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Review of Bavaria 38 Match


Bavaria 38 Match
Bavaria 38 Match anno 2008. Salamander ligger i Ardrossan, Scotland

Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Bavaria 38 Match is a sailboat designed by the American maritime architect Douglas Blair Peterson in the early 2000. The Bavaria 38 Match is built by the German yard Bavaria Yachtbau GmbH.

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Hull

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


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 2 cabins, 6 berths, a galley, 150.0 liter fresh water capacity, toilet facility and 80.0 liter waste water capacity.


Cockpit
Cockpit
Cockpit of Bavaria 38 Match.
Rig

The Bavaria 38 Match 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 Bavaria 38 Match 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 only enter major marinas as the draft is about 2.28 - 2.38 meter (7.48 - 7.78 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


Engine

The Bavaria 38 Match has been equipped with different engine alternatives.

Alternative 1:

Bavaria 38 Match may be equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta MD2030 diesel engine at 29 hp (21 kW). Calculated max speed is about 6.2 knots

The transmission is a saildrive.

Alternative 2:

The boat may be equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta D1-30 diesel engine at 28 hp (20 kW). Calculated max speed is about 6.1 knots

The fuel tank has a capacity of 90.0 liters (23 US gallons, 19 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 Bavaria 38 Match is 2.01, indicating that this boat would not 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 Bavaria 38 Match is about 255 kg/cm, alternatively 1428 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 255 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1428 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 Bavaria 38 Match is 22.4.

Low High 21% 0 50 100
Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 21% of all similar sailboat designs. This is a comfort value significantly below average.


L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Bavaria 38 Match is 3.07.

Slim Wide 69% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 69% 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 Bavaria 38 Match is 31%.

Low High 12% 0 50 100
This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 12% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) significantly below average.


D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Bavaria 38 Match is 163 which categorizes this boat among 'light racers'.

Heavy Light 85% 0 50 100
85% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A light displacement requires less sailarea and has higher accellerations.


RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Bavaria 38 Match is 96

Slow Fast 96% 0 50 100
The relative speed performance is 96 which means that a it is faster than 96% 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 46m2 (495 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 11.4 m(37.3 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Genoa sheet11.4 m(37.3 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Mainsheet 28.4 m(93.2 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Spinnaker sheet25.0 m(82.0 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 Bavaria 38 Match 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