BoatsAbeking Swallow

Abeking Swallow

Fractional Sloop · Fin Keel · First built 1948

Designed by Tom Thornycroft for the 1948 Olympics, this fractional sloop remains a competitive one-design racer

Designed by Tom Thornycroft & Isaac Thomas Thornycroft.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Ballast
Hull type
Fin Keel

Is it for you?

Character

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

TrailerableBeam 1.68 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 1,022 kg of hull, so roughly 1,600 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Shoal draughtDraws 1.04 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 narrow beam gives 17 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 17
CoastalBluewater

At 1.68 she sits well under the 2.0 line — a solidly ocean-capable hull for her size.

Capsize screening 1.68
LightHeavy

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

Displacement / length 147
EasygoingPowered-up

20.6 — plenty of sail for her weight; lively and quick to respond.

Sail area / displacement 20.6
TenderStiff

59% of her weight is ballast — very stiff, carrying full sail in a blow.

Ballast 59%

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

  • Lighter than ~91% of boats her size on file
  • Draws less than ~85% of boats her size on file
  • Narrower than ~100% of boats her size on file

Compared with 1604 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
Ballast / displacement
59.5%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Fractional Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
20.6
Displacement / length
146.6
Comfort ratio
17.2
Capsize screening
1.68
Hull speed
5.8 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
373
Hull
Hull type
Fin Keel
Construction
Wood
Production
Years built
First built 1948
Units built
90
Designer
Tom Thornycroft, Isaac Thomas Thornycroft
Builder
Abeking, Rasmussen

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.

Abbott Boats Inc. Soling8.15 mSame hull family0.4 m longerA high-performance Olympic class keelboat designed by Jan Herman Linge for tactical three-person racing
Kristian Nergaard used the Hankø Regatta as a warm-up for the 5.5m World Championship0:02from SEILmagasinet
J Boats Tillotson Pearson J/808.00 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA 1992 fractional sloop with a high 26.59 sail area-to-displacement ratio, engineered for rapid, agile performance
Transiting the Chesapeake Bay - North and South23:13from Maryland School of Sailing
J Boats Tillotson Pearson J/247.32 mSame hull family0.4 m shorterA legendary Rodney Johnstone design that defined the modern one-design racer with its high sail-area-to-displacement ratio
Everything You Think About Sailing Is Wrong3:59from The Sailing Doodles Podcast
Dehler Yachts 25CR7.50 mSame hull family0.3 m shorterA Van de Stadt-designed fractional sloop with a high sail area-to-displacement ratio built for spirited performance
Don't Make The Same MISTAKE We Did [Ep.28]9:27from Sailing Oceanaire | Wik & Rox
Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 24.27.30 mSame hull family0.5 m shorterA Jacques Fauroux-designed fractional sloop built for coastal cruising with a stable fin-and-bulb keel
Sailing under asymmetric spinnaker with a Sun Odyssey1:24from VOILIER ODIN
Maxi Yachts 777.70 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthThe most popular model in the builder's history, offering both inboard and outboard engine options for versatile cruising
From Helsesista to Adventure Tale: How she found joy on the "high seas" in the Inner Oslo Fjordfrom SEILmagasinet

The family

Boats like this

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

Aubin (Chantier Aubin) SnipeA legendary William F. Crosby-designed fractional dinghy that remains one of the world's most active racing classesAbbott Boats Inc. YnglingA 6.35-metre fractional sloop that served as the Olympic class for women sailors from 2004 through 2008Eagle (Enderlein)An Olle Enderlein-designed masthead sloop with a modified full keel, marketed variously as the Ornen, Eagle, or AdmiralSwarbrick 80A high-performance fractional sloop from Kim Swarbrick, featuring a light displacement and powerful sail plan

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 Abeking Swallow

The newsletter

New boats, new stories. Every week, everywhere.

One email from the fleet — boats newly added, videos newly analysed. No noise.

Report an issue