Simon Everett ponders the merits of a classic boat you can build to order.

The term ‘classic boat’ receives various interpretations in marine circles. Some say 25 years and older on a rolling basis, while others have a cut off of 1970, thus freezing the future of classic boats to a particular period in time. Personally, I think both are wrong. The word ‘classic’ refers to enduring and timeless appeal, regardless of date of manufacture. With that in mind it is interesting to consider the popular Broom runabout boats, which date from the 1940s through to the 1970s but can still be built to order today.
Broom in focus
Broom runabouts were the brainchild of Jack Broom and, right from the off, there were some very specific themes to the model names. One such theme was historic settlers, the Viking and the Norseman. There were weapons too, such as the Rapier and the Javelin (pictured left). And then came the planets with the Broom Jupiter, Saturn,  Saturn deluxe and the Apollo. Finally there were the signs of the Zodiac, which were to become the now famous Aquarius, Aries, Capricorn, Gemini and Scorpio.

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