The Moore 24: A True Classic

This fiberglass sloop is used primarily for racing and fast daysailing. In June 1975, the second hull out of the mold was sailed from Santa Cruz to Honolulu by David Ingalls and Jan Lippen-Holtz, thus demonstrating its seaworthiness. In the 1980 Singlehanded Transpac, three yellow Moore 24s were entered in the biennial race from San Francisco to Hanalei Bay, Kauai, Hawaii, sailed by Lester Robertson, Bob Boyes, and Chuck Hawley. It is said that, under the right set of conditions, a Moore 24 could beat a Transpac 52 to Hawaii, although that set of conditions ranks 3 standard deviations away from the mean.

The Moore won the 1992 Pacific Cup, a race from San Francisco to Oahu, overall, as well as division and double-handed class. It has also won class firsts in other Pac Cups.

Construction

The Moore 24 is constructed of vacuum-bagged fiberglass and balsa composite hull and deck structure with a Bruynzeel plywood interior. Of particular interest is the main bulkhead, which has a circular passage allowing access to the forepeak. The original hulls were partially cored in the bow and aft central portion of the hull. Later models had a complete balsa-cored hull. There are two quarterberths aft, and the forepeak can be outfitted with cushions to create a small double berth. The keel is constructed out of 1,050# of lead, covered in resin and gelcoat, producing an appendage that flows seamlessly from the hull. While bolted in place, the keel is not easily removed. The rudder is a fiberglass and foam sandwich with an aluminum rudder shaft. The precision of the finishing of the rudder and keel is a testament to the skill with which these boats were built.

The hull has a few design themes which make it stand out in appearance. The bow has a slight hollow, and the side view shows a reversed sheerline which maximizes interior space (such as it is). The original version had a flush deck with a small footwell for a cockpit with no coamings or seatbacks. In the late 1980s a "Sport" model was introduced with a low-profile wedge deck. Four Sport models were purchased by the University of California, Santa Cruz Sailing Program as one-design trainers.

The aluminum mast has a single set of spreaders, and is supported by 1x19 standing rigging. Originally the boats had double lower shrouds, but many have been converted to single lowers to allow the mast to bend more when racing. The rig is described as 15/16ths, meaning that the jibstay attaches about 18" below the masthead. This increases the power of the adjustable backstay to control the bend of the mast, and therefore the fullness of the mainsail. While the mast and boom were sourced from a number of companies, most of the later boats had spars from Ballenger Spars [1], a local sparbuilder.

Approximately 160 Moore 24s have been built.

The Express 27 was greatly influenced by the Moore 24.