Capri Cyclone

Summary

The Capri Cyclone, also referred to as the Cyclone 13 or just the Cyclone, is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Frank V. Butler as a one-design racer and first built in 1970.[1][2][3][4]

Capri Cyclone
Class symbol
Development
DesignerFrank V. Butler
LocationUnited States
Year1970
No. built2400
Builder(s)Capri Yachts division of Catalina Yachts
RoleSailing dinghy
NameCapri Cyclone
Boat
Crewone or two
Displacement145 lb (66 kg)
Draft2.83 ft (0.86 m) with the daggerboard down
Hull
TypeMonohull
ConstructionFiberglass
LOA13.00 ft (3.96 m)
Beam4.92 ft (1.50 m)
Hull appendages
Keel/board typedaggerboard
Rudder(s)transom-mounted rudder
Rig
Rig typestayed catboat rig
Sails
Sailplancatboat
Mainsail area74.00 sq ft (6.875 m2)
Total sail area74.00 sq ft (6.875 m2)
Racing
D-PN96.3

Production edit

The design was built by the Capri Yachts division of Catalina Yachts in the United States. A total of 2,400 boats were completed, but it is now out of production.[1][3][5]

Design edit

The Capri Cyclone is a recreational sailboat, built predominantly of fiberglass with foam flotation. It has a stayed catboat rig with a short forestay, aluminum spars, a flexible mast and a loose-footed mainsail with mid-boom sheeting and a full cockpit width mainsheet traveler. The hull design features a spooned raked stem, a vertical transom, a transom-hung fiberglass rudder controlled by a tiller and a retractable fiberglass daggerboard. There is a forward compartment for stowage, closed by a hatch. The boat displaces 145 lb (66 kg) and is capable of planing.[1][3]

The design has a draft of 2.83 ft (0.86 m) with the daggerboard extended and 0.42 ft (13 cm) with it retracted, allowing beaching or ground transportation on a trailer or car roof rack.[1]

The design was initially equipped with a sail of 78.00 sq ft (7.246 m2), but the class association approved a modification to shorten the mast and reduce the sail area by re-cutting it to 74.00 sq ft (6.875 m2) to improve both the performance of the boat and the handling. The manufacturer not only approved of the modification, but offered it free of charge.[1]

For sailing the design is equipped with a self-bailing cockpit, hiking straps, an outhaul, Cunningham and a boom vang. Factory options included a sail window, a kick-up rudder and a two-piece mast to ease ground transport.[3]

The design has a Portsmouth Yardstick racing average handicap of 96.3 and is normally raced by a crew of one or two sailors.[3]

Operational history edit

In a 1994 review Richard Sherwood wrote that the Cyclone is "a planing dinghy with a bendy mast. There is an unusually short forestay. For ease of cartopping, the mast may be ordered in two pieces. Both the centerboard and the rudder are fiberglass. A beaching rudder is available as an option."[3]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Capri Cyclone sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2019. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  2. ^ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Frank V. Butler". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2019. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Sherwood, Richard M.: A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition, pages 22-23. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1994. ISBN 0-395-65239-1
  4. ^ "The Cyclone 13…NOT A Capri 14". Get Wet Sailing On-line Magazine. 22 May 2014. Archived from the original on 10 July 2020. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  5. ^ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Catalina Yachts". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2019. Retrieved 10 July 2020.

External links edit

  • A comprehensive web site including a lot of details, and a fleet roster