Adams 21 Buyer's Guide
The Adams 21, known in some circles as the Seahorse 6, is a 21-foot Australian design by Joseph Adams built by Jarkan Yachts from 1977. For a shopper scanning the used market, it presents as a light, narrow coastal sailboat with a lifting centreboard rather than a fixed deep keel, and its low wetted surface of about 161 square feet keeps it easily driven for a small crew.
Layouts on the Used Market
The Adams 21 appears as a single fundamental configuration: a small fractional-sloop with a stub and centreboard keel. The centreboard lifts to give a loaded draft as shallow as 1.51 feet, letting the boat sit in marinas a fixed-keel 21-footer could not enter anchor. Cabin arrangement detail is not described by the available material, so view each hull for its own layout condition and check locker access under the centreboard trunk.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
The fractional rig uses 3/8-inch sheets throughout — jib and genoa at 21.2 feet, mainsheet at 52.9 feet, spinnaker at 46.6 feet. A boat with worn sheets or mismatched diameters is a simple re-rig away from correct, and buyers should confirm the supplied line lengths match the fractional configuration before purchase. The sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 22.44 shows the rig is moderately powered for the 1,964-pound displacement.
What to Inspect
No model-specific defects distinguish this design from any other small trailerable cruiser of its era. A buyer should still apply normal used-boat diligence for a fibreglass centreboard sloop, checking the hull, keel, and board as a matter of course and looking for cracks where the lead stub meets the fibreglass.
Buyer's Takeaway
- Confirm centreboard pivot and trunk condition on any listed hull
- Verify fractional rig standing rigging age and tension
- Check lead stub keel for ground-impact damage given shallow draft
- Inspect fibreglass hull for earlier repair or osmotic blistering
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Adams 21. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 1 row
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 26 | 1 | $35,433 | — |
Where they're listed
Adams 21 listings appear across 1 country. Australia has the most listings with 1.
Country view
1 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | $35,433 | 1 | 0 | 100.0% |