C&C Corvette Resources

This page contains various resources about the C&C Corvette.

| FAQ | Sailing Tips | Scale Drawings |

Frequently Asked Questions from potential Corvette buyers (FAQ)

This is a list of question and answers regarding Corvettes that I have received through many e- mails. I hope that this will help people who are looking to buy a Corvette. Do not hesitate to send me e-mail with your questions. We often have some information on boats (hull #) that you may be looking at.

Q: What are the sailing qualities of a Corvette?

A: They are well made boats, easily handled by 2 people, and fun to sail. They have a long entry and a sea-kindly motion.

Corvettes sail well up to about 15 – 18 Knots of wind with a full main and a 150% genoa.

At about 20 Knots, the boat sails well with a single reef main and a 150% genoa.

Above 25 knots you should consider a double reef main and as the wind increases changing to a smaller headsail. One should be able to sail in winds of 35 knots with a double reefed main and a 110% genoa.

As general statement, the boat puts its rail down and goes. It is a very steady boat, not too tender but not overly stiff. She does heel more than the modern type boats with a designed sailing angle of heel of about 18 degrees.

The Corvettes are capable of some distances in a timely manner. Average speeds over a day’s sailing of 6.5 knots are not uncommon.

Q: Are Corvettes sea worthy?

A: Yes, Corvettes are very sea worthy. We have had Corvettes across the Atlantic. One owner has sailed from Connecticut to Bermuda then across to Ireland. This same owner has also completed a trip to Newfoundland and back. Other Corvettes have sailed down to the Caribbean islands.

Q: What should I look for?

A: The following are the most important things to check:

Decks

Check for core damage. As a general statement, older boats, (not just Corvettes) with balsa cores have had problems with delamination, or a wet core. The problem is water getting into the core from around fittings that haven’t been maintained. This is easy to fix, but can be expensive if you don’t do the work yourself. You can contract to have the fibreglass work done and do the finishing yourself.

A Corvette in Toronto that was sold for $10,000 less than the asking price when it was discovered to had a bad deck. The repairs were done for about $7,000. So now the new owner has a great boat with new decks for a good price.

You should not turn down a good boat because of a bad deck but be sure that you get a firm price on the repairs then make an offer. A number of Corvettes have only some minor deck problems that are relatively easy and not costly to fix. Have a good survey done by a surveyor of your choice (not the broker or seller) before you buy any boat. If the boat is in good condition and does not have any problems you will feel better knowing that you have a good solid boat. If the survey uncovers a problem or two, you then can make an informed choice.

Hulls

The Corvette hull it is solid fibreglass (no core) with a very high resin ratio. Back in the days when they were building Corvettes, weight was not a problem, so they just poured the resin to them. That is one reason why most Corvettes do not have (fibreglass) osmosis. Corvettes have one of the thickest hulls of boats built during that era. The fibreglass in the forward area below the waterline is about 5/8″ and where they joined the two halves of the hull (they were made in two sections) is about 1 1/2″ thick. The rest of the hull you will find is 3/8 to 1/2 inch thick at any point.

Rudder

If the boat has been sailed in salt water, check the aluminum rudder. The later Corvettes where fitted with fibreglass rudders. Several Corvette owners have replaced their rudders. There is a detailed upgrade project in the Member’s Area on a rudder replacement.

Centreboards

The centreboard is very essential in obtaining good windward performance from your Corvette. The original board was made from ¾” – 1″ cast steel. Some owners have replaced the board with ones made from Stainless Steel or Bronze. Other owners have epoxied their steel board.

One problem is that some boards won’t go up or down. Often people think it is because the pin is bent. This is very unlikely as the pin is about a 1 inch Stainless Steel rod. The most probably problem is that the board or centreboard trunk is covered in “crud”. To cure this problem have the boat lifted and the board and trunk cleaned and coated with epoxy.

