Design and Construction
Harle's lines give the Mallard 9 a 24.8-foot waterline inside a 29.4-foot overall length, with a 10.2-foot beam and a solid fiberglass hull. Sources differ on displacement, so the exact loaded weight is not stated here. The ballast ratio sits at about 44 percent, a figure that places the boat firmly in cruising territory rather than the featherweight end of the spectrum. Two keel configurations left the yard: a deep iron fin drawing 5.6 to 5.9 feet depending on load, and a shallower iron fin drawing 4.8 to 5.1 feet, both of which let the boat slip into most marinas and the shallow variant reach even thinner water. The wetted surface measures about 312 square feet, and the immersion rate runs roughly 935 pounds per inch, so she settles predictably under stores and crew.
Rig and Handling
The masthead sloop rig carries 532 square feet of sail, and the period data sheet lists a 48-square-meter area, consistent with a boat built to be handled by a short crew. Jib and genoa sheets run 29.2 feet at 3/8-inch diameter, the mainsheet stretches 73 feet, and the spinnaker sheet 64.2 feet, all 10 mm sail-handling specs. The theoretical hull speed for a displacement hull of this length is 6.9 knots, and the length-to-beam ratio of 2.87 describes a moderately narrow body that should track well without being pinched.
Accommodations
Below, the standard layout is a single-cabin arrangement with one head and six berths, a configuration that reads as a straightforward weekender or couple's coastal cruiser rather than a crowded charter boat. The 40-gallon water tank and 13-gallon fuel capacity set the self-sufficiency envelope: enough for a few days away from a dock, not a passage-making tankage scheme. The cabin-cruiser purpose is stated plainly in the builder's own description, and the berth count supports that intent without pretense.
The Verdict
The Mallard 9 is a small, well-defined Harle cruiser whose two keel options and sail plan make her an intelligible used-boat proposition for the coastal sailor who values a known quantity over novelty. She is not a performance boat, but her numbers describe a settled, predictable little ship.
Pros
- Two iron-keel drafts widen her cruising range from standard marinas to shallow harbors
- 44 percent ballast ratio gives reassuring stability for the size
- Six berths in a single-cabin layout suit short-handed coastal cruising
Cons
- Modest 13-gallon fuel and 40-gallon water capacity limit time between replenishments
- Displacement figures differ between sources, so exact loaded weight is disputed
