Monday, April 18, 2011

Skipper 14; What the Heck is That Paul?

Around the beginning of March, I got a call from Paul Weiss, another International 14 buddy from the 1970's - 1980's who I haven't heard from in a while. We worked together on an International 14 design in the late 1970's (truth be told - it was more Paul's design in the final version). Paul was working with some nascent computer hull design software for the Navy (on some ancient hardware - maybe a VAX.... talked to Paul and he said it was a PDP which was DEC's earliest high end computer) and I would wager this International 14 was probably the first dinghy to be designed by a computer. We would build cardboard models from scaled hull panels drawn out by the computer (this was a multichine plywood design). Paul eventually built the Weismin Mk1 which turned out to be very good in light air, not so good in a breeze.

Well, Paul (and wife Gerri) invited me and the missus over for a St. Paddie's day ham and cabbage dinner and I took a look at Paul's latest Craigslist freebie boat project. Paul told me over the phone that he had picked up a Skipper 14 for free. There are probably ten people in the U.S who know what a Skipper 14 is and I'm one of them. You see, my Auntie Doris knew of my love of sailing and sent me the English "Yachts and Yachting" magazine throughout my teenage years. As a result, I'm more knowledgeable about English dinghy classes than I am about American classes. And I've always felt the Skipper 14 was a superb multi-purpose dinghy design, though small by American tastes (we like our 19 foot Flying Scot's).

The Skipper 14 was designed by Peter Milne in the early 1970's (Peter Milne being the designer of the very popular Fireball dinghy) and was built in England by Richmond Marine. The Skipper 14 featured deep freeboard with a very complex deck molding for that period, lots of fancy molded wells and seats. Paul is currently hard at work on his Skipper 14 replacing various rotten plywood bits but I expect this one will get in the water sometime this summer. Hopefully I will have a sailing report later on.

Here is a photo of the fancy molded deck layout of the Skipper 14 which I've lifted from the Internet;



And here is Paul's project Skipper 14, safely ensconced in the garage, serving as a storage holder for a stuffed hammerhead shark!


Let's go to the videotape. This Skipper 14 is rigged like Paul's; a single gunter mainsail on a mast that slots into mast tube on the hull (there was a sloop version available for more power).........




Back in the 90's, I took a kayak tour on Elkhorn Slough, off Monterey Bay, California, and came across another Skipper 14 launching off a public launch ramp.... so I know now of at least two in the U.S.

20 comments:

  1. So sorry to say - the Skipper looks for all the world like a hot-tub. Mmmmm maybe there is a million dollar idea in there somewhere...?

    So you must know of the Enterprise? I have one in my boatyard, but don't know much about it.

    michael

    ReplyDelete
  2. Enterprise, two man dinghy designed by Jack Holt in the late 50's, a plywood three planker per side. About the same length as a Laser. Class requires blue sailcloth in the sails. Large main, small jib, no spinnaker, planes really fast, roll tacks in a dime. In the 60's and 70's the Enterprise was considered one of England's national classes, you could find a fleet almost anywhere in the UK. Doryman, when you get her going, I think you will find the Enterprise a very sprightly sailing dinghy.
    (Now let me go to Wikipedia and see how much I've got wrong)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Tweezerman, I just came across this post while doing research on the Skipper 14 that my grandparents own. They bought it in the 70s, and I've grown up sailing in it on a lake in Maine. This boat is perfectly sized for our lake (enough water, but not a huge lake). So there's another US Skipper 14 to add to your list. :-) Did Paul's ever make it on to the water?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Mr. S. Sparrow,

    I was over Paul's house this summer. Unfortunately not enough progress to have a launching. I did get an interesting lesson on LED lighting strips which he and his son were putting up around the cabinets surrounding the stove.

