The Orion 27-2, also called the Orion 27 Mk II, is an American

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 ...

that was designed by Henry Mohrschladt as a cruiser and first built in 1981.Sherwood, Richard M.: ''A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition'', pages 192-193. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1994. The design is a development of the Orion 27, with a longer cabin coach house roof to allow for the installation of an extra set of portlights.

Production

The design was built by

Pacific Seacraft Pacific Seacraft Corporation is a Washington, North Carolina based sailboat manufacturer specializing in fiberglass monohull cruising boats. Pacific Seacraft is best known for producing the Crealock line of sailboats. These are heavy, overbuilt of ...

from 1981 until 1993, but it is now out of production.

Design

The Orion 27-2 is a 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

plywood Plywood is a material manufactured from thin layers or "plies" of wood veneer that are glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated up to 90 degrees to one another. It is an engineered wood from the family of manufactured ...

-cored

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

teak Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters (panicl ...

wood trim. It has an optional

cutter rig A cutter is a type of watercraft. The term has several meanings. It can apply to the rig (or Sail plan, sailplan) of a sailing vessel (but with regional differences in definition), to a governmental enforcement agency vessel (such as a coast gu ...

as a

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

or a

yawl A yawl is a type of boat. The term has several meanings. It can apply to the rig (or sailplan), to the hull type or to the use which the vessel is put. As a rig, a yawl is a two masted, fore and aft rigged sailing vessel with the mizzen mast p ...

, a

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 ...

, an angled

transom Transom may refer to: * Transom (architecture), a bar of wood or stone across the top of a door or window, or the window above such a bar * Transom (nautical), that part of the stern of a vessel where the two sides of its hull meet * Operation Tran ...

, 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 ...

, with a cutaway forefoot. It displaces and carries of ballast. The design has a

length overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, an ...

of , including the wooden planked. platform-mounted, teak

bowsprit The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a spar extending forward from the vessel's prow. The bowsprit is typically held down by a bobstay that counteracts the forces from the forestays. The word ''bowsprit'' is thought to originate from the Middle L ...

, with dual Sampson posts. A

rig was optional. The hull cross-section is a traditional "wineglass" shape. The boat has a draft of with the standard keel fitted. The boat is fitted with a Japanese

Yanmar is a Japanese diesel engine, Heavy equipment, heavy machinery and agricultural machinery manufacturer founded in Osaka, Japan in 1912. Yanmar manufactures and sells engines used in a wide range of applications, including seagoing vessels, pleasu ...

2GMF

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...

of . The fuel tank holds . The boat has two interior configurations. The first has a "U"-shaped dinette table and a navigation station aft of the dinette. The second layout is intended for longer-ranged cruising and has a smaller dinette table, which makes room for a wet locker at the foot of the companionway stairs. Space in the bow can be used for stowage or an optional cabin heater. In both configurations the

galley A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be used ...

is located on the starboard side of the cabin. There is a "V"-berth in the bow. The

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...

is equipped with a shower, has a privacy door and is located forward, just aft of the bow "V"-berth. Additional sleeping space is provided by quarter berth in the cabin. The deck has teak capped bulwarks. Ventilation is provided by a cabin hatch, two

dorade vent A dorade box (also called a dorade vent, collector box, or simply a "ventilator") is a type of vent that permits the passage of air in and out of the cabin or engine room of a boat while keeping rain, spray, and sea wash out. Design The basic for ...

s and ten opening and screened ports. The boat has two

genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

winches and two winches for the

halyards In sailing, a halyard or halliard is a line (rope) that is used to hoist a ladder, sail, flag or yard. The term ''halyard'' comes from the phrase "to haul yards". Halyards, like most other parts of the running rigging, were classically made of n ...

. The

mainsheet traveler A traveller is a part of the rigging of a boat or ship that provides a moving attachment point for a rope, sail or yard to a fixed part of the vessel. It may take the form of anything from a simple ring on a metal bar or a spar to, especially in a ...

is mounted on the coach house roof.

Operational history

The boat is supported by an active class club, the ''Pacific Seacraft Orion 27 Club''. A review in ''Blue Water Boats'', described the design as, "beautiful, strong, and capable". The review went on to say, "unsurprisingly for a Mohrschladt design, the Orion 27 has conservative lines. Under the waterline is a long keel with a forefoot cutaway to improve nimbleness and reduce wetted area. The sections carry the tried and true wine-glass shape. Don’t expect record setting pace with this kind of shape; think strong, safe, and good manners for heaving-to in the rough."

References

{{Pacific Seacraft Keelboats 1980s sailboat type designs Sailing yachts Sailboat type designs by Henry Mohrschladt Sailboat types built by Pacific Seacraft

Production

Design

Operational history

See also

References