BoatsCape Cod Shipbuilding Mercury 15 CB

Cape Cod Shipbuilding Mercury 15 CB

Fractional Sloop · Centerboard Dinghy · First built 1940

A Sparkman & Stephens fractional sloop and early fiberglass pioneer designed for nimble performance in a 15-foot hull

Designed by Sparkman & Stephens.

LOA
Beam
Draft (max)
Displacement
Hull type
Centerboard Dinghy

See her sail

The Cape Cod Shipbuilding Mercury 15 CB, on the water

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

Footage from Lady K Sailing

Is it for you?

Character

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

TrailerableBeam 1.65 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 213 kg of hull, so roughly 800 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Ramp-launchableAbout 213 kg of hull, with a keel that raises or a draught shallow enough to float off a trailer — she can go back on the trailer at the ramp, not only into the water.Shoal draughtDraws 0.15 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 5 — a quick, lively motion that feels every wave.

Comfort ratio 5
CoastalBluewater

At 2.79 she sits above the 2.0 line — beamy for her weight, and happiest coastal.

Capsize screening 2.79
LightHeavy

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

Displacement / length 79
EasygoingPowered-up

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

Sail area / displacement 31.5

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

  • Heavier than ~85% of boats her size on file

Compared with 377 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

What the fleet has seen

The Cape Cod Shipbuilding Mercury 15 CB, as the fleet has seen it

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

The Cape Cod Shipbuilding Mercury 15 Cb is a 4.6-meter fractional sloop, centerboard dinghy designed by Sparkman, Stephens and built by Cape Cod Shipbuilding since 1940. It was first constructed in fiberglass in 1948, with a fin keel version also available. The boat has a beam of 1.6 meters, a draft of 1.0 meter, and displaces 213 kg.

The living fleet

Sailed by the fleet

Where the fleet has filmed this boat.

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
Rig & sail area
Rig
Fractional Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
31.5
Displacement / length
79.3
Comfort ratio
5.4
Capsize screening
2.79
Hull speed
5.0 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
268
Hull
Hull type
Centerboard Dinghy
Construction
Wood
Production
Years built
First built 1940
Designer
Sparkman, Stephens
Builder
Cape Cod Shipbuilding

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.

Aubin (Chantier Aubin) Snipe4.72 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA legendary William F. Crosby-designed fractional dinghy that remains one of the world's most active racing classes
Rio to Polynesia on a 25-Foot Boat, the Journey that Changed Sailing in Brazil Forever | #SAL #368:16from Hashtag Sal
O'Day Daysailer5.11 mSame hull family0.5 m longerA 1956 centreboard dinghy with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio that remains in production today
Boat Shop Windows4:54from kentblairl
Klepper Cadet5.40 mSame hull family0.8 m longer
We're off to Greece to see our NEW BOAT! 😍 Road trip, catamaran & sailing dinghy22:21from Eternal Sailing
MacKay Boats Ltd. 49erfx4.88 mSame hull family0.3 m longerA high-performance Olympic skiff featuring the 49er hull paired with a specialised rig tailored for lighter crews
Pia Dahl Andersen and Nora Edland showed strength in the first World Cup of the year.2:03from SEILmagasinet
LaserPerformance 49er4.88 mSame hull family0.3 m longerAn Olympic-class high-performance skiff featuring a massive sail-area-to-displacement ratio for elite racing
From Olympic drama to flying motorboats: Petter Mørland Pedersen in "Peiling på Seiling"11:34from SEILmagasinet
Fairey Marine Firefly3.66 mSame hull family0.9 m shorterThe 1948 Olympic single-handed class, this Uffa Fox design was the first sailboat ever produced by Fairey Marine
Mikkel Thommessen on a long life as a sailor0:53from SEILmagasinet

The family

Boats like this

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

Cape Cod Shipbuilding Mercury 15 FKA 1940 Sparkman & Stephens design featuring a fin keel and high sail-area-to-displacement ratio for nimble sailingMercury 18A pioneering one-design plywood sloop from 1939 that remains a lively, high-performance racer todayCape Cod Shipbuilding GeminiA 1955 A. Sidney DeWolf Herreshoff design featuring unique twin side-by-side centerboards for shallow-water versatilityCape Cod CatA gaff-rigged catboat by Charles Wittholz featuring a keel-centerboard configuration for versatile shoal-draft sailing

Keep asking

The fleet has more to say

Search what's been said about the Cape Cod Shipbuilding Mercury 15 CB, or ask a specific question — the answer comes back written out, with links to the moments it draws on.

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