“Why can I only get a white Pocock?” is probably one of our most commonly asked questions. There are boat builders who will paint a shell any color, and even with crazy graphics if you like. Sure, they look nice, but we have valid reasons for sticking to our “white-only” policy.
The truth is, Pocock boats aren’t really “painted” in a traditional sense. The white coloring on your boat is actually a layer of the hull, and it’s a material that Pocock engineers invented. The prerequisite to using this method is having superior quality molds. The alternative post-finish paint job provides an easy and convenient way to cover up blemishes, imperfections, and patch jobs on a hull. Since we don’t have this cover-up available, we have to obsess over our mold construction and finish, and keep them in immaculate shape. This is good for the finished product, too. We do a better job consistently producing boats with smooth, blemish-free, class A finish hulls, equating to less drag and faster boats.
Most rowers have no idea how expensive the tooling is to build a new boat. The design, plugs, and mold construction can cost upwards of $275,000. After designing our hull shape in-house, we tap the globally renowned tooling company Janacki Industries to build our plugs. (A plug is an exact replica of the finished boat, and is machined out of solid material, based on the engineer’s hull drawings. The mold is then built on top of the plug. Depending on the boat, there can be up to 4 plugs per boat – hull, pan, stern deck, and bow deck.) These guys are hands-down the best in the biz – they also built the tools for the amazing BMW Oracle America’s Cup yacht. And lucky for us, they’re located right up the street in Sedro-Woolley, WA, so we don’t have to worry too much about damage during transit.
The tooling process is an entire blog post in and of itself, but if you’re interested, check out Janacki’s website. What makes our approach different from some of the other boat builders is that we are able to get one-piece plugs from Janacki, which means we’re not piecing together lots of different 6’ segments to make one 60’ eight. Once the plugs are delivered, we build our molds ourselves on top of them. This way we have control over the mold from start to finish, and we can make sure it’s built the exact way that we like.
So to this clean, perfect mold, we first apply a material that acts as a release agent so the hull easily comes out of the mold. (Sort of like spraying PAM vegetable spray on a cookie sheet before baking.) The “paint” is then sprayed to the inside of the mold in a thin, consistent layer, and partially cures overnight.
The next day, the first layer of carbon fiber and resin is applied directly to the paint layer. The paint was developed to bond with the composites, and when heat is applied during the last step, it creates a material that is practically un-chippable. When the finished boat comes out of the mold – voila – the boat has a perfect, shiny white exterior. (It may be worth noting here that there’s only one other boat builder in the world that does it the same way we do. You can only get their boats in one color, too – yellow.)
This isn’t the easiest way to get color onto a hull, but we think it’s the best way for a few reasons. First and foremost, this method doesn’t require bondo, primer, and multiple layers of paint. A custom paint job can add upwards of 10 – 20 extra pounds of paint to your boat. This weight is doing nothing to make your boat stronger or stiffer. Every boat is built to meet FISA’s minimum weight standards, so we’re able to use those extra pounds on more carbon fiber – the stuff that is going to increase shell stiffness and durability. Additionally this method is more environmentally friendly and is significantly healthier for the guys doing the work. Others use Linear Polyurethane, a known carcinogen, that creates a notoriously toxic environment and we don’t want that in our shop. Lastly, it’s a fact that white boats have a higher resale, so we’re happy to provide that value to our customers.
When it comes to keeping your Pocock racing shell looking brand new, rinse it after every use and wash it regularly with a mild detergent. If your hull has any discoloration, it’s typically because of algae. If washing alone doesn’t get it quite white enough, try using Captain John’s Boat Brite. You can get it at a marine supply store, online at their website, or directly from us. We’ve found it to be quite effective at restoring shells to “new-boat white”.
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Great post. I remember asking this very question and was impressed w/ the answer. The Cal women have certainly enjoyed and grown accustomed to racing in the white hulls. Go Bears!
Thanks Dave – Sometimes there’s a method to our madness! We’re certainly glad to have the Golden Bears sporting white boats.
Terrific piece on the white boat. Just yesterday this question came up regarding the Bay 21, which is made by Pocock Racing Shells, to the same exacting standards as the “big boats”. Thank you for the effort for perfection!
Wondering if Pocock made black scull over 10 years ago or in the past instead of the white
Hi Jim, We did make trainer singles about 25 years ago that may have been black – they were called our Plasmo singles, and you could get them in other colors.
I appreciate the “only white” molding concept, but I have a question about “finishing” on the hull-deck connection. Molding the pieces then attaching them (glue?) followed by filling, fairing and gelcoat or other finish over the seam doesn’t seem cost effective . Doesn’t this somewhat defeat the “no painting, class A mold finish”? On most sailboats there is an obvious overlap of deck/hull . The sculls show no evidence of the connection between the deck and hull parts. Even on damaged or old boats I’ve not detected the deck/hull mating line. What’s the trick?
Paul,
Thanks for noticing (or not noticing)! We try very hard to make the hull-to-deck joint as small as possible. At “glue-up”, we bond the pieces together with a glue made of the same epoxy that the shell was laminated with. This ensures compatibility, and a VERY strong bond. We meticulously hand-fit the pieces to ensure a precise joint. This carefully executed extra step allows us to just bevel the deck edge and hand paint the joint. We feel this is a very cost-effective process, especially when you consider just how tough these boats are. A process that guarantees this could never be “too expensive”. You are correct in noticing that other boats (sailing and rowing) have a “shoe-box joint”, or the overlap you describe. In racing shells, our competitors actually use this method, but slather on copious amounts of Bondo to fair it in, then of course post-paint after the bodywork. The European builders actually finish their shells in a way similar to ours, they just cover it up with black electrical tape.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
-John