1937 byggdes det Juniorbåtar i England som hämtade idéer från Stjärnbåten.
De kallades för Loch Long.
Artikel om Loch Long i Classic Boats 22 mars 2011 av Vanessa Bird.
This Scottish design has Scandinavian roots. The Loch Long One Design (LLOD) was launched in 1937 after members of Loch Long SC decided that a new class of affordable, one-design keelboats was required to replace its fleet of aging dinghies.
The 18ft (5.5m) fin-keeled, Janne Jacobssen-designed Stjärnbåten was suggested as a possible replacement after one of the club’s members, Ian Campbell, spotted them during a visit to Sweden.
It was initially rejected, however, as, although the design fitted many of the club’s requirements, its transom stern and clinker construction did not.
James Croll saw potential, though, and made modifications – changing the hull from clinker to carvel, altering the rudder shape and drawing out the transom stern into a long counter. Not only did this increase length overall to 21ft (6.4m), but it provided somewhere for a permanent backstay to be attached. The design was accepted by the club and, subsidised by James Croll, Robert Colquhoun was commissioned to build the first five.
Built of Oregon pine on oak, the LLOD was comparable in performance with the International Dragon, a class that had established itself on the Clyde the previous year, and by 1938 the fleet had increased to nine.
The Second World War and the subsequent loss of three LLODs in a fire in 1940 (see sidebar) curtailed further growth of the class, however, and it wasn’t until 1947 that it began to re-establish itself.
Following the formation of the Loch Long Owners Association in 1947, building restarted with Cove-based Bert Shaw and Alexander Robertson & Sons of Sandbank each building eight, and James Rodgers of Glasgow commissioning the building of three more.
Despite significant interest, though, the class was nearly split in the early 1950s. The loss of the original lines plans in a separate fire in 1940 led to both Bert Shaw and James Rodgers taking lines off Roma, No 11.
However, despite being lofted from the same boat, construction differed, and according to Rodgers, Robertson’s LLODs with their spruce hulls and 732lb keels “violated the specification in every conceivable form”.
He argued that the class was now made up of three different versions of the same design, the Colquhoun boats being different again, and called for the Robertson’s boats to be expelled from the class. It took two years of discussions before it was agreed that they should remain in class and the rules altered to accommodate them.
The class continued to grow and by 1953, following the standardisation by David Boyd of Robertson’s, the fleet numbered 30. Interest had spread south, too, to the River Alde in Suffolk, with Pamela Cockburn ordering Thistle, No 30, from Robertson’s as a replacement for her Lapwing dinghy. By 1957, Thistle had been joined by three more, and today Aldeburgh YC boasts the largest fleet of LLODs, with 44 boats.
The class saw rapid expansion and by 1966 claimed to be the largest class of wooden one-designs in Britain, with 125 boats on the water.
Escalating costs of new wooden boats, however, as well as the spread of GRP, curtailed further expansion, but since the mid-1990s the class has seen more interest and new boats have been built in Aldeburgh, including several in strip-plank.
In total, 138 LLODs have been built since 1937, by 11 yards. Over 70 are still sailing, split between Cove, Gourock, Largs and Tighnabruaich in Scotland, and Aldeburgh.
Nicknames
The LLODs have two nicknames: on the River Clyde they are known as the ‘Wee Dragons’ because of their similarity to the International Dragon, while on the River Alde they are often referred to as ‘Geriatric Dragons’, because many former Dragon sailors now sail them as they are less demanding than Dragons.
Only seven lost
Of the 138 boats built, only seven have been lost. Lindy (No 1), Melita (No 2) and Rosette (No 5), all of which were built by Robert Colquhoun, were lost in a fire in 1940 at the yard of D Munro & Son at Gairletter on the River Clyde. A second fire destroyed all the design’s lines plans.
Luxury items
Minx, No 10, built in 1938, was banned from racing until 1946. Built by Colquhoun for James Croll, her cost was twice that of a standard LLOD and she was considered a ‘luxury’ version, with a significantly lighter hull and heavier keel.
Original cost
The boats built by Robert Colquhoun originally cost £66, £234 cheaper than a new International Dragon. In 1963 a Boag-built Loch Long One Design cost £495, including sails.
Vital Statistics:
LOA: 21ft (6.4m)
LWL: 15ft (4.6m)
Beam: 5ft 8in (1.8m)
Draught: 2ft 6in (0.8m)
Sail area: 160sqft (14.9m2)
Displace: 1,200lb (544kg)
Designers: Janne Jacobssen, James Croll
Article by Vanessa Bird, author of Classic Classes
2013-03-09: From: Binnie Evans
Subject: Stjärnbåten 100 Years
Dear Dick Please forgive my writing this message in English; I have no knowledge of your language and trust you will be able to understand our sentiments. We wish to send our congratulations and a small gift to the Stjärnbåten Association for their 100 years. Please could you forward me the name and address of the Commodore of the Association or yacht club where the celebrations will be this June? The Loch Longs Celebrated their 75 years in 2012. The first, designed and built in 1937 were roughly modelled on the Stjärnbåten and have many similarities. I look forward to hearing from you.
With kind regards
Jonathan Evans
Commodore LLODOA
(Loch Long One Design Owners Association)
