Flying Cloud plans drawn by Scott Bradner

This is a set of plans for the Donald McKay 1851 clipper ship Flying Cloud that I’ve been working on.

Because no actual original plans for the ship ever existed and no photographs have ever been identified, any set of plans will be, by definition, wrong. That said, some of the existing paintings and plans of the ship are likely more accurate than others and there are a few documents, contemporary and otherwise, documents that describe the Flying Cloud, about sailing ships, and in some cases, about clipper ship construction. See How do we know what the Flying Cloud looked like?

I have used what seemed to me to be the best ones to guide my work. I have identified my sources on the individual plans. See other sections of this web site for different types of information about the Flying Cloud and about clipper ships in general.

I claim copyright on these plans but anyone can make copies. You need to retain my copyright notice on any copies you make and must not represent that you, or someone else, created the plans. You must give me specific credit (and a link to my website) if you create copies for others. You are free to sell copies of the plans if you want - either the plans by themselves or as part of a kit - but you must adhere to the above requirements.

I have been working on these plans for quite a while and it will be a while before they are complete. Check back from time to time to see if I have uploaded any new plans. Also I will be fixing problems as I find them in the plans I’ve already uploaded so check the uploaded date for the files in the indexes listed below for new versions. In particular, I am now (in 2021) building a new model of the Flying Cloud and I will be updating the plans as I use them to build this new model. I updated a number of the plans in early 2020 based on a new review of the state of the art at the time that the Flying Cloud was built. I found out that I had misinterpreted the length of the lower masts and the yards and have fixed the plans relating to those. I have also updated a number of the rigging plans (in 2021) due to my new research into clipper ship rope.

Please let me know if you find any errors in the plans:

Scott Bradner - sob@sobco.com

Hull

Flying Cloud Body Plan (2018-07-09)

Flying Cloud Buttock Lines (2018-10-03)

Flying Cloud Deck (2024-01-19)

Flying Cloud Deck Eyes(2020-07-06)

Flying Cloud Outboard Profile (2020-07-01)

Flying Cloud Inboard Profile (2024-01-19)

Flying Cloud Bulwarks (2020-07-01)

Flying Cloud Keel (2021-01-23)

Deck Furniture