ABOUT US |
||
|
|
David Payne Yacht Design offers a range of
designs and stock plans for a variety of water craft, suitable for
either amateur or professional construction. Dinghies, kayaks,
recreational rowing skiffs, launches, powerboats, trailer-sailers and
yachts are all included in the portfolio of plans. There are designs in
either traditional or contemporary styling. Custom design work is also
undertaken, and many of the stock plans started out as an individual
design for a particular client.
BackgroundDavid Payne's studio is a home office in Sydney, NSW, Australia. It overlooks Middle Harbour where David began dinghy racing with a Laser in the mid 1970's. He progressed through to Olympic 470's, then a long period as forward hand on the unrestricted 12 Foot Skiff class. In 1980 he was part of a small crew delivering a 55 foot ocean racer across the Pacific and around the top end of Australia, coast hugging all the way to Fremantle. On other passages he has passed through Bass Strait and crossed the Tasman Sea to Lord Howe Island. David is a self taught designer. He began designing in 1983, learning the basics from the venerable text " Skene's Elements of Yacht Design". His first design was a 12 foot skiff, and hulls built from that plan in Australia and New Zealand went on to win every major trophy available in that class. Two more 12's and an 18 footer "Stubbies" soon followed. By the end of 1985 he was employed as a draughtsman and designer working for his uncle, the naval architect Alan Payne. He continued this association until Alan passed away in 1995. He also worked on contract with Scott Jutson for a period in the early 1990s. At this time some of David's first stock designs were prepared, establishing his name on the local scene. This background has allowed David to work on a variety of projects, from steel cruising yachts through to IMS racing designs. A particular specialty has been documenting historic craft. This involves preparing plans of these old craft, some in poor condition, so that their lines, construction rig and layout are preserved as a record for later study and reference. These projects often include considerable research to determine the original arrangement of the vessel. David has documented a large number of local craft for the Australian National Maritime Museum since 1991. All his designs are now prepared with a combination of computer based design and traditional drawing techniques. After initial sketches for the concept stage, a basic lines drawing is prepared on the computer, where the hydrostatics are easily determined and the shape adjusted until the target parameters are met. Then its back to the drawing board, and working with splines, weights, pencil and rubber a full set of drawings gradually comes together. The final originals are pencil on drafting film, in metric dimensions. Many of the smaller designs have full size sections and details drawn out to assist in construction. Boats of David's design are under construction all around Australia, and internationally. His plans are respected for their artistic drawing style and detail, and the craft all have a handsome appearance. One design, the single chine yacht "Paketi", is featured in the WoodenBoat Store catalogue of stock plans and the WoodenBoat publication "40 Wooden Boats". David has written regularly for Cruising Helmsman in the past , offering his thoughts on design and associated subjects. In late 2004 David took a part-time position with the Australian National Maritime Museum to develop the Australian Register of Historic Vessels database project. This project has now been launched on the museum's website and David remains with the museum expanding the size of the database. In 2005 David won the Classic Yacht Magazine's design competition with a two-person 'raid' design called Perentie. |
