Design and Construction
The Cal 35 carries 13,000 pounds on a 28-foot-9-inch waterline, just 2,000 pounds shy of the famed Cal 40, with a ballast/displacement ratio of 40 percent and 5,200 pounds of lead encapsulated in a resin matrix inside a fiberglass keel anchor. The hull itself is solid glass, while the deck is plywood cored. Lapworth gave her a straight sheer, an elongated stem, almost no counter, and a delicately reversed transom, with Dorade boxes flanking the companionway as part of the visual language. Her hull is narrower with softer chines than most later designs, and the entry was sharpened to help in slop and chop. The keel took a middle route for a "please everybody" mission, with a conservatively thick section and long chord length. The hull-to-deck joint turns inward on the hull and downward on the deck, bedded and capped with a perforated aluminum toerail bolted through; owners with boats 20 years old or more reported no deck leaks.
Rig and Handling
As a masthead sloop with aluminum spars, the Cal 35 carries a mainsail smaller than her foretriangle but large enough for pleasurable main-alone sailing, sheeted to a cabin-roof traveler while the genoa runs to tracks with two-speed winches. Inboard shrouds tighten sheeting angles and leave the side decks clear to walk. The big spade rudder paired with the smallish fin gives her a very small turning circle. Under sail she shows plenty of get-up when the wind is free and strong, but is at her worst upwind in light air and chop; her full entry helps her ride high and dry surfing down waves, though flat sections forward of the keel can pound—a trade that also yields crisp, fluid motion. Practical Sailor rated her somewhat tender, and under PHRF she sits around 160.
Accommodations
The original layout placed the head aft and the galley opposite, but after 50 boats sold in the first three years the interior was redesigned. The Mark II offers a quarter berth aft, two settee berths in the saloon, and a substantial platform double forward, with the head/shower sited forward of the saloon with double centerline sinks. A drop-leaf saloon table replaced a clumsy mast-mounted one. Ventilation runs better than average thanks to Dorade vents, six opening ports, and an overhead hatch, though the standard forepeak hatch leaks. The icebox is large but not well insulated.
Known Issues
Beyond the leaking forepeak hatch and poorly insulated icebox, owners report a mainsheet arrangement with two travelers that several sailors found over-complicated. One owner documented major water entry through the anchor locker drains and at the cutless bearing strut mount. Some boats built in Tampa after 1982 showed blistering and other problems.
Refits and Ownership
Several owners moved the pedestal four inches forward and swapped the standard 28-inch wheel for a 36-inch wheel. The standard Universal 32-hp four-cylinder diesel pushes her past 7 knots and burns under a gallon per hour; several owners call it very smooth and quiet. Cal Yachts' later corporate turmoil ended the line, but the boat's construction has aged without the deck-leak complaints that plague many of her contemporaries.
The Verdict
The Cal 35 is a thoughtfully engineered late-Lapworth cruiser that balances performance and livability, let down by a few specific details rather than any systemic weakness. She rewards a sailor who sails her on her terms—reaching and running hard—and who accepts the tender motion and upwind limits.
Pros
- Long waterline and 40% ballast ratio in a 13,000-pound hull
- Small turning circle from spade rudder and fin
- Mark II interior with roomy head and forward double
- Quiet, efficient Universal diesel past hull speed
Cons
- Tender; weak upwind in light air and chop
- Leaking forepeak hatch; poorly insulated icebox
- Over-complicated dual-traveler mainsheet
- Tampa-built post-1982 hulls risk blistering
