Cornish Crabber 17

Cornish Crabber 17

Development
Designer	Roger Dongray
Location	United Kingdom
Year	1989
Builder(s)	Cornish Crabbers
Role	Day sailer-Cruiser
Name	Cornish Crabber 17
Boat
Boat weight	1,950 lb (885 kg)
Draft	4.00 ft (1.22 m), with centreboard down
Hull
Type	monohull
Construction	fibreglass
LOA	17.00 ft (5.18 m), with bowsprit 20.00 ft (6.10 m)
LWL	16.00 ft (4.88 m)
Beam	6.87 ft (2.09 m)
Engine type	outboard motor
Hull appendages
Keel/board type	centreboard
Ballast	217 lb (98 kg)
Rudder(s)	transom-mounted rudder
Rig
Rig type	Gaff rig
Sails
Sailplan	gaff rigged sloop
Total sail area	178.00 sq ft (16.537 m2)

The Cornish Crabber 17, or just Cornish Crabber, is a British trailerable sailboat that was designed by Roger Dongray as a daysailer and pocket cruiser and first built in 1989. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]}

Production

The design was built by Cornish Crabbers in Wadebridge, Cornwall, United Kingdom starting in 1989, but it is now out of production. ^{[1] [4] [5]}

Design

The Cornish Crabber 17 is a recreational sailboat, built predominantly of fibreglass, with wood trim. It is a gaff riged sloop, with a bowsprit, with a plumb stem, a slightly angled transom, a transom-hung rudder controlled by a tiller and a centreboard. It displaces 1,950 lb (885 kg) and carries 380 lb (172 kg) of ballast. ^{[1] [4]}

The boat has a draft of 4.00 ft (1.22 m) with the centreboard extended and 1.58 ft (0.48 m) with it retracted, allowing beaching or ground transportation on a trailer. ^{[1] [4]}

The boat is normally fitted with a small 2 to 6 hp (1 to 4 kW) outboard motor for docking and manoeuvring, mounted in a transom well. ^{[1] [4]}

The design has sleeping accommodation for two people, with two straight settees in the main cabin and an aft cabin with a double berth on the port side. There are no galley provisions. The optional head is a portable type. Cabin headroom is 51 in (130 cm) under the fold-down dodger, which includes a zip-up back panel to enclose the below-decks area. ^{[1] [4]}

For downwind sailing the design may be equipped with a spinnaker. ^{[1] [4]}

The design has a hull speed of 5.4 kn (10.0 km/h). ^[4]

Operational history

The boat is supported by an active class club, the Cornish Crabbers Club. ^[6]

In a 2001 review naval architect Robert Perry wrote, "while these boats are attractive, it is difficult to do them justice in a review ... The 17 is a gaff-rigged sloop. Cornish Crabber owners seem to favor tanbark sails. I favor white sails. A small spinnaker is shown. The SA/D is a surprising 22.2. This should move the little hooker along quite well. Draft with the flat plate centerboard down is 4 feet; board-up draft is 1 foot, 7 inches. There is 217 pounds of ballast in the bilge. This is an ideal trailerable boat for a sailor looking for something a little different and is guaranteed to turn heads." ^[7]

In a 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "the Crabber is part of a line of traditional West Cornwall (Eng- land) watercraft recreated in fiberglass and elegantly finished. She's intended mainly as a daysailer but has camping space for two overnight under the fold-down 'spray hood' (dodger) with a zip-in back panel. Best features: Workmanship is outstanding for a boat this size. Foam flotation gives positive buoyancy. Intelligent organization of the very limited space includes a place for a portable head as well as basic overnighting gear (sleeping bags, camp stove, etc). Position of the outboard, in a well amidships and forward of the rudder, provides good steering control in both forward and reverse, and the engine can be removed and stowed in a locker meant for the purpose to eliminate prop drag. With her gaff rig and tan-bark sails, she's pretty as a picture underway. Worst features: Spars are varnished wood, beautiful to look at but a time-consuming maintenance chore. Price of both new and used boats, well above her comp[etitor]s, may not fit everyone's budget ..." ^[4]

See also

• List of sailing boat types

References

1. McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Cornish Crabber sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
2. McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Cornish Crabber 17 sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
3. McArthur, Bruce (2021). "Roger Dongray". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
4. Henkel, Steve: The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats, page 31. International Marine/McGraw-Hill, 2010. ISBN   978-0-07-163652-0
5. McArthur, Bruce (2021). "Cornish Crabbers". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
6. McArthur, Bruce (2021). "Cornish Crabbers Club". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
7. Perry, Bob (12 August 2001). "Cornish Crabber 17: Bob Perry Design Review". boats.com. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.