CD 27 - 28 comparisions??

[mchaffie]

I've been lurking here for the past 4 months, trying to determine if a Cape Dory will be in the cards of the not-too-distant future. Before my career landlocked me in the piedmont of North Carolina, I crewed on a Beneteau 35.5 and a Bristol 29 while living in Virginia (in addition to owning a Wayfarer 15). I'm attracted to Alberg's traditional design, the build quality of CD's, and your vibrant owner association. I'm considering a CD 27 or 28, intended for single-handed coastal cruising in the Chesapeake Bay/North Carolina area - although I must confess to harboring (modest) offshore fantasies (i.e., island hopping in the Caribbean) when I retire in (hopefully) 5 years. I'd like the potential for extended (but probably not full-time) live-a-board capabilities. Realizing that all vessels are compromises, I appreciate any and all comments/suggestions/cautions you'd care to offer.

Many thanks in advance.

John

[Bill Goldsmith]

http://www.capedory.org/board/viewtopic.php?t=4721&

[Neil Gordon]

Whenever we compare one Cape Dory to the next size up, the comments are usually that there's hardly a difference. So the 27 is about the same as the 28, the 28 is about the same as the 30, etc. Somehow though, the 27 is smaller than the 30, so that doesn't exactly compute. <g>

Anyway, I looked at both the 27 and the 28 before buying. Especially for living aboad, the 28 is a bigger boat. Those fond of 27's will tell you they are better sailers, but that's subject to debate. Either one will serve your purpose, I would think, in good condition and properly equipped.

[mchaffie]

appreciate the thread info, Bill

[Stan W.]

This comes up all the time. There must be at least half a dozen other threads you will find if you play around with the search function.

My take on this has always been that the true measurement of boat size is displacement and the 28 (9,000 lbs) is 20% more boat than the 27 (7,500 lbs). By way of comparison, the 30 (10,000 lbs) is 11% more boat than the 28.

Another significant spec is LWL. The 28 is about 22.2 ft and the 27 is only 20 ft. Thus, the 28's theoretical hull speed is about 6.3 knots vs. the 27's theoretical hull speed of about 6 knots (yes I know the 27 has an extra foot of overhang that could make up some of that difference, but it only comes into play if you sail the boat on its ear and that probably hurts more than it helps). Again, by way of comparison, the 30's LWL is 7.75 inches more than the 28's and its theoretical hull speed is about 6.4 knots (the 30 also has about an extra foot of overhang if sailed on its ear).

The 27's higher SA/D (15.24 vs. 14.94 for the 28) would appear to give it some advantage in light airs, but that is based on a 100% foretriangle and erodes to nothing as you go to progressively larger overlapping sails. For the sake of completeness, the 30's SA/D is 15.06.

I do agree with most people that the 27's longer overhang gives it a daintier derriere than the 28.

[winthrop fisher]

Hi John...

well neil and stan have said it all, but if you like cd's 27 & 28 & 30 and alberg 27 & 29, the alberg 29 has allot of extras, more so them the others, and has sailed all over the world. you could give them a look see too.
winthrop

I've been lurking here for the past 4 months, trying to determine if a Cape Dory will be in the cards of the not-too-distant future. Before my career landlocked me in the piedmont of North Carolina, I crewed on a Beneteau 35.5 and a Bristol 29 while living in Virginia (in addition to owning a Wayfarer 15). I'm attracted to Alberg's traditional design, the build quality of CD's, and your vibrant owner association. I'm considering a CD 27 or 28, intended for single-handed coastal cruising in the Chesapeake Bay/North Carolina area - although I must confess to harboring (modest) offshore fantasies (i.e., island hopping in the Caribbean) when I retire in (hopefully) 5 years. I'd like the potential for extended (but probably not full-time) live-a-board capabilities. Realizing that all vessels are compromises, I appreciate any and all comments/suggestions/cautions you'd care to offer.

Many thanks in advance.

John

[Stan W.]

The 27's higher SA/D (15.24 vs. 14.94 for the 28) would appear to give it some advantage in light airs, but that is based on a 100% foretriangle and erodes to nothing as you go to progressively larger overlapping sails.

This turns out to be more subtle than I first realized. Although the 28's total sail area does increase at a quicker rate as both boats go to overlapping foresails, it is still the case that, in light air, a square foot of sail on a 7,500 pound boat is worth more than a square foot of sail on a 9,000 pound boat. So, the 28's sail area has to increase at a quicker rate just to keep up. The bottom line is that the 27 should maintain roughly the same edge in light air performance when both boats have equivalent overlapping foresails.

[Neil Gordon]

Hi John...

well neil and stan have said it all, but if you like cd's 27 & 28 & 30 and alberg 27 & 29, the alberg 29 has allot of extras, more so them the others, and has sailed all over the world. you could give them a look see too.
winthrop

We've said it all? Yikes... so we can stop posting now? <g>

Not to confuse the discussion, but there's the Pearson Triton, too.