Review of First 435
Basic specs.
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The First 435 is equipped with a centerboard keel. A centerboard keel is a pivoting lifting keel, allowing to sail both coastal and inland waters.
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.
The boat can only enter major marinas as the draft is about 2.30 - 2.40 meter (7.55 - 7.85 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
First 435 is typically equipped with an inboard Perkins 4.108 diesel engine.
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 First 435 is 1.89, 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 First 435 is about 358 kg/cm, alternatively 2006 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 358 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm.
Alternatively, if you load 2006 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 First 435 is 3.28.
The ballast ratio for First 435 is 39%.
What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?
The SA/D for First 435 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 17.5, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 20.9.
Maintenance
Dimensions of sail for masthead rig.
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 | 38.5 m | (126.5 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Jib/genoa halyard | 38.5 m | (126.5 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Spinnaker halyard | 38.5 m | (126.5 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Jib sheet | 13.2 m | (43.4 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Genoa sheet | 13.2 m | (43.4 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Mainsheet | 33.1 m | (108.6 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Spinnaker sheet | 29.1 m | (95.6 feet) | 16 mm | (5/8 inch) |
| Cunningham | 4.8 m | (15.6 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Kickingstrap | 9.5 m | (31.2 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Clew-outhaul | 9.5 m | (31.2 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
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