Review of Finnsailer 35
Basic specs.
Looking for a new boat? Find a Finnsailer 35 or similar boat for sale
Both the hull and the deck is made of hand laid fibreglass. A hull made of hand laid fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season.
The boat is equipped with one cabin, 2+3 berths, a galley, 570 liters (150 US gallons, 125 imperial gallons) fresh water capacity and toilet facility.
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 Finnsailer 35 is built with a masthead rig. The sail area for the mailsail + jib is 35.0 m2 (376.6 ft2). 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.
Full keel
The Finnsailer 35 is built with a long keel. A long 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.
Finnsailer 35 can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 1.12 - 1.22 meter (3.67 - 3.97 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.
The fuel tank has a capacity of 300 liters (79 US gallons, 65 imperial gallons).
The boat may be equipped with an inboard Perkins 4.236 M diesel engine at 72 hp (53 kW). Max speed is 10.0 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.
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.
What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?
The capsize screening value for Finnsailer 35 is 1.65, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.
What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?
The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 7.3 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.
The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level.
The immersion rate for Finnsailer 35 is about 188 kg/cm, alternatively 1055 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 188 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm.
Alternatively, if you load 1055 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.
What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?
The Motion Comfort Ratio for Finnsailer 35 is 34.3.
What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?
The l/b ratio for Finnsailer 35 is 3.39.
The ballast ratio for Finnsailer 35 is 29%.
What is Displacement Length Ratio?
The DL-ratio for Finnsailer 35 is 269 which categorizes this boat among 'moderate racers'.
What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?
The SA/D for Finnsailer 35 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 9.7, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 11.2.
Don't panic! It is expected that motor sailers has a low SA/D value as this is the natural consequence of the design combining sailing and motor boat characteristics.
Maintenance
When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy.
The surface of the wet bottom is about 29m2 (312 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.
Dimensions of sail for masthead rig.
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.
| Usage | Length | Diameter | ||
| Mainsail halyard | 24.1 m | (79.2 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Jib/genoa halyard | 24.1 m | (79.2 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Spinnaker halyard | 24.1 m | (79.2 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Jib sheet | 10.6 m | (34.8 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Genoa sheet | 10.6 m | (34.8 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Mainsheet | 26.5 m | (86.9 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Spinnaker sheet | 23.3 m | (76.5 feet) | 14 mm | (0.55 inch) |
| Cunningham | 4.4 m | (14.6 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Kickingstrap | 8.9 m | (29.1 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
| Clew-outhaul | 8.9 m | (29.1 feet) | 12 mm | (1/2 inch) |
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.
We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Finnsailer 35 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.