Review of Sweden Yachts 340

Basic specs.

The Sweden Yachts 340 is a sailboat designed by the Swedish maritime architect Peter Norlin together with Jens Östmann in the mid eighties. The Sweden Yachts 340 is built by the Swedish yard Sweden Yachts.

Here we would have liked to show you nice photos of the Sweden Yachts 340.
If you have a photo you would like to share: Upload Image

Looking for a new boat? Find a Sweden Yachts 340 or similar boat for sale

Hull

Both the hull and the deck 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 deck is a double deck which improves the indoor climate.

Interior

The interior is like many other boats made of mahogany. Mahogany belongs to the hardwood species, known for being water-repellent and resistant to decay. It has an attractive wood grain and holds wood polish and varnish well.
The boat is equipped with 3 cabins, 6 berths, a galley, 180.0 liter fresh water capacity, toilet facility and 80.0 liter waste water capacity.

Rig

Sweden Yachts 340 anno 1986 with spinnaker. Östlich von Falster, Sommer 2o22

The boat 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.

Keel

The Sweden Yachts 340 has been built with different keel alternatives.

Fin keel

One 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.

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 only enter major marinas as the draft is about 1.95 - 2.05 meter (6.40 - 6.70 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Wing keel

But be aware that even though a Fin Keel keel is very good for speed racing, a fishing nets and the like in the water can easily make you into a troublesome situation.

The keel is also made of lead.

Sweden Yachts 340 can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.55 - 1.65 meter (5.09 - 5.39 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Fin keel

Another option is a fin keel.

The keel is also made of lead.

The boat can only enter major marinas as the draft is about 2.02 - 2.12 meter (6.63 - 6.93 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Engine

The boat is typically equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta MD2030 diesel engine at 29 hp (21 kW). The speed is 7.0 knots.

The transmission is a saildrive.

The fuel tank, which is made of stainless steel, has a capacity of 150.0 liters (39 US gallons, 32 imperial gallons).

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 Sweden Yachts 340 is 1.98, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.

Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 7.1 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.

Immersion rate

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Sweden Yachts 340 is about 199 kg/cm, alternatively 1116 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 199 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1116 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.

Motion Comfort Ratio

What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Sweden Yachts 340 is 25.1.

Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 46% of all similar sailboat designs. This comfort value is just below average.

L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Sweden Yachts 340 is 2.97.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 73% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a slightly more spacy hull design.

Ballast Ratio

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Sweden Yachts 340 is 41%.

This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 54% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) just above average.

D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Sweden Yachts 340 is 258 which categorizes this boat among 'light crusers & offshore racers'.

46% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A heavy displacement combined with smaller water plane area has lower acceleration and is more comfortable.

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?

The SA/D for Sweden Yachts 340 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 17.5, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 20.9.

The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 62% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.

Over- / underrigged

The Sweden Yachts 340 has more rig than 46% of all similar sailboats, which indicates that the boat is slightly underrigged.

RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Sweden Yachts 340 is 76

The relative speed performance is 76 which means that a it is faster than 76% of all similar sailboat designs.

Maintenance

Bottom Paint

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.

Rig

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.

**Guiding dimensions of running rig**
Usage	Length		Diameter
Mainsail halyard	32.7 m	(107.2 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard	32.7 m	(107.2 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker halyard	32.7 m	(107.2 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Jib sheet	10.4 m	(34.1 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Genoa sheet	10.4 m	(34.1 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Mainsheet	26.0 m	(85.3 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	22.9 m	(75.1 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Cunningham	3.8 m	(12.5 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Kickingstrap	7.6 m	(24.9 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Clew-outhaul	7.6 m	(24.9 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)

Boat owner's ideas

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.

Finally

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Sweden Yachts 340 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

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