Trailer Sailboats -- with a Cabin

Looking for a new towable pocket cruiser? Here's a list of production (that is, fiberglass) sailboats that I put together a few years ago when I began shopping. Some of them have become exceedingly rare boatyard finds. You can check Sailing Texas' Gallery page (www.sailingtexas.com/cboats99.html) to see how many show up in their listings. Reviews are in Small Craft Advisor (SCA) and Good Old Boats (GOB).

16 foot (and under) monohull

• Sparrow/Guppy 13 -- stub keel
• Peep Hen (14') -- cat rig, flat bottom (SCA 4)
• Potter 15 -- flat bottom; swing keel (SCA 17, SCA 86, GOB 13)
• Montgomery 15 -- stub keel (SCA 29, SCA 86)
• Sage 15 -- new boat; sloop or cat; flat bottom with bulb centerboard? (SCA 105)
• Compac 16, 16/2 -- stub keel (Legacy, SCA 51; Compac 16, SCA 70, SCA 86)
• Newport/Gloucester/Neptune 16 -- swing keel (Neptune, SCA 27; GOB 21)
• Sparrow 16 -- shoal keel (SCA 52)
• Capri 16 (17) -- wing keel, look at Catalina?

• Precision 16.5 - wing keel, 1’-9” draft, 750# (SCA 78)

• Matilda 16 -- very rare? (SCA 56)

17-foot monohull

• Compac SunCat - 17' (SCA 12; SCA 86)

• MacGregor/Venture 17 -- flat bottom

• Montgomery 17 -- stub keel plus swing CB (SCA 7, GOB 95)

• Newport 17 -- flat bottom, planing hull, like Potter?

• Slipper 17 -- stub keel

• Siren 17 -- swing keel (SCA 40)

• Sage 17 -- fairly new boat -- stub keel (SCA 75)

• Vagabond/Holder 17 -- swing keel (SCA 62)

18-foot monohull

• Catalina/Capri 18 -- stub keel (Catalina, SCA 30)

• Precision 18 - stub keel

• Compac 18 (SCA 70)

• Sanibel 18 -- flat bottom, CB, neat looking boat (SCA 43)

• Seaward Fox -- stub keel (SCA 18)

• Windrose 18 -- swing keel, 1500# (SCA 80)

• Malbec 18 -- new boat, CB (SCA 115)

• Crown 18 -- stub keel

• Hunter 18.5 -- wing keel (SCA 107)

• Marshall Sanderling

19-foot monohull

• MacGregor 19 "powersailer" (seems rare, only built 3 years, but if you want to plane...)

• Compac 19 - stub keel (SCA 1, SCA 125, GOB 68)

• Hunter 19 - water ballast (looked interesting...more modern styling)

• O'Day Mariner, 19' (three models over 1963-80, over 3000 boats built) (SCA 49; GOB 97)

• O'Day 19 (1979...Ray Hunt design) -- stub keel - NO CB

• O'Day 192 (Ray Hunt, modern) -- stub keel + CB, 1’-5” draft, 1400# (SCA 68; 77)

• Potter 19 -- flat bottom, steel daggerboard (SCA 3, GOB 101)

• Starwind 19 -- stub keel

• Cornish Shrimper (SCA 109)

20-foot monohull

• Compac Horizon Cat 20’ -- fin keel

• Balboa/Ensenada 20 -- Lyle Hess, check out the cabin (B) and open deck (E) designs…swing keel (Balboa, SCA 46; SCA 54)

• O'Day 20 (1973-79, over 900 boats built) -- might be 19 feet

• Voyager 20’ - new boat from International Marine, stub keel (SCA 95)

• Matilda 20 -- flat bottom, CB

• Hunter 20

• Nimble 20 -- heavier double-ender (SCA 45)

• Ultimate 20 -- lifting bulb keel; more racer than cruiser

• Mirage 5.5 (20') -- race-cruiser

21-foot monohull

• Aquarius 21 -- CB

• MacGregor/Venture 21 -- CB, 1200 # (SCA 2)

• San Juan 21 (SCA 22)

• Santana 21 swing keel

• Precision 21 - stub keel (SCA 11)

• Compac Eclipse 21 -- stub keel (SCA 36)

• Cal 21 -- 9-inch draft, 1100 #

• Balboa 21 or 22

• Clipper 21

• BayHen 21 (seems to be rare...) -- might have a flat bottom

• Irwin 21 (mini-ton, race-cruiser)

• Etap 21i (SCA 106)

• Hunter 212

Trailerable monohulls over 21 feet

• MacGregor/Venture 22

• MacGregor Venture 222 (GOB 40)

• O’Day 22 and 222 (SCA 57)

• Catalina/Capri 22 -- stub/wing keel (SCA 5)

• Tanzer 22 -- stub keel (SCA 53) 

• Rhodes 22 -- swing keel

• Hunter 22 -- stub keel

• Venture of Newport 23

• Aquarius 23 (SCA 37)

• Compac 23 -- shoal keel (SCA 71)

• Precision 23 -- stub keel

• O'Day 23 -- stub keel

• Tonic 23 -- rare Jeanneau, lifting keel (SCA 47)

• Coronado 23 -- stub keel? (SCA 55)

• Hunter 23 -- wing keel

• Seaward 23 -- wing keel

• Matilda 23 -- swing keel

• Ventura 2300 (??)

There are very good small multihull daysailers -- such as Windrider, Weta and Cross trimarans -- that have been successfully employed for "expedition-style" cruising, but very few multihull pocket cruisers...

• Searail 19 -- trimaran
• Astus 20.5 -- new boat?
• Corsair/F-22 -- trimaran (SCA 28)
• Tremolino 23 -- trimaran
• Hirondelle 23 (SCA 57) -- catamaran
• Corsair/F-24 -- trimaran
• Corsair 760 -- trimaran

Notes

1. The only boats currently in production (as far as I can tell) are Compac, the Precision, Catalina, Malbec, and Searail. Daedalus Yacht bought Farrier...
2. For O'Day sailboats there is lots of info (e.g., copies of printed brochures) at www.iheartodays.com.
3. Excellent spreadsheet database and lots of specific information at www.shortypen.com/sailboat-guide/pocket-cruiser/.
4. See forums for Catboats (and Hens…), Catalina/Capri, Clipper, Compac, Macgregor/Venture, Montgomery, Newport, Niimble, Potter, Precision, Santana, Seward on www.trailersailor.com.
5. Brian Gilbert provides a wealth of information and advice on trailer sailing, and short boat reviews in "The Complete Trailer Sailor " (International Marine, 2009).
6. “10 Years and 60 Boats”, Small Craft Advisor, No. 60 (Jan/Feb 2010), p. 54.
7. “Minicruiser Comparison: WWPotter 15, Montgomery 15, and ComPac 16”, Small Craft Advisor, No. 86 (Mar/April 2014), p. 58.