It is a little gem for anyone interested in yachting history and the history of boat building. John Gustavsson, son of the founder of Långedrags Varv and now 92 years old, talks about the beginnings of his professional life. The Swede began studying at his father's shipyard at the age of 14. Numerous photos show the hustle and bustle in the business of those days in the film.
Interview with the 92-year-old boat builder John Gustavsson from Långedrag near Gothenburg in western Sweden about boat building there in the 1950s
The focus of the new contribution to the Ohlson project is on the successful Ohlson 36, of which 145 wooden sister ships were built at three different Swedish shipyards for export to the US - only three of them remained in Sweden. Around 40 of the yachts were built between 1958 and 1966 with Gustavsson's collaboration at the shipyard in Långedrag, that suburb of Gothenburg, which is well known to sailors today because of the marina of the same name.
Långedrag Varv
The brothers Einar and Carl-Erik Ohlson were cousins of the old boat builder, and so he also has a lot to tell about the two successful Swedish constructors. Above all, his report offers a deep insight into the early series production - made of wood - and the classic boat building of that time.