A question of origin

[brehm62]

A have a Southcoast Explorer. I've been trying to find out information about it since I got it in 2005. There isn't much to find. The MIC on the HIN is TSA. This corresponds to both Southcoast Boat Co. and Explorer Yacht Inc. located in Oldsmar FL. This company was started in 1975 and went out of business in 1983. This was a low volume boat. I would estimate that only 40-50 of these were built. I've only seen two other surviving examples. When others have tried to find out information they were always pushed by the similarity of the company name towards South Coast Seacraft in Shreveport, LA. I've checked into this myself, but I see no similarity between the Explorer and the SC boats.

However, just 14 miles from Southcoast in Oldsmar was Hutchins Yacht in Clearwater that made the Compac boats. Of course proximity means little but then I noticed that Compac used a shoal draft keel and at times used concrete as ballast and that they also had swinging centerboard models. To me, the lines of the boats look quite similar. My boat is 20' long. I'm thinking that Southcoast scaled the CP-16 to create the Explorer and for awhile had a market in between the CP-16 and CP-23. Then when the CP-19 was released this market eroded and the company went out of business in 1983. This would explain how they came up with a design so quickly, why they only built one model, and why they went out of business. I checked with Hutchins and got a reply from Gerry Hutchins that there was no official collaboration. And, obviously if it was unofficial then no one from Southcoast would be likely to admit it. So, I'm wondering if others here might agree or disagree that the Explorer was inspired by the CP-16.

To me, the lines of the boat, the cockpit seats, cabin hatch, cabin door, bridge deck, storage at cockpit rear, shoal draft keel, cockpit coaming, and shape of the hull all seem similar. I guess I'll need to post a lot of pictures to compare these. Perhaps I am entirely mistaken. Perhaps the similarities that I see are common and other boats would have similar features. I haven't heard of too many boats that used concrete as ballast but I believe that Compac did. Would it be fair to say that my Explorer is a Compac inspired knockoff?

CP-19

CP-19

CP-19

CP-19

CP-16


My Explorer

[PAR]

I believe you are jumping at too many conclusions. A lot of small builders cropped up in Pinellas county, during the 60's through the 80's, myself include. I produced a couple of trailer sailors, one was about that size at 22' and also incorporated a stub keel to house part of the centerboard. Jope Helsen also produced a 22' or 23' sailboat of similar configuration in the area, he sold quite a few, plus several other builders, all of us had worked for each other at some point or another in our careers and well all pretty much got our butts handed to us in the dark years of the early 80's.

As to more history for Southcoast or who ever, it's a crap shoot, unless you can find an old timer that remembers the outfit. I personally don't but I wasn't paying attention so much at the time. As to influence, well everyone did what they thought would sell. If a particular feature was clever or we thought it might improve market share, then we stole it. Helsen had a pop top on his pocket cruiser, as he was completing with Catalina 22. I had a transom door because I thought it might be handy, but no pop top, because I thought it was a Mickey Mouse arrangement. We all did what we could and "borrowed" concepts as necessary.

[BATAAN]

Sounds like PAR been there, done that. No matter what the origin, it looks like a good little boat so go out and sail it!

[Ike]

I agree wit BATAAN. Go sailing!

It is very common for boatbuilders to come and go like some people change their socks. Part of my job with the USCG was tracking who was in business and who wasn't. It was not easy. About 400 builders go out of business every year.

Also it is quite common as PAR said to "borrow" ideas, if not splash hulls from someone else's boat. (illegal in some states) There are a lot of little sailboats on the market that look very similar to yours.