I tried to find specifics on how the Grampian hulls (particularly the 26's) were laid up, but
didn't really find any. But here's a few interesting excerpts about the factory
From ..a transcript of a talk by Gill Bibby on his days at Grampian Marine given at the Grampian Gathering 2002, hosted by Etobicoke Yacht Club – July 27, 2002. http://www.grampianowners.com/History/gill_bibby.html
Gill Bibby tells of how Grampian Marine vastly improved production under the leadership of
Don Wilkinson.. (Excerpts)
"That was the start of the Grampian that I knew. Don Wilkinson was a production person who knew fibreglass. He had been hired to run production and Grampian was going to increase production. He told me, months after that - I asked him ‘What made you pick me off the line to help you run this thing?’ ‘Well,’ he said, ‘I know fibreglass, I do not know boats but all I know about a boat is pointed at one end and flat at the other. All I want from you is to see the points going through the door..."
"..Through ’72/73 we were building at least 4 possibly 5 26’s a week. Now it appeared one a day went out the shop – it took two weeks to build a 26’ boat - one a day left the shop..."
"..We’d only been at it for 7 or 8 years, most of us, plus the old Grampian employees – they were a good crew, we had a very good Grampian crew. No one person could take credit for Grampian boats. It was a team that we put together.."
"...Alex Markham was in the glass shop - glass men are hard to get. There’s something about breathing all those fumes all the time that drives you crazy. So Alex was in there for a long time and he turned out some good fibreglass. These are the people that we have to thank for what we have. I’m glad to say that I am their representative..."
"The 7.9 metre was supposed to save the 26’ line. It was a re-work of that hull. It didn’t quite come up to the scratch that we wanted it to. It had more accommodation, more headroom, but the old 26’ could still sail circles round it. Doesn’t always work to change one..."..we changed the 1,000th [G26] boat into the 7.9 metre – there’s no doubt because I was there."
Q: I read about a 26’ that sailed around the world…
A: These are stories I can’t tell you about. There’s no doubt it’s strong enough to do it.
Read the entire transcript at:
http://www.grampianowners.com/History/gill_bibby.html
No comments:
Post a Comment
Enter your comment