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Review of Finnsailer 38


Finnsailer 38
Finnsailer 38 anno 1976.


Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Finnsailer 38 aka Finnsailer 38 MS is a motorsailer designed by the maritime architect bureau Oy Fiskars in the mid seventies. The Finnsailer 38 is built by the Finnish yard OY Fiskars AB.

Looking for a new boat? Find a Finnsailer 38 or similar boat for sale

Hull

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.


Interior

The boat is equipped with 3 cabins, 10 berths, a galley and 435.0 liter fresh water capacity.


Rig

The Finnsailer 38 is equipped with 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.


Keel

Fin keel

The Finnsailer 38 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 boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.58 - 1.68 meter (5.18 - 5.48 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


Engine

Finnsailer 38 may be equipped with an inboard Perkins diesel engine at 72 hp (53 kW). The speed is 10.0 knots.

The fuel tank has a capacity of 400.0 liters (105 US gallons, 87 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 Finnsailer 38 is 1.71, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - 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 7.6 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 Finnsailer 38 is about 234 kg/cm, alternatively 1311 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 234 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1311 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 Finnsailer 38 is 34.6.

Low High 85% 0 50 100
Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 85% of all similar sailboat designs. This is a comfort value significantly above average.


L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Finnsailer 38 is 3.14.

Slim Wide 58% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 58% 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 Finnsailer 38 is 39%.

Low High 46% 0 50 100
This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 46% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) just below average.


D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Finnsailer 38 is 258 which categorizes this boat among 'light crusers & offshore racers'.

Heavy Light 50% 0 50 100
50% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. This boat has a precise average ratio between displacement and length!


SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)
Indicates how fast the boat is in light wind:
- Cruising Boats have ratios 10-15
- Cruiser-Racers have ratios 16-20
- Racers have ratios above 20
- High-Performance Racers have ratios above 24
Sail-area/displacement ratio (SA/D ratio): 14.57


RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Finnsailer 38 is 1

Slow Fast 1% 0 50 100
The relative speed performance is 1 which means that a it is faster than 1% of all similar sailboat designs. As this boat is a motor sailer, it is expected that the performance of a motor sailer for sail alone is lower than a dedicated sailboat.


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 38m2 (409 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 11.1 m(36.4 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Genoa sheet11.1 m(36.4 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Mainsheet 27.8 m(91.0 feet)14 mm(0.55 inch)
Spinnaker sheet24.4 m(80.1 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 Finnsailer 38 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