Review of LM 30
Basic specs.
If you have a photo you would like to share: Upload Image
Looking for a new boat? Find a LM 30 or similar boat for sale
The hull is made of hand laid fibreglass while the deck is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of hand laid 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.
The deck is a double deck which improves the indoor climate.
The boat is equipped with 2 cabins, 5 berths, a galley, 200.0 liter fresh water capacity and toilet facility.
The LM 30 is equipped with a masthead rig. The advantage of a masthead rig is its simplicity and the fact that a given sail area - compared with a fractional rig - can be carried lower and thus with less heeling moment.
The LM 30 has been built with different keel alternatives.
Fin keel
One option is 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 most marinas as the draft is just about 1.50 - 1.60 meter (4.92 - 5.22 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
Fin keel
Another option is 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.
LM 30 can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.50 - 1.60 meter (4.92 - 5.22 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
The LM 30 has been equipped with different engine alternatives.
Alternative 1:
The boat may be equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta MD 17C diesel engine
The transmission is a saildrive.
Alternative 2:
The boat may be equipped with an inboard Bukh DV36SME diesel engine at 36 hp (26 kW). Calculated max speed is about 6.7 knots
Alternative 3:
LM 30 may be equipped with an inboard Bukh DV20SME diesel engine at 20 hp (14 kW). The speed is 7.0 knots.
The transmission is a saildrive.
The fuel tank, which is made of stainless steel, has a capacity of 200.0 liters (52 US gallons, 43 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.
What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?
The capsize screening value for LM 30 is 1.76, 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 6.9 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 LM 30 is about 163 kg/cm, alternatively 915 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 163 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm.
Alternatively, if you load 915 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 LM 30 is 30.5.
What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?
The l/b ratio for LM 30 is 3.07.
The ballast ratio for LM 30 is 36%.
What is Displacement Length Ratio?
The DL-ratio for LM 30 is 291 which categorizes this boat among 'medium weight cruisers'.
What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?
The SA/D for LM 30 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 10.9, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 13.0.
Don't panic! It is expected that motor sailers has a low SA/D value as this is the natural consequence of the design combining sailing and motor boat characteristics.
Don't panic! It is expected that motor sailers are underrigged as this is the natural consequence of the design combining sailing and motor boat characteristics.
What is Relative Speed Performance?
The Relative Speed Performance for LM 30 is 12
Maintenance
When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy.
The surface of the wet bottom is about 27m2 (290 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.
Dimensions of sail for masthead rig.
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.
| Usage | Length | Diameter | ||
| Mainsail halyard | 26.1 m | (85.5 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Jib/genoa halyard | 26.1 m | (85.5 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Spinnaker halyard | 26.1 m | (85.5 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Jib sheet | 9.3 m | (30.7 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Genoa sheet | 9.3 m | (30.7 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Mainsheet | 23.4 m | (76.7 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Spinnaker sheet | 20.6 m | (67.5 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Cunningham | 3.1 m | (10.2 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Kickingstrap | 6.2 m | (20.3 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
| Clew-outhaul | 6.2 m | (20.3 feet) | 10 mm | (3/8 inch) |
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.
We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for LM 30 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.