Review of Skipper Mariner

Basic specs.

The Skipper Mariner aka Mariner 17 is a small sailboat designed by the British maritime architect Peter Milne.

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Interior

The boat is equipped with 4 berths, a galley and toilet facility.

Rig

The boat equipped with a fractional rig. A fractional rig has smaller headsails which make tacking easier, which is an advantage for cruisers and racers, of course. The downside is that having the wind from behind often requires a genaker or a spinnaker for optimal speed.

Keel

The Skipper Mariner is equipped with a centerboard keel. A centerboard keel is a pivoting lifting keel, allowing to sail both coastal and inland waters.

The boat can sail close to the beach as the draft is just 0.38 - 0.48 meter (1.25 - 1.55 ft) dependent of the load. See immersion rate below.

Engine

An outboard motor is often used on this boat. In that case Skipper Mariner will typically require a power of 1 - 2 hp, alternatively 19 - 23 lbs thrust if you prefer an electrical motor. Electric outboards are becoming popular for sailboat owners who want clean instant power with less noise and no exhaust fumes.

Sailing characteristics

This section covers widely used rules of thumb to describe the sailing characteristics. Please note that even though the calculations are correct, the interpretation of the results might not be valid for extreme boats.

Stability and Safety

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Skipper Mariner is 2.86, indicating that this boat would not be accepted to participate in ocean races.

Immersion rate

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Skipper Mariner is about 74 kg/cm, alternatively 417 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 74 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 417 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

Sailing statistics

This section is statistical comparison with similar boats of the same category. The basis of the following statistical computations is our unique database with more than 26,000 different boat types and 350,000 data points.

L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Skipper Mariner is 2.41.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 79% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a significantly more spacy hull design.

Ballast Ratio

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Skipper Mariner is 26%.

This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 21% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) significantly below average.

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)
Indicates how fast the boat is in light wind:
- Cruising Boats have ratios 10-15
- Cruiser-Racers have ratios 16-20
- Racers have ratios above 20
- High-Performance Racers have ratios above 24
Sail-area/displacement ratio (SA/D ratio): 21.25

Maintenance

Rig

If you need to renew parts of your running rig and is not quite sure of the dimensions, you may find the estimates computed below useful.

**Guiding dimensions of running rig**
Usage	Length		Diameter
Jib sheet	5.2 m	(17.0 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Genoa sheet	5.2 m	(17.0 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Mainsheet	12.9 m	(42.5 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	11.4 m	(37.4 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)

Boat owner's ideas

This section shown boat owner's changes, improvements, etc. Here you might find inspiration for your boat.

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Finally

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If you have any comments to the review, improvement suggestions, or the like, feel free to contact us. Criticism helps us to improve.

References

[Ref 1]: ISO 8666 Small craft — Principal data.
[Ref 3]: ISO 12215-5 Small craft — Hull construction and scantlings.