Design and Construction
Gillmer’s hull measures 35 feet 3 inches overall, with a 28-foot waterline, an 11-foot 5-inch beam, and a draft of 4 feet 11 inches. Displacement is 17,710 pounds, including 5,750 pounds of lead ballast. The ballast-to-displacement ratio is .32, and the displacement-to-length ratio is 360. Those figures place the Southern Cross 35 firmly among moderate-displacement cruisers rather than light racers. With 632 square feet of working sail, its sail-area-to-displacement ratio is 14.9, confirming a rig intended for passage-making rather than buoy racing.
The hull is built of fiberglass around an Airex foam core. Cruising World’s survey found that an apparent error in the layup schedule effectively produced two complete hulls with the Airex core trapped between them. As a result, the boat came out more than 2,000 pounds over its designed weight. Neither the hull nor the deck deflects or groans underway. The deck uses a balsa core rather than Airex.
Below, the standard white oak interior with teak trim wears well. All corners are radiused to help prevent injury, and no plastic is visible except in the head.
Rig, Propeller, and Handling
The contemporary cutter rig combines Navtec rod rigging with a high-aspect sail plan. It gives the boat more pace than its traditional cruising appearance might suggest: the Southern Cross 35 will keep up with most boats in its size range and pass quite a few, though it was never a racer.
Underway, it is a sweet offshore boat—easy to control even in high winds and huge seas, and notably dry despite its low freeboard. Wide decks, inboard shrouds, and plentiful handholds make it safe to move forward. The cockpit is small but still seats five comfortably.
Early hulls had a two-bladed feathering propeller in an aperture. Vibration prompted Ryder to switch to a fixed three-bladed propeller, which cost nearly a knot of sailing speed. Later hulls returned to a two-bladed propeller and used a thinned skeg.
Accommodations
Belowdecks, the Southern Cross 35 is very roomy for two and adequate for four. Twin saloon settees double as sea berths and surround a large, sole-mounted table with seating for six. Molded-plastic water tanks are fitted beneath the settees, with storage lockers outboard.
The U-shaped galley is to starboard. To port is a full-size chart table, with a large wet locker forward of it. The engine sits beneath the companionway and offers good access.
Farther forward, the port-side head has a handheld shower. Opposite are drawers and a small hanging locker. The V-berth is spacious enough for a 6-foot-2-inch sailor and is served by a good hanging locker and large plywood shelves.
Known Issues and Refit Points
The plywood dorade boxes may deteriorate with age and warrant inspection. The mast can also corrode after several years where it meets the stainless-steel mast step. The established repair is to cut a few inches from the mast and raise the step on an epoxy-glass pad.
The fiberglass fuel tank sits in the deep, capacious bilge formed by the hull’s wineglass sections.
In addition to the propeller and skeg changes made during production, mast-step corrosion is the main owner-side refit concern. Ryder also produced some “Gillmer 35” hulls as buyer-finished kits. These lacked the Navtec rigging and its hull-tie system, so careful identification matters when assessing an individual boat.
Owners remain organized through an active owners association, a real asset for a design built in such small numbers.
The Verdict
The Southern Cross 35 is a thoughtfully detailed cruiser whose overbuilt foam-core hull turned a drafting error into structural calm. It is an able, dry offshore boat with a practical, roomy interior and a rig that punches above its displacement. Given the small production run and the existence of buyer-finished “Gillmer 35” siblings, buyers should identify the rig and propeller configuration carefully.
Pros
- Exceptionally stiff, non-deflecting hull from a doubled Airex-core layup
- Easy-to-control, dry offshore behavior with a high-aspect cutter rig
- Roomy, well-finished interior
- Safe access forward and good engine access
- Active owners association for a design with fewer than 100 boats built
Cons
- Fixed three-bladed propeller on mid-build boats costs nearly a knot of sailing speed
- Plywood dorade boxes and mast-step corrosion are known aging points
- Kit-built “Gillmer 35” versions lack the Navtec rigging and hull-tie system
