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Review of Northstar 26


Northstar 26
Northstar 26 anno 1976. SY WINDFALL began in the Monroe, MI area, on Lake Erie. Christmas 2021 brought her to Marquette, MI on Lake Superior. She has been loved by her prior owners and is with her 4th owner now.

Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Northstar 26 aka Hughes 26 is a sailboat designed by the American maritime architect bureau Sparkman & Stephens in the mid seventies. The Northstar 26 is built by the Canadian yard NorthStar Yachts Ltd..

Looking for a new boat? Find a Northstar 26 or similar boat for sale

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
Interior
Interior of Northstar 26.


Cockpit
Cockpit
Cockpit of Northstar 26.
Keel
Keel
Keel of Northstar 26.

Fin keel

The Northstar 26 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 boat can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 1.22 - 1.32 meter (4.00 - 4.30 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 Northstar 26 is 2.16, 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 6.0 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 Northstar 26 is about 113 kg/cm, alternatively 634 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 113 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 634 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 Northstar 26 is 17.2.

Low High 38% 0 50 100
Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 38% of all similar sailboat designs. This comfort value is just below average.


L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Northstar 26 is 2.89.

Slim Wide 66% 0 50 100
Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 66% 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 Northstar 26 is 43%.

Low High 66% 0 50 100
This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 66% 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 Northstar 26 is 247 which categorizes this boat among 'light crusers & offshore racers'.

Heavy Light 46% 0 50 100
46% 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.


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 18m2 (193 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 7.9 m(26.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet 7.9 m(26.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet 19.8 m(65.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet17.4 m(57.2 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 Northstar 26 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