What Swedish boat is this?

[Woxbox]

Folks,
Here's what I know about this boat:
It was a gift from Sweden in 1988.
It has 10 oars.
It has room for a king and queen in the stern sheets.
It's about 28 feet long and 8 feet wide.

Here's what I've learned second hand:
It can be rigged as a cat-ketch with a pair of dipping lug rigs.
There is or was an active class that raced them, 9 men to a crew.
It may have once been a standard Swedish navy model.

Search the web as I might, I can't find anything even close. There's an interest in restoring this boat, and the first step is to find out what, exactly, it is. We call it the King's Launch. Do you have a more precise name?

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/Woxbox/KNFlaunch.jpg

[Michael Beckman]

Whats the stern look like?

[Woxbox]

Here's a shot of the interior. Note the seperate spot for the helmsman behind the royal bench, and the oar "locks" that are let into the top strake, and closed off with slides, which lift out as needed.

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/Woxbox/KingsLaunch-inside.jpg

[Woxbox]

She's double-ended and fairly full in the ends. No sign that ballast was ever used or intended.

[heimlaga]

I have sometimes seen an old black and white picture of a quite similar boat used as a ship's boat by the Swedish (or was it Danish) navy. My memory may fail though but it looks somehow known. I have seen in person a quite similar but square sterned boat which was said to be a late 19th century Swedish navy ship's boat. So something naval it definitely is.

That oarlock system was common on naval ship's boats of all sizes. A system similar in principle was even used on fishing boats around here.

[Songololo]

Woxbox, based on the images and description that you have posted, i'd say it looks similar to the slightly smaller 'Ruder- und Segelkutter' ZK10 class boat.

See this thread (see post #4) (http://www.woodenboat.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1924412#post1924412) of mine for links and pics.

Lance

[Oyvind Snibsoer]

I dunno the type, but may I suggest that you pop off a mail to webmaster@trabatsakuten.nu . It's a Swedish wooden boat site. Someone there should be able to help you.

The site address is: http://www.trabatsakuten.nu/

[Woxbox]

Folks,
Thanks much for the tips. I'll follow up on them & let you know what I find. -Dave

[Ryden]

Hi Dave!
I did some more research

There are still clubs using this boat in sweden http://www.tiohuggare.se/index_e.htm
Apparently the Swedish Navy has bought new ones in GRP!!! :( to replace the 100 or so year old ladies.
http://www.algonet.se/~mdn/stuff/plast1.jpg
http://www.algonet.se/~mdn/stuff/plast2.jpg

As you can see, the Whale Boat lacks the partition for the helmsman, which makes it a bit uncertain whether it's a whale boat or a ship boat.

Here is alink to the maritime museum's (http://www.marinmuseum.se/Kontakt.aspx)Barkar http://www.marinmuseum.se/Arkiv/Barkar%20mot%20var.aspx
wich is a transomed version.

Will Kalmar Nyckel ever cross the pond? I was born near Kalmar and lived there for many years, I still spend the summers two hours sail away from Kalmar castle (Which is the original key (nyckel=key), he who possesed the castle had the keys to Sweden since any ship trying to pass the Kalmar straits had to go whitin the range of the castle's guns.
My great-grandfather was a chandler and diver in Kalmar and salvaged the guns now on display on the castle walls.

[Woxbox]

Ryden,
Thanks much. This is great information. The partition or back-rest on the aft thwart may well have been added on the particular boat we have because it was to be used for ceremonial purposes. Note also that there is no thwart positioned for the aft-most oarsmen, another suggestion that our boat was modified for a specific use.
Otherwise, the Whale Boat is a very close match, if not an exact one. Look at the stern details on the old wooden ones compared to ours. I'll pursue the links you suggested and see what else I can find.
As far as the Kalmar Nyckel crossing the pond, we talk about it all the time, but it is a major undertaking. At present, the ship isn't qualified to venture more than 100 miles offshore. It won't require much more to get Coast Guard certification to cross the Atlantic, but even then there's a big budget to be figured out. I certainly hope we are able to pull it off one of these years. I'll be the first to sign on, to be sure.

[GoldDogs]

you may find this site interesting......

http://www.batritningar.se/default.aspx?Language=EN&Currency=SEK&Page=Boatplans&Category=5

[Woxbox]

Here's why this is such a great website. I post a couple of photos of a boat from another country in need of some real TLC, I immeditaly get some solid information as to what it is, and in a month I have a PDF of a very useful manual. Ryden sent me the manual, which includes this photo, which appears very much to be the boat in question, a Swedish Navy valbat, or whale boat, rigged for sailing. If things progress as planned, we'll have our valbat looking this good in a year or two.

And yes, I'll be looking for volunteers when it's ready to sail.

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f92/Woxbox/Valbatwithsails.jpg

[Michael Beckman]

Those old lifeboats look really nice with a cabin usually. I'm involved with 2 different lifeboat-cruiser conversions and they're wonderful boats.

[Ryden]

Swedish Whale Boat Championships 2008
Short clip from the finals

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMJDgSfQGlo

[Woxbox]

Good clip. My back aches just watching!