How did you first get into boat design
Nicky, UK
JW: My big mouth gets me into trouble more than occasionally. I’d given up motorcycle roadracing for a less dangerous sport (sometimes I wonder) and had been sailing for a few years when a friend showed me a set of plans for a boat he proposed to build.
The boat was in my opinion not at all well suited to his use, and on my saying so he told me that if I drew him plans, and the boat he built from them worked as I said it would, as payment he’d give me his Stanley 55 moulding plane I’d been drooling over. I’m a bit of a woodworking hand tool collector so that was a real incentive.
I’ve still got that moulding plane, and when Richards boat appeared, others asked for one “ a bit longer” or “with a bigger sail” and away it went.
It’s been 35 years now, and there is no sign of it stopping.
Who would you say have been your main influencers over the years?
Richard (Barnacle Bill) UK
JW: I’ve read everything that Phil Bolger wrote, many many times over. I corresponded with him for a while and he was very encouraging, said that I should just get on and design my own, gave me a reading list and critiqued a couple of my early designs.
Jack Salter, a student of yacht design and the retired master of the big dredger that operated in our area, helped a lot, as did Bruce Woods who later became my boss when I was teaching Marine design at Massey University in Auckland New Zealand.
I have to say, that if there is a better way of learning than teaching a subject, I’ve yet to hear of it.
But overall, books, books, books. I’ve read everything I could get my hands on, and if there is one new and useful thing in a book I buy it, study it and add it to the library.
Old Salt
Every month we invite someone from the world of boats, sailing or adventure to answer readers questions.
This month we are honoured to welcome John Welsford, veteran New Zealand boat desigener. John has designed some of the world's most enduring boats including: the Navigator, SCAMP, Pathfinder and the Clarence River Dory.
[Ed: Phil Bolger 1927-2009, one of the most prolific boat designers of all time, Phil Bolger, was from Gloucester, Mass. and was estimated to have designed between 600-800 boats and vessels during his life. He also wrote some very important and vastly influential works on boat design, hull design and rigs including his 1994 work, Boats with an Open Mind. Bolger had a reputation for creativity in solution, much like the great French car designer André Lefèbvre (Citroen DS, Citroen Traction Avant), He wasn't inclined to accept the 'norm' and looked for new ways to approach conventional problems. Like Lefèbvre, his influence on design since has been remarkable.
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