BoatsPisces 21

Pisces 21

Gaffhead Sloop · Long Keel · First built 1999

A gaff-rigged long-keeler with a high ballast ratio for her size, designed by Chuck Paine for traditional handling

Designed by C. W. Paine, built by Classic Boat Shop.

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

Is it for you?

Character

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

TrailerableBeam 2.16 m — inside the 2.55 m no-permit tow width across most of Europe, and the 2.59 m US and Canadian limit. About 1,474 kg of hull, so roughly 2,050 kg on a trailer: check that against your own towing rating.Shoal draughtDraws 0.89 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 moderate beam gives 21 — a moderate, middle-of-the-road motion.

Comfort ratio 21
CoastalBluewater

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

Capsize screening 1.91
LightHeavy

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

Displacement / length 333
EasygoingPowered-up

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

Sail area / displacement 19.1
TenderStiff

49% of her weight is ballast — stiff, standing up well to her sails.

Ballast 49%

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

The record

Full specifications

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

Dimensions
Weights
Ballast / displacement
49.2%
Rig & sail area
Rig
Gaffhead Sloop
Ratios
SA / displacement
19.1
Displacement / length
333.2
Comfort ratio
21.0
Capsize screening
1.91
Hull speed
5.4 kn
Pounds / inch immersion
413
Hull
Hull type
Long Keel
Construction
Wood
Ballast type
Lead
Production
Years built
First built 1999
Designer
C. W. Paine
Builder
Classic Boat Shop

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.

Pearson Yachts Ensign6.86 mSame hull family0.5 m longerA Carl Alberg-designed fractional day sailor and one-design racer built on the proven Electra hull for active club fleets
EP#337 Spring is in the Air! Boat Prep9:57from Sailing Into Oblivion
Cape Dory 25D7.62 mSame hull family1.3 m longerA Carl Alberg-designed long-keeled masthead sloop later produced as the Octavia 25
The History of Cape Dory Sailboatsfrom Practical Sailor
Contessa 267.77 mSame hull family1.5 m longerA David Sadler-designed long-keel masthead sloop, built in both England and Canada with a 25-year production run
French canals Book0:55from Sailing Gently
Flicka 207.32 mSame hull family1.0 m longerA Bruce Bingham-designed cutter with a long keel, originally offered as amateur plans before becoming a production classic
S4, Ep51 Sailing Couple Stops Resisting and Starts Living — A Mindset Shift on the Water10:13from Sailing Into the Mystic
Bristol Yachts 247.49 mSame hull family1.2 m longerA Paul Coble-designed masthead sloop with a long keel and over 50% ballast ratio for stable coastal cruising
Learning to Cross the Atlantic With Nothing but a Sextant — Sailing Yabá 2939:33from Sailing Yabá
Jeanneau Cap 5405.40 mSame hull family0.9 m shorterA 1986 fractional sloop with a long keel and shallow draft, designed for stable, shoal-water coastal cruising
Delivery and tour, before and after ⛵️ Jeanneau 54 sailboat3:11from Allende los Mares · Vuelta Vertical

The family

Boats like this

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

Precision 21A keel-centerboard fractional sloop with a 20.25 SA/D ratio, built for over three decades as a versatile coastal cruiserLa Paz 25A Lyle C. Hess-designed masthead sloop with a shoal-draft fin keel, built for stable coastal cruising since 1973Fisher 25 MSA heavy-displacement motorsailer designed by Freeman Wyatt with a long keel for stability and all-weather comfort

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 Pisces 21

The newsletter

New boats, new stories. Every week, everywhere.

One email from the fleet — boats newly added, videos newly analysed. No noise.

Report an issue