The first yacht of this type was designed and built by the Abeking & Rasmussen shipyard in Lemwerder for a sailor from Bremen in 1907, and was probably one of the first 7-metre R-yachts. In its early years, the yacht proved itself to be the best boat in its class; however, later on, as R-yachts were fitted out more for racing, it had to give way to newer boats. It nevertheless proved itself to be the finest cruising yacht for several more years and, whilst it was based on the River Weser, undertook major voyages every year to the Baltic Sea and to the various North Sea islands.
‘Albert’ was built to very robust standards in accordance with the early specifications for R-boats: the keel, stem and frames were made of oak; the hull plating of pitch pine; the deck of white pine; the fittings and superstructure of mahogany; and the lead keel and underwater hull were copper-plated.
The design of the first ‘Albert’ was broadly similar to that of the later models, though it was somewhat simpler in construction and was not fitted with an engine.
As can be seen from the drawings, the cabin has sleeping accommodation for four people. In the cabin, there are four small cupboards above the sofas for glasses, cigars, books, etc. Behind the sofa backrests, there is storage space for maps and the like. The spacious crockery cupboard is also accessible from the cabin. In front of the cabin, in a separate, lockable compartment, there is a large wardrobe, a toilet and the galley. A fresh-water tank is fitted in the foredeck. On some occasions, the foredeck was also fitted with a gas-heated berth for a fifth person.
The engine system on the most recent models consists of a 5–6 PS 2-cylinder ‘Bub’ engine with a fixed propeller, which gives the yacht a speed of around 9 km/h. The fuel tanks are fitted on the port and starboard sides next to the cockpit and can be filled from the deck.
Over the years, a considerable number of these small, manoeuvrable yachts have been delivered both to Germany and abroad. A yacht for Gdańsk is currently under construction at Abeking & Rasmussen, and its plans are published here. The only difference between this yacht and earlier models is that it will be fitted with a full rig, whereas all previous models were fitted with gaff sails. The yacht’s dimensions are roughly the same as those of the first 45-square-metre natural cruisers, although the boat offers considerably more interior space.
It is interesting to note that the yacht is measured according to the new ‘Rasmussen formula’. The yacht is measured without this having been taken into account during its construction. The measurement data are as follows: CWL length 6.500 m, beam length 6.230 m – however, the beam must not exceed 95 per cent of the CWL, i.e. 6.009 m. It follows from this that the quarter-beam length is 0.221 m too long and this measurement must be added to the CWL. In other words: the yacht is too full at the ends for the formula. The square root of the sail area is 6.708 m, the cube root of the displacement is 1.512 m, the beam is 2.220 m and the freeboard is 0.597 m. These measurements result in a racing rating of 6.740 m, which means the yacht is measured unfavourably, as it must sail as a 7-metre boat without receiving any rating allowance. However, thanks to its well-balanced design, the yacht is still likely to prove a formidable competitor for many sailors.
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Would you still call a classic like this a pleasure boat today? Please feel free to leave a comment!