Design and Construction
Designed by maritime architect Charles Morgan in the mid seventies, the Out Island 49 has a solid fiberglass hull rather than a cored one. Its proportions suggest a boat intended for load-carrying passage work, not racing.
With a length-to-beam ratio of 3.27 and a displacement-length ratio of 241, it is a beamy, heavy hull by any measure. Its immersion rate of about 2,247 pounds per inch indicates how reluctantly it changes trim as weight is added. That trait rewards careful provisioning but punishes careless tank management.
Rig, Handling, and Speed
The ketch rig has a sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 11.92, placing the boat firmly in the moderately powered cruising camp rather than among light-air sprinters. By dividing the sail plan between two masts, the ketch rig spreads sail loads across the boat. On a hull of this displacement, that aids trimming and storm-plan handling.
Calculated maximum speed is around 6.3 knots, while the theoretical hull-speed limit for a displacement vessel of this length is 8.8 knots. That gap supports the picture of a boat designed to cruise at a steady, economical pace rather than chase its own bow wave.
Accommodations
Below, the interior is finished in teak, in keeping with production-yacht conventions of the period. Headroom is above average for a boat of this era, and the accommodations include a toilet facility.
The generous beam that defines the Out Island profile carries through to the living spaces. It gives the 49 a residential feel that smaller cruisers from the same marque could only approximate.
Seakeeping Numbers
A Motion Comfort Ratio of 40.0 places the design among the steadier cruising hulls of its size. The capsize screening value of 1.71 indicates a form that, on paper, favors offshore survival characteristics over outright reaching speed.
These aren’t racing metrics, but they’re meaningful for a buyer comparing a heavy ketch with lighter modern cruisers. On the numbers, the Out Island 49 was calculated to look after its crew in disturbed water.
The Verdict
The Morgan Out Island 49 is a rare, purpose-built cruising ketch. Its modest production run makes every surviving example a comparatively uncommon sight. The figures describe a heavily built, beamy, comfortable passagemaker rather than a performance boat, while the teak interior and above-average headroom reflect the cruising priorities of the mid seventies.
Pros
- Solid fiberglass hull with heavy-displacement seakeeping character
- Ketch rig suited to manageable sail handling on a large hull
- Above-average headroom and teak-finished interior
Cons
- Only a few were built, limiting spares and comparative market data
- Moderate sail-area-to-displacement ratio limits light-air pace
- Calculated top speed is well below theoretical hull speed
