West Wight Potter 14 Mk I
Description
The West Wight Potter 14 Mk I is a small American fiberglass trailerable pocket cruiser designed by Stanley T. Smith (with some U.S. production references also crediting Herb Stewart for later refinements). It was built by HMS Marine Inc. (USA) as the fiberglass evolution of the original wooden West Wight Potter 14 that Smith developed in the UK around 1960 for potential Atlantic crossings. Introduced in the early 1970s (first built ~1971), the Mk I features solid GRP construction, a centerboard (trunk) with minimal ballast (~75 lb galvanized steel), a fractional sloop rig (initially loose-footed Marconi mainsail with aluminum spars after early gunter-rigged versions), and a basic cuddy cabin with two berths for overnighting. It prioritizes extreme shoal draft for beaching, light weight for easy trailering/car-topping, and simple, forgiving sailing in protected or coastal waters rather than high performance or heavy weather. Production of the Potter 14 series (including Mk I) was modest before the model evolved into the Potter 15; exact Mk I quantities are not precisely documented but form part of the early U.S. output (hundreds overall for the 14 ft size, with total Potter family production exceeding 4,000 boats across variants). The Mk I is distinguished from the later Mk II by its 14 ft LOA (vs. stretched 15 ft), smaller cabin, and specific rig details.
Construction Details
| Designer | Stanley T. Smith |
|---|---|
| Builder | HMS Marine |
| Length | 14.000 ft |
| LOA | 14.000 ft |
| LWL | 11.500 ft |
| Beam | 5.250 ft |
| Displacement | 550 lb |
| Ballast | 75 lb |
| Max Draft | 2.670 ft |
| Min Draft | 0.500 ft |
| Year Built | 1971 |
The standard boat dimensions
| i | 10.75 ft |
|---|---|
| j | 4.42 ft |
| p | 13.50 ft |
| e | 8 ft |
| p2 | - |
| e2 | - |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10.75 ft | 4.42 ft | 13.50 ft | 8 ft | - | - | - | - |
Sails
West Wight Potter 14 Mk I - MAINSAIL
| Luff | * 13.5 ft - (4115 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 8 ft - (2438 mm) |
| Leech | * 15.27 ft - (4654 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 88 ° |
| Diagonal | * 15.45 ft - (4709 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 3.5 in - (89 mm) |
| Area | * 55.73 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator |
West Wight Potter 14 Mk I - JIBSAIL
| Luff | 10.5 ft - (3200 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | 5 ft - (1524 mm) |
| Leech | 9.25 ft - (2819 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 115.79 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 4.4 ft - (1341 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 9.19 ° |
| Area | * 23.12 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator |
West Wight Potter 14 Mk I - GENOA
| Luff | * 11.04 ft - (3365 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | * 6.19 ft - (1887 mm) |
| Leech | * 10.36 ft - (3158 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 129.19 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 5.71 ft - (1740 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 0.41 ° |
| Area | * 31.51 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator |
West Wight Potter 14 Mk I - SPINNAKER
| Stays | * 11.04 ft - (3365 mm) |
|---|---|
| MidGirth | * 7.96 ft - (2426 mm) |
| Foot | * 7.96 ft - (2426 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 180 % |
| Area | * 75 ft² |
| Edit in Calculator |
Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.
Comments
