The Aloha 27 is a series of Canadian sailboats, that were designed by Americayacht designerRobert Perry and first built in 1979 under the designation Aloha 26. The Aloha 26, 27, 8.2, 271 are all closely related designs. Although the hulls are identical and were produced in the same mould, the builders used several different sail and mast suppliers during the production run of the designs and specifications for the boats produced varied accordingly. Many of the boats produced have interchangeable sails and other parts. Despite having so many designations for the vessel, Aloha 27 is colloquially used as the model designation.
Production
The design was built between 1979 and 1987 by Ouyang Boat Works in Whitby, Ontario, Canada, under the Aloha Yachts brand. During that period the company built 188 of the Aloha 27 design. After the bankruptcy of Ouyang, DH Boatbuilding of Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia purchased the mould and built two, one in 1989 and the last in 1995 before DH ceased building boats altogether in 2000.
Design
The Aloha 27 series are all small recreational keelboats, built predominantly of fiberglass, with wood trim. They all have fractionalsloop rigs, internally-mounted spade-type rudders and fixed fin keels. They are fitted with a tiller, although a wheel was a factory option. They all displace and carry of ballast encapsulated inside a fibreglass keel. The series all have a draft of with the standard keel fitted. The boat came with an outboard motor provision as standard with the option of an inboardBMW, Volvo Penta or Westerbeke diesel engine powering a saildrive unit. The early versions had the BMW powerplant of, which some owners found underpowered and that led to the Westerbeke engine of being substituted. The fuel tank holds and the fresh water tank has a capacity of. The original production run boats featured such amenities as Barient winches, tufted crushed velour cushions, oversized spars, pulpit and lifelines, as well as internal halyards. Of the interior accommodations, reviewer Michael McGoldrick noted: The Aloha 27 has a PHRF racing average handicap of 207 and a hull speed of.
Operational history
In an interview in Sail Universe, two Aloha 8.2 owners described the design:
