From the research I have done the Falmouth Gypsy started out as a totally
plywood version known as the Gypsy 1. This was short-lived as fibreglass was
being experimented with and out come the Gypsy 2 in fibreglass, although it
retained a wood/plywood deck. The last and least common version is the Gypsy
3 which is entirely fibreglass and had a new coach roof design with
additional height and layout inside.
The sail numbers are not entirely sequential and may even have been random!
From what I can tell they started with the Gypsy 2, which were built at
Penryn boatbuilding, at number 32 and went as far as 165. This does not mean
there are that number of boats around because many were sold as kits in any
stage off completion and finished off by the owner who got to pick their own
sail number. The Penryn company then had difficulties and went bust.
The story didn't end there for the Gypsy2 because they were built again at
Gweek boatyard. Unfortunately only 6 were built.
The final chapter is the Gypsy 3 which was started some time after Gweek
boatyard finished the G2. A company called Trecarne boats bought the moulds
and started a redesign of the coach roof. Built entirely in grp, it also had
other refinements, as you can see in the brochure in picture gallery.
It turns out that the designer Rodney Warington Smyth did not have the time
available to give the yacht the publicity it deserved, unlike the better
known yacht makers such as Westerly.
I wonder if one could ask, given that publicity costs a fortune, whether if
the Gypsy producers had spent as much on publicity, if they would still be
around today.
Well the current Gypsy producers, Trecarne Boats, are still around today
doing well and are based at Redruth in Cornwall.
Let's have a look at the spec: Medium displacement fibreglass cruiser /
racer
LOA 24ft 0in 7.3 m
LWL 19ft 0in 5.8m
Beam 8ft 6in 2.6m
Draught 2ft 9in 0.8m
Sail area 244 sq ft 22.7 sq. m
Displacement 1.85 tons 1900kg
Ballast 1000 lbs 454kg
It has a Byron Rating of 1124 which is fast for it's size. This means we can
whip the pants of the opposition when required!
Our rating, Check it out here:
http://www.byronsoftware.org.uk/bycn/bycn.htm