Design and Construction
The 23 D is a monohull of fiberglass construction, built predominantly of fiberglass with a balsawood core designed to reduce weight, and the hull itself weighs only about 1,500 pounds before ballast. That light hull—under 1,500 pounds excluding ballast—gives the boat a displacement of 2,600 pounds and a lead ballast of 1,130 pounds, of which 170 pounds sits in the daggerboard keel. The builder described the daggerboard as 170 pounds of lead encased in high density foam and fiberglass. With a beam of 8.83 feet and a waterline length of 20.62 feet, the boat carries a raked stem, a semi-cut-down vertical transom, and a transom-hung, floating auto-lifting rudder controlled by a tiller.
Rig and Handling
The 23 D is a fractional rigged sloop with a Bermuda rig and a deck-stepped mast carrying double-spreaders. Its sailplan totals 283.5 square feet, split between a 152.25-square-foot mainsail and a 131.25-square-foot jib, on a 30-foot I foretriangle and 29-foot mainsail luff. The mainsheet traveler is cockpit-mounted. A PHRF rating of 171 places it 63 seconds per mile faster than the San Juan 23. The daggerboard keel—similar to a racing dinghy's—can be raised for a draft of just 0.83 feet or lowered for 5.25 feet, and the boat is designed to plane on the water downwind with the keel up. Around hull number 85, the builder moved the keel-truck back 4 inches to reduce transmitted weather helm to the helmsman.
Accommodations
Below, the cabin sleeps four: a double V-berth forward and two 7-foot settee berths in the main cabin. Headroom is 52 inches and the walls are lined with a thin carpet. The galley is minimal, with a sink, drawer, and counter. A small 3 to 6 hp outboard motor is normally fitted for docking and maneuvering, hung on the transom.
Known Issues
The most documented production change concerns the keel-truck relocation near hull 85; earlier boats transmitted more weather helm to the tiller before the 4-inch aft move corrected it. The balsa-cored deck, used to save weight, is the one area where a buyer should expect long-term moisture exposure over four decades of service.
The Verdict
The Santana 23 D is a purpose-built light-displacement planing daysailer whose daggerboard and sub-1,500-pound hull make it uniquely draft-flexible among Schock's 23-foot offerings. Its cockpit-traveler fractional rig and low weather helm after hull 85 reward a sailor who wants speed without a fixed-keel draft penalty.
Pros
- Planes downwind with keel raised; 0.83-foot raised draft
- Light 1,500-pound hull, 2,600-pound displacement, 1,130-pound lead ballast
- PHRF 171, 63 sec/mile quicker than San Juan 23
- Sleeps four with practical settee berths
Cons
- 52-inch headroom limits cabin comfort
- Balsa-cored deck adds long-term moisture risk
- Early hulls (pre-85) carried more transmitted weather helm
