The Douglas 31 and Douglas 32 are a series of

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

s, that were designed by

Ted Brewer TED may refer to: Economics and finance * TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar Education * ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association ** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey ** Transvaal Education Depa ...

and first built in 1967. The last boats of this design were built in 1982 and delivered as kits.

Production

The design was commissioned by Douglas Badgley, designed by Brewer as the Douglas 31 and initially built by Badgley's company, Douglas Marine Craft in

Port Stanley, Ontario Port Stanley is a community in the Municipality of Central Elgin, Elgin County in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north shore of Lake Erie at the mouth of Kettle Creek (Ontario), Kettle Creek. In 2016, it had a population of 2,148. History ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, with production commencing in 1967. Douglas Marine Craft went out of business in 1970-71 and creditors seized the company assets, including the design's molds. Jeffrey White of North American Fiberglas Moldings of

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

, acquired a set of Douglas 31 hull and deck molds and had Brewer modify the design to incorporate an extended

reverse transom A transom is the vertical reinforcement which strengthens the stern of a boat. This flat termination of the stern is typically above the waterline. The term was used as far back as Middle English in the 1300s, having come from Latin ''transvers ...

. The new version was known as the Douglas 32. In 1974, North American Fiberglas entered receivership, emerging as Command Yachts, under the same management and produced the Douglas 32 Mark II model. In about 1976 Command Yachts was purchased by De Leuw Cather Canada and the boat building division was shut down. Bruce Peninsula Yachts of

Port Elgin, Ontario Port Elgin is a community in Bruce County, Ontario, Canada. Its location is in the traditional territory of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation. Originally named Normanton the town was renamed Port Elgin when it was incorporated in 1874, after James Bruce, ...

then bought the molds and built the Douglas 32 Mark II, with a new cabin configuration. Hullmaster Boats of

Picton, Ontario Picton is an unincorporated community located in Prince Edward County in southeastern Ontario, roughly east of Toronto. It is the county's largest community and former seat located at the southwestern end of Picton Bay, a branch of the Bay of ...

, had also purchased at least one of the original Douglas 31 molds at about the same time that North American Fibreglas Mouldings had acquired their molds, and built the design as the Hullmaster 31, completing production in 1979. Following Hullmaster's bankruptcy, Doug Smith acquired the Douglas 31 molds and built the design in the form of a kit for owners to finish. Smith then sold his business to Jed and Carol Benoit of J&C Fibercraft, based in

Barrie, Ontario Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...

, who then used the molds to produce the Douglas 31.

Hinterhoeller Yachts Hinterhoeller Yachts was a Canadian boat builder based in St. Catharines, Ontario. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of fiberglass sailboats. The company was originally founded by George Hinterhoeller as Hinterhoeller Limi ...

built the last six Douglas 31 hulls in about 1982. These were then delivered to customers as kits for owner completion.

Design

The Douglas 32 is a small recreational

keelboat A keelboat is a riverine cargo-capable working boat, or a small- to mid-sized recreational sailing yacht. The boats in the first category have shallow structural keels, and are nearly flat-bottomed and often used leeboards if forced in open wat ...

, built predominantly of

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth ...

, with wood trim. It has a

masthead sloop A masthead rig on a sailing vessel consists of a forestay and backstay both attached at the top of the mast. The Bermuda rig can be split into two groups: the masthead rig and the fractional rig. The masthead rig has larger and more headsails, a ...

rig; a spooned,

raked stem The stem is the most forward part of a boat or ship's bow and is an extension of the keel itself. It is often found on wooden boats or ships, but not exclusively. Description The stem is the curved edge stretching from the keel below, up to ...

; a raised counter,

; a keel-mounted

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...

controlled by a

wheel A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle Bearing (mechanical), bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the Simple machine, six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction wi ...

and a fixed long

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

. It displaces . The boat has a draft of with the integral long keel. The design has a

PHRF Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) is a handicapping system used for yacht racing in North America. It allows dissimilar classes of sailboats to be raced against each other. The aim is to cancel out the inherent advantages and disadvantages ...

racing average handicap of 201. It has a

hull speed Hull speed or displacement speed is the speed at which the wavelength of a vessel's bow wave is equal to the waterline length of the vessel. As boat speed increases from rest, the wavelength of the bow wave increases, and usually its crest-to-tro ...

of .

References

External links

* {{Hinterhoeller Yachts Keelboats 1960s sailboat type designs Sailing yachts Sailboat type designs by Edward S. Brewer Sailboat types built by Hinterhoeller Yachts Sailboat types built by J&C Fibercraft Sailboat types built by Hullmaster Boats Sailboat types built by Bruce Peninsula Yachts Sailboat types built by Command Yachts Sailboat types built by North American Fiberglas Moldings Sailboat types built by Douglas Marine Craft

Production

Design

See also

References

External links