Boats with Shallow Draft for Florida, Bahamas, Chesapeake

[Jacky]

Originally Posted by kzmike

How about a Pearson 35. 3ft 9in draft with CB up?

Nice draft.

[kzmike]

Originally Posted by Jacky

Nice draft.

Light board, heavy keel, 5400 pounds.

[Scaramanga F25]

How about a Pearson 35. 3ft 9in draft with CB up?[/QUOTE]

Sharpies are something altogether different from other boats. Usually have less than 2 foot draught. Shoal draught keel center boarders are something else completely.

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by Scaramanga F25

Sharpies are something altogether different from other boats. Usually have less than 2 foot draught. Shoal draught keel center boarders are something else completely.

Sharpies, as I understand them, are usually flat-bottomed and keelless, but do have centerboards.

[boatman61]

Wharram Tiki 38.. Draught .75metres.
Tiki 30.. Draught 25inches.
Tiki 26.. Draught 16inches.

[Scaramanga F25]

Yes, sharpies are monohulls that have relatively flat bottoms and the ballasted keel runs almost the full length of the boat but only a few inches deep. Sometimes inside ballast. Leeboards, bilge boards, and/or centerboards for lateral resistance.

[MicHughV]

I've always been a fan of the Wharram's....could not even begin to explain why.....for the B'mas, it is about as near perfect as you can get...

[Shanachie]

The challenge with the Pearson centerboarders (and their sister ships, the Bristols) is how they designed the mechanisms for the CBs.


I don't know about the 35 specifically, but my old Bristol CB placed the winch in a cockpit locker and routed the cable through an enclosed fiberglass tube with several sheaves in it.


There was no way to check the status of the cable or the sheaves. If something went wrong, it was a surprise. And it is a major job to replace a broken cable or sheave due to limited access.


There was also a naval bronze (actually, corrosion-resistant brass) pivot that the CB swung on. Some owners who dug in for a look reported it was fine after many years; A few have reported corrosion or failure.


The cable usually was stainless steel with a Nicropress fitting to form an eye. Neither does well while constantly immersed in seawater, so inspection of the eye at every haul out is a must.



I guess what I'm saying is that it's not a deal breaker, but you have to be very aware of a situation like this on an old sailboat. Neglect it and you could very well have big difficulties.

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by Shanachie

The challenge with the Pearson centerboarders (and their sister ships, the Bristols) is how they designed the mechanisms for the CBs.

And the Herreshoff Meadowlarks have leeboards, and none of those problems. I know that nobody but the Dutch uses leeboards much, anymore, but they have their advantages.

[Jacky]

Originally Posted by Jdege

And the Herreshoff Meadowlarks have leeboards, and none of those problems. I know that nobody but the Dutch uses leeboards much, anymore, but they have their advantages.

My query would be if Meadowlarks could handle severe conditions, like some surprise weather change on the way to the Bahamas.

[Jdege]

Originally Posted by Jacky

My query would be if Meadowlarks could handle severe conditions, like some surprise weather change on the way to the Bahamas.

I've been told that they're surprisingly capable in heavy weather, though I don't have any personal experience to back that up.

Though what experience I do have would suggest that they'd be very uncomfortable.

[malbert73]

Originally Posted by Shanachie

The challenge with the Pearson centerboarders (and their sister ships, the Bristols) is how they designed the mechanisms for the CBs.


I don't know about the 35 specifically, but my old Bristol CB placed the winch in a cockpit locker and routed the cable through an enclosed fiberglass tube with several sheaves in it.


There was no way to check the status of the cable or the sheaves. If something went wrong, it was a surprise. And it is a major job to replace a broken cable or sheave due to limited access.


There was also a naval bronze (actually, corrosion-resistant brass) pivot that the CB swung on. Some owners who dug in for a look reported it was fine after many years; A few have reported corrosion or failure.


The cable usually was stainless steel with a Nicropress fitting to form an eye. Neither does well while constantly immersed in seawater, so inspection of the eye at every haul out is a must.



I guess what I'm saying is that it's not a deal breaker, but you have to be very aware of a situation like this on an old sailboat. Neglect it and you could very well have big difficulties.

CBs IMHO are worth the hassle if well maintained.

A friend of mine with a Pearson 39-2 replaced the SS CB pendant with a dyneema pendant of the same diameter, that also fits the little winch. A much better solution as impervious to corrosion underwater.

My tartan 40 uses yachtbraid and routes into base of mast, up the mast, and comes out on deck via sheave in mast base. Routes to clutch on deck house. Also impossible to inspect so I replaced it last winter after 8-9 years to know what I was dealing with. It probably could have gone another 8.

Hinckley B40s may have the best mechanism with a worm gear in the salon table and a solid arm connected to the CB inside the keel

[Elzaar]

Many nice boats on here.

I confess I am biased, but a Wauquiez Hood 38 is very good for Florida and Bahamas, etc. - though not perfect (what is?). They were manufacured from 1981 - about 1990. Designed by Ted Hood (specialty was designing and racing centerboard boats in the Atlantic), and Henri Wauquiez made his fortune making furniture so they are beautiful interiors.

Draft with CB up is officially less than 5' though I doubt any meet the official 4'10" draft. Official weight is 23,000# IIRC. With board totally deployed its over 10', with all ranges in between. Many owners have replaced the cb cable with dyneema.

Sails well to weather and even better downwind. We've done significant work on the hull and the pro who has done the fiberglass work says its one of the most stout hulls he's ever seen, so groundings are very unlikely to be more than embarrasing.

The early ones are Mk 1 which have a funky entry of coming down through the deck forward of the cockpit. Its based on Swan design and I believe is an attempt to make them nearly watertight in a storm (it does) or roll (hope never to know). The main advantage is it gives you a truly private aft berth. It took some getting used to, but I now prefer it. The Mk 2 came out in about 1984 and has the typical cockpit entry to below. Some folks have converted the Mk 1 to a Mk 2.

Since they were manufactured in France and designed for shallow draft, they are often available on the US east coast or in Europe. Depending on condition they seem to have asking prices between $45k and $80k. Personally, I would consider them a steal, now that I've done significant work on mine and sailed it a good bit.

I'm uploading pics of the original colors, but also with the repaint. I don't have any great interior shots, but there are examples on Yachtworld most of the time.

There is also an excellent owners group on Google.

[BBill]

Traditional sharpies are hard chine, flat bottom, narrow, have a cb and don't have ballast. Masts are unstayed and bendy. I had a 32' Indian River sharpie with a draft of about 15" board up...similar to Colvin sharpies. Perfect Bahamas and backwaters of Florida boat. They will flip over if you aren't careful. The previous owner I bought it from got caught in a summer Tstorm in Florida and was knocked down and flooded to the deck. It floated and was towed to shore and bailed. The only thing is it takes a 40'+sharpie to have headroom and interior space of a modern 25'r.

[Scaramanga F25]

Sharpies are ballasted and it is located in the shallow keel 4 to 6 inches deep. The Commodore proved the seaworthiness of his Presto sharpies that delivered the mail before roads and train.