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Review of Helmsman 23


Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Helmsman 23 is a small sailboat designed by the Swedish maritime architect Håkan Södergren in the mid seventies. The Helmsman 23 is built by the Swedish yard Aktiebolaget Helmsman Yacht Design.

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Interior

The interior is like most other boats made of teak. Teak has the advantage of being naturally very oily and therefore water-repellent, which is suitable on boats.
The boat is equipped with 4,5 berths and a galley.


Rig

The Helmsman 23 is equipped with a fractional rig. A fractional rig has smaller headsails which make tacking easier, which is an advantage for cruisers and racers, of course. The downside is that having the wind from behind often requires a gennaker or a spinnaker for optimal speed.


Keel

Fin keel

The Helmsman 23 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 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 even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 1.46 - 1.56 meter (4.79 - 5.09 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


Engine

An outboard motor is often used on this boat. In that case Helmsman 23 will typically require a power of 3 - 4 hp, alternatively 72 - 87 lbs thrust if you prefer an electrical motor. Electric outboards are becoming popular for sailboat owners who want clean instant power with less noise and no exhaust fumes.


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 Helmsman 23 is 2.24, 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 Helmsman 23 is about 122 kg/cm, alternatively 688 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 122 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 688 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 Helmsman 23 is 2.67.

Slim Wide 76% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 76% 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 Helmsman 23 is 37%.

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.


SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

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

The SA/D for Helmsman 23 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 14.2, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 16.7.

Low High 24% 0 50 100
The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 24% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.


Over- / underrigged

Low High 34% 0 50 100
The Helmsman 23 has more rig than 34% 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 Helmsman 23 is 42

Slow Fast 42% 0 50 100
The relative speed performance is 42 which means that a it is faster than 42% of all similar sailboat designs.


Maintenance

Rig

Dimensions of sail for fractional rig.

mainsail specifications genoa specifications spinnaker specifications

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
UsageLengthDiameter
Mainsail halyard 21.1 m(69.1 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard21.1 m(69.1 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Spinnaker halyard21.1 m(69.1 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Jib sheet 7.0 m(23.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet7.0 m(23.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet 17.5 m(57.4 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet15.4 m(50.5 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Cunningham2.5 m(8.0 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Kickingstrap4.9 m(16.1 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Clew-outhaul4.9 m(16.1 feet)8 mm(5/16 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.

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Finally

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



References