Com-Pac Eclipse - Delivery Soon

[Don Stubbs]

My Eclipse should be delivered before Christmas.

I will post some photos once I clean off the road grime and
set her up.

I worked with Com-Pac in developing a dodger to offer as
an option.  It will have a removable panel to connect the dodger
to the bimini to provide more shade in the cockpit.  
I do not know at this time if Com-Pac will in fact make this option available.

Stay tuned.

Don

[AT]

Hello!

I am considering buying a new Eclipse soon and would love to hear what the owners have to say about their Eclipses. In particular, I would like to learn how well balanced is the boat, and how responsive is the helm, how comfortable it is in winds over 20 knots, whether it has sufficient ballast and sufficient sail area, and so on. It would also be helpful to know what options you got, whether you find them useful (lifelines, for example) and how much you paid for your boats. I also would like to learn more about that dodger-bimini combination mentioned above.

I looked at the Eclipse last Saturday and liked most things about it except the lack of side decks. I think the size is sufficient for 3-4 people family weekend cruising in warm climate (South Florida) as well as for occasional week-long trips. I am going to keep the boat on a trailer in my driveway and mostly sail it on weekends, so ease of setting it up for launching is a very significant consideration.

Thanks!
AT

[Pearler]

Hi All,

I'm new to the list and also considering an Eclipse. Don has asked all the questions that I would have. The only thing I have to add is about adding the cruising spinnaker. I know Com-pac has sold quite a few Eclipses, but a search on google didn't find any owners, so I'm looking forward to hearing from some of you Eclipse owners.

[Craig Weis]

NO DECK WALKING that is for sure. How you going to tie her up at the dock if you don't want to go over the cabin?

[AT]

Well, my previous boat was a Macgregor, also without side decks, so I am used to cabin-top walking. It also did not have a jib furler and main halyard was not led to the cockpit, so I practiced cabin top walking a lot.
Anyway, I put a deposit on Eclipse and expect to have it delivered next week.
It is a pity there are no Eclipse owners on this forum. Probably too busy sailing...

[Pearler]

Hi AT,

I picked up an Eclipse last week. This week I've been busy installing all the electronics. My last boat was a Precision P-23 with side decks, so it will take some getting used to. I've all ready been up there quite a bit and don't think it's that different. My biggest concern is with the motor. I saved the motor that I had on the P-23 (Johnson 8HP)I know it's a bit more then required. The motor is an 2001 model with low Hr. So I'm going to give it try and see how it does?  I also had the dealer custom make a dodger that attaches to the bimini and it turned out great. I hope to launch her in a few days for sea trials.

[AT]

Hello Pearler!

Thank you for your response. Interesting enough, I was looking to buy a new Precision 23, when I suddenly came across the Eclipse and realized that it should fill my needs better. Can you share your impressions on how these two boats compare?

What dealer did you buy your Eclipse from and how much did you pay for the dodger, if I may ask? A dodger installed by factory (an unadvertised option) costs $1000, which seems a little too high for such a small dodger, especially for a small weekender boat.

As far as motor goes, I think that 8 HP is the minimum power that this boat needs. Actually, I am planning to use my 15 HP Yamaha that weights 95 pounds. How heave is your motor?

[Craig Weis]

Percision 23 only has a stubby fixed keel and a centerboard, that houses within the keel, pretty neat...but still a sailor need to putzs with it and crank it around.

I like the insides of both boats very and equally well. Enjoy your Eclipse, I thought that she was well built the last two times I saw the floor model at All Sailboat show, '04 and '05.   skip...

[Pearler]

As far as sailing performance goes it's not much of a comparison. The P-23 would win hands down. The P-23 was a very lively sailor that was fast and pointed well. I know the Eclipse is not going to sail anything like my P-23 did. I'm willing to give up both for a simpler trailer sailor. My hope is to be able to go from trailer to sailing in less then an hour. It took me two hours to launch and rig the P-23. The P-23 also had a lot more cabin space. My wife and I plan on a lot of two day sails this summer and are willing to give up some amenities for simplicity. One other thing that sold us on the Eclipse was the open transom. We have a sailing boxer that goes with us that weights in at 60#. We're young sailors but also seniors, and it was a big chore getting our dog in the boat.

 You may want to check with the ComPac factory  before you mount a 15HP motor. The manual that came with my boat recommends using 4HP-6HP? I'm not sure the motor mount would handle 15HP.

 I purchased the boat from Gulf Island Sails in Punta Gorda,FL. If you haven't already purchased a Eclipse you may want to give them a call, they had a new one coming in. Their number is 877-370-0099 and ask for Ed Benson. It was part of the deal that I got the dodger at their cost, which was about $600. The people that made the dodger have a shop in the same building with the dealer. I was very pleased with their work. Here is their phone number.
Canvas Country & Upholstery phone #941-575-9719.

ps-I have some pictures of the dodger, if you would like to see them. Just send me a private message with your e-mail address and I'll send them to you.

[AT]

Pearler,

Two hours to launch a boat is indeed an excessive time. It was actually my primary concern too, since I am going to keep a boat at home and tow it each time to a marina. The way P-23 is designed, it looked to me that it would be much harder to set it up than it is with Macgregor and you totally confirmed it.

I saw your Eclipse at the dealer couple of weeks ago. They also sent me 3 low resolution pictures of the dodger installation. It looks very functional.


Skip,

Keel/centerboard designs are similar with Precisions and Eclipse. The difference is that Eclipse's centerboard is made of stainless steel.

[Pearler]

Hey Skip, (Comfort and Joy)

 I'm new to CP boats, so please forgive me for asking dumb questions. Since you mentioned seeing the Eclipse at the boat shows. Can you tell me what CP uses on the bright work? Whatever they use on the teak cockpit coamings is wearing off and this is a new boat! It appears to have a yellowish tint. I assume it's Cetel, is this right? The cabin hatch boards appear to be oiled (outside only). Should I clean off the cockpit coamings and oil them also? I know oiling is more maintenance, but it seem like it would handle the foot traffic better.   Terry

[Craig Weis]

Pearler, I can only say that my Com-Pac 19 XL only came bare wood. Nothing on the outside. On the inside she had her wood oiled-up.

Now, I Cetoled all the outside wood [teak] plus added a teak ring to house/mount the compass without cutting the inside bulkhead of the cabin.

Before Cetol, all the wood was washed and scrubbed with a teak cleaner and nylon brush, [you should have seen the black rinse off], later the wood air dried, masked off and brushed with two coats of light Cetol.

For ware, better plan on touch-up each season. Or er-oil as ware appears. That's boating. And it depends on how good the boat should look and how hard one wants to work. skip. :wink:

[Pearler]

AT,

If your still thinking about an Eclipse, you may want to consider adding a cover for the genoa. I spoke to my dealer today and he is having one made up for my boat. The same shop that made my dodger is doing the work. I think it will be a good investment. I plan on tying the genoa to the mast for trailering and the cover should give some protection.

Terry

[Pearler]

Skip, Thanks for your reply about the my teak problem. I, m thinking that I'll try oiling first. I know what you mean about how much work is involved. My other boat is a Seapearl Tri and She has teak rails, Rudder head, and lee board rub rails. I use oil on her and its not too bad, as long as you oil often. The hard part is going to be removing what ever is on there now!

[AT]

Terry,

Thanks for the genoa cover suggestion. I think I will be disconnecting the genoa for trailering and storage, but I will keep this idea in mind.

AT