Interesting nerd fact we picked up at Beaulieu boat jumble today (courtesy of a bound collection of 1967 to 1972 back issues of pratical boat owner)...The 13' 6" Healey Marine Sprite copies, the Thunderball and Thunderski, were produced at the same time by Interglass (at least in 1967) at the same address, if memory serves me Havelock Road, Sutton-in-Ashford (?). The Birchwood Boat Company, which I thought was the Thunderski builder was based at the same address at the same time and was also producing what I know as the 16ft Vanguard, known in 1967 as the Gemini...

My current assumption is that for those of the public that wanted the centerdeck and rear seat version got a Thunderball and the Thunderski was the back to back (moulded) seat version without a centerdeck. Either way the sea keeping abilities of a sub-14ft boat hull, with 52mph hull speed and designed in 1959, are largely unsurpassed 50 years later.

makers plate on dash of mine says "Interglass Marine Co Ltd, Huthwaite, Notts, England."

rear seat currently facing rearwards but I think it has been turned around as I can see filled screw holes which would match it forward facing.

I'd seen a bare bull attributed to Rocca (France) and filed it away. This is on ebay.de; interesting as must have come from the Healey molds...and appears to have a longshaft transom and a 6 pot in some pics..

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0342096806

Re the US patent sheet... I have spent some time with our local reference library on this, it's a registered design rather than a patent, which is supposed to stop it being copied...! The info is still there but takes some digging out from the US patent office...try starting at http://patft.uspto.gov/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.htm
It's design number 188,148 dated 7 June 1960 by William Tritt, Newport Beach, assignor to Glaspar Co, Santa Ana.
I was hoping to find out more about Bill Tritt and his thinking behind the hull shape but there is nothing here to say why, it's the shape it is...anyone have any further tech info?

Re the Healey Sprite copies, the transom joint on the Sprite follows the deck line, where as Thunderthingies have a mid height joint on the transom.

That would (probably) be Hardwick Lane, Sutton-in-Ashfield. The guy you can see in the clipping is my father, Ted Andrews, who passed away in 2008. I'd completely forgotten about Interglass - I've just begun trying to put together a history of Birchwood Boat Co. and my mother mentioned the Thunderball, which led me here. I remember as a kid testing some of these out on the river Trent with outboards so large that someone had to hold up the back of the boat to stop it flooding before it powered up.

Glad you pitched up here Paul. There is a perennial debate as to the different variants. There are 2 badged Interglass Thunderballs in the club and the Healeys have a precedent in Tony Venn's Sprite, so I can tell the difference between the 2 (apart from the obvious centerdeck, which my Thunderski doesn't have; Did it ever have?) Have you any other pictures or history? The other Thunderthingys (as we refer to them) also differ in floor / seat design. Engine wise the biggest we'll have is a Merc 850, though I hear Peter Allen put a 100hp stack on Popette, a Healey Sprite (see Alactrity's post below).

Picture of Poppette here http://www.cmba-uk.com/coppermine/cpg14 ... m=26&pos=0 in the CMBA gallery. No pictures are known to exist of her with the Merc 1000 fitted. I have also just noticed (despite having had this pic for 2 years ) that she has no stern cleats fitted when new from the factory. Still, a nice period picture though.

Hello,

Just thought it might be worth posting a thread with regards to my Interglass Birchward Thunderball that is now up for sale. You could count the amount of use on one finger in 15 years (terrible I know). It is garaged and is in good knick for a little classic. The boat will come complete with 2 X Crescent 25Hp engines and trailer. If anyone is interested in giving it a new home please by all means contact me on gordon_iddon@hotmail.com and / or reply to this thread as I am looking to get rid sharpish to create garage space.

Hope this boat will appeal to you ladies and gents,


Regards,


Gordon

Hi Gordon, am sure someone will be interested, do you have any pics you could send / load?

Nick

Just for Clarity on the address it would have been Sutton in Ashfield, Notts, which is the next village to Huthwaite where until very recently they did build Birchwood boats. My great uncle was there electrical designer and installer back in those days.