Percy Blandford is 100

[Yantlet]

A real legend of the plywood revolution - Good on you Percy
http://intheboatshed.net/2012/10/25/percy-blandford-is-100-today/
Forgot to add that he was the 'Guru' of the canvas covered canoe, one of which was my very first boat. I can still remember the heart stopping thrill when arriving home from school to find it waiting. I later converted it to sail with rudder and leeboards from one of Percy's books - Happy Days indeed, Ah the simple things in life.

 

[sailorman]

A real legend of the plywood revolution - Good on you Percy
http://intheboatshed.net/2012/10/25/percy-blandford-is-100-today/

we built one of his canvas canoes at skool

 

[bigwow]

My dad built a PBK22 in the early 60's

 

[Plevier]

Forgot to add that he was the 'Guru' of the canvas covered canoe, one of which was my very first boat. I can still remember the heart stopping thrill when arriving home from school to find it waiting.

Ditto!
Happy Birthday Percy.

 

[xcw]

As did I - my first ever craft

 

[fergie_mac66]

+1 happy birthday

a real pbo er!

 

[Lakesailor]

Congratulations.

I was quite surprised by some of his designs http://exsuchetis.000a.biz/percy-blandford-boat-plans.html (NSFW)

 

[sailorman]

Congratulations.

I was quite surprised by some of his designs http://exsuchetis.000a.biz/percy-blandford-boat-plans.html (NSFW)

He certainly had a good eye for fine design

 

[actionoptics]

down the Wye with PB in a PBK

summer of '62 I paddled from Welsh Pool to Shrewsbury with Percy Blandford and about 100 other senior scouts, most of us in PBKs. Took a glorious sunny week. Great memories.

 

[Poignard]

My father built a PBK 18 kayak from a kit supplied by York Marine Craft. It was a 3-seater, if I remember correctly.

 

[Cloven]

Here's mine - a Siren made from Percy Blandford plans - with grandson as crew!

I still have the original plans.

 

[Mark-1]

A Gremlin was my first boat. Happy Birthday PB.

 

[Sybarite]

My first sailing boat was a Lysander.

http://www.lysander.org.uk/

 

[ffiill]

Nice to hear-no doubt he put me on the boating track fifty years ago!-still got the books.

 

[ffiill]

My father built a PBK 18 kayak from a kit supplied by York Marine Craft. It was a 3-seater, if I remember correctly.

York Marine craft-that brings back memories

 

[Poignard]

York Marine craft-that brings back memories

Come on then, let's be having them!

 

[oldharry]

1st boat PBK single seat canvas canoe
1st yacht, PBK Lysander. what a great little boat - till I discovered she was built of WBP ply

 

[Searush]

Here's mine - a Siren made from Percy Blandford plans - with grandson as crew!

I still have the original plans.

Thanks for that. I have something VERY similar in my garage. I bought it from a lady whose husband had left her & I had to rig it by guesswork as a sailing & rowing tender, she didn't have a clue waht it was. But I never found out WTF it was either.

Any possibility you could scan the plans please? I'd love to know if she really is PB design! Certainly sails well enough, altho I did over canvas her somewhat & broke the tiller with excessive weather helm. Serves me right for using a 5o5 main cut down I guess!

 

[Yantlet]

Gremlins and Goblins by golly!

My cousin built a Gremiin as a school woodwork project and my father and I built a Goblin, a great little boat.
A friend also built a Goblin at school and I remember we managed to get the day off and sailed out into the middle of the Thames to watch Chichester on his way up to London after completing his circumnavigation. Thinking back it was either a very stupid or very brave thing to do - two quite large teenagers in a 10 footer!!!
Just discovered some of Percy's plans are available from Clark Craft http://www.clarkcraft.com/cgi-local...5458&cart_id=03f69515def1a185a3375362b3ff9c66
The Siren is here too http://www.clarkcraft.com/cgi-local...2b3ff9c66&type=item&categ=019&item=1039443114

 

[jamesjermain]

A real legend of the plywood revolution - Good on you Percy
http://intheboatshed.net/2012/10/25/percy-blandford-is-100-today/
Forgot to add that he was the 'Guru' of the canvas covered canoe, one of which was my very first boat. I can still remember the heart stopping thrill when arriving home from school to find it waiting. I later converted it to sail with rudder and leeboards from one of Percy's books - Happy Days indeed, Ah the simple things in life.

I had a lot of dealings with him in the seventies when he wrote a column for a boating mag I worked for then. He was a real gentleman and unbelievably professional as a contributor - in addition to being a seminal influence in post war small boat design.
A great man. WOnderful that he has made it to this milestone