Keel Bolts and Bolting Details for AUSTRALIA II
Designer
Ben Lexcen
(1936 - 1988)
Date2 September 1981
Object numberANMS1543[323]
NamePlan
MediumCopy on film
DimensionsOverall: 1360 x 855
Copyright© Ben Lexcen
ClassificationsMaps, charts and plans
Credit LineAustralian National Maritime Museum Collection purchased with USA Bicentennial Gift funds
DescriptionA working construction drawing, showing the ballast keel bolts and details for the America’s Cup challenger yacht ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6), drawn by John King at the Ben Lexcen design office in 1981.
Designed by Ben Lexcen and drawn by JR King. Scale 1 :5 Metric. Drawing No; 1283m-3-3.HistoryAustralian entrepreneur Alan Bond, began his quest for the America’s Cup in the early 1970’s using Ben Lexcen (then Bob Miller) as the chief designer. Their 1974 challenger ‘SOUTHERN CROSS’ was not successful but they went on to design and build ‘AUSTRALIA’ (KA-5), for the 1977 and 1980 races. For the initial design of ‘AUSTRALIA’ (KA-5) in 1977, Ben Lexcen teamed up Johan Valentijn, a young but experienced Dutch naval architect, who had worked for ‘Sparkman & Stephens’ in the United States. Ben Lexcen and Johan Valentijn spent seven months in 1976 testing 1/9th scale models of ‘AUSTRALIA’ (KA-5), at the University of Delft test tank in the Netherlands. Ben Lexcen redesigned ‘AUSTRALIA’ (KA-5), for the 1980 America’s Cup series. During the 1980 trials in the US against other competing yachts, ‘AUSTRALIA’ sailed well and again won the bid to challenge. The 1980 America’s Cup was not won by ‘AUSTRALIA’ (KA-5), but the yacht and work carried out, was a considerable help in the future design and build of ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6), which started late 1980 early 1981.
Ben Lexcen wrote to Warren Jones, project director of the ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6), group, in early February of 1981 asking for support to fund tank testing at the Netherlands Small Ship Basin (NSMB). The primary reason being, the Dutch facility had the size and experience to test large models. Interestingly he mentions in the letter: ""I have some novel ideas I would like to try in the keel area, which would be quite revolutionary, and if they work out would be quite a big breakthrough. But only with models of this size can we try these ideas.""
During late May 1981, Ben Lexcen sent a Telex to Warren Jones saying he had made a significant breakthrough in the keel design and was about to take yacht design into the space age. He referred to the new keel design as ‘Darth Vader’ to maintain this secrecy. The design of ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6), and the winged ballast keel, continued after Ben Lexcen returned to Australia in 1981. When the full-scale lofting work of yacht and the ballast keel arrived from The Netherlands later in 1981, they were laid out on the floor of the boatyard where Ben Lexcen spent several days crawling over it, adjusting and fine tuning both the hull and the ballast keel, prior to the start of the actual build. The ballast keel and bolting details, to fix it to the hull, were clearly well advanced by early September 1981 as this drawing confirms
The 19.5 m (63.97-feet) International 12mR ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6), was built in aluminium by ‘Steve E. Ward & Co.’ boatyard in Perth, Western Australia and launched in 1982. The famous inverted wing keel was cast by the Western Australia at the ‘State Engineering Works’. At the time it was the largest lead casting of its kind in the world. The yacht was shipped to Newport Rhode Island in the US, in early 1983 for trials against six other yachts to win the bid to challenge for the cup. This is included the British challenger ‘VICTORY OF BURNHAM’ the French FRANCE II’, ‘CHALLENGE 12’ for Australia, ‘AZZURA’ from Italy, ‘CANADA’ from Canada and ‘ADVANCE’ also from Australia. ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6), beat all the other challengers.
The America’s Cup trophy had been held by the New York Yacht Club since 1851, successfully defending twenty-four challenges for 132 years. In September 1983, representing the ‘Royal Perth Yacht Club’, the Australian yacht ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6) designed by Ben Lexcen and captained by John Bertrand beat the American yacht ‘LIBERTY’ captained by Dennis Conner.SignificanceThe ‘Ballast Keel Bolts & Detail’ is a particularly fine work by John King, for the Ben Lexcen designed 12mR America’s Cup challenge yacht, ‘AUSTRALIA II’ (KA-6). Dated September 2nd. 1981, it indicates the progress made on the design of the yacht since Ben Lexcen carried out deigned and tank testing in Holland earlier in the year. By this time, Ben Lexcen was working from his own office at 12 David Place, Seaforth, Sydney, with some of his original designers at ‘Miller & Whitworth’.
