Design and Construction
The hull measures 60'3" overall, with a 52'6" waterline and an 18-foot beam. It draws 8'10" and displaces 49,400 pounds, including 18,600 pounds of lead ballast. Its SA/D ratio of 21.06 and displacement-to-length ratio of 152 place it firmly in the performance-cruiser band rather than the heavy-displacement voyager class. A 3.35 length-to-beam ratio confirms a beamy, volume-oriented hull derived from a racing-rule design.
The underwater profile has minimal rocker, with a slight sign of bulging at station 7. The designer appears to have introduced this local fullness to ease engine installation rather than shape the waterline for speed. A winged fin keel and balanced spade rudder follow the same broad performance approach Farr used to give his racers bite and autonomy at speed without sacrificing low-speed control.
Buyers could choose between a Swan-type wedge deck cabintrunk and the raised pilothouse. The wedge is the sleeker option, but it provides only minimal all-around visibility and has no opening ports. The pilothouse gives up some visual cleanliness in exchange for an enclosed command position, though it also has no opening ports.
Rig, Machinery, and Handling
The cutter rig carries 1,674 square feet of working sail, providing a powerful but manageable sail plan for a hull with this ballast-to-displacement character. A 140-horsepower diesel drives the boat through a direct shaft.
Fuel capacity is 374 gallons, compared with 233 gallons of water. That balance signals a boat intended for long, independent passages rather than coastal hops.
The winged fin keel and balanced spade rudder combine to make the Farr 60 Pilot House responsive in a seaway. However, the cockpit on either deck version looks too small for a boat of this length and for the number of crew implied by its passage-making layout.
Accommodations
The pilothouse interior is arranged around two principal couples, with a clear hierarchy of space. The aft stateroom is palatial. A second, less expansive but still private stateroom sits adjacent to the mast on the starboard side. In the same forward area, a third stateroom to port has upper and lower berths.
Both principal staterooms have adjoining heads with shower stalls. A guest head is aft to starboard, giving the boat a genuine four-head layout suited to charter or extended-family cruising.
Known Issues
The principal documented shortcoming is cockpit size. The boats.com reviewer judged the cockpit on both the wedge and pilothouse versions too small for the hull. This constraint stems from the decision to push accommodation volume forward and aft rather than preserve working deck space.
The lack of opening ports in both configurations is the second design limitation. Ventilation and lookout depend entirely on deck-level and housetop openings, with no hull-side or trunk-side portlight airflow in the accommodation shell.
The Verdict
The Farr 60 Pilot House is a serious passage-making derivative of Farr’s Whitbread 60 lineage. It combines the hull’s performance credentials with the comfort of a raised pilothouse and a three-stateroom, four-head interior. She’s a beamy, stiff, well-ballasted 60-footer with the tankage and rig to cross oceans, but the cockpit is compromised, and neither deckhouse configuration has opening ports.
Pros
- Direct descent from Farr’s Whitbread 60 racers, with a minimal-rocker performance hull
- Palatial aft stateroom, two additional staterooms, and four heads
- 374-gallon fuel capacity and 233 gallons of water for long, independent voyaging
- Winged fin keel and balanced spade rudder for responsive handling
Cons
- Cockpit on both deck versions judged too small for the boat’s length
- No opening ports in either the wedge or pilothouse configuration
