With a displacement of 30,000 pounds, 8,000 pounds of lead ballast, and a comfort ratio over 40, she is a serious offshore platform rather than a scaled-up coastal weekender. Practical Sailor answered the blue-water question without hedging, calling her unequivocally a real offshore boat. Period builder literature likewise framed the design around livable, easily handled long-distance cruising.
Design and Construction
The Cal 2-46 carries a traditional long, shoal-draft keel—a hull form the manufacturer associated with fast, easy passages over a long service history. The hull and deck are solid, hand-laid fiberglass, and the interior is finished in Burmese teak.
Jensen Marine built the boat in Costa Mesa, California, and Marlboro, New Jersey. Lapworth’s 1970s-vintage design combines a 37-foot-5-inch waterline with a 12-foot-6-inch beam. Owners note the high freeboard and center-cockpit configuration, which provide interior volume and weather protection but also affect the boat’s manners around docks.
The unprotected spade rudder is a period design choice worth noting. It sits exposed beneath the hull rather than being sheltered by the keel.
Rig and Handling
Lapworth offered the Cal 2-46 with either a sloop or ketch rig. According to the original literature, the rig was arranged for easy handling by two people.
A longtime owner writing in Practical Sailor described a boat well set up for singlehanded sailing. The main and jib halyards, boom vang, outhaul, and reefing lines lead to a cabin-top winch. Primary and secondary sheet winches, along with the mainsheet winch, are convenient to the helm. The spinnaker and secondary halyards remain at the mast, with their own winches.
The midship steering station is protected from the weather and centers on a pedestal wheel with all controls. However, the sloop version is reported to be rather underpowered for the boat’s size, a shortcoming the ketch configuration is said to soften.
Performance Under Sail and Power
The manufacturer described the Cal 2-46 as extremely stable, sea-kindly, and easily driven, with a reported speed of 8.5 knots under sail in a breeze. Owners credit the ballast with providing stability in most conditions.
Under power, the 85-horsepower Perkins diesel delivers a steady 8.5 knots and a cruising range of 1,200 miles. One owner reported a range close to 2,000 miles under power alone after provisioning for 300 gallons of diesel.
Her capsize screening formula of 1.6 compares favorably with other blue-water boats of similar size, including Island Packets and Krakens.
Accommodations and Engine Access
The builder likened the Cal 2-46’s large, three-cabin interior to a house in terms of livability. Forward, the spacious cabin has a double V-berth and an additional single berth. Amidships, the huge saloon was offered with optional layouts and has magnificent visibility. Its huge window area was identified by one owner as both a plus and a minus.
The aft owner’s stateroom is fully accessible from below decks and contains a double berth. Two enclosed heads, hot and cold pressure water, and a shower are standard. Full standing headroom extends from the forward V-berth to the aft stateroom for someone over six feet tall.
Maintenance access is a particular strength. The dedicated walk-in engine room was described by one owner as a real engine room, with working space and a full workbench.
Known Issues
The same long-keel, 30,000-pound hull that helps make the Cal 2-46 steady offshore also makes her difficult to maneuver in confined waters. Like many long-keel boats, she doesn’t like going backward, which complicates Med-style mooring. High freeboard and the center-cockpit layout also make picking up a mooring more difficult.
The sloop rig’s underpowered feel relative to the boat’s size is a documented owner observation. The ketch option mitigates that shortcoming but doesn’t erase it.
The unprotected spade rudder also remains vulnerable to contact with the bottom or debris in ways that a skeg-hung or keel-hung rudder would not be.
The Verdict
The Cal 2-46 is a purpose-built Lapworth cruiser that trades close-quarters agility for offshore stability, range, and a genuinely house-like interior. She best suits a buyer who values passagemaking comfort and self-sufficient engine access more than dockside nimbleness.
Pros
- Conceived and built from the keel up for worldwide cruising
- Extremely stable and sea-kindly, with a capsize screening formula of 1.6
- Large three-cabin layout with a walk-in engine room and full standing headroom
- Easily handled rig with lines led to the cockpit
- Available with a sloop or ketch rig
Cons
- Heavy, long-keel hull is difficult to maneuver in tight spaces and backs poorly
- Sloop version feels underpowered for the boat’s size
- Unprotected spade rudder is exposed to damage
- High freeboard and center cockpit make picking up a mooring difficult
