Grampian SailboatsGrampian 17
A centreboard daysailer designed by Ian Proctor, built by Grampian Marine from 1969.
About the Grampian 17
The smallest boat in the Grampian range: a 16½-foot fibreglass centreboard sloop built by Grampian Marine in Oakville, Ontario, from 1969. It was pitched as a trailer-sailer sitting between a racing dinghy and a small coastal cruiser: 152 sq ft of working sail plus a 173 sq ft spinnaker, a fractional rig, and a cuddy cabin with two V-berths under a low deck. sailboatdata notes how closely it resembles the O’Day Day Sailer.
Sources disagree on two figures. sailboatdata gives the displacement as 490 lb and the board-up draft as eight inches; Listings Port quotes about 950 lb on the trailer and a foot and a half with the board up. If you own one and can settle it, please tell the Registry.
We have no photos, brochures or owner accounts of the 17 yet. If you have one, please register your boat or contact the Registry.
Sailing the 17, and what to check when buying one
Listings Port’s guide to the 17 describes a boat that trades outright speed for stability: enough beam and weight for a 17-footer to handle Great Lakes chop, most at home in a moderate breeze, and slower than modern 17-footers in light air. The cockpit seats four adults, the cabin sleeps two on the V-berths with headroom that means moving about on your knees, and the centreboard makes beaching and ramp launching easy. It is heavier than today’s trailer-sailers, so it wants a proper trailer.
Known trouble spots
- Centreboard pivot pin wears and the board starts to thump; the trunk can develop stress cracks.
- Deck core (balsa or plywood) can delaminate where water has got in.
- Mast step can compress, leaving a dish in the deck under the mast.
- Transom flexes if an outboard heavier than the 4–6 hp it was built for is hung on it.
Summarised from Grampian 17 — Listings Port, which also lists a dozen comparable 17-footers of the era.
Specifications on sailboatdata.com
Figures are transcribed from the sailboatdata.com record linked below and may differ from the owners’ figures elsewhere on this page. Metric values are theirs.
| Hull type | Centreboard dinghy | Rig | Fractional sloop |
|---|---|---|---|
| L.O.A. | 16.50 ft / 5.03 m | L.W.L. | 15.50 ft / 4.72 m |
| Beam | 6.18 ft / 1.88 m | Draft | 4.33 ft / 1.32 m (board down); 0.67 ft / 0.20 m (up) |
| Displacement | 490 lb / 222 kg | Sail area (reported) | 152 ft² / 14.12 m² |
| Construction | Fibreglass | First built | 1969 |
| Builder | Grampian Marine Ltd. (Canada) | Designer | Ian Proctor |
Calculated ratios
| S.A. / Displ. | 39.18 | Displ. / Length | 58.74 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comfort ratio | 4.23 | Capsize screening | 3.14 |
| Hull speed | 5.28 kn | Pounds / inch immersion | 342.27 |
Their notes: Seems very similar to the O'Day Day Sailer. Spinnaker 173 sq ft.
Source: Grampian 17 — sailboatdata.com · related: Day Sailer. Ratio definitions are on sailboatdata.