MYSTERY
Date1931 - 1932
Object number00001232
NamePowerboat
MediumWood, metal
DimensionsOverall: 1650 x 5790 x 1675 mm
Display dimensions: 1650 x 1675 x 5790 mm
Vessel Dimensions: 5.8 m × 1.68 m × 0.23 m (19.03 ft × 5.51 ft × 0.75 ft)
ClassificationsVessels and fittings
Credit LineANMM Collection
DescriptionMYSTERY is a 19 foot (5.8 metre) veteran speedboat built in 1931-32 by Jim Laing.
MYSTERY was designed and built for the Port Hacking rowing and motor boat club and has a V8 Ford Vospor motor.HistoryMYSTERY 19ft veteran speedboat built in 1931-32 by Jim Laing. Construction features include a hard chine hull of 6in kauri planking and a deck of 3 inch maple planking. MYSTERY was designed and built for Port Hacking rowing and motor boat club. MYSTERY has a V8 Ford Vospor motor. Installed in the 1950s this motor is not original. Speed attained was approximately 40mph in the 1970s.
The 5.8 m (19 ft) long veteran power boat or speed boat was built in 1931-32 by Jim Laing at Cronulla NSW. MYSTERY's design was based upon the American Hacker and ChrisCraft single chine hulls, popular in the USA and often featured in magazines. It is not an exact interpretation, the design shows features in its proportions and construction which a professional designer or builder would not have done. For example, the hull sections forward develop considerable shape over a small distance rather than changing gradually along the forward third of the hull bottom. However, the craft performed satisfactorily for its owners and is an excellent example of the period when homemade ingenuity using available information and materials was often the only way a luxury item could be obtained.
The construction features include a hard chine hull of 150 mm (6 in) wide kauri planking and a deck of 75 mm (3 in) maple planking. MYSTERY was designed and built for use with the Port Hacking Rowing and Motor Boat Club. It has a V8 Ford Vospor petrol motor which was installed in the 1950s, replacing the original motor. The speed attained was approximately 40mph in the 1970s.SignificanceMYSTERY is an example of "people's boating", an activity that would be rather characteristic of Australian society of her time. Pleasure motorboating, which in most countries was confined to the well-to-do, who would employ professionals to produce their boats, was and is, in Australia, within the reach of the ordinary person, particularly so if that person happens to be one of those enterprising "give it a go" or "I'll do it myself" types such as Jim Laing.
