Udkik.dk

Review of First 27


First 27
First 27 anno 1979.

Basic specs.

sail specifications
The First 27 aka First 28 is a sailboat designed by the French maritime architect André Mauric in the late seventies. The First 27 is built by the French yard Bénéteau.

Looking for a new boat? Find a First 27 or similar boat for sale

Hull
The hull is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season. And outside the sailing season, just bottom cleaning and perhaps anti-fouling painting once a year - a few hours of work, that's all.

Interior
Interior
Interior of First 27 anno 1979.
Galley
Galley of First 27 anno 1979.

Cockpit
Cockpit
Cockpit of First 27 anno 1979.
Keel

The First 27 is equipped with a fin keel. A boat with a fin keel is more manoeuvrable but has less directional stability than a similar boat with a long keel.

The keel is made of iron. Many people prefer lead keel in favour of iron. The main argument is that lead is much heavier than iron and a lead keel can therefore be made smaller which again result in less wet surface, i.e. less drag. In fact iron is quite heavy, just 30% less heavy than lead, so the advantage of a lead keel is often overstated. As the surface of a fin type keel is just a fraction of the total wet surface, the difference between an iron keel and a lead keel can in reality be ignored for cruising yachts.

The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.56 - 1.66 meter (5.12 - 5.42 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


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 First 27 is 2.20, 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 First 27 is about 157 kg/cm, alternatively 881 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 157 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 881 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 First 27 is 2.68.

Slim Wide 88% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 88% 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 First 27 is 38%.

Low High 42% 0 50 100
This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 42% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) just below average.


RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for First 27 is 69

Slow Fast 69% 0 50 100
The relative speed performance is 69 which means that a it is faster than 69% of all similar sailboat designs.


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
UsageLengthDiameter
Jib sheet 7.9 m(26.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet7.9 m(26.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet 19.9 m(65.1 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet17.5 m(57.3 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)

Boat owner's ideas

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

Do you have changes/improvements you would like to share? Upload a photo and describe what to look for.



Finally

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for First 27 it would be a great help.

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



References