US Yachts US 22

The US Yachts US 22 is an American trailerable sailboat, that was designed by Gary Mull and first built in 1979.

The US 22 is a development of the 1977 Ranger 22 and the Buccaneer 220 of 1978, both Mull designs. The US 22 design was later developed into the Triton 22 and built by Pearson Yachts starting in 1985.

Production
The boat was built by US Yachts, a division of Bayliner, which is itself a division of the Brunswick Boat Group, which is in turn owned by the Brunswick Corporation. The design was constructed starting in 1979, but it is now out of production.

Design
The US 22 is a small recreational keelboat, built predominantly of hand-laid fiberglass, with teak wood trim. It has a fractional sloop rig with aluminum spars, a raked stem and reverse transom, a transom-hung rudder controlled by a tiller.

It displaces 2450 lb and carries 950 lb of ballast. The boat was factory-built with three different types of fin keels: a conventional fixed keel, a fixed shoal-draft keel and a retractable swing keel.

The boat has a draft of 4.10 ft with the standard keel and 2.60 ft with the optional shoal draft keel. The swing keel model has a draft of 5.75 ft with the keel down and 2.42 ft with it up, allowing beaching or ground transportation on a trailer.

The boat is normally fitted with a small 3 to 6 hp outboard motor for docking and maneuvering.

The design has sleeping accommodation for five people, with a double "V"-berth in the bow, a drop-down dinette table on the port side that forms a double berth and a single quarter berth on the starboard side that extends under the cockpit. The galley is located on the starboard side just forward of the companionway steps. The galley is equipped with an optional two-burner alcohol-fired stove, a single sink with hand-pumped water supply and a portable icebox. The optional head is located in the bow cabin on the port side under the forward section of the "V" berth and consists of a portable toilet. The cabin sole is teak and holly. Ventilation is provided by a hatch over the bow cabin. Below decks headroom is 57 in.

For sailing the boat is equipped with a mainsheet traveler mounted on the bridge deck, genoa tracks, an internally-mounted outhaul, topping lift and reefing system. There are two cockpit winches for the jib. The boat may be fitted with a spinnaker for downwind sailing.

All versions of the US 22 have hull speeds of 5.98 kn.

Variants

 * US 22
 * This model was introduced in 1979 with a full fin keel and a draft of 4.10 ft. It has a PHRF racing average handicap of 282.


 * US 22 SD
 * This model was introduced in 1979 with a shoal draft keel and a draft of 2.60 ft. The boat has a PHRF racing average handicap of 264.


 * US 22 Swing Keel
 * This model was introduced in 1979 with a swing keel and a draft of 5.75 ft with the keel down and 2.42 ft with it retracted.

Operational history
In a 2010 review Steve Henkel noted the wide four seat dinette table, which can be converted into a double berth. He listed the full keel version's worst features, in comparison to its competition, as, "the draft is a little high, the ballast a little low, and the headroom low, too."