Tartan vrs. C&C

[Rustyf]

I am researching cruisers in the 34-37 ft. range and a knowledgeable person advised against a C&C because, he said, they were cruisers best suited for racing which I doubt that I will ever do. However there are a number of used C&Cs that appear to deserve a close look. Any thoughts on this?

[speciald]

I had a C&C 37+ for ten years. The boat had a comfortable interior however the cockpit was a racing cocpit. The traveler cut across the mid cockpit and I had the feeling I was sitting on the boat rather than in the boat. The forefoot was flat to allow for downwind plaining and the boat tended to pound up-wind. The interior racked when sailing hard - jambing cabin doors. In all - I wouldnot cosider the boat a long range cruiser and there are many more comfortable cruising boats the same size.

[Valiente]

Describe your anticipated use and I'll advise. They are both well-built boats (at least the older ones...I've heard of issues with both the newer Tartans and the C&Cs), but they have different attributes and strengths that might appeal to you...or not.

[BarryL]

Hello,

What year boats are you looking at? Today, C&C and Tartan are owned by the same company (since 2000?) and the Tartans are the cruisers and the C&C the racers (although they are racer - cruisers).

If you are looking at older boats, note that C&C made racers, cruisers and cruiser - racers. Models that have an LF (Land Fall) designation are the cruisers, like the C&C LF, 35 LF, etc.

Not all the boats have the traveler on the bridgedeck. The older 34 and 36 have it on the cabin top.



Good luck,
Barry

Originally Posted by Rustyf

I am researching cruisers in the 34-37 ft. range and a knowledgeable person advised against a C&C because, he said, they were cruisers best suited for racing which I doubt that I will ever do. However there are a number of used C&Cs that appear to deserve a close look. Any thoughts on this?

[Rustyf]

I plan on sailing in the Pac. NW, Puget Sound San Juans. The C&C boat that I saw advertised was a 1999 C&C 110 36 ft.

[chef2sail]

I have an older 1983 C&C 35 MKIII with a keel/centerboard. It is quick and can be raced and is also setup for cruising which is most of what we do. She performs well in light, medium and heavy winds. We have taken many trips from the Chesapeake on her to RI (three weeks) and Charleston ( weeks). She has a cabin top travelor which gives her a SMALL disavantage is some sheeting angles, but a huge safety advantage especially if you are blue water sailing. Haleakula is truly a vanishing breed of boat as she is both a cruiser and a racer. You will find today most are in one or the other category. The modern C&C like the 110 is more of a racer. I have sailed a number of them. She is quick, very little teak, set up for racing, lightweight and has the open transom which does not work well in a following sea out in deeper water. The manufacturing gelcoat on the newer models is not the same thickness as the older boats either. The Tratan I have also sailed on is the 3700 and the 4100. Beautiful boats with improvements in many ways over the older models, but being a traditionalist I still like the way the old C&Cs and Tartans were made,

You have to determine how you will use your boat. Speed does make a difference even if your are not racing. Its no fun being the last boat for raftups or losing 12-15 miles on someone else when passage making where you are sailing an average 12 hours. One knot difference in speed per hour equates to a losing whole sailing day in milage if you are taking a trip of one week. Cruising does not mean you have to be slow. Also look at the cockpit in may ways. A large expansive one is not always the best in passage making or rougher weather. Safety should play a large role in your choice. Those huge straight line galleys on the Bennetaus look great, but try and cook in one when with a 3 foot sea or a 15 degree heel. I would rather have one which is compact and surrounds me. I hope this gives you some food for thought. Boats can be trade offs. Find one which best suits what you will use it for and where you are planning to go with it. Think long term not just daily use. Do not settle for a "slow boat" even if you are not planning on racing. Settle on a safe strong well made quick one. That may mean looking back a few years.

Dave

[Faster]

Originally Posted by Rustyf

I plan on sailing in the Pac. NW, Puget Sound San Juans. The C&C boat that I saw advertised was a 1999 C&C 110 36 ft.

This line of "C&C" boats are built by Fairport (?) marine, builders of the Tartan line as well. I believe they were done by Tartan's in-house designer Tim Jackett. They are quite different boats from the traditional Canadian C&Cs built into the late '80s.

Whether the Tartan/C&C woes go back as far as 1999 I'm not sure, but this design was really marketed as a racer/cruiser rather than a cruiser/racer and as such would be more similar to the 37+ mentioned above by speciald.

That doesn't mean that it won't be a decent cruiser for the PNW, but these boats were put together with racing in mind. Generally they seem to be getting decent reviews and the more recent editions have moved to a lot of carbon, including the rigs. (Don't think they'd gone that route yet in 99)

For less money you should be able to get a similar sized, well maintained and equipped older C&C that may suit your purposes better.

But they are nice looking boats - though the 110 was supplanted by the 115, so maybe there were issues with that model.

[Valiente]

Originally Posted by Rustyf

I plan on sailing in the Pac. NW, Puget Sound San Juans. The C&C boat that I saw advertised was a 1999 C&C 110 36 ft.

That's more a race boat. If you like the cocktail shaker feeling, run it as a cruiser. On the other hand, as a club racer, it's a decent goer, with four bodies on the rail, a bowman and three in the cockpit.

[blt2ski]

If you check with a local dealer, I seem to recall, that one can put the traveler on the cabin top. That model yr was normal fiberglass, vs the newer 02'ish going with epoxy. These later models seem to be some of the ones with some issues, altho probably less than 2 folks on here will lead you to believe.

For NW puget sound work, I would own one. Yes it is a bit more race oriented than tartan. Will get you to places a bit faster. Inside for me, well thought out for cruising etc. I personally would NOT want a traveler on the cabin top, I prefer it by me when sailing, so it is within easy reach to release if a gust come ups etc. Again, a personal opinion, for 2 person sailing, I want everything with in easy reach of one person. So the more things that can be had from the steer position, the better it is for trimming when things get interesting.

This is not to say that the T37 a similar sized boat to a 110 is not a good boat either. Nicer on the inside, a bit more tankage etc. But name a place here in the NW where you are not more than 4 hrs from a port of call.

C&C's will have a bit more sail to disp, nice for our low wind summer breezes, ie less than 10 knots, where the C&C will continue to move under sail a bit easier and faster than the Tartan (style)equal.

Is that one here in the NW? If you do not want it, I might want to look at it!

marty