Stiff Fiberglass Sailboats

[GIOVANNl]

Hello,
Do you know of any sailboats that are extremely stiff and constructed of solid fiberglass, or a coring that has a hard time rotting. I ask that you do not try to tell me that coring is not that big of deal because it has exhausted me. Also, I am looking to cruise, so six feet or more of headroom means a lot to me. I have been told that even though a Ballast/displacement ratio is around 50%, or higher, the boat is not necessarily stiff? Any information received will be much appreciated.

Thank you for your time,
Giovanni

[Cheechako]

By stiff I assume you mean doesn't heel over easily and are not talking about the hull stiffness?
I think you will find beam width is your friend. Narrow old fashioned boats were ballasted at 50% often, but heeled immediately and severely due to narrow beam.

[moctrams]

My 1982 Cape Dory 30 cutter is stiff in the strongest breeze and sea conditions. Love her!

[danfarrell]

In his book Yacht Design According to Perry, the venerable Bob Perry claims that initial stability is sure primarily to form stability, eg wide beam and a flat bottom.

If you really dislike heeling, maybe you should get a multihull? Catamarans hardly heel under normal circumstances. Of course they're much more expensive to buy and birth. But very fast and flat in normal conditions!

[john61ct]

I interpreted OP's use of "stiff" to mean less flexing, aka nice and strong hull/decks/bulkheads, as in the very early days of fiberglass, before balsa cores and chopped FRP.

As in build technique, nothing to do with on-paper-designed "stiffness" as in initial stability / resistance to heeling.

[siamese]

I think we need some clarification from the original poster. What do you mean by "stiff"? The hull? How she sails? The decks?

[GIOVANNl]

Thanks for all the quick replies. I meant stability. Of course, hull and deck stiffness are important too. What sort of coring does a Cape Dory 30 have? I would rather stick with mono hulls.

Thanks again,
Giovanni

[Don C L]

Yeah, it's beam more than ballast that will give initial stability and a feeling of stiffness. Are you asking because you don't like the feel of a tippy boat, or seasickness concerns or seaworthiness or something else?

[Orion Jim]

Originally Posted by GIOVANNl

Thanks for all the quick replies. I meant stability. Of course, hull and deck stiffness are important too. What sort of coring does a Cape Dory 30 have? I would rather stick with mono hulls.

Thanks again,
Giovanni

The CD30 has a solid fiberglass hull. The decks and the coachroof are balsa cored, everything else is solid fiberglass. The same is true for all the large Cape Dory sailboats.

[Don C L]

The guy next to me has a Rawson 30, it's really solid and though I haven't sailed on it, it seemed pretty stiff to me, though it is not so beamy. There is also a guy here with a Columbia 38 that was out a while back in a pretty stiff breeze with a full main and jib and I was impressed he was able to carry that much sail without heeling too much. I haven't sailed on that one either though, but I'd sure like to. That too is a solidly built boat. Both those boats have pretty deep and heavy ballast. Maybe some owners of these can help out here and tell me if my impressions are correct. But who am I to judge? I got a pretty tender boat!

[Seymore]

Westsail 32 are the classic sailboats that are extremely stiff and constructed of solid fiberglass. They have about 6' 4" of headroom inside.

[GIOVANNl]

The reason for extra stability is simply for a little added comfort. The Westsail 32 seems like a good option. Does anyone happen to know what islander models are solid fiberglass. Most of them are not young, so I am assuming quite a few. I have my eye especially on Perry’s 28. Also, I have not found any construction information about the Vancouver 28. If anyone knows anything about it, please let me know.

Thanks,
Giovanni

[sailing_gal]

Island Packets are stiff and solid fiberglass boats. They have a resin core, so they do not rot. They are stiff enough to tune at the dock, most riggers do not bother taking them out to tune the rig. I must admit I own my second IP, after comparing any number of Water boats">blue water boats.

[siamese]

Most monohull sailboats have solid (non cored) hulls. Almost all sailboats have cored decks, with a few, like Island Packet, using something other than balsa in their deck coring.

Your postings seems to indicate that you're confused about sailing stability and cored vs. solid fiberglass hulls. There isn't really a link between the two.

[chris95040]

Its awfully confusing that you keep mentioning core material or lack thereof while seemingly trying to talk about stability.

If you are talking about core materials and in the same breath mention "stiffness" we are going to think you are talking about how flexible the material is.