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Review of Alden 50


Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Alden 50 is a large sailboat designed by the American maritime architect John Gale Alden in the late sixties. The Alden 50 is built by the Chinese yard Cheoy Lee Shipyard Ltd..

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Hull

The hull is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season.


Keel

Full keel

The Alden 50 is equipped with a long keel. A full 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.

The boat can only enter major marinas as the draft is about 1.98 - 2.08 meter (6.50 - 6.80 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


Engine

The boat may be equipped with an inboard Westerbeke 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.

Stability and Safety

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Alden 50 is 1.62, 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 7.8 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 Alden 50 is about 279 kg/cm, alternatively 1566 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 279 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1566 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 Alden 50 is 43.2.

Low High 82% 0 50 100
Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 82% of all similar sailboat designs. This is a comfort value significantly above average.


L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Alden 50 is 3.83.

Wide Slim 85% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is slimmer than 85% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a significantly more speedy hull design.


Ballast Ratio

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Alden 50 is 34%.

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.


D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Alden 50 is 380 which categorizes this boat among 'heavy cruisers'.

Heavy Light 4% 0 50 100
4% 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.


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 47m2 (505 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

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 15.3 m(50.3 feet)16 mm(5/8 inch)
Genoa sheet 15.3 m(50.3 feet)16 mm(5/8 inch)
Mainsheet 38.4 m(125.8 feet)16 mm(5/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet33.7 m(110.7 feet)16 mm(5/8 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 Alden 50 (1967) 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