Seidelmann Yachts was an American boat builder based in

Berlin, New Jersey Berlin is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Camden County, New Jersey, Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 7,489, a decrease of 99 (−1.3%) from the 2010 United Sta ...

. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a common type of fibre-reinforced plastic, fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened i ...

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

s. The company was founded by Bob Seidelmann in 1977.

History

Bob Seidelmann was a

sailmaker A sailmaker makes and repairs sails for sailboats, kites, hang gliders, wind art, architectural sails, or other structures using sails. A sailmaker typically works on shore in a sail loft; the sail loft has other sailmakers. Large ocean-going sa ...

and

one design One-design racing is a racing method which may be adopted in sports using complex equipment, whereby all vehicles have identical or very similar designs or models, avoiding the need for a handicap system. Motorsport One-make racing series (also ...

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor'' ...

, winning championships in Lightnings,

Comets A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or coma surrounding the nucleus, an ...

and Dusters, as well as several other one-design racing classes. He founded a sailmaking business, Seidelmann Sails, with his father, Joe Seidelmann, in the early 1960s. He was co-designer of the 1972

Hunter 25 The Hunter 25 is an American Trailer sailer, trailerable sailboat, designed by John Cherubini and Bob Seidelmann and first built in 1972.Henkel, Steve: ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'', page 344-345. International Marine/McGraw ...

with

John Cherubini John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

, which became

Hunter Marine Hunter Marine was an American boat builder, now known as Marlow-Hunter, LLC, owned by David E. Marlow. The company did produce the Mainship powerboat brand. Marlow also owns and manufactures the Marlow Yachts brand consisting of long range ...

's first production boat. He began designing his own boats and started Seidelmann Yachts to produce them.Henkel, Steve: ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'', page 311.

International Marine McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

McGraw-Hill McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

, 2010. The first designs produced were the Seidelmann 25, Seidelmann 30 and the Seidelmann 30-T, all in 1977. Reviewer Steve Henkel reports in ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'' that some Seidelmann 25s suffered from poor construction quality. Aside from building Bob Seidelmann's own designs, in 1980, the company became the first builder of the

Sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects o ...

, which had been designed by

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

naval architect This is the top category for all articles related to architecture and its practitioners. {{Commons category, Architecture by occupation Design occupations Occupations Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's rol ...

Bruce Kirby, designer of the

Laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radi ...

. The boat sold 60 copies the first month after it was introduced.Sherwood, Richard M.: ''A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition'', pages 120-121.

Houghton Mifflin Company Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company ( ; HMH) is an American publisher of textbooks, instructional technology materials, assessments, and reference works. The company is based in the Boston Financial District. It was formerly known as the Houghto ...

, 1994. Seidelmann also collaborated with Kirby on the 1981 design of the Seidelmann 24 racer-cruiser. The company went out of business in 1986, just nine years after its founding, in the downturn in the sailboat market following the

early 1980s recession in the United States The United States entered recession in January 1980 and returned to growth six months later in July 1980. Although recovery took hold, the unemployment rate remained unchanged through the start of a second recession in July 1981. The downturn e ...

Boats

Summary of boats built by Seidelmann Yachts: * Seidelmann 25 - 1977 * Seidelmann 30 - 1977 * Seidelmann 30-T - 1977 * Seidelmann 299 - 1979 * Seidelmann 37 - 1980 *

Sonar (keelboat) The Sonar is a one design Trailer sailer, trailerable Sailing (sport), racing sailboat that was designed by Canada, Canadian naval architect Bruce Kirby (yachts), Bruce Kirby and first built in 1980.Sherwood, Richard M.: ''A Field Guide to Sail ...

- 1980 * Seidelmann 24 - 1981 * Seidelmann 34 - 1981 * Seidelmann 245 - 1981 * Seidelmann 295 - 1982

References

{{Seidelmann Yachts Seidelmann Yachts

History

Boats

See also

References