Classic Yacht West Solent One Design for sale in Antibes France

West Solent One Design designed and built by the Berthon Boat Co. Ltd in 1927.

Yacht No. W22.

The class was designed by H. Jacobs and H.G. May of Berthons as a cost effective cruiser racer for the Royal Lymington Yacht Club.  At the time a new W class could be bought for £600, a similar 6 meter yacht would have cost £1500 so they were well received.  A total of 32 boats were built for the UK market, 5 built and shipped to Argentina and one built under licence in Bombay.  The design was adopted by the Royal Burnham Yacht Club where it was known as the Royal Burnham Restricted Class.

The WSOD, also known as the W class, has seen a huge resurgence in recent years with a number of original boats given professional rebuilds, as well as one or two new examples being built.  They are superb boats with exceptionally beautiful lines and have proven to be excellent classic regatta boats that only need a small crew and are still very competitive.

This is a very cost effective boat with which to take part in the big classic regattas and race amongst the finest classic yachts in the world while possibly having even more fun than those owners.

Underwent a refit by the Cantiere Navale Dell’Argentario in Italy, a yard known for working one some of the finest classic yachts in the Mediterannean.  The refit included a complete new deck and full cosmetic job to get her ready for the Med classic regatta circuit.  The previous owner undertook major structural repairs between 2010 and 2015 with a new mast, new structural floors and mast step and new keel bolts.

A very fine looking yacht that has competed successfully in classic regattas over the last few years.

Construction

Planked in red pine, a slow grown resinous pine that is very durable.

Sawn oak frames with 2 steamed oak intermediates.  Copper rivet fastened to the intermediate timbers and bronze screw fastened into the sawn frames.

External lead ballast keel of 2 tons fastened with bronze keel bolts.

Structural floors are a mixture.  Some original wrought iron strap floors across the centreline fastened through the sawn oak frames with bronze bolts.  Several galvanised steel floors fitted in a previous ownership.  A number of heavy section laminated wooden floors midships and forward fitted by the previous owner carry the extended iroko mast step spreading the loads of the rig.

New deck laid in 2020.  Straight laid T&G cedar deck planking screwed and glued to the oak deck beams.  Deck then sheathed and painted.  Varnished teak covering boards all round with a neat scrubbed  teak toe rail set on the inboard edge of the covering board spanning the join between that and the deck planking.

Elegant non-self draining cockpit with curved teak coamings.  New scrubbed teak bench thwarts and cockpit sole grating.

Tiller steering with a recent iroko rudder.  Bronze tiller stock.

The cockpit coamings curve in towards the forward end joining with a varnished teak sliding companion hatch and an elegant varnished teak butterfly skylight.

Varnished teak forehatch forward of the mast.

Rig

Fractional Bermudan sloop rig on a keel stepped hollow spruce mast.  Varnished spruce slab reefing boom with a bronze gooseneck fitting.

New mast in 2012.

Stainless steel standing rigging all new in 2012.  Mixture of 5mm and 6mm 1x19 and 6x7 wire.  Rigging fixed to tails that pass through bronze sheaves in the covering board and attach to stainless rigging screws below decks.  These are fixed to bronze chain plates that are side fastened through the heavy sawn oak frames.  Chain plates new in 2012.

2 sets of spreaders plus jumper struts.  Twin lower shrouds to the first spreaders.  Single upper shroud to the jumper struts with an intermediate stay between the spreaders.

Jumper struts support the head of the mast.

Stainless steel running backstays on bronze Highfield levers connect to the mast at the point of the jumper struts.

Running rigging in classic braid, all new in 2020. 

Halyards run aft through turning blocks by the mast through clutches by the cockpit.

Roller furling headsail system with a single line furler.

New sails from Zowli Sails in 2019, mainsail and headsail.

Pair of Barient self tailing bronze primary cockpit sheet winches.Pair of Lewmar 16 bronze secondary cockpit sheet winches.Varnished wooden spinnaker pole fixes to a bronze track on the front of the mast.

Machinery

No inboard engine fitted.

Small petrol outboard engine fits on the side with a custom fabricated stainless steel bracket.

A second electric outboard goes with the yacht.

Optimax deep cycle battery for bilge pumps and systems.  Charged via shore power with a Mastervolt 4.3 amp charger. 

Accommodation2 single berths in the main cabin with sitting headroom

Equipment

Plastimo steering compass

Clipper duet sounder

ICOM IC M-35 handheld VHF

Hand bearing compass 

Shore power system with cable

Mastervolt Easycharge 4.3 amp battery charger

Optimax 55ah battery

CQR anchor with chain and warp

Mooring warps

Fenders

Deck bucket

Auto electric bilge pump

Manual bilge pump

Horse show life buoy

Liferaft

Custom made all over boat cover

Pair of Barient self tailing bronze primary cockpit sheet winches

Pair of Lewmar 16 bronze secondary cockpit sheet winches

Varnished wooden spinnaker pole

Mainsail

Jib

Spinnaker

Machinery
No inboard engine fitted.

Small petrol outboard engine fits on the side with a custom fabricated stainless steel bracket.

A second electric outboard goes with the yacht.

Optimax deep cycle battery for bilge pumps and systems.  Charged via shore power with a Mastervolt 4.3 amp charger.

Rig
Fractional Bermudan sloop rig on a keel stepped hollow spruce mast.  Varnished spruce slab reefing boom with a bronze gooseneck fitting.

New mast in 2012.

Stainless steel standing rigging all new in 2012.  Mixture of 5mm and 6mm 1x19 and 6x7 wire.  Rigging fixed to tails that pass through bronze sheaves in the covering board and attach to stainless rigging screws below decks.  These are fixed to bronze chain plates that are side fastened through the heavy sawn oak frames.  Chain plates new in 2012.

2 sets of spreaders plus jumper struts.  Twin lower shrouds to the first spreaders.  Single upper shroud to the jumper struts with an intermediate stay between the spreaders.

Jumper struts support the head of the mast.

Stainless steel running backstays on bronze Highfield levers connect to the mast at the point of the jumper struts.

Running rigging in classic braid, all new in 2020. 

Halyards run aft through turning blocks by the mast through clutches by the cockpit.

Roller furling headsail system with a single line furler.

New sails from Zowli Sails in 2019, mainsail and headsail.

Pair of Barient self tailing bronze primary cockpit sheet winches.

Pair of Lewmar 16 bronze secondary cockpit sheet winches.

Varnished wooden spinnaker pole fixes to a bronze track on the front of the mast.