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Review of LM 27


LM 27
LM 27.


Basic specs.

sail specifications
The LM 27 is a motorsailer designed by the Danish maritime architect Palle Mortensen in the early seventies. A few thousand boats have been produced. The LM 27 is built by the Danish yard LM Glasfiber A/S.

Looking for a new boat? Find a LM 27 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.
The deck is a double deck which improves the indoor climate.


Interior

The interior is like many other boats made of mahogany. Mahogany belongs to the hardwood species, known for being water-repellent and resistant to decay. It has an attractive wood grain and holds wood polish and varnish well.
The boat is equipped with 6 berths, a galley, 120.0 liter fresh water capacity and toilet facility.


Rig

The LM 27 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

Full keel

The LM 27 is equipped with a long keel. A full keel provide a better directional stability than a similar boat with a fin keel; on the other hand, better directional stability means also that the boat is more difficult to handle in a harbour with less space.

The boat can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 0.95 - 1.05 meter (3.12 - 3.42 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


Engine

The LM 27 has been equipped with different engine alternatives.

Alternative 1:

LM 27 may be equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta MD17 diesel engine at 36 hp (26 kW). Calculated max speed is about 7.3 knots

The transmission is a shaft drive. A shaft drive will in the long run require less maintenance than other types of drive e.g. a sail drive.

Alternative 2:

The boat may be equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta MD 17C diesel engine at 36 hp (26 kW). Calculated max speed is about 7.3 knots

The transmission is a shaft drive. A shaft drive will in the long run require less maintenance than other types of drive e.g. a sail drive.

Alternative 3:

The boat may be equipped with an inboard Volvo Penta MD 11C diesel engine

The transmission is a shaft drive. A shaft drive will in the long run require less maintenance than other types of drive e.g. a sail drive.

Alternative 4:

LM 27 may be equipped with an inboard Bukh DV36 diesel engine

The transmission is a shaft drive. A shaft drive will in the long run require less maintenance than other types of drive e.g. a sail drive.

Alternative 5:

The boat may be equipped with an inboard Bukh DV20ME diesel engine at 20 hp (14 kW). The speed is 7.0 knots.

The transmission is a shaft drive. A shaft drive will in the long run require less maintenance than other types of drive e.g. a sail drive.

The fuel tank, which is made of fibreglass, has a capacity of 120.0 liters (31 US gallons, 26 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 LM 27 is 1.75, 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 6.5 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 LM 27 is about 130 kg/cm, alternatively 732 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 130 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 732 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 LM 27 is 29.5.

Low High 92% 0 50 100
Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 92% 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 LM 27 is 3.04.

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 LM 27 is 45%.

Low High 73% 0 50 100
This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 73% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) just above average.


D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for LM 27 is 311 which categorizes this boat among 'medium weight cruisers'.

Heavy Light 21% 0 50 100
21% 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.


RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for LM 27 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 20m2 (215 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 8.3 m(27.4 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet8.3 m(27.4 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet 20.9 m(68.5 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet18.4 m(60.3 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 LM 27 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