Review of Helmsman Barracuda

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.

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 core material in the sandwich construction is balsa.

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 7-9 berths, a galley, 400.0 liter fresh water capacity and toilet facility.

Note: the boat has also been sold to be self-made/-interiored, which means that the quality of each boat may vary.

Helmsman Barracuda has more than one rig.

One option is 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.

Another option is a ketch rig. A ketch rig is generally considered easier to handle, because the sails are smaller, and because it can sail on most points to the wind with one sail completely taken down for repair or while reefing. The sail configuration of a ketch allows for better comfort and stability when sailing downwind or on a broad reach.

Fin keel

The Helmsman Barracuda 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 lead. Compared with iron, lead has the advantage of being 44% heavier, which allows a smaller keel and hence less water resistance and higher speed.

The boat can only enter major marinas as the draft is about 2.30 - 2.40 meter (7.55 - 7.85 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

The boat may be equipped with an inboard Mercedes engine at 42 hp (31 kW). The speed is 9.0 knots.

The fuel tank, which is made of stainless steel, has a capacity of 180.0 liters (47 US gallons, 39 imperial gallons).

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Helmsman Barracuda is 1.67, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - 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 8.3 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 Helmsman Barracuda is about 276 kg/cm, alternatively 1546 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 276 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1546 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Helmsman Barracuda is 30.3.

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Helmsman Barracuda is 4.08.

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Helmsman Barracuda is 51%.

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Helmsman Barracuda is 161 which categorizes this boat among 'light racers'.

As balsa wood is used as sandwich core material special care must be taken in relation to work that require penetration of the sandwich construction in order to to prevent water to get in contact with the balsa wood. Otherwise the balsa wood will eventually rotten and be expensive/impossible to repair.

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 51m² (548 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.

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.

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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.