BoatsWatkins Yachts 27

Watkins Yachts 27

Masthead Sloop · Fin With Rudder On Skeg · 1977–1984

A masthead sloop with a skeg-hung rudder, offered in rare pilot house and keel-centerboard configurations

Designed by Walter Scott.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Ballast
Hull type
Fin With Rudder On Skeg

See her sail

The Watkins Yachts 27, on the water

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

Footage from Practical Sailor

Is it for you?

Character

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

Shoal draftDraws 1.12 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.
LivelyComfort 22Sea-kindly
CoastalCapsize 2.05Bluewater
LightD/L 252Heavy
EasygoingSA/D 14.8Powered-up
TenderBallast 47%Stiff

A balanced, easily-driven cruiser — comfortable and forgiving for coastal work.

  • Draws less than ~84% of boats her size on file

Compared with 1924 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

The living fleet

Sailed by the fleet

Where the fleet has filmed this boat.

Seen once across one channel of the fleet.

Basemap © Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

On the water

The Watkins Yachts 27 on video

The record

Full specifications

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

Dimensions
Weights
Ballast / displacement
46.7%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Masthead Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
14.8
Displacement / length
252.5
Comfort ratio
21.9
Capsize screening
2.05
Hull speed
6.5 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
846
Hull
Hull type
Fin with rudder on skeg
Construction
Fiberglass
Production
Years built
1977–1984
Units built
500
Designer
Walter Scott
Builder
Watkins Yachts Inc

Boats like this, on the water

More boats like her, on the water

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.

Islander Yachts 288.51 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA Robert Perry-designed masthead sloop with over 400 built, favored by the designer himself for her balanced performance
Cal 2-298.84 mSame hull family0.6 m longerAn upgraded cruising variant of the standard 29, featuring enhanced equipment and a masthead rig
Catalina Yachts 278.18 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA masthead sloop with 6,662 hulls produced over two decades, serving as a staple of coastal cruising since 1971
Newport 27S8.23 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA 1974 masthead sloop with a 1.3-meter draft, offering a stable fin-keel platform for shoal-water coastal cruising
Pearson Yachts 27 (Triton 27)8.23 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA Doug Peterson-influenced masthead sloop built from US Yachts molds, offering a light-displacement cruiser profile
Colvic Ltd. Sailor 268.21 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA twin-keeled masthead sloop with hulls molded by Colvic and finished by various yards, including Atlanta Marine

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.

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