What boat is this?

[Guest]

I have a 17 foot "Annapolis Daysailer" (at least I think that's what it is.) It is about 17 feet long. It
is a Daysailer design (much like the Oday 17 Daysailer). I found the remains of a badly
corroded/rusted maker's plate that read Annapolis Boatbuilding ............ Hull #0079. I also have
sails with the number 79. Can anyone tell me for sure what I've got? if the company is still
around? and where I could possibly get more info about this design? (especially a manual) Any
help would be greatly appreciated.

There is no number molded into the transom that I can find. I was told
originally that the boat was an "Annapolis 17". which I had never
questioned, although it was the only one I had ever heard of. On the
Internet, I discoverd the Day Sailer pages (several), and was struck by
how much the pictures there resembled my boat. So I thought I had an
ODay (yes, it is a glass boat). But I couldn't find a description of
a Daysailer class that perfectly matched my boat. While it has attributes
that would place it in class I, or II, or III, it doesn't fit any class
exactly, but it sure does look a lot like them all. But the biggest
difference (I think) is that the mast on my boat is stepped on top of
the cuddy cabin, whereas all of the Daysailers seem to have the mast
stepped on top of the keel. My hull number and sail number do match. I
think they are the real numbers. She is an old boat! The sail also has
an insignia, but it's difficult to describe in writing. It is a circle
that contain a design that resembles a compass face. The stitched on
points of the compass are mounted off-center, however, and their points
are free to move in the wind like tell-tails. I wonder if this clears
things up or just makes it all the more confusing.

Chris

Chris Nelson (cnelson-at-norfacad.pvt.k12.va.us)

[Guest]

Chris, I did a little research and found a reference to a company called "ANNAPOLIS SAILBOAT BUILDERS", Generals Highway RFD1, Annapolis, Md. 21401. The source is unfortunately from 1974!
If your boat was built before 01 Nov. 1972, she will not have a H.I.N. number molded into the transom, since before that time they weren't required. Hey, I just got out the 1970 "Boat Show" issue of YACHTING Magazine.......ANNAPOLIS SAILBOAT BUILDERS....DID build a 17' "daysailer" !! I think that what you have is a "DISCOVERER" class sailboat, 17' 7" loa, 6' 4" beam, Sail Area: 165 sqft, draft: 6" bd/up, Displ: 650#. Esentially, this boat is a slightly enlarged copy of the O'Day Day Sailer I. The drawing in the book that I have shows a 4-pointed star as the insignia on the sail, I think that the off-center ribbons that you refer to are actually telltales to show airflow over the sail. This star does look like the star used to indicate true north on the compass rose of a navigation chart.

Rod Johnson (rjohnson24-at-juno.com)