JnT

Outstanding!
Wish Mr. Brown would finish his book !
Jim

vtec

I like the disclaimer at the beginning of the article.

That one guy was like 95 years old ........so he could be honest(and didn't have a vested marketing interest). I wish there were more articles like that.

Shows that even guys like Jack Hargrave aren't invinsible.

vtec

And finish that damn book.

I'm still confused as to who "designed" the 38 Cigarette.

chuckbeecher

What a great interview and article!!!
I enjoy and cherish every minute that I have had the pleasure to spend around Brownie.

Andrew Corn

Are you are talking about the first 38 production version? If my memory serves correct (which is not alway reliable), I believe the first 38 production version came out of the 39 mold with a transom plug in it the same way the 37.6 race boat was usually made. (Mark McManus of Apache Fame was production manager at Cigarette at that time or Jerry Jacoby could verify)

It was the marketing idea of Jerry Burton, a dealer and friend of the CEO of Integrated Resouces, from Mammaoneck, NY and Jerry Jacoby who had recently aquired Cigarette along with Integrated Resources and Founders Equity. It was a take off on the recently crowned World Champion 37.6 race boat version Ajac Hawk of Jerry Jacoby's.

Jerry Burton was selling alot of the Excalibur Hawk 40's at the time and wanted a replacement for it when Wellcraft purchased Excalibur from what I remember and took the opportunity of the World Championship of Jacoby's and the recent purchase of Cigarette by his friends and business associates to develop a replacement.

The deck and cockpit were redesigned to accommodate the rather large air cleaners being used at that time on Hawk Marine Power 500's that used Holly Dominator Carbs (Hawk Marine Power was owned by Cigarette for a short time and was part of the purchase deal) They didn't want scoops and a sun pad was added. A new 38 mold was made from this for production.

The 39 mold was retired to the NW field next to Cigarette and was used once more for a new race boat for Jacoby to replace the aging Cigarette Hawk. The boat was never rigged as a race boat. I never saw the 39 mold used again after, although it could have been at a later date for I believe a plug for a project of a 45 footer. Mr. Brown would be able to tell you about that time period or Richie Powers who both frequent this board.

The unfinished race boat was used as a plug for the 39 USA Cat and the 41 Apache at a later date and then sold as a pleasure boat rigged by Bobby Moore if my memory continues to serve me.

I may have some of the facts fuzzy but that is what I remember. Maybe Richie, Mark or Mr. Brown can correct anything that is out of place.

AC

BROWNIE

Don Aronow and Harry Schoell "came up" with the 35' Cigarette about two years before it came out as 'The Mistress' and 'Awesome'. The plug sat upside down, as it was built, in Aronow's shop "Until someone beats the 36'". The 35' was a breakthrough of sorts, with a real straight chine and constant aft sections for about 12', then sweeping up to the bow (called a knuckle). The 36' at 81mph would start to chinewalk, then gunwale walk, then throw your ass OUT! The straight sections raised the TYAO speed to about 100 mph. The 35 was stretched, stretched again, restretched, then lengthened, then made longer. It kept getting better and better.......... Think: 47' Apache, 44 Peter Dean (Australia), etc.