Typhoon Weekender vs. Bristol Corinthian

[Stu Timm]

I am researching into the hopeful purchase of a new small sloop. My quest has taken an orientation towards the Cape Dory Typhoon Weekender. I have noticed a Bristol Corinthian in a yard near my home. Both boats are full keeled sloops with fractional rigs, and are Carl Alberg designs. I gathered some statistics on each vessel and they are as follows:
CD-19/ Bristol Corinthian
L.O.A. : 18'-6" / 19'-6.5"
L.W.L. : 13'-6" / 14'-6"
Beam : 6'-3.5" / 6'-6"
Draft : 2'-7"/ 2'-9"
Disp. : 2000# / 2724#
Ballast : 900#/ 1100#
Sail Area: 160 sq. ft./ 186 sq. ft.

The vessels are similar in overall hull shape and proportions. The Bristol has a aft-deck-mounted traveller. Both boats have deck-stepped rigs.

My question is to those seasoned yachts-people out there who can read into the numbers listed above better than I can. Based on what I have shown, (objective opinions only please!) is the CD-19 a better sailing vessel in respects to sail area to weight ratio(s), as well as other performance criteria than the Bristol? The Bristol is bigger and has more L.W.L, but has a higher weight/sail area ratio by my read. It also looks like the CD-19 would be a better choice in lighter breezes too.

Any comments or input (subjective?)would be greatly appreciated from you folks interested out there.

Thanks in advance,

Stu Timm



stuart@arenvironetics.com

[Bill Snyder]

Your Cd message is of real interest to me since I am making the same comparison. My brother sailed a Corinthian for 18 years and thought it was a great boat. I also sailed with him in some rough weather and she stood up very well. However, I am having some difficulty locating this boat in reasonable condition and have seen some Typhoons locally which look very good, but also none for sale. I would very much appreciate knowing the results of your efforts to get your questions answered and perhaps sharing the information with me. I would also be happy to share any info I receive. Thank you. Bill Snyder



spinacres@worldnet.att.net

[Jim Serra]

I owned a Corinthian before purchasing a Typhoon. They're both great boats. The Ty is a little quicker in light air but not quite as fast. Overall, they both have similar sailing characteristics: stiff, stable, and able to handle the nasty stuff.
Surprisingly, the Ty is more roomy inside due to the quarter berths. For me, the negative aspects of the Corinthian were that it didn't have a self-bailing cockpit and that I would have to remove the motor from the well while I was sailing. On a hard tack or in rough seas, water would find it's way into the cockpit. On the positive side, the Corinthian was built like a tank (solid glass) and, because of a lack of balsa core, you didn't have to worry about core saturation.

Feel free to e-mail me with follow-up questions.

Jim Serra



james_serra@nelliemae.com