Melges 17

Melges 17

Development
Designer	Reichel/Pugh
Location	United States
Year	2005
Builder(s)	Melges Performance Sailboats
Role	Racer
Name	Melges 17
Boat
Crew	two
Displacement	335 lb (152 kg)
Draft	3.96 ft (1.21 m) with a bilgeboard down
Hull
Type	monohull
Construction	fiberglass
LOA	16.65 ft (5.07 m)
Beam	5.53 ft (1.69 m)
Hull appendages
Keel/board type	twin bilgeboards
Rudder(s)	transom-mounted rudder
Rig
Rig type	Bermuda rig
Sails
Sailplan	fractional rigged sloop
Mainsail area	154 sq ft (14.3 m2)
Jib/genoa area	66 sq ft (6.1 m2)
Spinnaker area	280 sq ft (26 m2)
Upwind sail area	220 sq ft (20 m2)
Downwind sail area	500 sq ft (46 m2)

The Melges 17 is an American scow-hulled sailing dinghy that was designed by Reichel/Pugh as a one-design racer and first built in 2005. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]}

Production

The design has built by Melges Performance Sailboats in the United States since 2005 and remains in production. ^{[1] [2] [5] [7] [8]}

Design

The design was conceived to provide a boat for youth sailors to move up to from the Laser, 420 and the X Boat, as well as for adults couples to sail. ^[9]

The Melges 17 is a racing sailboat, with the hull built predominantly of fiberglass. It has a fractional sloop rig with carbon fiber spars; a scow hull; a transom-hung, aluminum extrusion rudder controlled by a tiller with an extension and twin retractable, aluminum extrusion bilgeboards. It displaces 335 lb (152 kg) and is normally sailed by two sailors, with an optimal crew weight of 265 to 350 lb (120 to 159 kg). ^{[1] [2] [5] [9]}

The boat has a draft of 3.96 ft (1.21 m) with a bilgeboard extended. With both bilgeboards retracted it can be operated in shallow water, beached or transported on a boat trailer. ^{[1] [2]}

For sailing downwind the design may be equipped with an asymmetrical spinnaker of 280 sq ft (26 m²), flown from a retractable bowsprit. ^{[1] [2]}

Operational history

The boat was at one time supported by a class club that organized racing events, the Melges 17 Class Association. ^{[10] [11]}

See also

• List of sailing boat types

Similar sailboats

• M Scow

References

1. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Melges 17 sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
2. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Melges 17". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 17 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
3. McArthur, Bruce (2021). "Reichel/Pugh Yacht Design". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 14 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
4. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Reichel/Pugh Yacht Design". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 14 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
5. Melges Performance Sailboats (2021). "The Melges 17". melges.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
6. Melges Performance Sailboats (2012). "Melges 17 Product Brochure" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
7. McArthur, Bruce (2021). "Melges Performance Sailboats". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 8 September 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
8. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Melges Performance Sailboats". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 14 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
9. "Melges 17". Sail Magazine. 28 February 2005. Archived from the original on 17 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
10. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Melges 17 Class Site". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
11. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Melges 17 Class Site". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 17 September 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.

External links

• Official website