Phantom (dinghy)

The Phantom is a British sailing dinghy that was designed by Paul Wright and Brian Taylor as a one-design racer and first built in 1971.^[1]

Phantom

Development
Designer	Paul Wright & Brian Taylor
Location	United Kingdom
Year	1971
No. built	1,000
Builder(s)	Butler Boats, Ovington Boats, Vander Craft
Role	One-design racer
Name	Phantom
Boat
Displacement	134 lb (61 kg)
Draft	2.80 ft (0.85 m) with the centreboard down
Hull
Type	Monohull
Construction	Fibreglass, wood, composite material
LOA	14.50 ft (4.42 m)
LWL	13.83 ft (4.22 m)
Beam	5.50 ft (1.68 m)
Hull appendages
Keel/board type	centreboard
Rudder(s)	transom-mounted rudder
Rig
Rig type	Catboat rig
Sails
Sailplan	Catboat
Mainsail area	105.00 sq ft (9.755 m2)
Total sail area	105.00 sq ft (9.755 m2)

Production

The design was at one time built by Butler Boats and Vander Craft, both located in the United Kingdom. It is now constructed by Ovington Boats, which is also in the United Kingdom. Ovington-built boats are still sold by Vander Craft.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

The boat can also be amateur-built from plans, using the stitch and glue construction method.^[7]

Design

The Phantom is a recreational sailboat, with the hull built predominantly of a fibreglass foam sandwich laminate. The hull has hard chines and a deep V-shaped bow to promote planing. It has a stayed mast, typically made from carbon fibre along with the boom. It has a catboat rig, a raked stem, a vertical transom, a transom-hung rudder controlled by a tiller and a retractable centreboard. It displaces 134 lb (61 kg).^[1][6][7]

The boat has a draft of 2.80 ft (0.85 m) with the centreboard extended and 6 in (15 cm) with it retracted, allowing beaching or ground transportation on a trailer or car roof rack.^[1]

Operational history

A review in Go Sail noted of the design, "with her lightweight hull and large rig on a stayed mast she has a high power to weight ratio, but is stable and responsive. There is no trapeze or spinnaker and she can carry a wide range of helm weights".^[7]

See also

• List of sailing boat types
• DC‐14 Phantom - a boat with a similar name
• Phantom 14 - a lateen-rigged boat with the same name
• Phantom 14 (catamaran) - a boat with a similar name
• Phantom 16 (catamaran) - a boat with a similar name

Similar sailboats

• Laser (dinghy)
• RS Aero