West Wight Potter 15'

Ross · Jun 28, 2009

Seaworthy is a subjective term. But the west wight potter is a very capable boat and is not to be under estimated in the hands of a skilled sailor. Match your skills to the weather and don't hesitate to run for shelter when the weather pipes up.

Stu Jackson · Jun 28, 2009

A WWP 19 sailed to Hawaii and back a few years ago. The 15 probably carries less water...

Texas Lake Sailor · Jun 29, 2009

Wwp '15

I owned one years ago when stationed in San Francisco. I used it on all the lakes in Northern Calif. and in the upper SF bay / delta. Great boat, fairly forgiving. I would upgrade the standing rigging and rudder for coastal cruising. You will get a little wet so take the correct gear. But great boat over all.

Benny · Jun 29, 2009

Cute little toy.

txjim · Jun 29, 2009

Might want to check this out:

http://www.tetra-sail.com/tx200.htm

Nereussailor · Jun 29, 2009

My second boat was a P-19. Not a bad boat for a starter boat. It was built like a rock. There are west wight potter forums out there to check into. The potter sailors are kind of a cult like group. many of them own their potters and have no ambition to buy anything else. They are a great bunch of people and can give you loads of information on the boat.
If I didn't want a boat that I could stand up in without hitting my head, I'd probably still own mine. It was a solid little boat that was easy to sail.
Besides the P-19 sailing to Hawaii, I think a guy sailed one from the US to England, and up the west coast from California to Alaska

Dave

Ross · Jun 29, 2009

Dave yer too tall, if ya want standing head room go on deck. There ain't no bad boats. Just sailors that want more.

Nereussailor · Jun 30, 2009

Thanks Ross,
I'm only 6'1" and yes I'm too tall and wide for a short cabin boat. I bought an H30 so I could be comfortable. If I go on deck of the potter, I take the chance of getting whacked with the boom.(something that will never happen in my H30 either) And pdub0702 will eventually get the itch to get a bigger boat. We all do, it is inevitable!

Dave

Hermit Scott · Jun 30, 2009

I'll never want a bigger boat......well maybe 4' or 5' more, but that's it!

Nereussailor · Jun 30, 2009

boats

I'm thinkin' no more than 10'

Rob McClain · Jun 30, 2009

I owned a Potter 15 for 20 years and it was an absolutely wonderful sailboat. My son was just 3 years old when I bought it and it later went with him to college when I finally bought a bigger boat. Both my son and daughter learned to sail on this boat and both are now great sailors. I only agreed to move up in size because my wife finally decided that the interior of the 15 was a bit too small for overnight cruising. I will admit that the 15 interior space is rather tight, but that was all part of the fun. I love my current boat for sure, but I will always have a soft spot for the Potter, which it earned many times over. It had frequent voyages on SF bay through the years, and into the Delta system. I also trailered it down to Long Beach and then sailed over to Catalina with a copule of othe P-15s and we just kicked around different anchorages for several days. I sailed the boat long enough to develop complete trust in it, but as with any boat you need to assess the boat and your own skills before you venture into the more exciting waters. I would defintely recommend the 15' Potter to a new sailor, as well as to an experienced one who wants a smaller trailerable boat!!

Rob

Jim22055 · Sep 4, 2009

I've had my 1992 P15 for over 6 years. To say forgiving is an understatement. If has a very flat bottom so it list about 15 degrees when runing in the wind. I've been in winds of 25 knots and managed well. The cuddy cabin holds everything so you don't have to store everything off the boat and then haul it back and for from storage. You neve get to the launch and 'Forgot" something. It's swing keel allows you to hit shallows and not get hung up. After you rig her a couple of times you can be in the water sailing in about 20 minutes and when come back 20 minutes to be ready to head home. The P19 takes more than 30 minjutes after you are skilled. Also the P15 only weights about 500# dry weight so it's easy to move and store. Only issue is that the cuddy cabin takes up seating space so you can only crew 2 additional adults and maybe a child.

I believe the only time they've turtled a potter is when they have raised the sail without lowering the keel.

cdoug1946 · Nov 10, 2009

West Wight Potter -19 in Baja

Hi, just wanted to let any wwp lovers know that i have a 19 ft. down in baja near cabo. i am selling it...it is a 1997. it would be a cool boat to keep down there because storage is really cheap. i live in todos santos and if you are interested you could come down and stay at my place for free while checking out the boat! christina. info on it is at www.sailingtexas.com/swwp19119.html.

Warren Milberg · Nov 10, 2009

Keep in mind Herreshoff's view of headroom: The interior of a boat is only used for three things: eating, sleeping, and making love. None require standing headroom....

kenn · Nov 10, 2009

We hear good things about the West Wight Potters. I'm sure you'd enjoy one. The biggest decision is whether a 15' boat is big enough for what you want to do.

Nereussailor said:
The potter sailors are kind of a cult like group. many of them own their potters and have no ambition to buy anything else.

When we were considering a boat, the WWP 19 was on our list, however the above noted cult and reputation made their resale price unusually high compared to similar-sized boats, in our area, anyway. (Which suggests that if you buy one and keep it up, it'll maintain its value)

We ultimately chose a different 19' boat (Sandpiper565), which seem to sell used for about half what a WWP19 gets. We're very happy. There's an active users' group, and we're currently working on elevating the Sandpiper to cult status as well.

Benny · Nov 10, 2009

Do not confuse the current potters with their predecessors that were designed to and sailed the English coast and North seas. Remember that theorical hull speed is a function of LWL. The 15' model is so slow that to attempt any bay or coastal cruising is an ordeal, God forbid you get a counter current or wind on the nose.

dserrell · Nov 10, 2009

West Wight Potter 15'

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