Review of Nordship 39 DS

The hull is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season.
The hull is a double hull which improves the indoor climate. Especially when the water is colder than the air in the cabin, then the double hull insulates against cold water and reduce the condense water in the cabin.

The boat is equipped with 3 cabins, 5 el. 7 berths, a galley, 275.0 liter fresh water capacity and toilet facility.

The Nordship 39 DS is equipped with a masthead rig. The advantage of a masthead rig is its simplicity and the fact that a given sail area - compared with a fractional rig - can be carried lower and thus with less heeling moment.

Fin keel

The Nordship 39 DS is equipped with 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.

The keel is made of lead. Compared with iron, lead has the advantage of being 44% heavier, which allows a smaller keel and hence less water resistance and higher speed.

The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.72 - 1.82 meter (5.64 - 5.94 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Nordship 39 DS may be equipped with an inboard Yanmar diesel engine at 50 hp (37 kW). Calculated max speed is about 6.8 knots

The fuel tank has a capacity of 190.0 liters (50 US gallons, 41 imperial gallons).

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Nordship 39 DS is 1.86, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 7.2 knots. The term "Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed" is widely used even though a boat can sail faster. The term shall be interpreted as above the theoretical speed a great additional power is necessary for a small gain in speed.

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Nordship 39 DS is about 215 kg/cm, alternatively 1205 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 215 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1205 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Nordship 39 DS is 30.2.

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Nordship 39 DS is 3.29.

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Nordship 39 DS is 38%.

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Nordship 39 DS is 318 which categorizes this boat among 'medium weight cruisers'.

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 35m² (376 ft²).
Based on this, your favourite maritime shop can tell you the quantity you need.

Note: If you use a paint roller you will need more paint than if you use a paintbrush.

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.

This section is reserved boat owner's modifications, improvements, etc. Here you might find (or contribute with) inspiration for your boat.

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

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Nordship 39 DS 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.