Ian Nicolson

A treasure trove of invaluable information for boatowners, designers, builders, surveyors, chandlers and anyone maintaining their own boat. Thoroughly updated for this eighth edition, this book is packed with tables of lengths, widths, weights and strengths as well as new data on a vast range of equipment from anchors to masts, propellers to gas cylinders, cleat sizes to winch bases, and hatches to bolts, bearings, cabling and piping. If you want to know what size winch to fit, the breaking strength of stainless steel rigging wire, the recommended size for seacocks or what length and size an anchor chain should be, then this is the book for you. The Boat Data Book is a must-have reference for owners and professionals.

For all those who love boats, their ‘lines’ are an essential element in the appreciation of individual craft. But what are these lines and how are they created? This book introduces the reader to the key principles of yacht design in a straightforward and understandable manner, allowing them to be aware of the elements and processes involved. Most of the complex maths has been replaced with simple rules of thumb. Any boat owner will benefit from understanding the characteristics of boat design which will help them if they want to modify the hull, rig, deck layout or accommodation. It will be equally useful to boat buyers who want to ask questions like: “How will she sail?”; “How much will she cost?”; “How easy is it to change things?” and “How can I reduce or increase sail area without upsetting the balance?” Boat owners and buyers will be able to feel more confident when talking to designers and boatbuilders about their current or future boat. While novice boat designers can start their journey with this book, giving them a good foundation whether they want to use pencil and paper or Computer-Aided Design. So, if you are any of the above, or simply have an interest in yacht design, this is the book for you!

Alfred Mylne the First designed exciting, beautiful yachts, which have won many races over the past 120 years – some are still collecting prizes. They have also cruised far and wide. Many still traverse the oceans, braving the blasting breeze with the confidence of their strong construction. Each chapter of this book is about one of these famous craft, or about a class of boats. The text reveals what is so special about each design. With a fascinating set of illustrations from the Mylne archives, each boat is accompanied by reproductions of Mylne’s original plans and drawings. This is the second book about Alfred Mylne the First’s very special designs, being a sequel to Ian Nicolson’s recent Alfred Mylne The Leading Yacht Designer: 1896-1920. Writing with expertise and enthusiasm, the author has worked in the yacht industry for seventy-one years, including twenty years with Alfred Mylne the Second.

This book will appeal to anyone who enjoys small boat cruising, or anyone considering taking up the sport. Ian Nicolson is a renowned nautical author who has always been particularly keen on open boat cruising. Here he imparts the benefits of many years spent investigating and indulging in this fun, cheap and exciting form of cruising. He offers advice on the selection of a suitable boat (new or second-hand); what the cruising is like (i.e. low cost and high fun); helps with rigs and sails; covers trailing, launching and getting the boat ashore; evaluates cruising grounds; suggests how to plan a cruise; how to navigate; looks at tents, boat tools and emergency procedures, and much more. Throughout, practical, clear diagrams illustrate every point and make the book one of the most comprehensive and up-to-date books on the subject.

Cold-moulded wood boatbuilding predates fibreglass and has been used successfully for sailing dinghies, offshore racing yachts, fast multihulls and powerboats, and even rowing shells. It involves bonding together layers of wood veneers or thin planks to make a strong, lightweight and watertight hull. Modern glues, particularly epoxy resins, gave cold-moulding a boost and improved both its strength for weight and longevity. Strip-planking is a related technique using narrow strips of wood, and it too has been improved by modern adhesives. The two forms of building can also be combined. Both of these techniques have been used in some excellent boats, by both professionals and amateurs. They are particularly suited to one-off or short series production, and allow the moulds to be dismantled and even modified for later use. Cost and time factors are attractive, and even for amateurs without a high degree of woodworking skill good results are quite feasible. This book is a practical guide to both methods, starting from the design requirements, necessary tools and working conditions, and choice of timber through step-by-step construction and repair. Ian Nicolson’s many drawings illustrate the process and provide examples of a variety of successfully built boats.

This fully revised third edition of a classic manual is a mine of information for yachtsmen to customise their boats. An abundance of clear illustrations accompanied by concise explanations cover the following subjects: hull construction and repairs; keels, floors and decks; rudders, tillers and steering gear; cabin tops and cockpits; hatches and ventilation; cabin furniture; chainplates; deck and cockpit fittings; pulpits, stanchions and guardrails; spars, mast fittings and steps; sails and rigging; engines and electrics; tanks, piping and plumbing; yacht tenders, dinghies and liferafts; anchors, chains and warps; fitting out and laying up. Ian Nicolson is one of the most prolific yachting writers. He has written twenty-four books on yachting and his articles since 1947 number several thousand. He is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects, a previous partner in A. Mylne & Co., he founded Nicolson-Hughes Sails and is visiting lecturer at four universities. He lives in Scotland, has three children and four grandchildren, who all sail ... a lot.

