Tonic 23

The Tonic 23 is a French trailerable sailboat, that was designed by Philippe Harlé as a coastal cruiser and first built in 1985.

Production
The design was built by Jeanneau in France from 1985 until 1992, but it is now out of production. During its production run about 750 boats were completed.

Design
The Tonic 23 is a recreational keelboat, built predominantly of monolithic polyester fiberglass, with wood trim. The deck includes a balsawood core. It has a fractional sloop rig with a deck-stepped aluminium mast with a single set of swept-back spreaders, a raked stem, a vertical transom, a transom-hung rudder controlled by tiller and a fixed fin keel or optionally a stub keel and centerboard. The fixed keel version displaces 2866 lb and carries 992 lb of cast iron ballast, while the stub keel and centerboard version displaces 2932 lb and carries 1058 lb of cast iron exterior ballast with the centerboard made from steel.

The keel-equipped version of the boat has a draft of 3.67 ft, while the centerboard-equipped version has a draft of 4.50 ft with the centerboard extended and 2.33 ft with it retracted, allowing ground transportation on a trailer.

For downwind sailing the boat can be equipped with a spinnaker of 364 sqft.

The boat is normally fitted with a small 3 to 6 hp outboard motor for docking and maneuvering or optionally an inboard motor could be installed. The design has a hull speed of 6.04 kn and the fresh water tank has a capacity of 5.3 u.s.gal

The design has sleeping accommodation for four people, with a double "V"-berth in the bow cabin, with a drop-down dinette table and an aft cabin with a double berth on the port side. The galley is located on the port side just forward of the companionway ladder. The galley is L-shaped and is equipped with a stove, icebox and a sink. A navigation station is opposite the galley, on the starboard side. The enclosed head is located on the starboard side at the companionway. Cabin headroom is 67 in.

The design has a PHRF racing average handicap of 225 and a hull speed of 6.0 kn.

Operational history
In a 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "best features: Comparing statistics among the comps, the 5' 7" headroom featured in the Tonic pops right out. Also a plus is her beam ... To our knowledge, the Tonic is not known for her speed, so her average PHRF rating of 225 seems low to us ... Worst features: The Tonic’s iron keel will require regular maintenance to keep from weeping rust."