Creating any one of Jaguar Marine's Classic design boats starts with the production of a "Plug". This is a simulated version of the exact shape and dimensions that the finished hull will have. Once the "Plug" has been meticulously shaped and fine tuned, a mold is taken from it. When the mold is cured and ready, it receives at least 6 coats of wax before the process of "Laying Up" a boat begins. With the exception of special requirements or special orders a Jaguar hull is essentially made up of 3 main layers. First, the laminate or outside skin, then the core such as core cell material and then a fiberglass inside layer. These are applied one on top of the next, at just the right curing time, so they create a continuous bond. This achieves a perfect marriage of strength and flexibility in a light weight hull with positive buoyancy.

Just prior to the first laminate a gel coat is applied which determines the color of the hull or deck as the case may be. Then for each successive layer of construction Clark has determined the "gel time," or how much time he has until the resin sets into a solid form. He does this by testing the resin at different catalyst rates. Catalyst rates, which are carefully recorded, depend on factors such as the temperature of the air and humidity.

Once the gel time is known, his workers get into position. The skill here is to get the materials and the vacuum bag laid down, and the pressure applied before the resin hardens. A vacuum hose is hooked up and dialed into the predetermined pressure setting. By sucking air out of the bag, equal pressure is applied to the laminate, which removes excess resin while also reducing the air pockets between the fabric and the skin coat. This vacuum process requires an hour per section to complete.

At the end of the vacuum time, the pump is turned off, the bag is stripped off, the bubble pack is pulled away, and the peel ply and bleeder fabric containing the excess resin are discarded. "You are left with the finished product, the glass literally pressed to the skin coat up against the mold," Clark states. The next area is then cleaned and prepared and the process begins again with the new tape line being set.

And that's just the first layer. The second layer is the Core-Cell foam core. Clark repeats the procedure, using 1-inch thick Core-Cell, a rigid PVC foam instead of the fabric, and instead of using the Derakane vinyl ester resin, which is used on the fabric, Clark uses a system in which the Core-Cell is set in a Core-Bond Bedding compound.

Core-Cell is unique among rigid plastic foams since it can be compressed up to 50 percent of its thickness without rupture or crumbling of the cell walls. This makes it ideal for use in construction of boat hulls designed to take high-impact slamming loads and heavy pounding in open seas. "Because it has memory", Clark noted," the foam core returns to its original shape after taking a hit".

After the core foam has been vacuum-bagged into place throughout the entire hull, the first step or layer is repeated to create a "sandwich construction". Clark and his crew start all over again, putting down fabric and establishing a tape line over the Core-Cell foam. Step by step the layers of the boat form from the outside to the inside. They are, gel coat, skin coat, laminate (choice of fiberglass or Kevlar), Core-Cell, Core-Bond, and laminate. Clark also uses carbon fiber and Kevlar in various support areas of the boat for greater strength. The stringers and bulkheads are created by the vacuum-bagging process, as is the deck. Once the bulkheads and stringers are installed, the boat is removed from the mold. Before the hull and deck are joined, the fuel tanks are installed; or in the case of race boats, fuel cells are used. These are flexible fuel tanks, similar to those used in airplanes and race cars. Foam inside the cells prevents fuel from sloshing around. Fuel cells are lightweight and their construction provides and added margin of safety as well. The deck and hull are joined in a double-bonding technique (bonding inside and outside the hull). Clark's tunnel hulls weigh approximately 100 pounds per foot. Thus, a 35-foot hull weighs about 3500 pounds.

Core-Cells have the remarkable ability to withstand loading well beyond the theoretical design value. In powerboat racing, where loadings can quickly escalate into the realms of the unknown, it is particularly important to use a core which can bridge the gap between theory and practice, between design loadings and "real world" impacts. The use of Core-Cell linear foam cores provide a level of comfort and confidence for both the builder and designer (not to mention the owner and driver!) that a Core-Cell built boat is capable of taking these "real world" impact loads. All the vessels truly illustrate Core-Cell's ability to perform competitively and safely at the very edge of the design envelope. When speed increases, and weight decreases it is indeed comforting to know that the structure is built with high impact, damage tolerant foam core.

Having this added factor of safety with no compromise in performance, one really has the best of both worlds.