    Please contact me through my profile email and send pictures. I think the Skipper 14 is an excellent design, well suited to smaller lakes.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have a Yellow Skipper 14 on Moosehead Lake Maine.
    Jim

    ReplyDelete
  6. I have a Skipper 14 in St Louis, Mo. It is for sale to someone who would use it and appreciate how rare they are in the US.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Just picked up a blue skipper 14 with the original seagul motor. Trying to figure out how to set it up, bought it with all rigging just thrown in the boat. Anyone up to making a video of the set up. Lots of strange looking parts that I've never seen on a sail boat.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Picklejuice,

    Last time I checked with Paul he hadn't got the Skipper 14 into the water so I'm not sure we could be any help. You could check my profile and send me an email with specific questions.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi, picking up my Skipper 14 today! Looking for any info on the sailplan - the rigging will be missing parts and sails. I tried searching for it and didn't get much more than sailboatdata.com site. I have a 5hp Gamefisher that I plan on usuing in the immediate future but would like to setup the rig for sailing in the harbor with my kids. I will be a while before my Irwin 37 is in the water. Thanks in advance! Alex. ashekoff@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  10. Picked up my Skipper 14 last month and finally had a chance to test her out on the water in Raritan Bay, NJ. Good boat, I like her. Stable and simple. Tested with a small sail custom build for a different boat, much smaller and not efficient, but still, she sailed ok on beam reach. Now I'm in a process of rigging her, it only came with mast, boom and gaff. I got most parts from Nautos-USA: simple and cheap blocks and such. Almost done with rig, but now moving on to the sail - I decided to saw my own. Bought lots of dacron on eBay for about $40. I plan to keep the boom almost leveled at about 2' height above rail. Maybe slight pitch upward on the aft end. This will give me and my kids ability to tack and jibe safly. Sail area came to about 65sf for main and 10 sf for jib - I always like a self tacking jib on any boat. Doesn't take much to use and always helps during tacks with mast this far foreward. Any comments on pros and cons of the sail rig are greately appreciated. Planning to start cutting next week. email me at ashekoff@gmail.com. Thanks. Alex

    ReplyDelete
  11. Also, perhaps if anyone is interested, perhaps we can start a group on Facebook for Skipper 14 owners. I'm in another one for my Irwin sailboat and it's been a huge help and lots of fun.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I think a facebook group is a great idea.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I am interested in purchasing a Skipper 14. I had one in 1969 and would like to sail one again. Please contact me at thebard@ndemand.com with info.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I bought a Skipper 14 from a dealer at the Anaheim, California boat show in the 70's. He had two at the time. One was a white hull with an orange deck molding and had a blemish in the fiberglass. I bought the green deck one without blemish for slightly more. It is a gaff rigged boat with the mainmast able to drop it's upper portion to clear a bridge. The tiller is hinged in the middle and the rudder is hinged at the top so it can float up and you can skull the boat without oars. (It has oar locks of pin type) There is a small rope along the top of the rudder to pull it's aft edge up. There are fiber cleats at the rear of the cockpit to pull in the mainsail sheets on either side. A jib sail was available at the time but I never had one. The well in the rear is for a folding outboard.
    Mine got damaged when somebody tried to haul it in a U-Haul that was too short and it blew over onto the road and cracked the upper works!

    ReplyDelete
  15. I had one of those in the '70s (Cape Cod) so there's one more for the US.

    The boat place my parent bought it from contacted them a few years after the purchase and they wanted to take it back, copy it, and give us one of the copies plus, possibly, a few dollars. My parents never took them up on the offer.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I had one of those in the '70s (Cape Cod) so there's one more for the US.

    The boat place my parents bought it from contacted them a few years after the purchase and they wanted to take it back, copy it, and give us one of the copies plus, possibly, a few dollars. My parents never took them up on the offer.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Came to this because I'm just now getting our Skipper 14 ready to sell/ send along. White with blue top/inside.

    Used to sail it around our little cove, it's sat unused for a while now.

    Loved the high gaff rig so you could tack without sweeping everyone from the boat!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I have had one over 30 years if Finland. It's perfect to small lake and our family uses it also with electric motor boat. It's perfect for fishing trips.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Hello is anonymous from Finland the guy that posted this ?

    http://skipper14.attwood.fi/

    Richard

    ReplyDelete
  20. I just inherited one ugg, my youngest thinks it is cute…….
    Looks like it was painted with house paint. Good old Buttermilk Bay, Buzzards Bay MA

    ReplyDelete