Another problem is that some boards will not come all the way up. This is because the pendant has been changed and a shackle has been added. There is not enough room at the top of the centre board trunk to take the shackle. There is a fix for this in the Upgrade Manual, which requires a fibreglass section to be added to the top of the trunk.

Q: What is a fair price?

A: As far as price is concerned, the average price is current between $18,000-22,000 USD. Some Corvettes have sold as low as $5,000, but require a lot of work to bring them back to the original condition. Our web site will display members’ boats for sale. Take a look at them. There seems to be more for sale in the US than in Canada. The exchange rate on the Canadian dollar (as of June 2010) would make a $22,000 Canadian boat worth about $21,000 US.

In 1966, the first year in which the Corvette was made, it was priced at $12,500 CND. By applying the Canadian Consumer Price Index (1966-2009), that price is equivalent to about $82,000 today.

Summary

Corvettes are great boats, well made and extremely good fun to sail. A Corvette in good conditions is a great value. Back in the early days of fibreglass, not too much was known about fibreglass and the solution was to make it thicker and stronger. I would rather have a strong older boat that a newer one made after the oil crisis which caused manufactures to reduce the amount of resin in their boats.

Article courtesy of Chuck Jones (2004) updated by Leo Reise (2010).

Corvette Sailing Tips

1. When sailing anywhere from close hauled to a broad reach, put the centerboard down enough to give you a “neutral” helm.

2. If sailing in a sloppy swell with light winds and the board begins to “bang” with the rolling actions raise the board until the ‘banging’ stops. The board is making very little difference in performance.

3. As the wind increases, put a reef in the main before you reduce or change the head sail. The boat balances fairly well in 20 knots of wind with a single reef in the main and carry a 150% genoa. As the wind increases, put in a second reef. This reduces healing and reduces the weather helm. You will notice that the tiller or wheel is “heavy” but this is caused by the speed of water over the rudder.

4. Corvettes sail best when heeled with the rail about three or four inches above the water (about 18 degrees angle of heel). If you find you are constantly dipping the rail, let the traveler down or put in a reef and the boat will sail flatter and faster. You will also notice a more relaxed look on your first mate’s face.

5. When running, especially in rough water use a preventer on the boom. This can be done by using a separate preventer or attach the boom vang to the rail. This will prevent the boom from banging across during an accidental jibe.

6. The Corvette will sail nicely downwind under spinnaker. It is well documented that some sailors do not like using a spinnaker, thinking that it is too difficult to control. However, it can be raised behind the genoa, then pull the pole back slightly, tighten the clew a little then furl the genoa. With the use of “tweaker” or simply moving a snatch-block attached to the sheet forward along the rail, the chute may be over-trimmed but will be quite under control.

6. The boat will also run downwind quite successfully with a double head-sail and no main. Use a 150 genoa to leeward and hoist a spinnaker staysail or a 110 genoa on the weather side and use your spinnaker pole to stabilize the larger sail if necessary.

7. On a very narrow range when reaching, you may set a small sail inside the genoa on the centre-line creating a cutter-rig. This combination is good for an apparent wind range of 65 degree to 90 degrees. The combination adds about 0.5 knots under medium wind conditions.

Original Article courtesy of Chuck Jones (2004)
Updated and additional material supplied by Leo Reise (2010)

Scale Drawings – Available to members

Own a C&C Corvette, and want a set of scale drawings for your boat? You are in luck!

Former Corvette owner (now a Frigate owner) Peter Cohrs found a set of drawings, in a marine museum, paid to have them electronically duplicated and donated them to the Association. The “original” drawings were produced on paper and are quite large. Many are sizes D (22″x24″) and E (34″x44″). The cost of duplicating the drawings varied depending on the printer but was in the $50 CAD range. To ship the drawings in a tube added a $10 to $12 to the cost. The Association now supplies the drawings on a disk and you can pick and choose the one you want printed. The cost of a disk is $10 plus mailing cost.

If you are interested in ordering a set of drawings, contact us.