3.postimage.org/30sy4285g/yachts_etc_010.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/30sy4285g/)
(http://s3.postimage.org/30tgaz1l0/yachts_etc_013.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/30tgaz1l0/)
I have plenty more photos if anyone is interested, let me know
Chris
Aka bobtheboatbuilder
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Hi Bob
Thanks for the pics - much appreciated.
Jon
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Now the proud owners (with son Peter) of the two Marblehead models in Bobthebuilder's photos. Apart from the great fun we're having with them, I would love to know more about the construction of the hulls. Also the open 'cockpit' - I've just filled the second one with 144 ping-pong balls, whilst trying to build some 'cockpit' covers. (Anyone confirm my calculation that 144 will provide 4.8Kg buoyancy?, p-p ball diam. 2cm)
Racing (match racing?) on Earlswood lake - keeping out of the way of the Sailing Club - was interrupted when the lakes froze over, just thawed out last weekend.
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Volume of a sphere = 4/3 * pi * radius ^ 3
I make it 603 grams?
Minus the weight of the balls of course...
I think you may have the diameter cubed - instead of the radius cubed?
Jon
EDIT - just realised you mean the radius is 2cm - in which case 4.8kg is right!
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one for sale on e/bay item no2207739932187 1.5 mtr ex chelmsford club been in storage for 28yrs looks lovely slug
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one for sale on e/bay item no2207739932187 1.5 mtr ex chelmsford club been in storage for 28yrs looks lovely slug
That is the one design that I could not remember the name of. Great boat to sail
Mike
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still on e/bay rather large still seems a bargain maybe a bit of history slug
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I found this forum whilst trying to research this model. I am now the owner of the one that was for sale on eBay.
As the advert stated it came with a load of paper work. Plans and price list of the model plus a list of all the first 50 owners and boat numbers,
The boat I have bought was number 12 from the original owner and it even has the original rudder servo in.
The paperwork also included loads of other interesting infomation like the one point five class association committe meetings etc.
I am just about to build a cradle for it so I can begin to get new electrics in etc.
Will add some photos later
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Hi Vanquish and welcome to the forum. I'm sure you will get a great deal of pleasure with your 1.5m. As I mentioned I had one when they first came out, along with half a dozen or so of fellow members of Three Rivers MYC. We were sponsored by Blaupunkt via our chairman at that time (The late Stan Cleal - a lovely man ) so they were all identically done up in yellow with the Blaupunkt logo down the sides. As far as I know only we and the Chelmsford club went in for this design in any sort of numbers, as nobody seemed to like the idea of a restricted class.
I think most of our models ended up in the West Indies of all places through one of the members (Sam Hodges) returning to his home in St Lucia (?) and with the idea of getting interest in the hobby out there, bought them and shipped them out with his belongings. He had plans to start and inter - island race with them, following them in a launch. Never did hear if he was successful !
Regards and happy sailing
Mike
ps I guess that our club boats will be on that list you have ?
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(http://s1.postimage.org/2t3ha9tl0/yacht_001.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/2t3ha9tl0/)
(http://s1.postimage.org/2t3ixt62s/yacht_007.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/2t3ixt62s/)
(http://s1.postimage.org/2t3klcikk/yacht_005.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/2t3klcikk/)
(http://s1.postimage.org/2t3m8vv2c/yacht_002.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/2t3m8vv2c/)
(http://s1.postimage.org/2t3pjyk1w/yacht_009.jpg) (http://postimage.org/image/2t3pjyk1w/)
Thought i would get some photos on now i have got the cradle made.
Lucky for the me weather was good outside for a quick rig up for the camera ( Sails and mast wrong way round) to see how large it is,Wow very impressive. I gave the deck abit of a clean up too after the photos were taken and everything looks Ship shape.....Lol
Radio gear ordered so hopefully time permitting i will get on with it next week.
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Looking good already ! Looking forward to seeing/reading how she performs (with the mast the other way round of course ok2 ) Imagine a dozen or so of them charging down onto a narrow starting line !
Mike
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vanquish you are very lucky our lake is not deep enough she looks the part looking forward to seeing more hope she sails as well as she looks slug
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I have just acquired 1 of these wonderful yachts this weekend. The previous owner told me he thought it was an Oliver Lee design, but wasn't sure. Checking out the pictures I am pretty sure its the same as vanquish's boat. Popped down the lake for a quick sail sunday, ended up staying for 7 hours !!! it sails beautifully.
i will try & get some pics on soon, but its too tall to rig indoors. Hopefully going for another go tomorrow night, will try to remember the camera.
cheers Glenn
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Lucky man Glenn, looking forward to seeing some pics, it's a long time since I saw one on the water
Mike
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Took her for a sail tonight in a good wind. Its beautifully balanced & great fun to sail.
Sorry about the picture quality, but the camera is cheap & it operated by a Muppet :embarrassed:
Cheers Glenn
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Lovely looker Glenn
What's her draught?
I could fit one in my car but would it fit our lake?
My Marblehead is bouncing off the bottom at the moment
because of the low water situation so a longer fin would be a
no no until we get some decent rain
Ned
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She looks great Glenn, nice hull colour too. Ned - Glenn can put you right about the draft, but just on memory the 1.5m didn't draw much more than the OLD style Marblehead draft before the fin length headed south. So if your MH has a modern long fin then the 1.5m should be ok on your lake
Mike
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Thanks for your kind comments guys.
NED, she draws about 19 inches, its hard to be exact cos there isn't a waterline, but definitely no more then 20 inches, which is slightly less than my marblehead. Over the bank holiday weekend the marblehead was grounding out in a few places, since then the water level has gone up a couple of inches in our lake, but the marblehead still touches bottom here & there, but with this yacht, i haven't noticed that problem.
