Review of Dufour 1800
Basic specs.
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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. And outside the sailing season, just bottom cleaning and perhaps anti-fouling painting once a year - a few hours of work, that's all.
Both the hull and the deck is a sandwich construction 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 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 4 berths, a galley, 95.0 liter fresh water capacity and toilet facility.
The Dufour 1800 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.
The Dufour 1800 has been built with different keel alternatives.
CentreBoard
One option is a centreboard keel. A centreboard keel is a pivoting lifting keel, allowing to sail both coastal and inland waters.
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.
The boat can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 0.75 - 0.85 meter (2.46 - 2.76 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
Deep keel
Another option is a deep keel. A deep keel provide a better healing moment than a shallow keel.
This keel is also made of iron.
Dufour 1800 can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 1.30 - 1.40 meter (4.27 - 4.57 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
Shallow keel
Another option is a shallow keel. A shallow keel allow to sail both coastal and inland waters.
This keel is also made of iron.
The boat can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 1.00 - 1.10 meter (3.28 - 3.58 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
An outboard motor is often used on this boat. In that case the boat will typically require a power of 4 - 5 hp, alternatively 80 - 96 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.
What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?
The capsize screening value for Dufour 1800 is 2.25, indicating that this boat would not 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 6.3 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 Dufour 1800 is about 121 kg/cm, alternatively 681 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 121 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm.
Alternatively, if you load 681 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.
What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?
The Motion Comfort Ratio for Dufour 1800 is 14.5.
What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?
The l/b ratio for Dufour 1800 is 2.82.
The ballast ratio for Dufour 1800 is 46%.
What is Displacement Length Ratio?
The DL-ratio for Dufour 1800 is 166 which categorizes this boat among 'light racers'.
What is Relative Speed Performance?
The Relative Speed Performance for Dufour 1800 is 54
Maintenance
When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy.
The surface of the wet bottom is about 20m2 (215 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.
| Usage | Length | Diameter | ||
| Jib sheet | 7.7 m | (25.1 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Genoa sheet | 7.7 m | (25.1 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Mainsheet | 19.1 m | (62.7 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Spinnaker sheet | 16.8 m | (55.2 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
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