Test report

The following boat test is an abridged version of that which appeared in Sailing Today, Jan.04. issue 81 ,written by Duncan Kent.

Summary

“The 27 was originally offered as a fin keeler, but was later offered in twin keel format. The reduction in draught, however, was a mere 6”, & thoughtful design meant she pointed almost as close as the fin keel model” “Her proportions are conservative by modern standards, & her sweeping sheer & traditional bow overhang give her a ‘real’ boat look. A deepish, fine entry, gives her a comfortable motion at sea, while her well stayed, deck stepped masthead rig offers a better than average performance to windward. The test boat, ‘Barcorole’ is a fin keeled Mk2”

How does she perform at sea?

“ The Jaguar 27 excels in cockpit space, being narrow but not pinched, allowing easy bracing against the opposite seat & the mainsheet track is behind the tiller, along the forward edge of the lazerette locker. While this keeps the sheet clear of the cockpit, it makes the track far less effective & the proximity of the jammer to the tiller makes knocking off the main in a gust, knuckle scraping.

The seats, 2.3 m/7’6”, are long enough, especially as the tiller hinges away over the back. Underneath is a deep & a shallow rope locker, or two shallow lockers. Both models have a roomy lazerette that drains overboard & houses two gas bottles, a manual bilge pump, amongst other things. The cockpit drains are a decent size, & allow water to quickly drain away on either tack. The primary winches are of a good size, originally of the fixed underhandle type making it tricky to winch in rapidly. You can sit on the coamings, although good visibility from the seats rarely necessitates it.

Access along the side decks is ok as the shrouds are set well inboard; genoa tracks are however, toerail mounted, reducing the sheeting angle a tad”

“ The foredeck is great-a good size, & clear of most obstacles, thanks to the forehatch being mounted on the coachroof. There is a chunky anchor cleat, as well as two smaller warp cleats, & a windlass could easily be fitted. The roller is fairly puny & not for anchor stowage.”

“ We set out on a bright October day, with a F3-4. Surprisingly, she picked up way under mainsail alone, while still in a lee, & only 7-8 knots across the deck. Once on the open water, the breeze increased, & we unfurled the genoa. It wasn’t long before we were trimmed & slicing through the flattish sea at 4.5knots, close hauled, pointing admirably, some 35deg. off the wind. A tight tack took us through 85-88 deg. in flattish water, with her accelerating quickly away on the new tack. Once able to come off the wind onto a close reach, she responded by accelerating to about 6 knots.

With the wind now reaching 22-24 knots apparent, she was undoubtedly overcanvassed &, although she never actually rounded up, things were becoming hard work with the tiller nearly in my mouth. She is a well balanced boat, & doesn’t show that much weather helm even when overstretched”

“On a beam reach, I felt she could easily hit the high 6s, low 7s had she a cleaner bottom. Downwind, she is directionally quite stable, & her straight spreaders allow the boom to be sheeted almost to right angles. In this position a kicker is essential.”

“She happily hove to in comfort, around 70 deg. to the wind, fore reaching marginally around ½ knot or so.”

Verdict

“The Jaguar 27 is a stiff, well balanced cruising yacht with a good turn of speed, & will punch to windward happily without making life too uncomfortable on board.

Accommodation is limited but perfectly adequate.”

Specifications, photographs & various other details appear elsewhere on site. It should also be pointed out that details such a deck layouts will vary between boats, as boats will have now been modified to suit past owners. Other variations of note are that some have twin keels, some have transom rudders.

The test appears with thanks to Sailing Today magazine, the tests’ author, Duncan Kent, & finally, Jeremy Knight, who owns ‘Barcorole’.