Capital Gulf 27

[texasliam]

We are considering this boat, and there is very little information out there on it. We are fairly new to the game and would be cruising the gulf coast, with aspirations of the Caribbean some day. Is this boat suitable for us?
Liam

[Sailmonkey]

I know nothing of the boat, but just looked at some pictures. I like the looks, but question the pilothouse in the middle of the salon. In actuality it may work out really well, but looks really cramped otherwise.

[Steve W]

Capital Yachts built this boat. They built the Newport 27, 28, 31, 33 and 41. I have owned a 1986 Newport 28 MKII for 11 years and crewed on a N27 in local races. Take a look at newportowners.com. I believe the main difference between the boat you are considering and a Newport 27 is the raised deck and maybe the cabin layout. Most came with Universal M-18 (14hp) diesel or larger, older models had an Atomic 4 gas inboard. There was a 1985 Gulf 33 for sale at www.traderonline.com in Florida for $29,000, loaded with A/C, upgrades, swim platform stern, recent sails, windlass, etc. Looked like the owner had done a lot of recent upgrades. We've been very happy with our Newport, no structural or build quality issues or blisters. The N28 as a much larger cockpit than the N27. Tankage is small, intended to be a weekender or coastal cruiser.

[texasliam]

The salon/pilot house makes the boat feel much roomier than a compariable sized sail boat, due to good head room and plenty of windows. I'm a little concerned about the side windowson the pilot house as they are sliding. I don't see any water damage though.

Dimensions
LOA: 27'2
Beam: 9'4"
LWL: 22'6"
Maximum Draft: 5'2"
Displacement: 6,900
Ballast: 2,700

Engines
Engine Brand: Universal
Egine(s) HP: 14
Engine Model: M-18

Tanks
Fuel Tanks: 20
Water: 20


Liam

[Steve W]

Liam, The M-18 is very easy to work on and maintain. It is a marinized Kubota and many parts are available thru a Kubota tractor dealer. Mine has about 1300 hours on it and in the 11 years I have owned the N28, the only maintenance the engine needed was two water pump impellers and I had the injectors rebuilt at 1000 hours. The original owner replaced the freshwater pump in 1998 and that is all that shows in the log. If you like stretching out in the cockpit to read or snooze, make sure it is not too short. I did see one N27 that had a soft cockpit floor and it flexed a lot. Make sure the mast lights work. Newport sandwiched the wiring runs to the mast into the fiberglass and when (not if) they fail, you pretty much have to rewire from the panel.

[texasliam]

factory glassed over keel bolts. Should I be concerned?
Liam

[Steve W]

My keelbolts are encapsulated by some sort of factory poured material with a recessed area for the bilge pump and the manual bilge pump intake. Common for the poured material to have small cracks in it, according to my surveyor and yard guys. To expose the keel bolts, chip away the poured material. They can be encapsulated again after any work is done. My guess is they did it to create a place for the bilge pump and bilge water to collect since the area is so shallow.

[unbusted67]

I have thought about buying one of those as well, there is a 29 and a 32. I think the 27 has a pretty deep draft for it's length so you might want to consider that if you are sailing anywhere shallow. If you go look at one please report back here, I am as curious as you.

[texasliam]

Yup same caps on the keel bolts on the 27' gulf
I think we are going to put a bid on it this week.
Liam

Originally Posted by unbusted67

I have thought about buying one of those as well, there is a 29 and a 32. I think the 27 has a pretty deep draft for it's length so you might want to consider that if you are sailing anywhere shallow. If you go look at one please report back here, I am as curious as you.

[boatguy]

There is a lot of information about the Gulf 27 and other models built by Capital Yachts on www.capitalyachts.info including copies of brochures, manuals for the universal motors, pictures, etc. There is a 1983 Gulf 27 listed on www.boattrader.com that has a 2004 trailer with it. The Gulf 27 was built with blue water cruising in mind. You can see through the windows in the pilothouse to the front of the boat while sitting in the cockpit. The advantage of the pilothouse is that you can still continue to boat in nasty weather since you can pilot from either inside or from the cockpit.