The Australian 6 Metre.

          The 6 metre is a boat class from our past, when I came on the model yachting scene in about 1966. The class was on its last legs at that time. The class was originally sailed in Australia from about 1930 (circa). Firstly in Melbourne, then to Sydney in about 1934. This class has only raced once internationally.

          This boat was about the same size overall to other classes that were around in those days namely; the American X, the Australian B, the Scottish 12 metre. They all competed together in some parts of Australia. Mingled in with them, were even some A Class at times, just to add to the mix.

The Marblehead was just being started in Australia, as a class in that era as well. So there was some competition on what class people were going to sail in their leisure time.

The Melbourne skippers went to A Class 1928/9, for Don McPherson a Scottish 6 metre champion who migrated here said he quickly changed to A Class soon after arrival in Melbourne. For he had his 6 metre in a shop window trying to attract enthusiasm for model yachting in general.

          Meanwhile in Sydney, another Scotsman, VR Blacket, started a club sailing a boat call the ‘Australian B’ that was pretty much similar in dimensions to the 6 metre Class. In fact there is photographic records that show all those similar class’ (as previously mentioned) sailing together at his club, The New South Wales Model Yacht Club and the Newcastle Miniature Model Yacht Club (at Belmont) in that 1934/36 era.

          This Blacket was a canny Scotsman for on his boat drawings he shows his designs as drawn as 6 mtres, X Class and A Class on the one page. The difference between the ‘B’, ‘6’ and the X, was about 20 square inches in Sail area.

In about 1962 Doug Billing (of the now Foster Club) was walking through Hurstville, a Sydney suburb and spotted a 6 metre in a drapers shop front window with a sign on it asking “If you’re interested in Model Yachting ring this telephone number”?

          Well I think I have managed to track down this particular boat and found a photo of it.

About ten years ago (circa 1996), one Graham Welsh, from Sydney won a design competition for 6 metres that a model magazine in England was running, with a boat called ‘Sylfe’. This boat had some really good features including an unusual flattened bulb type keel. But since then not much has been heard about 6 metres in Australia.

          Come 2006, I heard the other day that there were people in Northern NSW designing some 6 metres. There are a few problems associated with this class but the major one is : if the boat is slightly wrong in the building process it is almost impossible to fix it and get it to measure properly. The 6 metre rule is basically for a full size class and it also allows “crew weight” allowance to be taken into consideration in the rating rules. There is a Girth measurement to be taken as well as Quarter Beam measurements fore and aft. Most of the boats come out in a general size of a small A Class about 55” OA with about a 45” waterline length. While this is a ‘handy size “, one can’t help wondering why later sailors don’t go for the very pretty Australian B class built around the A Class rule with the formula coming out not less than 28.3 inches ? Comparisons and photos of the Australian B class, the ‘6’ and the X class are in the book, “Model Racing Skiffs of Australia - a history” ISBN 0-9580192.

If you’re got some history, contact me on: shcrewes@bigpond.net.au   

Stephen Crewes. Nat. Historian ARYA 2006