Getting afloat need not be difficult or expensive if you were to build your own boat. Most of the boats described here are suitable for beginners, and are small and light enough to be carried on a car roof rack. They can be taken to the sea, river, canal or lake; they are cheap and easy to build. In this revised edition of a classic manual, Ian Nicolson provides clear and useful advice on how to effectively build a boat from scratch. You will find different choices, including a simple child's boat (which is well able to carry an adult), a fast racing dinghy, or a general purpose rowing boat which will take an outboard motor or basic sail (and is suitable for estuary fishing). Ian Nicolson is one of the most prolific yachting writers, being a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects, a previous partner in A. Mylne & Co. and the founder of Nicolson-Hughes Sails. Vastly experienced and well respected in the field, the author guides would-be boatbuilders through the different processes with his well-known, authoritative and easy to follow drawings. So why not build yourself a dinghy for less than the cost of a second-hand one?

Comfort is not a measureable quality, mainly because it means different things to different people. It also changes according to the weather, the time of year, the size of the boat, the distance from land, the prevalence of seasickness, and the state of the drinks locker. However, sound initial design, good building practice and, if necessary, modifications can make life afloat in cruising yachts immensely more convenient and comfortable than is frequently found. In this book Ian Nicolson provides really useful advice to help boat owners and builders achieve all of these using his well known, authoritative, easy to follow drawings. To make the most of the gear and gadgets shown in these pages, no professional skills are necessary. The author, a leading yacht surveyor and naval architect, deals with successive parts of the boat such as the chart table, galley, hatches, cockpit and toilet area. He also draws and writes of specific problems found in yachts: refrigeration and cooling, clips and catches, boom gallows, spray stoppers, steps in various places, fiddles, seats and stools and a number of aspects of plumbing.

For many years in Yachts and Yachting magazine, these very practical, workable sketches by yacht designer Ian Nicolson appeared regularly and they apply to every part of a boat. Hulls of all known materials, decks, spars, accommodation, tenders, sails and rigging – all receive the skilled treatment of the author-designer. For the owner, user, builder or repairer of any boat, to apply just one of the scores of plans in this book would save much expense, enhance the boat and give pleasure in itself. Such professional advice and drawings, if sought, would cost many times the price of this book. The pages of ideas and techniques contained within are presented for instant application in clear drawings that speak for themselves. Ian Nicolson C.Eng. FRINA Hon. MIIMS is a leading yacht surveyor and naval architect and heads his own firm in Scotland. During many years of sailing and boat construction, he has built six boats for his own use and sailed one of them across the Atlantic single-handed.

Beautiful boats last a long time, but ugly ones die young. That is one reason why there are so many Alfred Mylne designed yachts still sailing, even though some of them are well over 100 years old. It was in 1896 that Alfred Mylne, at the age of twenty-four, set up his yacht design office in Glasgow and the company is now one of the oldest British yacht design firms still in existence. Boat design features which are widely believed to be quite new are found in early Mylne designs and between 1896 and 1920 Mylne designed several beautiful, race-winning yachts. Alfred Mylne yachts still turn heads today, even in San Tropez or Antigua. In this book, Ian Nicolson uses original plans from the archives of Alfred Mylne to demonstrate the beauty of the earliest Mylne yacht designs and to tell the story of Alfred Mylne the man.

As every boat owner knows, the more you sail, the more conscious you become of small design faults, safety deficiencies, performance problems, or simply ways in which the boat could be more efficiently maintained. This handbook tells you how to tackles such problems, how to carry out the work with confidence, fully aware of the potential pitfalls and armed with plenty of sound, step-by-step practical advice. A whole range of exciting projects are featured—some simple, others more complex—but none of which require boatyard expertise. As the author makes clear, the experience of doing the work yourself is rewarding and fun, and it will add to the satisfaction derived from the improvements themselves.

This book is a must for the amateur who wants to be convinced that he can confidently approach the prospect of building his own dream boat. With the support of many diagrams and sketches, Ian Nicolson teaches all the skills necessary to create anything from a small cruiser to an impressive 75-foot yacht.

This book is a must for the amateur who wants to be convinced that he can confidently approach the prospect of building his own dream boat. With the support of many diagrams and sketches, Ian Nicolson teaches all the skills necessary to create anything from a small cruiser to an impressive 75-foot yacht.