Jaguar 27, getting wet?

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Whilst perusing an ever growing list of possible purchases I came across a couple of Jaguar 26/27 (not 100% that the 26 isn't a 27) - having done some digging, the boat appears to be rather ideal for a family and novice - with one exception which I picked up from a Google trawl.

"Be prepared to get wet" - I've not seen that expression bandied around with other boats that have caught my eye and I'm intrigued now as to what they mean. (It was a reference to when doing anything other than bimbling around).

I'm drawn to the boat as the lines are quite a lot nicer than the Westerly's which I've been compiling - however I'd welcome any advice about Jaguars (and what to look for) prior to inspection.
 
In general a 'wet boat' means one in which spray can come back and drench you, generally when heading upwind. Some Westerlies actively avoid this by use of a 'knuckle' in the bow shape, other boats e.g. some Moodys have flared topsides to achieve a similar purpose. It is possible/debatable that this also increases drag and thus hurts performance.
Wet boats may be a sign of a boat designed to be sailed by gnarly seadogs who have no time for creature comforts...
 
I feel a lot safer in my Centaur than I did in my Jag 25.

The Jag was a lifting keel and quite tender I thought, but that could just have been the nature of sailing on Windermere where the wind comes from everywhere in gusts.

The Jag 25 didn't have standing headroom but I thing the 27 does. One annoying feature of the Jag was the sloping bulkhead, you really must have a spray hood (we didn't) or it rains in unless the washboards are in, then you have no ventilation when you most need it.
 
we sailed our jag 27 in all sorts of weather up to maybe 28kts over the deck up and down the solent, no probs with sprayhood really. obv wetter than say a moody 30 but broadly fine.

ours had a really heavy helm and weather helm but we were young (23 - 28 years old) at the time and didn't have money for new sails so they probably were a bit old and baggy.

I liked the boat (but it was our first proper boat so we would). I don't like the dinette as to me it removes essential lounging space for two to stretch out below, which was an issue and has influenced significantly our new boat. IIRC cockpit lockerage is a bit sparse so dinghy will have to be stowed on deck etc

But if it suits you then I'd not have any reservations from memory, but sail one first - see if the owners club is still active and beg for a sail in one, or trial sail the one you are looking at and quiz about weight of helm. Returning to sailing post kids, this was an issue for us particularly as my wife has had surgery so a light helm was essential

other random thoughts. keel isn't level at the foot so drying out will leave the boat at an angle - not that you would do it too often. work out where you will sleep - check to see if the forecabin is big enough for you and your other half as the dinette double is cramped (IIRC etc as it was a long time ago)
 
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Found that earlier, thanks for the PM - very useful info.
I suspect that SWMBO would prefer comfort over anything - well actually I don't suspect...
 
just look at some internal pics of a westerly griffon for the difference - galley more cramped so cooking harder but plenty of space esp with the table up out of the way. haven't got a griffon btw it just seems the obvious contrast internally
 
niccapotamus said:
just look at some internal pics of a westerly griffon for the difference - galley more cramped so cooking harder but plenty of space esp with the table up out of the way. haven't got a griffon btw it just seems the obvious contrast internally
Click to expand...

Oh I like that layout a lot.
 
I think I'm right in saying that the Jaguar 27 is the UK-built version of the Catalina 27, an extremely popular American yacht of its day and hence very common over there. Kind of the same situation as the Centaur here (in terms of ubiquity, not necessarily type of boat).

Because of this, John Vigor's book "Seaworthy Offshore Sailboat" uses the Catalina 27 for a lot of its examples of how to prepare for a world circumnavigation. He's not suggesting that it's the ideal boat for the job, but he does consider that, properly prepared, it's entirely capable.

Pete
 
Although, for what it's worth, he did appear to rate it as the least safe at sea in his famous list of 20. I admit. I don 't fully understand how he arrived at that finding.
 
I took my Bilge keel Jaguar 25 to the Azores and back. Got caught out in a gust of 50 knots....admittedly only a gust but she handled the conditions very well.

Don't remember her as being a particularly wet boat bearing in mind I had no spray hood.
 
Not so little, for 27 she's quite big; possibly a bit uninspiring, but I can't see why she should be described as a wet boat to sail, or in any way unsafe - maybe not as sea kindly as something like a Cutlass 27 but perfectly adequate.

Brochure figures; displacement 5,600lbs, ballast 2,600lbs which seems pretty good.

I have some minimal brochures covering the Jaguar range, for the 27 they mention ' over 4,000 built ' which will of course be the Catalina version.

Site Surfer you're welcome to copies if you PM me, but each boat in the range just gets a few colour pics inside & out + dimensions.
 
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Remember a few years ago having a Jag 27 on a flotilla holiday. Tough little boats, had to be to put up with 20 plus years of chartering by both novice and more experienced crews. I liked them especially the relatively large cockpit.
 
I've found a few now that are really nice looking, a few appear to have sail drives (not sure if that was a retro fit).
I'm torn between the Centaur/Jag and of late the Griffon (albeit they are more pricey).

Keep coming back to the Jag cos it looks so nice.
 
We looked at a few Jaguar 27's when buying our first boat, but most were just over the budget, and the ones that weren't looked rough. A chat with a broker bought up the suggestion of the 25, so after a bit of scouting around the south coast we ended up buying a twin keeled one from a gent in Brighton. Well within budget, which being complete novices left us a small pot of money for all the personall kit needed.

Kept it for just over 17 years in the end........
 
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