The Storebro Royal Cruiser 43 was a very spacious and comfortable long distance cruiser with fine mahogany interior fittings. For this ship Storebro used the then highest standard of woodworking machinery and equipment. The customer could choose between Indian buffalo or calf leather upholstery for the sofa and seating when furnishing the large deck saloon, a true expression of luxury at the time.
Compared to the prototype, the Storebro Royal Cruiser 42, she was extended by one foot, which essentially benefited the aft cabin. The marked step to the aft deck of the Storebro Royal Cruiser 42 still was greatly reduced in the first ships (at least to the third ship) and hidden in the side view. In later ships the step was completely eliminated.
The Royal Cruiser 43 was the last model, that was entirely built of wood respectively mahogany.
In retrospect, the Storebro Royal Cruiser 43 was an enormous boat. Compared to its volume it was sized between the models SRC 470 and SRC 420 that were built from the late 80s.
Miscellaneous
The Storebro Royal Cruiser 43 was often customized to the requirements of the buyer. Therefore there are minor differences between the ships.
- On two ships, which are illustrated in the catalog, the exhaust pipes are lateral. Other ships had the characteristic tubes at the stern.
- There are at least two ships equipped with flybridge.
There were also considerations or plans for a modified layout of the aft cabin with steps at the port side and single toilet room and shower. This change would have enabled a larger seating area in the deck saloon. Concerning the realization, however, nothing is known to me.
For easier access to the deck salon, the ships had a foldable hatch above the side doors. If the ships were additionally equipped with a flybridge, this flap was normally omitted. The construction number 2124 was retrofitted with a flybridge and got a simple folding mechanism, in which a part of the flybridge panel folded up with to get the better access to the deck salon.
Since the original hull was built of wood, the yard considered whether it would be worthwhile to produce a GRP hull. To this end, a prototype was built, which was test driven in December 1973. Obviously, the results and the demand was not such that it was decided to mass production. Pictures of the test phase, see "Images".
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Draft of a 43 foot ship by W.H. Wilke
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While most Storebro Royal Cruiser of that time were designed by Winfried H. Wilke, this ship was designed by the British naval architect John Teale. Nevertheless there was also a draft of Wilke for the Storebro Royal Cruiser 43 which was not realized.
2018-08-10
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Royal Cruiser 43
Remarks
