Design and Underbody
The 33's profile bears the unmistakable S&S handwriting — a rakish entry trailing into a subtle sheer and reverse transom, with an overhang ratio that reads longer than its 14% actually is. The low-profile cabinhouse merges into what became a Tartan signature: a beefy dodger breakwater that cleanly interrupts spray and doubles as a halyard-routing station. Reducing exterior brightwork was a stated design priority, and most hulls left the factory with an aluminum toerail rather than teak, a choice that ages far better in service.
The standard underbody features a Scheel keel drawing just 4 feet 5 inches, a meaningful advantage in the shoal harbors of the Chesapeake, Long Island Sound, and the Great Lakes — the three regions where most of these boats congregated. The same structural keel stub accommodates both the Scheel and the deep 6-foot 3-inch fin of the 33R, resulting in a void along the stub in deep-keel models that is cosmetically inelegant but not structural. The hull and deck are balsa-cored, with the forward sections below the waterline in solid fiberglass — a sensible compromise that Tartan executed with enough care that the construction reputation of these boats remains strong decades on.
Rig and Sailing Character
The fractional rig was the 33's most polarizing feature at launch and remains the defining aspect of its sailing personality. The mainsail is just over 300 square feet — comparable to what you would find on most masthead-rigged 37-footers of the period — while the foretriangle stays compact. The practical payoff is genuine: the boat balances and sails reasonably well under mainsail alone, even off the wind, a quality that shorthanded crews appreciate when approaching an anchorage or managing a deteriorating forecast.
The rig was designed without running backstays, relying instead on swept-back upper shrouds to maintain forestay tension. For cruising, this is adequate; for active racing, some owners have retrofitted runners. Shrouds are set well inboard, and most boats carry inboard genoa tracks just outboard of the cabin trunk. The consensus headsail for all-around performance is a 135, which suits the fractional foretriangle without overwhelming the crew.
Downwind, the fractional configuration is the 33's clearest limitation. In light air especially, a boat carrying a big masthead spinnaker will be sailing faster for optimum off-wind VMG in the same conditions. The 33R, introduced in 1982 with a deep fin keel and masthead rig, addressed this gap and rates nearly 30 seconds per mile faster than the standard 33. The standard boat's PHRF of around 160 places it honestly in the mid-tier for performance cruiser-racers of its vintage.
The Scheel keel limits pointing ability, and the 33 prefers to be sailed flat with the big main reefed early. When heeled, she becomes tender before she builds excessive power — a characteristic that rewards conservative seamanship rather than punishing it.
Accommodations
Below decks, the 33 is built for a couple or a small family rather than a racing campaign. The galley opens immediately to starboard upon descending, with a large single sink, icebox, and a pressurized alcohol stove with oven as standard equipment — though many owners converted to propane over the years. In the "B" arrangement, the icebox was moved aft alongside the galley, freeing the port settee for full-length use and adding a 22-locker arrangement in later models.
The saloon layout places facing settees with a folding table on the main bulkhead. To port, a short settee of under five feet and a narrow pilot berth occupy the space — functional at sea, but the pilot berth is set at a reasonable height rather than jammed under the side decks. The nav station offers a good-sized chart desk and a double quarterberth aft that is genuinely usable. Ventilation runs to eight opening portlights, dorade cowl vents, and an optional centerline hatch that most owners specified.
The forward cabin provides a V-berth with a water tank below and hanging locker, though headroom is limited and the berths pinch tightly at the foot. The head spans the full beam when both bi-fold doors are closed — generous for showering and dressing — but the arrangement blocks access to the forward cabin when occupied, a nuisance with more than two people aboard.
Known Issues and Inspection Points
The 33 carries a handful of recurring concerns that any survey should address. The mast step bridge and mast base should be examined for corrosion, which has also manifested in wiring problems. The starboard water tank has a reputation for occasional leaks that delaminate the sole beneath it — probe this area carefully. Balsa-cored hulls and decks demand a thorough moisture reading; the 33 was not immune to osmotic blistering, and there appear to have been sequential hull numbers with clustering of blistering reports, suggesting occasional variation in layup quality. Sound the cored decks for delamination throughout.
The hull-to-deck joint is a standard inward-turning flange bedded with butyl and polysulfide, locked by the aluminum toerail through-bolts. The combination has generally held well — owner surveys showed few deck leaks — but aging butyl can squeeze out over time. Chainplates, standing rigging, and steering cables are all age-related items that should be evaluated on any boat of this generation. Balsa core around any deck penetrations must be sealed with epoxy before hardware replacement to prevent moisture intrusion.
Refit Considerations
The 33R's masthead rig retrofit is the most significant performance upgrade available to a standard 33 owner, as the masthead rig accounts for roughly half the performance difference between the two models. Routing halyards aft is straightforward: the dodger breakwater was equipped from the factory with fairleads for this purpose, and many owners have already made the change. Self-tailing winch upgrades are another common improvement, as the stock Lewmar 40s were not self-tailing and the wheel leaves the helmsperson somewhat removed from the sheet winches. An anchor roller or bow fitting is worth adding — there is no factory anchor well, which is a genuine cruising inconvenience.
Interior upgrades tend to center on the galley: propane conversion from the original alcohol setup, and a saloon hatch addition for ventilation noted by some owners as worthwhile. The engine — the Universal diesel three-cylinder 24-horsepower unit — proves accessible from the lazarette, port quarterberth, and behind the companionway, making routine maintenance feasible without major disassembly.
The Verdict
The Tartan 33 is an honest Sparkman & Stephens design built to the quality standard that Tartan maintained through this period — balsa-cored, thoughtfully constructed, and durable enough that the original Universal diesel frequently remains in service. It is not a bluewater passage-maker by design, but Tartan 33s have logged plenty of Bermuda passages and extended Caribbean seasons in the hands of capable owners. The fractional rig demands respect in heavy air and underperforms downwind in light conditions, but it rewards competent crew management and makes the boat genuinely singlehand-able. The interior works for its intended audience; the head arrangement divides opinion, and the galley ergonomics are a compromise, but the overall package is coherent.
Pros
- Sparkman & Stephens design with Tartan's well-earned construction reputation
- Scheel keel opens significant shoal-water cruising grounds
- Large fractional mainsail enables effective sailing under main alone
- Original Universal diesel is reliable, well-placed for access, and widely understood
- Minimal exterior brightwork reduces maintenance burden
- Dodger breakwater pre-fitted for halyard lead-aft conversion
Cons
- Fractional rig underperforms downwind in light air compared to masthead contemporaries
- Full-beam head blocks forward cabin access when occupied
- No factory anchor well or roller fitting
- Short port settee limits adult sea berth options on the standard layout
- Scheel keel limits pointing; tender until reefed, requiring early canvas reduction
- Balsa coring requires careful survey attention and proper sealing on any hardware work
