About Cape Dory Boats

Disclaimer: The CDSOA is a private voluntary social club. The CDSOA and this Web site are not associated with and do not represent Cape Dory Yachts, which is a division of Newport Shipyards Corp., nor any other yacht builder.

Contents:

 

• History of Cape Dory Yachts
• Current State of Manufacture
• Specifications of Cape Dory Boats
  • Learn your sailboat's performance statistics, e.g., hull speed, capsize risk, etc.
  • Learn the meaning of terms like SA/D, D/LWL, etc.
• How to decipher your boats HIN

About Cape Dory Boats (Flash Video)

History of Cape Dory Yachts

Cape Dory Yachts was founded in 1963 by Andrew Vavolotis in East Taunton, Mass.

In the following 28 years, the company built over 2,800 sailboats ranging from 22 to 45 feet, and over 2,000 of the 19' Typhoon and the 22' Typhoon Senior, as well as the Cape Dory 10, which was the original Cape Dory dory. Most of the designs were by Carl Alberg. The boats are known for their sturdiness and ability to handle a wide range of conditions.

By the late 1970s, Cape Dory was branching into powerboats. Initially, they produced workboats: a 38' commercial dragger and a 42' lobster boat. Around 1985, they began building pleasure powerboats, starting with the Cape Dory 28. Several larger models followed, and in 1992 hull #1 of the 40' powerboat was built. In all, Cape Dory built over 300 pleasure powerboats. Three-quarters of them were the 28, which came in three configurations from open to flybridge.

Around 1991, Cape Dory ceased operating in New England. The name and most of the powerboat designs were sold to Newport Shipyards Corp. of Amityville, New York, which itself reportedly ceased operations in 1996. The other molds were scattered among a number of boat makers, and some models are still being made, mostly on a semi-custom basis (see below).

The remainder of the boatbuilding operation, and the marine hardware division of the company, Spartan Marine, were moved to Robinhood, Maine, where Andy Vavolotis is still building sailboats. The Robinhood 36 and 40 are being manufactured from the old Cape Dory 36' and 40' molds.

State of Manufacture of Cape Dory Boats:

• Manufacturing History of Cape Dory Boats
• As of August 1995
• November 2001 Update

Specifications of Cape Dory Boats:

These are taken from old Cape Dory brochures, so the specs may not apply to all years of boats. Also, the accompanying text is a bit effusive.
 

Sailboats: Cape Dory 7 1/2 Cape Dory 10 - the original Cape Dory Cape Dory 14 Cape Dory 15 1/2 Handy Cat 14 Typhoon - Daysailers & Weekender Typhoon Senior Cape Dory 22 and 22D Cape Dory 25 Cape Dory 25D Cape Dory 26 Cape Dory 27 Cape Dory 270 Cape Dory 28 Cape 30 Cape Dory 30 Cape Dory 30MkII Cape Dory 300 Motorsailer Cape Dory 31 Cape Dory 32 Cape Dory 33 Cape Dory 330 Cape Dory 36 Cape Dory 40 Cape Dory Custom 40 Cape Dory 45

Intrepid 28 Intrepid 9 Meter Intrepid 35 Intrepid 40 Intrepid 40 Center Cockpit We currently have the pages from several old Cape Dory sales brochures available for download. 1977 Multi-Product Brochure-sailboats 1978 Multi-Product Brochure-sailboats 1982 Multi-Product Brochure-sailboats 1986 & 1987 Multi-Product Brochure-sailboats You'll find links to sales and other brochures on the "specs" pages (look at the bottom of the page) for the individual boats as well as in the "Groups & Publications" section of "Where to Look". CLICK HERE if you'd like to know your sailboat's capsize risk factor, hull speed, SA/D, D/LWL, LWL/B or motion comfort factor. Use Carl's Sail Calculator to compare your sailboat to other manufacturer's sailboats or to find the sailboat with the cruising characteristics that are right for you. For an explanation of what all the "numbers" mean, you'll find an excellent article in the January 1998 issue of Cruising World called "Crunching Numbers", by boat designer John Holtrop. There's also an article in the May 2012 issue of Sailing Magazine called "Comparing Boats" by Robert H. Perry.

Powerboats: Cape Dory 24 Trawler Cape Dory 28 Powerboats Cape Dory 30 Poweryacht Cape Dory 33 Poweryacht Cape Dory 36 Poweryacht Cape Dory 38 (Commercial) Cape Dory 40 Explorer Trawler Cape Dory 42 (Commercial Dragger) Cape Dory 42 (Commercial Sportfisherman) CLICK HERE to see the 1991 Multi-Product Brochure from Newport Shipyards.You'll also find links to this sales brochures on the "specs" pages for the boats mentioned in the brochure. CLICK HERE if you need an Owners Manual for your Cape Dory sail or powerboat. If you have additional information for any Cape Dory models, especially for those which we have nothing, please contact us at webmaster@capedory.org. Thanks!