C-Dory, the Trailerable Pilothouse Boats of the Pacific Northwest

Several owners, one fire and a Bellingham home

C-Dory has changed hands several times, always within Washington state. In 2008 Soundings named an Auburn company, C-Dory Marine Group, as the builder. The rights to C-Dory, Osprey and Skagit Orca then moved to the Ferndale operation that already owned the Sea Sport molds, which was part of Triton Marine Industries by 2011. A fire in the fall of 2013 wiped out much of that Ferndale shop and a number of molds, but enough survived for Northwest Marine Industries to reopen production on Harris Avenue in Bellingham.

Northwest Marine is family owned, with roots going back to Wright Manufacturing, a Bellingham firm dating from 1955, and the C-Dory name now shares its shop floor with Sea Sport, Osprey and Skagit Orca. The C-Dory lineup today covers 22, 23, 25 and 26-foot monohulls plus catamarans.

The 22 Cruiser and the 25 Cruiser

Two C-Dory models have their own pages here. The 22 Cruiser, launched at the start of 1987, is the boat that made the company: a light pilothouse dory with a flat run aft, a V up front and pronounced reverse chines, small enough to pull with a half-ton pickup and capable enough that owners have done the Great Loop in one. Its layout has hardly moved in close to forty years.

The 25 Cruiser is the stretched answer to what 22 owners wanted more of: a proper head with a shower, a cockpit that drains itself, more galley and more standing room. It takes considerably more outboard power and fuel than the 22, and the long-distance crowd tends to favor it. Ratings, engine history and test speeds are on the two model pages.

Resale and what to look at on a used C-Dory

C-Dorys hold value unusually well because the design changes slowly and the owner community, the C-Brats, keeps demand steady. The Pacific Northwest and Alaska supply most of the listings, with Florida a distant second. The outboard's age and size account for much of the price spread between two otherwise similar boats, and a C-Dory that lived on a trailer or under cover will usually be in far better shape than one kept in the water.

Factory support continues from Bellingham, and C-Dory sells through dealers, while the outboards are serviced by their own networks.

• Compression-test the outboard and review its service history.
• Probe the motor well and transom for cracking or softness.
• Inspect fuel tanks and fittings for leaks.
• Look for beaching damage on the bottom.
• Look for water getting in around the windows and sliding panes.
• Inspect trailer frame, brakes, bearings and tires.