Cal 27 Tall
Description
The Cal 27 Tall Rig (a performance-oriented variant of the original Cal 27) is a classic American racer-cruiser sailboat designed by C. William Lapworth. Built by Jensen Marine (Cal Yachts) from 1971 to 1974, approximately 306 hulls were produced in the broader Cal 27 series, with the tall rig subset (~20–30% of total) featuring a taller mast for superior light-air performance and upwind pointing (adding ~5–6 ft to mast height over standard). It incorporates a lightweight fin keel with spade rudder for agile handling, solid hand-laid fiberglass construction, and a masthead sloop rig suited to coastal racing, club fleets, or family weekends. Known for its speed (SA/D ~20.5), balanced motion in 10–20 knots, and seaworthiness on short passages, it's a forgiving vintage design.
Construction Details
| Designer | C. William Lapworth |
|---|---|
| Builder | Jensen Marine (USA) |
| Length | 27.330 ft |
| LOA | 27.330 ft |
| LWL | 22.330 ft |
| Beam | 9.000 ft |
| Displacement | 5400 lb |
| Ballast | 2725 lb |
| Max Draft | 4.500 ft |
| Year Built | 1971 |
The standard boat dimensions
| i | 37.50 ft |
|---|---|
| j | 12 ft |
| p | 30.50 ft |
| e | 10.50 ft |
| p2 | - |
| e2 | - |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 37.50 ft | 12 ft | 30.50 ft | 10.50 ft | - | - | - | - |
Sails
Cal 27 Tall - MAINSAIL
| Luff | * 30.5 ft - (9296 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 10.5 ft - (3200 mm) |
| Leech | * 31.61 ft - (9635 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 88.01 ° |
| Diagonal | * 31.91 ft - (9726 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 4.5 in - (114 mm) |
| Area | * 163.6 ft² |
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Cal 27 Tall - JIBSAIL
| Luff | 31.5 ft - (9601 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 15.89 ft - (4843 mm) |
| Leech | * 27.36 ft - (8339 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 115 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 13.8 ft - (4206 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 11.97 ° |
| Area | * 217.36 ft² |
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Cal 27 Tall - GENOA
| Luff | 37.4 ft - (11400 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 19.38 ft - (5907 mm) |
| Leech | * 35.17 ft - (10720 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 150 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 18 ft - (5486 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 4.02 ° |
| Area | * 336.58 ft² |
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Cal 27 Tall - SPINNAKER
| Stays | * 37.4 ft - (11400 mm) |
|---|---|
| MidGirth | * 21.6 ft - (6584 mm) |
| Foot | * 21.6 ft - (6584 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 180 % |
| Area | * 687 ft² |
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Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.