Design Brief & Intent
The Verl 790 was conceived during the height of the International Offshore Rule (IOR) quarter-ton racing boom. Dubois sought to design a boat that could contend in club racing fleets on Saturday and comfortably take a family coastal cruising on Sunday. In an era where 26-footers were often boxy and slow, the Verl 790 stood out with its slippery, low-drag hull form, relatively low-profile coachroof, and reverse transom. It was designed to compete directly against popular contemporary models like the Albin 79 and the Westerly Centaur, offering significantly more athletic sailing characteristics than the heavy, slow-displacement cruisers of the period.
Despite its performance-first hull, Dubois and the builders did not ignore the interior. The joinery was executed in warm teak, which was of surprisingly good quality for a production yacht of this class. Although it lacks the standing headroom of more bloated, dedicated cruising designs, its interior volume is highly optimized. The layout is warm and inviting, offering a level of cruising comfort that made it highly popular with young families and single-handed sailors alike 4.
Variations & Configurations
Throughout its production life, the Verl 790 was offered in several distinct variations, primarily focused on the interior layout and propulsion. The standard and most common version features a four-berth layout. This arrangement places a double V-berth in the forward cabin, followed by an enclosed heads compartment to port and a hanging locker to starboard. The main saloon contains two straight settee berths flanking a central table. Alternatively, a rarer five-berth configuration was produced, utilizing a more conventional open saloon layout with a single quarter-berth running under the cockpit on the starboard side. Headroom in both configurations is a respectable five feet eight inches under the companionway.
The most significant variation lies in the engine configuration. Many hulls were delivered as outboard-powered models to reduce initial purchase and long-term maintenance costs. These versions feature a cleverly designed outboard motor well in the cockpit sole, where the propeller shaft is faired into the hull using a tight-fitting rubber sleeve. This minimizes drag under sail while keeping the engine shielded from the elements. Other hulls were fitted from the factory with small, single-cylinder inboard diesel engines, such as the Volvo Penta MD5, paired with a saildrive leg and a folding or two-bladed propeller.
Sailing Performance & Handling
Under sail, the Verl 790 is a spirited, responsive vessel that rewards attentive trimming. With a sail area-to-displacement ratio of 22.22, the boat is powerful for its size, possessing outstanding light-air performance and accelerating rapidly in soft breezes. It handles beautifully on the wind, carving through chop with minimal slamming thanks to its well-balanced bow and moderate displacement-to-length ratio of 173.55.
Despite its lightweight 4,000-pound displacement, the boat is notably stiff. It carries a substantial 1,750 pounds of cast-iron ballast in its deep, high-aspect fin keel, resulting in a ballast-to-displacement ratio of 43.75%. This high ballast ratio ensures the boat stands up well to a breeze, allowing it to easily carry full canvas up to the top end of a Force 4 before requiring a reef.
However, its racing-inspired hull shape means that its behavior in a seaway is lively. The boat’s comfort ratio of 14.07 indicates a quick, energetic motion in a sea. It will return a highly tactile, responsive feel through the tiller, but it lacks the heavy, slow motion of a traditional cruising yacht. Its capsize screening ratio of 2.31 reflects a wide beam relative to its light displacement. While this wide beam provides excellent initial stability and interior volume, the high ratio indicates that the boat is best suited for coastal cruising, club racing, and short offshore passages rather than sustained ocean blue-water voyaging. The rudder is a deep spade design that provides immediate steering control, though some early units feature a partial skeg for added structural protection against groundings.
Market Snapshot & Economics
On the brokerage market, the Verl 790 represents an exceptionally low-cost entry point into yacht ownership, offering excellent performance-per-dollar. These boats trade at a modest value, making them appealing to budget-conscious sailors who want a "proper" yacht that can still out-sail modern, heavy-set cruisers. Because production ceased in 1995 and the shipyard was dissolved decades ago, they are relatively scarce on the open market, but they maintain a small, highly dedicated following in the United Kingdom, northern Europe, and Australia.
The primary economic driver when assessing a used Verl 790 is the condition of its engine. Buyers must approach inboard diesel models with caution. Rebuilding or replacing an aging Volvo Penta MD5 and its associated saildrive can easily cost double the purchase price of the entire boat. Consequently, outboard-powered models often represent a safer, more economical purchase, as modern high-thrust four-stroke outboards can be easily removed, serviced, or replaced at a fraction of the cost of an inboard overhaul.
Known Issues & Triage
While structurally sound, any boat of this era requires diligent inspection for age-related failures. Veteran owners of the Verl 790 prioritize a few key areas of triage:
- Saildrive Diaphragm Seal: On inboard models, the rubber hull seal surrounding the saildrive leg must be inspected 5. Volvo Penta recommends replacing this seal every seven years. Because a failure can lead to catastrophic water ingress, replacing an aged or cracked seal must be the absolute first priority for any new owner.
- Deck Core Softness: The fiberglass deck utilizes sandwich construction. Over time, water can penetrate the core around old chainplates, stanchion bases, or the mast step. Buyers should walk the deck feeling for flexing and tap the fiberglass with a plastic hammer to locate any soft, water-logged areas requiring recoring.
- Anchor Locker Bulkhead: The bulkhead separating the forward cabin from the anchor locker is a known point of leakage. If the original sealant has degraded, water draining from wet anchor rode or riding over the bow will seep into the V-berth bilges, causing dampness and mold. Re-sealing this seam and ensuring the locker's overboard drains are clear is a simple, necessary DIY fix.
- Osmotic Blistering: Due to the polyester resins used during the late 1970s and 1980s, these hulls are prone to cosmetic osmosis. While rarely structural, a badly blistered hull will require stripping, drying, and an epoxy barrier coat.
Modernization & Upgrades
Many Verl 790s have been extensively updated by their owners to align with modern sailing standards. The most common structural upgrade is reinforcing the chainplate knees and the mast step support area, which can compress slightly over decades of high rig tension.
For outboard-powered models, owners frequently upgrade to modern 6-horsepower or 9.9-horsepower high-thrust outboards equipped with 12V charging alternators and remote throttles, making maneuvering in tight marinas far more manageable. On the electrical side, the original sparse DC wiring is routinely replaced. Modernizing the vessel with a dual-battery system, incorporating a dedicated starting battery and a deep-cycle house battery, is a standard refit. Many owners also install a flexible solar panel on the coachroof or cockpit hatch to maintain battery charge while on a mooring, eliminating the need for shore power.
The Verdict
The Verl 790 remains an exceptional choice for the sailor who values sailing quality over raw interior volume. It is a true sailor's boat—fast, stiff, and deeply rewarding to helm, yet civil enough to spend a comfortable weekend at anchor.
- Outstanding sailing performance and acceleration in light air
- High ballast ratio makes the boat exceptionally stiff and secure in a breeze
- Clever outboard well design provides inboard-like functionality with outboard maintenance costs
- High-quality interior joinery and clever use of space for a 26-footer
- Direct, responsive tiller steering that is highly rewarding for active helmsmen
- Aging inboard engines and saildrives can represent a disproportionate financial risk
- Lively motion in a seaway may feel fatiguing on long, choppy passages
- Limited headroom and interior volume compared to pure cruising designs of the same length
- Vulnerable deck sandwich construction requires careful inspection for soft spots
- Capsize screening characteristics mean it is not suited for serious blue-water offshore work
