Morgan Yachts Out Island 51

BoatsMorgan Yachts Out Island 51

See her sail

The Morgan Yachts Out Island 51, on the water

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

Footage from Reversing Entropy

Is it for you?

Character

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

LivelySea-kindly

Her moderate displacement on a moderate beam gives 39 — a sea-kindly motion in a seaway.

Comfort ratio 39

CoastalBluewater

1.77 — just under the 2.0 offshore line; her beam is modest for her weight.

Capsize screening 1.77

LightHeavy

258 — moderately heavy for her waterline, a balanced cruising weight.

Displacement / length 258

EasygoingPowered-up

11.4 — modest power for her weight; easygoing rather than lively, and happier with a breeze.

Sail area / displacement 11.4

TenderStiff

26% of her weight is ballast — on the tender side; she'll heel readily and want a reef sooner.

Ballast 26%

A capable cruiser that sits just inside the offshore line — coastal work with real passages in her.

Heavier than ~87% of boats her size on file
Beamier than ~89% of boats her size on file

Compared with 181 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

What the fleet has seen

The Morgan Yachts Out Island 51, as the fleet has seen it

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

The Morgan Yachts OUT ISLAND 51 is a 15.7-meter staysail ketch designed by Jack Cory and Charles Morgan Jr., built by Morgan Yacht Corp. and Morgan Yachts from 1974 to 1981. It features a Keel/Cbrd. hull, a 4.8-meter beam, a 3.1-meter draft, and a displacement of 20865 kg. The model was also available with a fixed keel and later evolved into the Morgan Out Island 512 in 1981. Aboard Reversing Entropy, the crew noted that encapsulating the swing keel to reduce draft on a Morgan Out Island 51 is inadvisable due to the resulting loss of lateral resistance, which compromises stability and sailing performance.25:40

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

The record

Full specifications

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

Dimensions

Weights

Ballast / displacement

26.1%

Rig & sail area

Rig

Staysail Ketch

Ratios

SA / displacement

11.4

Displacement / length

258.3

Comfort ratio

39.5

Capsize screening

1.77

Hull speed

8.8 kn

Pounds / inch immersion

2432

Hull

Hull type

Keel/Cbrd.

Construction

Fiberglass

Production

Years built

1974–1981

Designer

Jack Cory, Charles Morgan Jr

Builder

Morgan Yacht Corp

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.

Irwin Yachts 5416.46 mSame hull family0.8 m longerA 16.46-metre staysail ketch with a 39.9 comfort ratio, built since 1988 for stable, long-range cruising

WE WENT TO THE ANNAPOLIS BOAT SHOW - 2025! | EP845:20 from Sailing Solé

Alden Yachts 5416.48 mSame hull family0.8 m longerAn extended-stern evolution of the 50-foot series, available in both center and aft cockpit layouts as well as cutter or ketch

The Most Unique Catamaran We’ve Ever Sailed from Gone with the Wynns

Bestevaer 56ST17.58 mSame hull family1.9 m longerA Dykstra-designed aluminum lifting-keel cruiser built for serious offshore exploration and shoal-water access

Should We Build a BIGGER Sailboat? Building an Aluminum Boat - Design Part 2 with KM Yachts | EP 206 from Distant Shores TV

Bristol Yachts 45.513.79 mSame hull family1.9 m shorterA heavy-displacement masthead sloop with a 3.35-metre keel-centerboard draft, built for deep-water cruising performance

What Living on a Sailboat Really Looks like | (EP. 027)0:01 from Plan-Sea

Stadtship 5617.10 mSame hull family1.4 m longerA high-performance aluminium fractional sloop featuring a lifting keel for versatile access to deep and shallow waters

Sailing & Spearfishing in Brazil’s Crystal Waters — Sailing Yabá 2843:43 from Sailing Yabá

Feeling 5516.80 mSame hull family1.1 m longerA 16.8-metre fractional sloop featuring a 3.6m lifting keel and dual rudders for deep-water performance

Anchoring over the winter in Porto Heli (GR) with a visit to a spooky shipwreck #feeling5520:33 from Sailing Suria

The family

Boats like this

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

Morgan Yachts Out Island 49A rare masthead ketch with a long-keel hull and a high comfort ratio, built for stable, long-distance cruising Morgan Yachts Out Island 41A prolific long-keeled masthead sloop designed by Charles Morgan Jr. that became a staple of the global charter trade Morgan Yachts Out Island 41 ClassicA Charles Morgan-designed masthead sloop featuring a redesigned deck, keel, and rudder from the Catalina era Morgan Yachts 41A 1967 masthead sloop featuring a keel-centreboard hull and the option for a 40-horsepower Westerbeke diesel engine Morgan Yachts Out Island 36A 1970s production cruiser featuring a 1.14-metre draft and a heavy ballast ratio for stability in shallow waters Morgan Yachts Out Island 415The first in the series to feature a walk-through interior, this masthead sloop offers a stable long-keel platform

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