In this, His Majesty the King’s Golden Jubilee year, the Miniature Boat Museum and the Weekender Hotel in Pattaya have set up an exhibition of Thai Boats.

Kamol Vibulthanakarnkij, the founder of the Miniature Boat Museum, has received Royal Permission from His Majesty to build and sell 10,000 miniatures of ‘The Moth’, with all proceeds going to Royal Charities.

‘The Moth’ was the sailboat designed and built by His Majesty the King as an example for Thai people wishing to build sailboats.

His Majesty built three boats in ‘The Moth’ series. The first was the ‘Moth’ sailboat, the second, the ‘Moth’ micro-boat and the third, the ‘Moth’ super sailboat.

His Majesty built all of the ‘Moth’ series by His own Hands. The first in the series was small and extremely easy to manoeuvre. The second, the ‘Micro Moth’, even smaller, had a single board hull.

The Micro Moth was the boat in which His Majesty sailed to victory in many boat races.

His Royal Highness, Prince Bira, was often in races with His Majesty the King and needed to find a boat builder to make him a boat which could compete with His Majesty’s.

Kamol Vibulkijthanakan, a famous builder of miniature boats, took on the job of building Prince Bira a ‘Micro Moth’ boat. Prince Phira lost to His Majesty the King two times running.

In 1967, Thailand was host to the international OK Regatta. The Thai nation was proud when His Majesty the King won a Gold Medal over all Thai and foreign competitors.

After this, Mr. Kamol invited Khunying Rose Boribandburiband and Ms. Phimpha Limpaphayorm to join him in setting up a miniature boat museum. The boats were made of pine wood and were 4x9 inches.

These boats are in beautiful boxes, with sapphire blue velvet lining. All proceeds from sales go to Royal Charities.

All these boats are made by Thai farmers who gladly donate their exquisite craftsmanship in woodworking during the fallow season. Mr. Kamol supervises all the work.

The exhibition will be of Thai boats from the Sukhothai era to the present. Visitors will see classic Sampans, Rice Barges, Junks, Scorpion Tailed Boats, Krachaeng and many others.

The exhibition may be viewed at the Weekender Hotel from December 4-10th 1997.

The whole nation rejoices on this, the 50th year of the Reign of His Majesty the King.

Long Live the King!

Mothing with the King of Siam

In childhood, His Majesty the King enjoyed making toys for himself. He has developed great skills in the handicrafts, especially carpentry. After the Coronation, however, he has found little time for the crafts, having devoted much of his spare time to the welfare of his subjects.

His Majesty enjoys sailing. He constructed his own sailing boats and proved them in the pond of Chitrlada Palace. He has built three classes of sailing dinghies: the International Enterprise Class, International OK Class and International Moth Class. His Majesty the King started to build his first Enterprise Class boat on the 7th. of December, 1964. The 'Rajptain' was built to international specification. His Majesty used this boat to race against the Duke of Edinburgh during his visit to Thailand in 1965. The course was from Pattaya to Koh Larn. Construction of the second boat of the same class, 'A.G', was started on the same day. His Majesty built the first International OK Class boat, named 'Navaruek' in 1965. Many more were subsequently built, such as the 'Vega 1', 'Vega 2' and 'Vega 3'. Serveral International Moth Class boats were constructed. This class of sailing dinghies has an overall length limit of 11 feet, and a sail area limit of 75 square feet. The width, shape, and height of the mast are not restriced allowing for innovation design. Any material may be used in construction. His Majesty designed and built three types of boats in Moth Class in 1966-1967 and called them the 'Mod', 'Super Mod' and 'Micro Mod'. The 'Mod' has an overall length of 11 feet, 4 feet 7 inches wide at the beam. It is single masted and has a sail area of 72 square feet. Its compact size is suitable for Thai sailors. Its light weight facilitates transpartation, storage and maintenance. In the water, it is a fast, agile boat. Moreover, it is cheap to construct. All these qualities make the 'Mod' a good boat fully in compliance with the International Moth Class regulations. His Majesty has registered his design of the 'Mod' at the Patent Office in Great Britain. The 'Super Mod' is a development of the 'Mod'. The length and sail area are unchanged, but the width has been increased to 4 feet 11 inches. It is flat bottomed and weighs only 35 kilograms. It is a strong boat, fast and stable, rides the waves well and safe to handle. The 'Super Mod' first entered international sailing events in the 4th. South East Asian Peninsular Games in December of 1967. It has since been used in all international sailing competitions in Thailand, the last being the 13th. South East Asian Games in 1985. The 'Micro Mod' is a very small sailing dinghy suitable for children and persons of small status. It is 7 feet 9 inches long and 3 feet 4 inches wide. His Majesty's designs allow for simple, economic and expedient methods of construction. No special tools are required, and the materials are readily available in Thailand. There are four main stages of construction; The hull pieces are cut from sheets of 'Yom Hom' plywood 4 millimeters thick using a pattern. The hull and transom pieces are assembled temporarily fastened with wire. Joints are glued and reinforced with fibre glass. No framing members are used. This innovative method of construction results in a light and strong hull. Strengthening members such as the keel, the stem, girder, deckbeam, maststep, bulkheads are added. The hull interior then receives 2 or 3 coats of paint to protect the timbers. After adding the deck, the whole hull surface is finished and prepared for painting. Finally, sailing equiments are added ready to sail. The last sailing boat which His Majesty designed and built was the 'Moke'. Work stared on the 17th of November 1967. The 'Moke' is a cross between the 'Super Mod' and the 'OK'. The hull is slightly larger than that of the 'Super Mod'. This boat uses the mast, sail and other equipments of the OK Class. After the completion of the 'Moke', His Majesty did not have time to design another due to the pressure from other royal duties. Apart from being a designer and boat builder, His Majesty is also an accomplished yachtsman. On the 19th. of April, 1966, he sailed the 'Vega 1' across the Gulf of Thailand from Hua Hin to Sattahip, a distance of 60 nautical miles. This arduous journey took 14 hours. He also participated in the 4th, South East Asian Peninsular Games in December of 1967, representing Thailand in the International OK Class sailing tournament. Using his own sailing boat, he won the event. The Gold Medal was presented by Her Majesty the Queen on the 16th of December, 1967. The Thai Government has since decreed this date as the National sports Day in his honour. His Majesty has also encouraged the promotion of sailing as a popular sport. He gave royal permission to the Royal Thai Navy Sailing Club to manufacture the 'Mod' and the 'Super Mod' for sale at reasonable prices. He founded the 'Royal Chitrlada Yacht Squadom and gave his royal patronage to other yacht clubs. His Majesty's great achievements in sailing are the result of serveral accumulative factors. He is an accomplished sailor and sportsman. His interest in sailing encompasses all aspects including the design of sailing boats. The fact that he is capable of carrying through his ideas to a highly successful conclusion clearly demonstrates that he is a master craftsman