vintage model yacht association

US Vintage Model Yacht Group

Owner’s Description

The US Vintage Model Yacht Group goals are the preservation, building, and sailing of older model yacht designs, and the study of the history of the sport of model yachting. “Vintage” primarily means any older model sailboats no longer sailed (or never raced) in serious competition. These encompass free-sailing model yachts, older designs converted to R/C and pre-1970s R/C sailing models. This includes class racing yachts, non-class sailing models and commercially-built toys of the past. There are also replica models built to the older designs and new designs recreating older sailboat styles.

We also support those who sail traditional sailing craft models, such as schooners, skipjacks, and other scale models. The hulls are generally made of wood, with some fiberglass models, and range in length from one to six feet. The rigs are usually constructed from wood or aluminum, with cotton or dacron sails.

The US Vintage Model Yacht Group is affiliated with the American Model Yachting Association and the Vintage Model Yacht Group (United Kingdom)

The earliest records we have of organized model yachting date from the middle 1800s in Great Britain. The boats were small, such as the 22-in hull illustrated in Fig. 1. We imagine that the early boats sailed in the United States were similar. By the 1860s there were occasional international contests between model yachtsmen in Great Britain and those in the United States. The only documentation we have is from British periodicals, which naturally covered the events there.

For years model yacht building was taught in high schools in the manual arts classes. Manual arts teachers quickly recognized model yachting as providing near-perfect shop projects, especially for introductory courses. Students had to work in wood, metal, and cloth, assemble parts into a working whole, and had the opportunity to see the results of their efforts under sail, with the additional spice of a student regatta.

Fast forward to today, last October over 65 yachts and 32 skippers from across the U.S. gathered outside Philadelphia, PA for the US Vintage Nationals. Check out the videos and photos of these beautiful yachts on our YouTube Channel.

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There is a for sale/wanted section. The individual ads are not listed on the 'what's new' page so please check this section if you are looking to sell or buy vintage yachts or equipment. Advertisements from non-members are accepted at the VMYG's discretion.

If you are restoring an old boat you should find our how to do it and where to get it pages useful as we will list the hard to find specialist suppliers as well as those concerned with the normal business of model boat construction and sailing. If you have dealt with a good specialist supplier please let us know and we will see if we can add him to our links page. Do look around these pages, there is a search facility to help you find elusive articles.

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If you would like any more information or are interested in joining the group please e-mail us. Please note that Images and content are copyright VMYG. Do not reproduce without permission, which will not be unreasonably withheld.

Got an old boat in the attic / loft /garage?

Dig it out, take a couple of photos (a side shot of the hull is best) and we will do our best to identify it. Just e-mail the photos with a brief description, main dimensions and any background information and we will do the rest. This mystery boats submitted to date are here

To learn more about what we do and the benefits of VMYG membership click here

The model yacht company specializes in buying, selling and restoring vintage model pond yachts  and model sailing yachts.

We offer a selection of restored, original and unrestored model yachts and steam boats.

We also sell marine art, maratime antiques, yachting photographs,  and broker the sale of good quality models boats on behalf of owners.

We undertake selective restorations of model yachts for clients.

Please contact us for further information.

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We have hundreds of plans that we will be making available for purchase, so please check back if you don’t see what you are looking for today.

Ready to get started?

Most plans are provided in single sheet PDF format. Some are JPG format. Multi-sheet plans will be provided with separate download links for each sheet.

• Select a class from the list on the right to see all the model yacht plans available in that class. Each plan will be listed with the boat name and a short description.
• Click on the product thumbnail to see a larger preview of the plan.
• Click the “Add to Cart” button for plans you would like to purchase. Your selection will appear in the shopping cart on the right hand side of the page.
• Click the “Checkout with PayPal” button in the shopping cart.
• You will be redirected to PayPal’s site to complete your purchase.
• Once payment is complete you will receive an email receipt with link(s) to retrieve your purchased plans. Download links will be valid for 24 hours from the time of your purchase.
• Copy the PDF to a CD or a flash drive.
• Take it to Staples, or your local equivalent, and get a full-size print.

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Status of Class: The Vintage Model Yacht Group is an affiliated club of the MYA

The interests of those dedicated to the research and restoration of vintage craft of all sizes and periods is catered for by the Vintage Model Yacht Group. The VMYG is a non-geographical club with over 100 members who stage recreational sailing events from time to time in various parts of the UK where they display and sail their boats and swap information and equipment.

Vintage boats are often of significant historical and financial interest so it is often a mistake to start a restoration project before obtaining sound advice on suitable techniques and materials. Help is available here:

• Identifying an unknown boat – here
• Restoration of a vintage boat – here
• Where to obtain parts for a vintage boat restoration – here
• Where to obtain information to complete a boat – here
• Conversion of a vintage boat for radio control – here
• Registration Records of MYA Class Boats – here
• previous post: Regulations for Adoption and Affiliation of Classes (RAAC)
• next post: Identifying an Unknown Boat