The term Hartley TS16 is short for the boat design “Hartley Trailer Sailor 16 foot”.
The Hartley TS16 was designed by Richard Hartley in 1959. The first boat built in Australia was in 1963.
When Hartley released the plans for the boat, it quickly became very popular, and has been used for many purposes. Some people use them to race, some as a cruiser and some as a motor boat and fishing platform. The boat was designed to be something you could build yourself and many people bought a plan with that intention. The 1970’s and 1980’s was the height of the boat building boom.
The Hartley TS16 was designed to be easily towed by the mid- sized cars of the time. The design allows the use of a small motor on the transom, usually about 4-5 hp. It can carry up to 3 adults or a family of 4 easily.
The boat plans are comprehensive and include the details of the design and measurements for the hull, sails, centreplates, rudder, mast, and boom. Therefore, it provides the basis for the one design principle adopted by the class and the Association.
Early on, Richard Hartley developed more than one version of the Hartley TS16. The Hartley TS16 Association of Australia worked with Richard to create a standard design of the boat plans to be sold to its members within Australia.
Some details and features of the boat are
- Length – 4972mm
- Width – 2222mm
- Draft – approx. 230mm with board up and 1240mm with board down.
- Length of mast – approx. 6300mm
- Length of boom – approx. 3500mm
- Sail Area – Jib approx. 55sq ft Main approx.125sq ft. Total area approx. 180 sq ft.
- minimum hull weight of 360kg
- the boat is designed with inbuilt buoyancy compartments, so the boat should float at water level if flooded and will not sink.
- they can capsize and generally can be righted by themselves and its crew if the centreplate is secured in the lock down position.
- there are no minimum or maximum crew weight rules.
- masts and booms and other boat parts are sold through the association.
- sails can be made by the sailmaker of your choice, but must meet the dimensions set out in the Sail Measurement form. A set of sails allowed in an Association regatta is one main and 2 jibs. Spinnakers are not allowed for competitive racing. Jibs can be hanked or unhanked, and can be poled out using a jib or whisker pole.
- variations are allowed in cockpit and cabin top layout for boat fittings and control lines
- the boat design has proved to be very durable, with many boats built in the 1970 and 1980’s still competing successfully at club, state, and national level.
- boats have mainly been built of timber, but some fibreglass boats have been built under supervision of the Association.
- at present, there are no “New Boats” to buy. You will need to buy a second-hand boat, or build your own. Second hand boats are sold in various ways. The Association has a Facebook page which has a Classified section for boats and gear for sale. See link https://www.facebook.com/groups/271742940382733/?ref=share_group_link