Design and Construction
The 24i measures 8.02m overall, including its rudders and bowsprit, with a 7.30m hull and a 6.71m waterline.
Etap’s signature double-skinned, foam-filled construction lies at the heart of the boat. Closed-cell foam is injected between the inner and outer fiberglass shells so that the boat stays on the surface if holed. The builder hid most of that foam in the ends, where it would otherwise be wasted. As a result, the hull remains afloat, habitable and able to sail when flooded, without noticeably reducing stowage.
By all accounts, the hulls are quite stiff. Resin-transfer moulding leaves every moulded surface in smooth gelcoat, and the smooth, wipe-clean locker interiors are a direct benefit of the double-skin construction.
An aluminium arch moulded into the deck, together with the bulkhead beneath it, carries compression from the rig. Etap produced most of the boat’s aluminium extrusions in its own factory, apart from the spars. A tubular aluminium toerail and contrasting non-slip deck pattern are among the marque’s trademark exterior details, and a deck ventilator is fitted.
Keels and Rig
Etap offered the 24i with a choice of keels. The shoal-draught tandem keel, developed by von Ahlen with Berlin University, draws just 2ft 9½in. It allows the boat into shallow water and lets it sit lower on a trailer than the substantially deeper fin. It was also cheaper and simpler than the lifting keels Etap had used on smaller models.
The fin keel’s lead bulb tip plunges to 4ft 11in. Compared with the tandem keel, it provides better stiffness, righting moment, speed, acceleration and manoeuvrability. The tandem-keel boat carries an RCD category C rating, while the fin-keel version is rated B.
The fractional rig has no backstay to tension, so flattening and depowering the well-roached mainsail calls for alternative methods. A full-width traveller helps control the main and can be removed to open up the cockpit. Hardware comes from recognised manufacturers, including Lewmar and Seldén.
Sailing Performance
The 24i is fun, fast and responsive, yet also easy and forgiving. To windward, footing rather than pointing is the better approach. Sailed as initially trimmed, she tacked through around 80°.
Left to her own devices on the wind, she repeatedly rounded up and tacked. Hove to, she sat almost dead in the water, yet could still be gybed around with the main pinned in to resume course. She could also make progress upwind under the mainsail or headsail alone.
The helm remains light under normal cruising conditions. When it does load up, the twin rudders grip tenaciously. In 12 knots of wind, the boat felt alive and reached up to 5.3 knots on the breeze. Downwind under spinnaker, she made 6.5 knots, then 6.9 knots with the apparent wind around 70°.
Owners report that the 24i comes into her own at 15 knots. One account describes planing at 12 knots for an entire race leg under spinnaker, and the boat can easily reach double-figure speeds downwind. Its beam and weight also make it trailable behind a suitably robust tow vehicle.
Accommodation and Stowage
Finished in beech laminate, the interior is less roomy than some, but it remains appealing, comfortable and eminently practical. Headroom in the saloon is 5ft 7in.
There’s no double aft cabin. Instead, the saloon has generous settee berths with backrests that unclip and lie alongside them to widen the sleeping spaces. Forward of the main bulkhead, the door to the starboard hanging locker doubles as a table in either the saloon or cockpit.
The galley is divided between both sides of the boat abaft the bulkhead. The heads are to port, and a V-berth fills the bow. Plenty of cockpit locker space runs down each side.
Engine Options and Ownership Notes
Engine choices were a 6–10hp outboard or a Yanmar 9hp 1GM diesel inboard. The inboard installation uses a saildrive with a folding prop and is accessed by hinging up the cockpit sole. On outboard-powered boats, the space beneath the sole is used for stowage instead.
Any play in the rudder bearings means new bushes are required.
Verdict
The ETAP 24i combines genuine small-boat performance and forgiving manners with an unsinkable, trailable hull. Its foam-filled construction uses otherwise wasted space effectively, while the beech-trimmed interior is practical despite being less roomy than some.
The tandem keel trades ultimate stiffness and righting moment for shoal draught and simpler trailering. The fin keel better suits sailors looking for more stiffness, speed and bite to windward.
Pros
- Unsinkable, double-skinned foam construction keeps the boat sail-able when flooded
- Twin rudders grip tenaciously, while the helm remains light under normal use
- Trailable behind a robust vehicle, with a shoal tandem-keel draught of 2ft 9½in
- Practical, wipe-clean interior with convertible settee berths and a dual-purpose locker door
Cons
- Backstayless rig requires alternative methods to flatten and depower the mainsail
- Rudder bearings require new bushes if play develops
- Tandem keel provides less stiffness and righting moment than the fin
- No double aft cabin, and the saloon is less roomy than some comparably sized designs
