Precision 165 Buyer's Guide
The Precision 165 is a Jim Taylor-designed trailerable sailboat built by Precision Boat Works from 1995 through 2019, a 16-foot 5-inch pocket daysailer with two berths and a shallow-draft bulb fin. For a shopper scanning the used market, it is a light, simple boat whose appeal lies in easy launching and a surprisingly steady hull for its size.
Layouts on the Used Market
Every example follows the same layout: a 16-foot 5-inch hull with 7-foot 2-inch beam and a 15-foot 3-inch waterline, carrying two 83-inch quarter berths port and starboard below a low deck. There is no cruising cabin or headroom — these are sleeping shelves for an overnight pair, not a liveaboard interior. The 750-pound displacement and 250-pound lead ballast, with a 1-foot 9-inch draft, make the boat a straightforward single-axle trailer tow behind a family car.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Used 165s often carry a short-handed setup suited to a two-person crew, which on this spreaderless, single-shroud rig means simplified controls rather than complex systems. A solar panel is often seen, useful for keeping a small battery topped while the boat sits on a mooring or trailer. Many listings also show a chartplotter, a practical addition given the boat's lake and coastal day-use pattern, though the original design predates such gear.
What to Inspect
The keel-hull junction is the most distinctive structural detail: the design uses generous leading and trailing edge fillets at those intersections, and the keel carries its lead entirely on the lower third of the fin's span with an endplate-type bulb. Check that the fillets are intact and the bulb fairing is sound, since these shape the boat's stated stability and aspect ratio. Confirm the full flotation is present and undamaged, as it is the boat's knockdown survival feature. On the rig, verify the single shroud and absent backstay are correctly tensioned dinghy-style through the mainsail leech, and that the 22-foot mast and 9-foot boom show no compression at the partners.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The typical market for these boats is the United States. For a buyer, the checklist is short: confirm trailer coupling is the standard 2-inch size, inspect keel fillets and bulb for repair, verify flotation foam, and assess rig tension without a backstay. A clean 165 rewards its owner with an easily trailered, stable small sailer suited to two.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Precision 165. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 3 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 25 | 1 | $3,500 | — |
| Mar 26 | 1 | $5,995 | +71.3% |
| Apr 26 | 4 | $7,500 | +25.1% |
Where they're listed
Precision 165 listings appear across 1 country. United States has the most listings with 6.
Country view
6 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $7,500 | 6 | 0 | 100.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
2 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swift Craft 18 | 18' | $ 3,785 | 11 | 5 |
| Precision 165You are here | — | $ 7,500 | 6 | 0 |