Achilles 7m

[Guest]

Does anyone have any information the Achilles 7m sailing yacht. I bought one secondhand recently but can't find any information about it. The particular boat is named Frantic and was built, I am told, in 1979. I am new to sailing so any information regarding setup greatly appreciated. Robert

 

[Guest]

They were built on the Gower coast by Butlers mouldings, and were a very popular boat in the 70's.

Designed by company owner Chris Butler, the Achilles in a fast seaworthy boat. One or two of them have made Trans Atlantic crossings.

The 24'version was superceeded by the 9M yacht which also sold very well untill the firm went bankrupt in the recession.

I believe that Chris Butler can still be contacted to answer the odd question, and I used to have the tel. no. However, I looked for it the other day but failed to locate it. If you wish to contact him I'll try again, or give you the E-MAil of my father who probably knows pretty much everything about the type himself.

Regards Gaz.

 

[Guest]

I have a Achilles 7 mtr they are as gareth states a fast boat. ¬There was approx 600 built and the first ones have three windows each side, but later ones after the first 50 had a one piece perspex window. There was also some modifications to the cockpit to create better sea keeping abilities. there also also been a article on it in the PBO. By the way there is no owners club as its been disbanded! Regards S.Richardson

 

[Guest]

I think that the 7m was an upgrade of the Achilles 24.

 

[Guest]

Had an Achilles 24 for 2years. Great boat, strong build, fast for size and steady in a sea, very well balanced with full Genoa & 2 reefs in a F7. Bit short on space but great value & cheap to maintain. Ideal starter boat. See Sailing Today report also, sometime in 1999.

 

[Guest]

We had a Achilles 24 in the 70's and it was a great boat. I thought that the 7m was a cut down 24 - built to conform with some handicap formula. Wasn't it also called the Achilles Sparta? Either way they are real yachts and a joy to sail! Peter

 

[[167227]]

Sorry to pull up an old thread, but i own this boat now and she is still called Frantic

 

[Quandary]

She looks nothing like an Achilles 24 which I was told when I bought a new one, was developed from a dayboat called 'Ajax' which, if I recall the details correctly from over forty years ago, was designed by Oliver Lee?
Hull, superstructure, keel, mast and rudder all seem quite different, otherwise she is identical, the trailer does look similar to the Butler Mouldings one except for not having twin axles.
16 years must be close to a record for resurrection but your picture justifies it entirely.

 

[[167227]]

I did think it might be a record! But i thought it would be nice to keep the record going!

I'm keeping a log of the restoration here http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?482132-Achilles-7m-Restoration

I'm doing a full restoration of her, and she's fully gutted at the moment.

 

[Gwylan]

Another ex Achilles owner here. A great sail, often exhilarating and generally wet.
Good luck with a big project. Avoid letting it turn into a money pit.

Shame about the owners site. There must be any number of Google responses to Achilles 24.

There were several variants along the way. Some in very small numbers.

 

[[167227]]

Great to hear another good testament about th achilles. No one seems to have a bad word to say.

I'm lucky in the sense that i can do nearly all of the work myself. And i paid almost nothing for her. The sails are in good condition, and i have 2 outboards for her.

 

[Leighb]

The Ajax was designed by Oliver Lee who subsequently designed the far more successful Squib. The Ajax was a day racing yacht and was submitted as a replacement Olympic Class but was not selected. There are still 2 active racing fleets at the Royal Harwich YC and at St Mawes.
I had heard that a yacht was built using the same basic hull mould but presumably with a bit more topside?

 

[weustace]

I sail an Achilles 24 around the Solent area and have nothing much negative to say; it's a small boat with accommodation to match, but with a clean hull they make impressive speed and are quite capable of relatively comfortable passage-making, despite what some would have you believe... In a SW 4-5 across Lyme Bay recently, we made 6kn average from Lyme Regis to the Bill, going beautifully and not over canvassed: in the racy 40'er I sail on sometimes we would expect to make 8kn under these conditions, so it's by no means a slow boat! (I can stand up in that boat though...)

If you haven't come across it already, try the Achilles owners forum https://www.flickr.com/groups/achilles24/discuss/
and the matching website, with lots of info on the boats, http://achillesyachts.co.uk

Update: I see you're on there already, apologies...

 

[webcraft]

.
Met an Achilles 24 singlehander (Will Garnier) in La Gomera in 2007 who crossed the Atlantic from there, then met him again in the Azores. He got back to the UK then gave up sailing!

- W

 

[[167227]]

.
Met an Achilles 24 singlehander (Will Garnier) in La Gomera in 2007 who crossed the Atlantic from there, then met him again in the Azores. He got back to the UK then gave up sailing!

- W

I emailed him recently looking for a copy of his book, but never heard back. I would love to hear how he prepared the boat and how it was to live on for so long. How it handled the crossing etc.

I sail an Achilles 24 around the Solent area and have nothing much negative to say; it's a small boat with accommodation to match, but with a clean hull they make impressive speed and are quite capable of relatively comfortable passage-making, despite what some would have you believe... In a SW 4-5 across Lyme Bay recently, we made 6kn average from Lyme Regis to the Bill, going beautifully and not over canvassed: in the racy 40'er I sail on sometimes we would expect to make 8kn under these conditions, so it's by no means a slow boat! (I can stand up in that boat though...)

If you haven't come across it already, try the Achilles owners forum https://www.flickr.com/groups/achilles24/discuss/
and the matching website, with lots of info on the boats, http://achillesyachts.co.uk

Update: I see you're on there already, apologies...

Thanks very much for that info I've been hunting for owners and information but there is so little available.

 

[Slowtack]

My first non-dinghy was an Achilles 24, great boat