Review of Swan 46
Basic specs.
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The Swan 46 has been built with more than one type of keel.
One option is a long keel. A long keel provide a better directional stability than a similar boat with a fin keel; on the other hand, better directional stability means also that the boat is more difficult to handle in a harbour with less space.
Another option is a fin keel. The fin keel is the most common keel and provides splendid manoeuvrability. The downside is that it has less directional stability than a long keel.
Another option is a centerboard keel. A centerboard keel is a pivoting lifting keel, allowing to sail both coastal and inland waters.
The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.68 - 1.78 meter (5.51 - 5.81 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
Swan 46 is typically equipped with an inboard Perkins 4.154 diesel engine at 60.0 hp (44 kW).
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.
What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?
The capsize screening value for Swan 46 is 1.85, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.
The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level.
The immersion rate for Swan 46 is about 427 kg/cm, alternatively 2393 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 427 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm.
Alternatively, if you load 2393 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.
What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?
The l/b ratio for Swan 46 is 3.25.
What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?
The SA/D for Swan 46 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 15.9, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 19.0.
Maintenance
Dimensions of sail.
Are your sails worn out? You might find your next sail here: Sails for Sale
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.
| Usage | Length | Diameter | ||
| Mainsail halyard | 40.5 m | (133.0 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Jib/genoa halyard | 40.5 m | (133.0 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Spinnaker halyard | 40.5 m | (133.0 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Jib sheet | 14.4 m | (47.2 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Genoa sheet | 14.4 m | (47.2 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Mainsheet | 36.0 m | (118.1 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Spinnaker sheet | 31.7 m | (103.9 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Cunningham | 5.2 m | (16.9 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Kickingstrap | 10.3 m | (33.8 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Clew-outhaul | 10.3 m | (33.8 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
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