Ta Chiao sailboats for sale

Buying a used Ta Chiao: a construction-date bet as much as a model bet

A used Ta Chiao is a heavy, teak-trimmed cruising ketch from a Kaohsiung yard that built primarily to Robert Perry designs, and on the CT-54 and CT-56 in particular, the boat's build date matters more than its size or layout. Ta Chiao changed its deck construction partway through production, which means two hulls of the same model can carry very different risk depending on which side of that change they fall on. Condition and survey history should weigh more heavily on a purchase decision here than on brands with a more consistent build record across the years.

Which era to target

A Jordan Yacht Brokerage review of the CT-54/56 warns that decks and cabintrunks built between 1975 and 1981 are prone to leaks and rot, using the shorthand "leaky teaky" for the problem, and flags early-model cabintrunks specifically as commonly rotten. Ta Chiao reworked the deck build in 1981 specifically to stop that leaking and rot, per the same review, so a buyer's first question on any CT-54 or CT-56 should be which side of 1981 the deck dates to — and, for an earlier boat, whether the deck has since been rebuilt to the later standard. A later-build hull, or a documented deck rebuild on an earlier one, carries meaningfully less risk than an unrestored 1970s deck.

What to inspect across the range

Beyond the deck question, the same review flags a rudder design as a recurring problem "on CT's" generally — the rudders are hollow and ship water, and the most common owner fix is drilling and filling the void with PVC foam. Original stainless steel hardware from 1970s-era Taiwan construction is called out as suspect and prone to pitting, and the black iron tanks are noted to last roughly 20 years, so an older, unreplaced tank should be budgeted for. Spruce spars and the mast step are worth a close look for rot as well. None of this is unusual for a heavy teak cruiser of this vintage, but it makes a thorough survey — not just a sail trial — the deciding factor on any individual boat.

Navigating the lineup

Ta Chiao's range splits by era and designer as much as by size. The CT-34, a smaller Rhodes-derived design from 1970, sits at the entry end; the CT-47 and CT-49, both Kaufman and Ladd designs from the early 1980s, occupy a midsize cruising band; and the CT-54 and CT-56 — Perry's flagship ketches — anchor the top of the range, alongside the later Ron Holland-designed RH-43. Buyers are better served picking a size and era band first and then working through the full model directory on this page, rather than assuming one CT model's condition profile applies to another.