Tartan 3800 Sailboat Review, Specs, and Listings

Jackett gave the boat a modern, moderate-displacement hull rather than the proportions of a heavy ocean survivor. Displacement is 16,000 pounds, with 6,500 to 7,000 pounds of ballast in a fin-with-bulb arrangement. The ballast-to-displacement ratio is in the low forties, while the displacement-to-length ratio is near 240. A spade rudder provides steering.

Design and Construction

The hull is hand-laminated from unidirectional E glass. It has balsa-cored topsides and solid laminate below the waterline. The deck is also balsa-cored fiberglass, with solid laminate and backing plates wherever hardware is bolted.

Tartan sealed the deck to an inward hull flange with 3M 5200 adhesive. The screws securing the wood toe rail tap into a 6061-T6 aluminum strip glassed into that flange, making the rail part of a structurally continuous detail rather than merely cosmetic trim.

Both the hull and deck have interior liners. Removable overhead cover panels provide access to the deck-gear bolts and can be taken out completely when necessary. Exterior teak toe rails, handholds, and Dorade boxes give the boat a traditional yacht ambience, though the wood is treated with Sikkens Setol penetrating oil rather than varnish.

Ventilation is generous, with four Dorade boxes, four Lewmar hatches, and 11 stainless opening portlights. The plans carry ABS approval, and an ABS certificate was available as an option.

Rig and Sail Handling

The 3800 is a masthead sloop with a keel-stepped aluminum mast by Offshore Spars. The rig has in-line double spreaders and continuous wire rigging. A permanent baby stay runs to the lower spreaders, steadying the rig against pumping without the need for running backstays.

Sail controls are centralized. The mainsheet, traveler, halyards, and reefing lines lead to size-32 winches and stoppers at the aft edge of the cabin house. Harken 48 self-tailing jib-sheet winches are positioned so either the helmsman or crew can operate them. The traveler is just forward of the dodger, allowing both mainsheet and traveler to be controlled from the cabin top.

Writing in Cruising World, Bill Lee and Sheila McCurdy found the boat responsive and forgiving. With a full-battened mainsail and genoa in up to 15 knots, it tacked through 80 to 85 degrees and hove to easily. It remained quite stiff with the shoal keel in 20 knots, and after reefing it maintained speed with less helm. Cruising World’s test sailors did find the steering a little numb, possibly because of a slightly overbalanced spade rudder.

Cockpit and Accommodations

The cockpit is compact but comfortable. The wheel is easy to step around, and the layout worked well with five people aboard.

Below, the teak-trimmed interior sleeps six to seven in two cabins, with two heads. The layout includes a forward double stateroom and an aft double. A separate shower stall and wet locker make the head arrangement particularly thoughtful.

The forward-facing chart table occupies a generous niche. Panels to port and starboard of the companionway help protect the galley and navigation station from stray salt spray.

In the galley, the sink is close to the centerline so it can drain on either tack. The deep icebox has both top and front access, although its arrangement requires some forethought when stowing provisions. The stove gimbals 40 degrees to port but only 25 degrees to starboard because of interference with a piece of trim. The reviewers considered that issue easy to remedy.

Cedar-lined hanging lockers have finger-through-a-hole latches rather than push buttons. The test identified this as a possible nuisance in bumpy conditions.

Keels, Engine, and Tankage

Two keel options give the boat somewhat different characters. The standard 5'4" shoal-draft “beavertail” keel sailed very well during the Cruising World test with a two-bladed fixed prop. A 6'10" high-lift elliptical keel is offered for higher performance.

The reviewed boat had a 37-horsepower Westerbeke diesel. Access is available by lifting the molded companionway steps and through two side-panel doors. Bronze seacocks are used throughout.

Tankage is ample for a boat of this size: 38 gallons of fuel, 80 gallons of water, and a 24-gallon holding tank.

Verdict

The Tartan 3800 is a solid, honest cruising boat with enough performance for passage making and club-level racing. It was built in small numbers but came with a long list of standard features and a short options list. Jackett’s hull balances stiffness with livability, while the deck and rig details show genuine cruising intent.

Pros