BoatsSunspot 15

Sunspot 15

Masthead Sloop · Twin keels · First built 1977

An Arthur C. Howard-designed twin-keel masthead sloop built for shoal-water stability and easy trailering

Designed by Arthur C. Howard, built by Sun Yachts Ltd.

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

Is it for you?

Character

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

TrailerableBeam 1.90 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 408 kg of hull, so roughly 1,000 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Ramp-launchableAbout 408 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.Shoal draftDraws 0.60 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.
LivelySea-kindly

Her light displacement on a beamy beam gives 9 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 9
CoastalBluewater

At 2.58 she sits above the 2.0 line — beamy for her weight, and happiest coastal.

Capsize screening 2.58
LightHeavy

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

Displacement / length 165
EasygoingPowered-up

16.6 — moderate power for her weight; steady, all-round performance.

Sail area / displacement 16.6
TenderStiff

44% of her weight is ballast — stiff, standing up well to her sails.

Ballast 44%

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

  • Narrower than ~77% of boats her size on file

Compared with 77 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

The record

Full specifications

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

Dimensions
Weights
Ballast / displacement
44.4%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Masthead Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
16.6
Displacement / length
165.1
Comfort ratio
8.7
Capsize screening
2.58
Hull speed
4.9 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
299
Hull
Hull type
Twin Keel
Construction
Fiberglass
Production
Years built
First built 1977
Designer
Arthur C. Howard
Builder
Sun Yachts Ltd

Boats like this, on the water

Nobody has filmed this one — but these are close.

Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.

Birdyfish S4.20 mSame hull family0.4 m shorterA 4.2-metre foiling monohull with a 100kg displacement and a high-performance Marconi cat rig
Can a Normal Sailor Actually Buy a Foiling Dinghy Now?2:23from Practical Sailor

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.

Sunray 21A twin-keeled masthead sloop by Arthur C. Howard, designed for shoal-water stability and easy drying outSunchaser IA lightweight 3.66-meter lateen-rigged dinghy originally launched as the Sea Witch and later offered as a sloop

Keep looking

Nothing filmed of this one yet

Two ways to keep looking — both search what the fleet has actually recorded.

Search the fleet for boats like thisAsk the fleet about the Sunspot 15

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