Prospect 900

[SiteSurfer]

Hi all. Having spent some time looking at a various number of boats I have located a nice Prospect 900 Triple Keel which seems to tick all my boxes. I can't find much info about them aside from a few posts in here - and I'd really like to understand the logic of the 3 keels - I mean I do get it - but does the middle one do all the work and the 2 fins really exist for the purposes of support?

Otherwise I think I'm sorted, nice lines, nice fit out, stable sailor - seems right.

 

[Tranona]

Triple keels had a brief period of popularity in the 70's when designers were experimenting with GRP construction and was thought to maintain some of the benefits of a long central keel, particularly directional stability with the shallower draft of a bilge keel. Some designs just used steel plates for the bilge keels, others had moulded aerofoil shapes, sometimes with ballast in them. in practice usually a bit better than straight twin keel designs of the time, but still the ability to dry out level.

 

[SiteSurfer]

Cheers for that!

 

[SiteSurfer]

I wonder if that 3rd keel affects boat speed, from what I can see the max speed on these are in the region of 4 knots which is slow for a 29 footer even by 70's standards! Anyone got/had one that could c/d this?

 

[earlybird]

Pal of mine had a Prospect 900 for a number of years. Generally a nice, comfortable boat with reasonable performance. I think that the design was also available as a single keel, so the triple version was basically a reduced depth central keel with lumps of cast iron ballast clamped around it and the bilge keels moulded to the hull, with no ballast AFAIK.
This boat was kept on a drying mooring. The hull showed flexibility where the bilge keels were attached and needed reinforcement, which was done internally, involving cutting the internal moulding.
The other, more minor irritation IIRC was vibration of the tiller when motoring, but this might be that particular boat.

 

[SiteSurfer]

Generally a nice, comfortable boat with reasonable performance.

In terms of approximate speed - how would this stack up against a Centaur?
As a family boat, the Centaur is the obvious alternative for us.

 

[earlybird]

In terms of approximate speed - how would this stack up against a Centaur?

Difficult to say without direct boat against boat comparison, but I'd definitely give the Prospect the edge. It is 2ft or so longer after all.
Neither are brilliant to windward.