I am a little concerned that the sail size will prove too much for the HI Tec winch she is fitted with, but it coped OK last night in fairly strong winds, I guess time will tell.
Cheers Glenn
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When I bought the 1.5 new, I used the old original Whirlwind winch, the same as in my Marblehead at the time and it handled it ok. The Hi Tec seems a fairly poweful beast, albeit slow so I hope your fears come to nought Glenn. Either way you will be in for some exciting sailing :-))
Mike
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Thanks for your reassurance Mike, so far the winch seems OK. As you say its a little slow, which I may have taken as a lack of strength, The pictures were taken during very strong winds & the winch coped OK.
My only regret is I didn't buy a yacht 20 years ago, over the years I have become a little bored with sailing scale boats & the fast boats are way to expensive at the speeds I enjoy going. The yachts have reignited my pleasure in model boats, its many years since I went to the lake 4 times a week.
thanks Glenn
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Well you have got a lot of good sailing time to make up for, Glenn ! O0
When I returned to model making a few decades ago, after the childhood chuck gliders etc, I bought a scale coaster kit for my first model. When it was almost finished I came across Model Boats magazines and one of them had an article on a S.African Marblehead called Dik Dik. There was a plan reduced to one page which I gridded up to as near the correct scale as I could to get the shadows. After that it was built with everything I could scrounge, the coaster was forgotten completely, so much fun was I getting out of scratch building the yacht. Eventually I finished off both and shoved both in the boot of the car and off to the lake. To cut the tale short, every trip to the lake I took both but only ever sailed the yacht ! Finally one day the lake was almost frozen leaving a channel round the edge so I thought it was time for the Caribbean Coaster's maiden voyage ! I went forwards, backwards, round in circles and a bit of ice fighting. Then I drove home and gave it to a neighbors child ! Been a sail man ever since %% Each to his own as they say, but I always thought that sailing involved that little bit more to get it right (or as near as you can ! )
Mike
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Hi Jon
Did you have gave any luck with information about Oliver Lee.in 2010 ?
I am looking for plans for one of his designs. Trapper ll.
I have the model yacht and it is in a sailing condition, but I would like to make sure it is how it should be.if you have any plans that I could have a copy of, expenses up front if needed.
Thanking you in anticipation.
Ken
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Hi Ken,
Only what was available in this thread to be honest. Funny you should reply just now as I looked in for the first time in years and saw your post! Been aeromodelling for the last few years rather than boating... Other than happily sailing my full size Europa :) my attachment to her grows and grows - as does my respect for Oliver Lee - she is so fast, weatherly and balanced that I cant imagine ever getting another boat!
Cheers,
Jon
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Better late than never, but I remember one of his designs (M I think) being known as Squiblet . Nylet still list sails as being available for it
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Hi. The boat you're thinking of is called a MIG 3.5 It is very much like small Squib. You steer with a joy stick between your legs. All the other controls are situated on the cuddy.Several boats were used for disabled sailors at Rutland. The other boat mentioned earlier in the thread is the Illusion. when new yachts and yachting did a comparison test on the two, with the MIG coming out on top [naturally]. The MIG being a much drier and more stable boat. Cheers. John
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http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231948544733?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
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If you are looking on Ebay, this is currently on there.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Oliver-Lee-Yachts-vintage-Marblehead-R-C-racing-yacht-A-B-C-rigs-servos-/131842254051?hash=item1eb26924e3:g:KPAAAOSwnNBXVcmR
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I am pretty sure that Oliver designed the Hunter 19 was designed before he got into models. I bought a lovely 1 metre from him in 1986. I had it taken to NZ for me, and like many of my other projects it was never finished and sold on.
I too had a Hunter 19, amazing for such a small yacht, I loved it.
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Hello,
I am looking for the plan of the marblehead of Oliver j Lee, not the building plans (i have them) but the plan that tells me how the lines go, wich controlls the sails.
I understand there is a main line, wich goes to the drumm-servo. 2 lines attached to it, they go to the main boom and fok-boom... but then there is a stretcher-line?
Thanks in advance for your kind reply
Kind regards Geert
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Hi Geert and welcome to the site.
I cannot help you with locating the plan you are looking for, however in relation to your question on the winch line. Basically it is a loop from the winch drum led by various pulleys so it passes along the deck. At one point the line is parted with a hook and eye, to this is attached the two sheeting leads that lead to the jib and main sails, plus some form of short elastic loop to which the other side of the winch line attached. This elastic holds the winch line loop in tension so no loose coils can jump off the winch drum and stop operation. As to how the winch line is led up on deck and the leads for the lines to the sails, there are no fixed methods and are up to your own imagination !
I'm sure a quick search on google will find photos of the system which is the same for all drum controlled sheeting
Regards
Mike
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Hi Mike,
Thanks for your reply. Searched on Google, and found plans given by the company that makes the servo's.
Currently spray-painting the hull and rudder. My god, not easy to become a nice result with a spray can..; but hey, first times are the hardest.
Any advice for a good place to buy new sails?
Kind regards, Geert.
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Hi Geert
Here is the link to the Google page for sail makers. I use HouseMartin Sails and can recommend them but all the others are reputable makers. It boils down to how seriously you want to sail and/or race your yacht ie fun sailing go for the cheaper sails etc etc
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=oyacht+sail+makers&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b-ab&gfe_rd=cr&ei=L4VDWYH8E9L38AfQxbO4Dw#q=model+yacht+sail+makers
Regards
Mike
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I can also endorse Housemartin sails. :-))
Ned
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ready for first attempt