BoatsFamily Cat 23

Family Cat 23

Gaff head Cat · Keel/centreboard · First built 1978

A William Garden design based on historic James W. Hart catboat plans, featuring a gaff rig and keel-centerboard hull

Designed by William Garden, built by Bill Boyd Boats.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Ballast
Hull type
Keel/Cbrd.

Is it for you?

Character

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

Shoal draughtDraws 0.69 m, board up where she has one — creeks, sandbars and thin anchorages most keels have to stay out of.
LivelySea-kindly

Her heavy displacement on a beamy beam gives 20 — a moderate, middle-of-the-road motion.

Comfort ratio 20
CoastalBluewater

2.20 — right around the 2.0 line, the edge between coastal and offshore.

Capsize screening 2.20
LightHeavy

300 — heavy for her waterline, built to carry stores and ride steadily.

Displacement / length 300
EasygoingPowered-up

20.1 — plenty of sail for her weight; lively and quick to respond.

Sail area / displacement 20.1
TenderStiff

23% of her weight is ballast — on the tender side; she'll heel readily and want a reef sooner.

Ballast 23%

Powered-up and quick to accelerate — this one likes to sail.

  • Heavier than ~94% of boats her size on file
  • Draws more than ~90% of boats her size on file
  • Beamier than ~98% of boats her size on file

Compared with 612 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
23.3%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Gaff head Cat
Ratios
SA / displacement
20.1
Displacement / length
299.8
Comfort ratio
20.1
Capsize screening
2.20
Hull speed
6.1 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
741
Hull
Hull type
Keel/Cbrd.
Construction
Fiberglass
Production
Years built
First built 1978
Units built
12
Designer
William Garden
Builder
Bill Boyd Boats, Halman Man

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.

Paceship Yachts Westwind 247.29 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA Ted Hood-designed masthead sloop with a keel-centerboard configuration, built for versatility in shoal waters
Redline 25 (C&C)7.49 mSame hull family0.5 m longerA 1969 keel-centerboard cruiser designed by C&C, offering shoal-draft versatility in a compact 7.49-metre hull
Hunter Marine 226.78 mSame hull family0.2 m shorterA masthead sloop with a keel-centreboard configuration, designed for versatile shoal-water access and trailerability
O'day 23-26.93 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA masthead keel-centerboard sloop produced in Brazil and the U.S. for over a decade as a popular coastal cruiser

The family

Boats like this

Nearby designs by size, type, and era — worth a look alongside her.

Keep looking

Nothing filmed of this one yet

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

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