The Ericson 25+ sailboat proved that families didn’t need to make serious compromises. These Bruce King designed boats were introduced in late 1978. They gave move up families sitting head room, better berths and much more. The Ericson 25+ sailboat opened the door to big boat amenities on a smaller boat.

The hull of the Ericson 25+ is a solid hand layup. The molded fiberglass body pan is glassed to the inside and works as the base for a bunch of the interior furniture which gives a more rigid hull. The deck, cockpit and cabin trunk molding is balsa cored and is replaced with plywood in the high stress areas such as under the deck stepped mast and deck hardware (although hardware added by previous owners may not be.)

The hull to deck joint has an external molded flange and a glass reinforced polyester resin was used as a bedding compound between those flanges. The inside of this joint was lapped with 4 layers of mat and cloth. The outside was covered with a soft plastic insert rub rail. The transom is plywood cored which helps with rigidity.

The mast is a black, deck stepped extrusion. It was designed with a cut away in the forward lower half of the base to help owners step the mast themselves. This design reduced the bearing surface of the heel of the mast. Although, the chainplates, shrouds and turnbuckles are of heavy construction.

The Ericson 25+ sailboat features Bruce King’s trademark ‘delta’ fin keel. King stated that this keel form has a low induced drag and the boat’s performance reinforces his belief. There was also an optional shoal draft keep which reduced the draft by a foot.

The rig of the Ericson 25+ is a high aspect ratio 7/8 sloop rig. This will help sailing upwind in light airs. They have a split backstay which should help with mast bend to control sail shape. As most came without a main boom topping lift it is helpful if a previous owner has installed one. The lack of a topping lift makes it much more difficult to reef or lower the main sail particularly if you’re short handed or solo. Be sure to keep an eye on the boom so you don’t get knocked on the noggin if there still is no topping lift.

Auxiliary power will vary from a small outboard engine to OMC gas saildrive, Volvo diesel saildrive or even a Yanmar diesel inboard. The Ericson 25+ is small enough to be pushed pretty well by a small 10 hp outboard. However, if you are planning on more than the occasional weekend or day-sail, then you’ll want to find one with one of the inboard engines. If you find one with a well maintained Yanmar diesel engine it should run more price wise and be worth the extra cost.

Specifications are:

LOA 25′ 5″

LWL 21′ 10″

Beam 9′ 3″

Draft Standard = 4′ 11″ Shoal = 3′ 11″

Displacement 5,000 lbs.

Ballast 2,000 lbs.

Below decks you’ll be pleased as it is large for a boat this size. The main cabin boasts 6 feet of headroom! There are two settees that will seat 6 in comfort and a fold-down drop leaf table will serve 4. There is enough teak to give the interior a warm classic feel while there is also enough white fiberglass to keep the dark cave feel away. Stowage can be found under each settee.

There is a stand up enclosed head aboard and has two lockers mostly filled with plumbing lines. However, an enclosed head on a boat this size is a real plus when weekend cruising with the family.

The galley will surprise you. There is a nice sized ice box (see how to convert it here) a stove and sink. The stove originally was a recessed Kenyon two burner alcohol unit with a cutting block cover. I’m not a big fan of alcohol stoves because there is too much potential for fire or explosion. Hopefully, a previous owner has replaced it.

The V berth would be more suited to sleeping a single adult or a couple of kids. There was an optional extension on the starboard settee that converts it to a double bed and while making it more difficult to reach the stowage below it is much nicer for adults.

While you’ll find that some of the amenities have been made smaller such as the sinks and hanging lockers, I think this is a great small boat. They would be a great boat for a couple to do some coastal cruising on. If you own one please leave a comment below in case I’ve missed something.  If you found this helpful, please remember I have a real estate license and if you’re going to buy or sell I’d love to refer a local agent for an interview.  It costs you nothing and if you use them, they pay me a percentage which helps me keep this blog on the web.  Again, the Ericson 25+ sailboat is a wonderful step up to an affordable cruising boat.