The Westerly Centaur - a historical review

The Westerly Centaur Story

Westerly Centaur
L.0.A.:	26ft.
L.W.L.:	21ft. 4ins.
Beam:	8ft. 5ins.
Draft:	3ft.
Working sail area:	341sq ft.
T.M.:	6 tons
Designers:	Laurent Giles & Partners Ltd.
Builders:	Westerly Marine Constructions Ltd.

The   Westerly "Centaur", has a very low waterline over beam coefficient, a clean canoe body and twin bilge keels of aero-foil section. The bilge keel arrangement enables comfortable level drying out in tidal harbours and an ability to nose up nooks and crannies of rivers.

The power installation has its propeller working in clear water and the balanced skegiess spade rudder provides ample control under sail or power.

Under sail the boat performs remarkably well to windward at a very modest angle of heel and under power does all that is expected of her. In addition, the Westerly Centaur shows unusually good handling characteristics when going astern.

The layout below decks is spacious for a boat of only 26 ft, overall having four comfortable 6ft. 6in. berths, a separate toilet compartment and a dinette arrangement which can be converted into an additional double bunk. Despite the space below decks, there is still a 6ft. 6in. self-draining cockpit.

The Centaur was officially launched at the London Boat Show 1969, and was an immediate hit worldwide.  She is the perfect family yacht, reasonably priced, and thoroughly well made. The chart below shows the years in which the Centaurs were built, the list price in those years, the last sail number issued in each year and the value (1993, Ed.). The values are for well maintained boats, in good cosmetic condition. The value since these 1993 figures to 2013 has risen commensurately.

The roomy interior of the Centaur has to be seen to be believed. Below is the B layout of Red Star BC member, 'Zig Zag'.

Centaur 26
	List prices	Last Sail No.	Current prices (1993 Ed.)
1969	£2.545		£9,500
1970	£2,790	284	£10,000
1971	£3,900	382	£10,500
1972	£4,000	616	£11,000
1973	£4,900	903	£11,500
1974		1229	£12,000
1975	£8,450	1438	£12,750
1976	£9,425	1712	£13,250
1977	£9.750	2014	£13,750
1978	£10,450	2272	£14,250
1979	£10,990	2419	£14,750
1980	£12,025	2444	£15,500

As far as value is concerned, the important things are her age, over all cosmetic condition and how well maintained and up to date is her basic gear. Look after her well and she will still be giving good service in the latter half of the next century.

Throughout the life of the Centaur, and indeed every type of yacht, improvements and modifications were identified and carried out. Here is a list of a few of the most important changes:

• Late 1972 B and C layout options first offered.
• Late 1974 Saloon windows altered to ensure that the aft lower shrouds were not sited immediately above them. Up to this time the saloon windows were rather prone to leaks due to the unfair stresses caused by the after lowers.
• January 1976 Rudder re-designed and full skeg fitted to reduce prop wash effect and improve handling.
• Mid 1978 GRP main hatch cover replaced with transparent Perspex and a teak and holly cabin sole fitted
• August 1980 The last Centaur was built although at least one more was home completed after that date from Westerly mouldings.

Below, aboard 'Zig Zag' entering Carlingford Lough, from the Isle of Man, bound for Warrenpoint, spring 2012.

Most of the early boats had the Volvo MD 11, which rated about 16 hp. However, during 1972 Volvo offered Westerly an amazing quantity discount on the MDIIB, 25 hp diesel, which was the "recommended", (and almost the only) engine fitted from then on. Also on offer were the single cylinder MD1B, at 10 hp, the Watermota 4 cylinder 25 hp (later uprated to a massive 30 hp). 

Red Star Boat Club - Westerley Centaur 'Zig Zag' overwintering 2012/13 at Warrenpoint Dock boatyard.

Most boat builders consider a production run of 500 boats over a ten year span to be an enormous success. The Centaur with her lifespan of 12 years and production of just short of 2,500 boats has been, since her inception, of enormous importance to the sailing public, so let's leave the last word to J.D. Sleightholme, whose conclusion to the sail test of July 1969 was "Westerly have not produced a dud boat yet and they certainly won't spoil their record with the Centaur.”