Review of First 25.7 S

First 25.7 S anno 2008. En lättseglat båt. Bra till tävling.

Basic specs.

The First 25.7 S is a sailboat designed by the maritime architect bureau Finot-Conq et associés. The First 25.7 S is built by the French yard Bénéteau.

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Hull

The hull 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 2+2 berths and 40.0 liter fresh water capacity.

Rig

Rig of First 25.7 S.

The First 25.7 S 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.

Keel

The First 25.7 S has been built with different keel alternatives.

Fin keel

One option is a fin keel. A boat with a fin keel is more manoeuvrable but has less directional stability than a similar boat with a full keel.

The boat can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 1.45 - 1.55 meter (4.76 - 5.06 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Swing keel

Another option is a swing keel. A swing keel is a pivoting lifting keel, allowing to sail both coastal and inland waters.

First 25.7 S can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 0.85 - 0.95 meter (2.79 - 3.09 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

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 First 25.7 S is 2.15, indicating that this boat would not be accepted to participate in ocean races.

EU classification

First 25.7 S holds three CE certifications:

If less than 4 in on board the boat is by European Union certified as Class B. OFFSHORE:

Designed for offshore voyages where conditions up to, and including, wind force 8 (Beaufort scale) and significant wave heights up to, and including, 4 m may be experienced.

If less than 5 in on board the boat is by European Union certified as Class C. INSHORE:

Designed for voyages in coastal waters, large bays, estuaries, lakes and rivers where conditions up to, and including, wind force 6 (Beaufort scale) and significant wave heights up to, and including, 2 m may be experienced.

If less than 6 in on board the boat is by European Union certified as Class D. SHELTERED WATERS:

Designed for voyages on sheltered coastal waters, small bays, small lakes, rivers and canals when conditions up to, and including, wind force 4 (Beaufort scale) and significant wave heights up to, and including, 0,3 m may be experienced, with occasional waves of 0,5 m maximum height, for example from passing vessels.

Immersion rate

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for First 25.7 S is about 145 kg/cm, alternatively 815 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 145 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 815 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.

L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for First 25.7 S is 2.73.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 79% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a significantly more spacy hull design.

Maintenance

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**
Usage	Length		Diameter
Jib sheet	7.5 m	(24.6 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet	7.5 m	(24.6 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet	18.8 m	(61.5 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	16.5 m	(54.1 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 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 First 25.7 S 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

[Ref 1]: ISO 8666 Small craft — Principal data.
[Ref 3]: ISO 12215-5 Small craft — Hull construction and scantlings.