Within a decade, more than 200 examples had been built, making the Comet 12 a commercial success. She also closed out the first generation of the Comet line, which began with the Comet 910 in 1971.
Design and Construction
Vallicelli shaped the Comet 12’s hull to IOR standards. Below the waterline, she has a typical racing drift plane—a strong elliptical bulb paired with a rudder blade without a skeg. That underwater profile helps explain the period description of the boat running “like a train”: her hull form and appendages come from a racing lineage, but they serve a cruising brief.
The Comet 12 measures 12.63 meters overall, with a 10.75-meter waterline and a 3.9-meter beam. She displaces 7.5 tonnes and draws 2.10 meters.
Above the waterline, the deck plan is conservative. A classic cockpit sits behind a low deckhouse whose conical section is a signature of the Vallicelli studio. The wide, deep transom drops close to the water, while several deckhouse skylights bring light and ventilation below.
Rig and Handling
The Comet 12 carries a sloop rig with 95.7 square meters of sail. That sail area, driving a 7.5-tonne hull over a 10.75-meter waterline, marked her as a serious offshore cruiser rather than a weekend coastal boat. Period reviews described her as fast and steady.
The deck layout separates the running rigging, which is led to the fairleads, from the fixed rigging mounted on either side of the companionway. It’s a tidy arrangement that keeps the cockpit clear.
Her 2.10-meter draft and skegless rudder place her firmly in the performance-cruiser camp. The elliptical bulb provides directional stability without the drag of a full keel.
Accommodations
The original Comet 12 has a three-cabin layout. Two aft double cabins each have their own bathroom. Forward, a V-berth cabin lies off the large dinette, which is furnished with sofas and a table. The deckhouse skylights make a practical difference here, bringing light and air into the central saloon.
A 1987 restyling produced two variants. The 420 CL retained the original three-cabin arrangement, while the 420 ST replaced the two aft cabins with one large owner’s cabin, reducing the total to two cabins.
Refits and Ownership
The 1987 restyling into the 420 CL and 420 ST suggests that Comar considered the platform worth developing rather than replacing. Across the standard boat and the ST version, Vallicelli’s design language remained consistent: a low deckhouse, conical section, and wide transom.
With more than 200 hulls built during the model’s first decade, a used-boat buyer will also find a mature ownership base.
The Verdict
The Comet 12 is a genuinely cruising-minded yacht built around a racing-derived hull. It was Vallicelli’s first design for Comar, and its production volume confirms its market appeal. The original boat combines a three-cabin interior with an IOR-influenced underwater profile and skegless rudder that reward confident helming.
Pros
- Vallicelli’s first Comar design, with a clear cruising brief and more than 200 boats built in ten years
- Three-cabin layout with two aft doubles, each with its own bathroom
- Deckhouse skylights bring light and ventilation into the saloon
- Racing-derived elliptical-bulb drift plane and skegless rudder provide steady, “train-like” tracking
Cons
- The 2.10-meter draft and unskegged rudder demand care in shallow anchorages
- The wide, deep transom and IOR hull lines date the underbody to an earlier rule mindset
