Donald Campbell Photos

[grpltd]

Hello All,

I work for a company called GRP (Graham Roberts Plastics) Ltd in Nottingham, we supply raw fibreglass materials to the trade, anyway I have already spoken to the Ruskin Museum but thought It might be worth sharing our find.

We have boxes full of old photos which we are trying to upload to give a history of Graham Roberts and the company. We came across these never before seen photos of Donald Campbell taking a tour round a factory that Graham Roberts worked for back in the 60's.

We are trying to work out why he was there and the story behind his visit

You can view the photo's here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fibreglass ... 226846861/

[rob565uk]

These are great period photos and very interesting.

My guess is that it may have been related to production of Donald leisure boat "Jetstar", a project he was working on quite intensively right up to his death in 1967. This was a small speedboat with inboard engine and driven by a steered water jet rather than a screw. I think it would seat about four people and was apparently a good boat for towing water skiers. Maybe he was investigating production of the fibreglass hull??

Leo Villa and others continued to develop the boat after Donald's death and started a sales campaign, but I don't know much more than that....others on this Forum will though, I am sure.

[thewrightstuff]

These are great period photos and very interesting.

My guess is that it may have been related to production of Donald leisure boat "Jetstar", a project he was working on quite intensively right up to his death in 1967. This was a small speedboat with inboard engine and driven by a steered water jet rather than a screw. I think it would seat about four people and was apparently a good boat for towing water skiers. Maybe he was investigating production of the fibreglass hull??

Leo Villa and others continued to develop the boat after Donald's death and started a sales campaign, but I don't know much more than that....others on this Forum will though, I am sure.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/6646287.stm


http://www.nmmc.co.uk/index.php?page=Co ... oiceid=133

[DMCK7 Fan]

grpltd

Thank you for bringing these images to our attention, always fascinating to see something new and of interest.

[f1steveuk]

I think that period, and knowing how Jetstar came about, it's more likely that Donald was there to dicuss the Fireball, and having seen the pictures on the link, there's a hull there that looks very much like a Fireball.

[Jordangbr]

There is definately a Wayfarer sailing dinghy among the pictures and another of a Kestrel or an Albacore sailing dinghy which DC is loking at.

[f1steveuk]

Then I'd suggest he was looking to get the Fireball built there. Wasn't the prototype Jetstar wood? But production ones were Fibreglass, but these pictures appear to be late 50s, so it's a bit previous for those anyway.

Only fibreglass I can think of on CN7 was the rebuild canopy cover, and the later canopy, but that's 62.

Only other suggestion is maybe DC was visiting as either in his role as a director of his tool making company or Kine Engineering for some reason?

[Jordangbr]

If it helps the first fibreglass Wayfarers weren't built until 1965 which should help date the photo's.

[grpltd]

Apparently having spoken with Jackie (the daughter of Graham Roberts) these photo's where taken between 55 and 59, Jackies Mum also remembers that Graham Roberts and Donald Campbell took a trip together to Ireland to see a fibreglass car being produced over there not sure if that means a great deal, but just thought I'd share.

Thanks

[f1steveuk]

The date makes perfect sense, I thought as much drom the cars in the car park. CN7 would have been either some sketches or early drawings, but Ken Norris did have some large scale fibreglass models of CN7 (which split around the waist) to try various layouts, chassis', drive trains etc, maybe this was the reason for the visit?