The Tanzer 7.5 is a Canadian trailerable

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

, that was designed by

Johann Tanzer Johann Tanzer (1927-2016) was a Canadians, Canadian sailboat designer, who founded the sailboat manufacturer that bore his name, Tanzer Industries, in 1966. Early life Johann Tanzer was born on 3 January 1927 in the village of Velden am Wörth ...

and first built in 1977. The design went out of production in 1985.Henkel, Steve: ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'', page 369.

International Marine McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

McGraw-Hill McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

, 2010.

Production

The boat was primarily built by

Tanzer Industries Limited Tanzer Industries Limited was a Canadian boat manufacturer based in Dorion, Quebec. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of fibreglass sailboats. History The company was founded by Johann Tanzer in 1966 and went bankrupt in May ...

in Dorion, Quebec, with smaller numbers built in Tanzer's US subsidiaries in Edenton, North Carolina (Tanzer Yachts, Inc) and Arlington, Washington (Tanzer Yachts). A total of 790 boat were built. Which plant manufactured a particular boat is indicated by the first three letters (or MIC, manufacturer identification code) of the boat's HIN, or hull identification number. A MIC of TAN or, later, ZTI means the boat was built in Quebec, a MIC of TNE that it was built in North Carolina, and a MIC of TNY that it was built in Washington.

Design

The Tanzer 7.5 is a small recreational

keelboat A keelboat is a riverine cargo-capable working boat, or a small- to mid-sized recreational sailing yacht. The boats in the first category have shallow structural keels, and are nearly flat-bottomed and often used leeboards if forced in open w ...

, built predominantly of

fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass c ...

, with wood trim. It has a masthead sloop rig, a transom-hung

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...

and a 4' fixed fin

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

, with an optional 2.8' shoal draft keel. The standard fin keel version displaces and carries of ballast. A self-tacking

jib A jib is a triangular sail that sets ahead of the foremast of a sailing vessel. Its forward corner (tack) is fixed to the bowsprit, to the bows, or to the deck between the bowsprit and the foremost mast. Jibs and spinnakers are the two main ty ...

on a boom was a factory option. The boat is normally fitted with a small

outboard motor An outboard motor is a propulsion system for boats, consisting of a self-contained unit that includes engine, gearbox and propeller or jet drive, designed to be affixed to the outside of the transom. They are the most common motorised method ...

for docking and maneuvering. The design has sleeping accommodation for four people, with a double

"V"-berth A sleeping berth is a bed or sleeping accommodation on vehicles. Space accommodations have contributed to certain common design elements of berths. Beds in boats or ships While beds on large ships are little different from those on shore, ...

in the bow cabin and two straight settee berths in the main cabin around a folding table. The

galley A galley is a type of ship optimised for propulsion by oars. Galleys were historically used for naval warfare, warfare, Maritime transport, trade, and piracy mostly in the seas surrounding Europe. It developed in the Mediterranean world during ...

is located on both sides just aft of the

companionway In the architecture of a ship, a companion or companionway is a raised and windowed hatchway in the ship's deck, with a ladder leading below and the hooded entrance-hatch to the main cabins. A companionway may be secured by doors or, commonly i ...

ladder. The galley is equipped with an

ice box An icebox (also called a cold closet) is a compact non-mechanical refrigerator which was a common early-twentieth-century kitchen appliance before the development of safely powered refrigeration devices. Before the development of electric refrig ...

and a sink to starboard, with a two-burner stove to port. The

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

is located just aft of the bow cabin on the port side. Cabin headroom is . Tanzer 7.5s built in the 1970s had three portlites on each side while those built in the 1980s instead had a single long window on each side. The shoal draft version, the Tanzer 7.5 SD, has a

PHRF Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) is a handicapping system used for yacht racing in North America. It allows dissimilar classes of sailboats to be raced against each other. The aim is to cancel out the inherent advantages and disadvantages ...

racing average handicap of 228 with a high of 237 and low of 207, while the fin keel model has a PHRF of 201. It has a

hull speed Hull speed or displacement speed is the speed at which the wavelength of a vessel's bow wave is equal to the waterline length of the vessel. As boat speed increases from rest, the wavelength of the bow wave increases, and usually its crest-to- ...

of .

Operational history

In a review Michael McGoldrick wrote, "Down below, the 7.5 has a nicely laid out interior which features two full length settees on both sides of the cabin (unlike the Tanzer 26s which were built after 1979, which have a truncated settee on the starboard side of the cabin). Headroom in the Tanzer 7.5 is getting tight for anyone over 5' 9", and the v-berth only was enough space to sleep one adult or two children. One of the settees in the main cabin converts into a double to provide place to sleep a fourth adult...The Tanzer 7.5 would be a good choice for a small family or a couple who aren't too tall, and are looking for an easy handling boat." In a 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "designer/builder Johann Tanzer tried to put together a Boat for All Sailors. He started with a sleek hull with choice of fin keel ... for those who want more performance or shoal draft ... for those who sail in shallow-water areas. Then he took the unusual step of adding a self-tacking jib on a jib-boom, making the boat much easier to singlehand upwind, and offering some appeal to the family learning to sail, who might be bothered by 'all those strings to pull,' while also offering a conventional array of other foresails for better performance under specific conditions of wind and sea. Tanzer also tried to maximize space below by using a raised-deck configuration with a bubble-like cabin added on top, giving increased headroom as well as more storage space ... Best features: Tanzer succeeded in most of the design ideas he tried to incorporate. Worst features: the shoal draft model doesn't do well upwind compared to conventional craft; adding a centerboard would have made her better."

Variants

;Tanzer 7.5 :Conventional fin keel-equipped model, with displacement, of ballast and a draft of . ;Tanzer 7.5 SD :Shoal draft keel-equipped model, with displacement, of ballast and a draft of .

References

External links