BoatsMelges 24

Melges 24

Fractional Sloop · Lifting Keel · First built 1993

A 7.32-meter sportboat with a lifting keel and a 32.09 sail-area-to-displacement ratio built for rapid planing

Designed by Reichel & Pugh.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Ballast
Hull type
Lifting Keel

See her sail

The Melges 24, on the water

The fleet's own footage — the truest look at how she really moves.

Footage from Quantum Sails

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

TrailerableBeam 2.50 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 794 kg of hull, so roughly 1,400 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Ramp-launchableAbout 794 kg of hull, with a keel that raises or a draft shallow enough to float off a trailer — she can go back on the trailer at the ramp, not only into the water.
LivelySea-kindly

Her light displacement on a moderate beam gives 7 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 7
CoastalBluewater

At 2.72 she sits above the 2.0 line — beamy for her weight, and happiest coastal.

Capsize screening 2.72
LightHeavy

73 — light for her waterline, so she is easily driven and quick to accelerate.

Displacement / length 73
EasygoingPowered-up

32.1 — a lot of sail for her weight; powered-up and eager, a real performer.

Sail area / displacement 32.1
TenderStiff

37% of her weight is ballast — moderately stiff, a middle-of-the-road stability.

Ballast 37%

Light and lively — happiest day-sailing and coastal-hopping in settled weather.

  • Lighter than ~78% of boats her size on file

Compared with 632 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

What the fleet has seen

The Melges 24, as the fleet has seen it

Derived from the videos the fleet has analysed of this model. ▶ marks open the moment aboard.

The Melges 24 is a 7.3-meter fractional sloop with a lifting keel, designed by Reichel/Pugh and built by Melges Boat Works and Devoti Sailing since 1993. It displaces 793 kg and has a 2.5-meter beam and 1.5-meter draft. The boat is primarily used for one-design racing, often with a consistent four-person crew. Quantum Sails' Chris Lamb races a Melges 24, emphasizing team longevity and a low-stress culture, and uses a coach to refine maneuvers like starts and tacks. Lamb also practices pre-race by sailing the course to identify wind shifts. The Melges 24 class is a destination for sailors progressing from junior leagues and university sailing programs. Sailmaker Andy Camarda, co-founder of Evolution Sails, has raced Melges 24s and won the Chicago-to-Mackinac race.

The living fleet

Sailed by the fleet

Where the fleet has filmed this boat.

Seen 3 times across 3 channels of the fleet.

Basemap © Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions
Weights
Ballast / displacement
37.1%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Fractional Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
32.1
Displacement / length
73.4
Comfort ratio
7.3
Capsize screening
2.72
Hull speed
6.3 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
645
Hull
Hull type
Lifting Keel
Construction
Fiberglass
Ballast type
Lead
Production
Years built
First built 1993
Designer
Reichel, Pugh
Builder
Melges Boat Works, Devoti Sailing

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The family

Related models

The designs closest to hers — usually the rest of the builder's range, sometimes the same hull sold under another name.

Melges Boatworks 30A Reichel-Pugh fractional sloop featuring a retractable keel and articulating sprit for high-performance racingMelges 19A Reichel-Pugh designed fractional dinghy with an exceptionally high sail-area-to-displacement ratio for rapid planing

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