Fred Hudson stated on YouTube that the original twin 38' Commander hull was manufactured in three (3) pieces and then assembled together due to the overhead height restriction in Chris-Craft's original manufacturing facility, which prevented a one piece hull from being lifted out of a mold. My Questions: Was the original 47' Commander hull also manufactured in three (3) pieces, or four (4) pieces, and if so, was the entire hull bottom below the "quarterfoils" one (1) piece and then the two (2) hull sides and "V" transom assembled to the entire hull bottom OR were the entire two (2) hull sides manufactured with the "quarterfoils", including the hull bottoms, along with the hull sides and then the entire "V" transom, including below the waterline, assembled to the previously manufactured and entire hull sides which included the hull bottom sections ??? Fred Hudson's explanation on YouTube is confusing, especially when trying to understand the original manufacturing process of the original 47' Commanders, 55' Commanders and the 60' Commanders ??? Does anyone have a definitive manufacturing process explanation please ??? Thank you, in advance. Mark Patrick Hillman
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The 47's were built in Pompano Beach so there were no size restrictions. They are three piece hulls with a bottom and two sides. Given the recessed windows and design details of the hull they could not be popped in one piece from a mold. The 41 and 45 are one piece with flat sides. That is my understanding of the construction.
I contacted Jim Wick who retired from Chris-Craft. His answer:
So, at the Holland plant where they laid up the hulls for the 38 Commanders, a new building was built to do that. The 1st five where laid up in the prototype building, Not great for manufacturing. After that, the hulls were laid up in the new CPL building and taken 2 blocks away to the Roamer Plant to be assembled.
Boats with the 3 piece hull molds were: 38, 42, 47, 55, and 60'.
Single hull molds were 27, 31, 35, and then later models.
Fred may have used the building problem as a cover for the very costly but unbelievable beauty of the 3 piece hulls. It would not be possible to "pull" any of those hulls out of a 1 piece mold. Think of the quarter foil, the rounded hull sides, the portlight insets, the rounding above the sheer before ending under the toe rial (yeah, that place where you all have leaks).
The current "trundle home' Chris-Crafts have done a nice job, but to do it they have to pull the hull out of the mold front end.. They get one reverse mold, and it is beautiful. But, nothing to compare to the old 3 piece mold.
I rest my case with one of Fred's other designs: Chrysler Imperial 1961:
Jim Wick