BoatsSailstar Boats Little Bear

Sailstar Boats Little Bear

Fractional Sloop · Centerboard Dinghy · First built 1960

A nimble 3.5-meter centerboard dinghy with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio for spirited light-air sailing

Designed by Robert H. Baker.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Hull type
Centerboard Dinghy

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

TrailerableBeam 1.45 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 91 kg of hull, so roughly 700 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Ramp-launchableAbout 91 kg of hull, with a keel that raises or a draught shallow enough to float off a trailer — she can go back on the trailer at the ramp, not only into the water.Shoal draughtDraws 0.08 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.
LivelySea-kindly

Her light displacement on a beamy beam gives 4 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 4
CoastalBluewater

At 3.25 she sits above the 2.0 line — beamy for her weight, and happiest coastal.

Capsize screening 3.25
LightHeavy

77 — light for her waterline, so she is easily driven and quick to accelerate.

Displacement / length 77
EasygoingPowered-up

40.3 — a lot of sail for her weight; powered-up and eager, a real performer.

Sail area / displacement 40.3

Light and lively — happiest day-sailing and coastal-hopping in settled weather.

  • Draws less than ~94% of boats her size on file

Compared with 262 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions
Weights
Rig & sail area
Rig
Fractional Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
40.3
Displacement / length
77.1
Comfort ratio
3.6
Capsize screening
3.25
Hull speed
4.3 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
178
Hull
Hull type
Centerboard Dinghy
Construction
Fiberglass
Production
Years built
First built 1960
Designer
Robert H. Baker
Builder
Sailstar Boats

Boats like this, on the water

Nobody has filmed this one — but these are close.

Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.

Spindrift 134.06 mSame hull family0.6 m longerA Hubert Vandestadt-designed centerboard dinghy with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio for lively, responsive sailing
Our Boat Got Stolen 😡… So We Built a New One (in just ONE Week)from WhiteSpotPirates
Hunter Marine 1404.27 mSame hull family0.8 m longerA lightweight fractional sloop designed for responsive dinghy sailing with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio
Sailing Dighies NOT to Buy - How to Learn Sailing Ep 318 - Lady K Sailing6:19from Lady K Sailing
Beneteau First 144.30 mSame hull family0.8 m longerA Samuel Manuard-designed performance dinghy with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio for spirited, responsive sailing
Everything You Need to Know - Beneteau - Episode 107 - Lady K Sailing2:27from Lady K Sailing
O'day 123.76 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA lightweight cat-rigged dinghy featuring a simple unstayed mast and daggerboard, sharing her hull with the Widgeon
The Pilot Who Crashed His Plane and Was Reborn on a Sailboat | #SAL #34314:23from Hashtag Sal
Fairey Marine Ltd. Duckling2.74 mSame hull family0.8 m shorterA 2.74-metre cat-rigged dinghy imported to the US by George O'Day during the mid-1950s
The Hatching [of two duckling dinghies]3:32from Classic Yacht TV
Fairey Marine Firefly3.66 mSame hull family0.2 m longerThe 1948 Olympic single-handed class, this Uffa Fox design was the first sailboat ever produced by Fairey Marine
John Lee Cotton: 91 years old and 75 years at sea0:54from SEILmagasinet

The family

Boats like this

Nearby designs by size, type, and era — worth a look alongside her.

Sailstar Boats Tallstar 14A lightweight fractional sloop designed by Robert H. Baker, featuring a centreboard hull also produced as the Meteor

Keep looking

Nothing filmed of this one yet

Two ways to keep looking — both search what the fleet has actually recorded.

Search the fleet for boats like thisAsk the fleet about the Sailstar Boats Little Bear

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