Grampian 23

[Sail 121]

I am interested in a Grampian 23 with a swing keel. Would like to know more about this boat before I make an offer.

Thanks

The Grampian 23 was built in Ontario, Canada in the 70's and was designed, I believe, by Alex McGruer. Its very roomy for a 23(as I'm sure you noticed). Grampian was a builder of relatively inexpensive boats and the design and construction was not up to the standards of some other high quality boats built in the same area in the same general time period - e.g., C&C, CS, Niagara and Douglas. However, they were generally quite sturdy and the only real caveats are that they were not very fast and were particularly susceptible to deck delamination - a real problem with a pop-top such as on the 23. Having said all of that, if the deck has been repaired (or checks out on visual inspection, thumping with a rubber mallet and with a moisture meter, if you can get access to one), then at the right price it would be a great starter boat. The comments on quality are not meant to be an attack on the boats - they were built to and sold at a lower price than the boats listed above. However, in the size range that you are talking about, they were certainly superior to many other boats such as Ventures etc. You generally get what you pay for. Brad

[grampianman]

I currently own a G-23 shoal draft model. The Grampian line was also built in Edenton, North Carolina. I am quite happy with the boat. I am currently recoring the deck and cabin top, but the hull is sound and other than the cockpit is about 2 feet short from perfect, I have no real gripes. Take a look in MSN groups under grampian 23 sailboat.
Cheers.