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Review of Marieholm AC 20




Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Marieholm AC 20 aka Marieholm 20 is a small sailboat designed by the Swedish maritime architect Olle Enderlein. The Marieholm AC 20 is built by the Swedish yard Marieholms Bruk AB.

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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.


Keel

Fin keel

The Marieholm AC 20 is equipped with 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 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 even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 0.90 - 1.00 meter (2.95 - 3.25 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


Engine

An outboard motor is often used on this boat. In that case the boat will typically require a power of 3 - 4 hp, alternatively 55 - 66 lbs thrust if you prefer an electrical motor. Electric outboards are becoming popular for sailboat owners who want clean instant power with less noise and no exhaust fumes.


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 Marieholm AC 20 is 2.11, 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 5.6 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 Marieholm AC 20 is about 79 kg/cm, alternatively 447 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 79 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 447 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 Marieholm AC 20 is 16.2.

Low High 79% 0 50 100
Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 79% 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 Marieholm AC 20 is 2.71.

Slim Wide 50% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 50% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen an average hull design.


Ballast Ratio

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Marieholm AC 20 is 29%.

Low High 24% 0 50 100
This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 24% 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 Marieholm AC 20 is 233 which categorizes this boat among 'light crusers & offshore racers'.

Heavy Light 27% 0 50 100
27% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A heavy displacement combined with smaller water plane area has lower acceleration and is more comfortable.


SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?

The SA/D for Marieholm AC 20 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 12.6, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 14.4.

Low High 8% 0 50 100
The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 8% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.


Over- / underrigged

Low High 73% 0 50 100
The Marieholm AC 20 has more rig than 73% of all similar sailboats, which indicates that the boat is slightly overrigged.


RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Marieholm AC 20 is 4

Slow Fast 4% 0 50 100
The relative speed performance is 4 which means that a it is faster than 4% 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 13m2 (139 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

Dimensions of sail.

mainsail specifications genoa specifications

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.



Guiding dimensions of running rig
UsageLengthDiameter
Mainsail halyard 18.3 m(60.0 feet)6 mm(1/4 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard18.3 m(60.0 feet)6 mm(1/4 inch)
Spinnaker halyard18.3 m(60.0 feet)6 mm(1/4 inch)
Jib sheet 6.1 m(20.0 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Genoa sheet6.1 m(20.0 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Mainsheet 15.2 m(50.0 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Spinnaker sheet13.4 m(44.0 feet)8 mm(5/16 inch)
Cunningham2.5 m(8.2 feet)6 mm(1/4 inch)
Kickingstrap5.0 m(16.4 feet)6 mm(1/4 inch)
Clew-outhaul5.0 m(16.4 feet)6 mm(1/4 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.

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Finally

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Marieholm AC 20 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