YachtDatabase.com

Review of Bénéteau 461


Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Bénéteau 461 is a large sailboat designed in the late nineties. The Bénéteau 461 is built by the French yard Bénéteau.

Here we would have liked to show you nice photos of the Bénéteau 461.
If you have a photo you would like to share: Upload Image

Looking for a new boat? Find a Bénéteau 461 or similar boat for sale

Hull

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


Keel

Wing keel

But be aware that even though a Wing 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 boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.74 - 1.84 meter (5.71 - 6.01 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


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.

Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 8.4 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 Bénéteau 461 is about 337 kg/cm, alternatively 1891 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 337 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1891 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 Bénéteau 461 is 3.34.

Slim Wide 62% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 62% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a slightly more spacy hull design.


Over- / underrigged

Low High 85% 0 50 100
The Bénéteau 461 has more rig than 85% of all similar sailboats, which indicates that the boat is significantly overrigged.


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 53m2 (570 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.

mainsail specifications headsail 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 37.0 m(121.6 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard37.0 m(121.6 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Spinnaker halyard37.0 m(121.6 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Jib sheet 14.2 m(46.5 feet)16 mm(5/8 inch)
Genoa sheet14.2 m(46.5 feet)16 mm(5/8 inch)
Mainsheet 35.4 m(116.2 feet)16 mm(5/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet31.2 m(102.3 feet)16 mm(5/8 inch)
Cunningham5.2 m(17.0 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Kickingstrap10.4 m(34.0 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Clew-outhaul10.4 m(34.0 feet)14 mm(0.55 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 Bénéteau 461 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