In 1980, Finot undertook a comprehensive redesign of the deck and interior, launching the Comet 910 Plus. While maintaining the exceptionally successful and fast hull lines of the original, the "Plus" version introduced a lengthened and elevated coachroof to dramatically increase headroom and interior volume. Built until 1991, the Comet 910 Plus successfully bridged the gap between a competitive club racer and a comfortable family coastal cruiser, setting a high standard for Italian yacht construction during the peak of the fiberglass era.
Design Brief & Intent
The primary mission of the Comet 910 Plus was to deliver genuine offshore capability and performance in a compact, family-friendly envelope. During an era when 30-foot boats were increasingly expected to provide comfortable living quarters, the original Comet 910’s flush-deck, racing-centric profile felt somewhat cramped for extended cruising. Finot's "Plus" modification addressed this by raising and extending the cabin trunk forward, achieving an impressive headroom of up to 1.89 meters in the main salon. To balance the visual profile of this larger coachroof, the cockpit was slightly narrowed and shortened, though it remained highly functional for both short-handed sailing and active racing crews.
Internally, Comar targeted discerning buyers who valued traditional craftsmanship. The interior joinery is predominantly crafted from rich African teak or mahogany, providing a warm, high-quality aesthetic that contrasts sharply with the utilitarian, all-fiberglass liners of some contemporary French and American builders. The layout features an open-concept salon with an L-shaped galley located immediately to port of the companionway for optimal ventilation. Rather than using a fully closed-off bulkhead, a "pass-through" head compartment serves as the transition to the forward V-berth, enhancing the sense of spaciousness throughout the cabin.
Variations & Configurations
The Comet 910 Plus was primarily delivered as a masthead sloop. This configuration was selected for its reliability and simplified tuning, allowing a generous sail area to be carried with a lower center of effort to minimize heeling. The vast majority of these vessels were equipped with a deep, high-aspect fin keel drawing 1.70 meters. However, a shoal-draft variant drawing 1.40 meters was produced in limited numbers to accommodate shallower cruising grounds, such as the northern Adriatic and Dutch inland waterways.
Engine configurations varied over the model's twenty-year production run. Early hulls were typically fitted with small, raw-water-cooled single-cylinder or twin-cylinder diesel units, such as the Farymann 18 hp or various Bukh and Nanni powerplants. Later production models occasionally featured more modern, fresh-water-cooled Volvo Penta or Yanmar engines, which delivered smoother operation and better alternator outputs for evolving onboard electrical needs.
Sailing Performance & Handling
The Comet 910 Plus is characterized by its light-displacement hull form combined with a generous beam carried well aft. With a displacement of approximately 3,200 to 3,700 kilograms and a robust ballast of 1,250 kilograms, the boat maintains an impressive ballast-to-displacement ratio of nearly 39%. This translates to high initial stability and a stiff, reassuring motion when the wind freshens.
Its capsize screening formula sits right at 1.99, indicating that despite its modest 30-foot length, the vessel possesses the hull geometry and stability characteristics required for serious offshore passages. Under sail, the boat is exceptionally responsive at the helm, holding its lane well upwind and tacking through tight angles. The rudder is mounted on a substantial skeg, which provides excellent tracking and directional stability while protecting the rudder blade from impact. In light-to-moderate airs, the boat accelerates quickly and glides efficiently, making it highly rewarding for sailors who enjoy fine-tuning their sail trim.
Market Snapshot & Economics
On the brokerage market, the Comet 910 Plus is highly concentrated in southern Europe—particularly Italy, France, and Spain—as well as the Netherlands. It commands a relative price premium compared to standard production boats of a similar vintage due to its legendary racing pedigree and robust construction. Because Comar laid fiberglass up to 2.5 centimeters thick near the keel sump, buyers are often willing to pay more for a well-maintained Comet 910 Plus than they would for comparable high-volume production boats of the 1980s.
Refit economics must be weighed carefully. While a structurally sound hull and deck retain their value, an original engine, tired rigging, or saturated deck core can quickly exceed the purchase price of the vessel. However, because the boat has a highly active and loyal owner community, parts, structural advice, and eventual resale remain relatively straightforward for those who invest in proper maintenance.
Known Issues & Triage
While the hull laminate is notoriously overbuilt, the Comet 910 Plus is not without age-related vulnerabilities. Potential buyers should pay close attention to the following areas during a pre-purchase survey:
- Steering and Skeg Play: The rudder shaft and the lower bronze gudgeon on the skeg can wear over time, leading to significant play in the helm. In some cases, the fiberglass where the skeg attaches to the hull can flex or suffer from minor structural degradation, requiring grinding, re-glassing, and the fabrication of custom Delrin bushings to restore steering precision.
- Deck Core Slipped and Soft Spots: The deck features a balsa-core sandwich construction designed to save weight aloft. Saturated core sections are common around poorly bedded stanchions, chainplates, and the original Plexiglass deck hatches. Handrail fasteners and the mast step area should also be thoroughly checked with a moisture meter and sounding hammer.
- Osmotic Blistering: While Comar used high-quality resins, any hull from this era is susceptible to osmosis if it has spent decades in warm waters without an epoxy barrier coat. Peeling the gelcoat and applying a multi-coat epoxy barrier system is a common and highly effective long-term remedy.
Modernization & Upgrades
Many vintage Comet 910 Plus models have undergone extensive refits to align them with modern cruising expectations. Common upgrades found on modernized hulls include:
- Hatch Replacement: The original forward and salon hatches (osteriggi) craze, yellow, and leak over time. Owners frequently replace these with modern, low-profile aluminum-framed hatches, which require minor modifications to the deck lip but vastly improve ventilation and watertight integrity.
- Drivetrain and Engine Repowering: Replacing the original raw-water-cooled Farymann or Bukh diesels with a modern, fresh-water-cooled 20-horsepower diesel (such as a Nanni or Yanmar) is the most common mechanical upgrade. The engine compartment offers reasonable access, making a repower highly feasible. Some owners have also successfully converted these hulls to electric pod drives for light-duty lake and coastal sailing.
- Deck Hardware Modernization: Converting the original, standard primary winches to modern self-tailing winches makes short-handed cruising significantly safer and more enjoyable. Upgrading the mainsheet traveler and installing a modern roller-furling system for the genoa are also highly recommended.
The Verdict
The Comar Comet 910 Plus stands as a classic, overbuilt pocket cruiser that offers a rare blend of historical racing pedigree, stiff sailing performance, and high-quality woodwork. It is an ideal vessel for sailors seeking a robust, sea-kindly coastal cruiser with a touch of vintage Italian character.
Pros
- Exceptional upwind sailing performance and responsive helm handling.
- Overbuilt solid fiberglass hull construction below the waterline.
- Generous interior headroom and a warm, high-quality wood finish.
- Skeg-mounted rudder provides superior protection and tracking stability.
- Highly active owner community makes parts-sharing and advice readily accessible.
Cons
- Cockpit size was compromised to accommodate the larger cabin trunk.
- Balsa-cored deck construction is highly vulnerable to rot if fasteners leak.
- Original raw-water-cooled engines are nearing the end of their service lives.
- Accessing and servicing the rudder bearings can be labor-intensive due to the skeg configuration.
