Review of Prima 38

Basic specs.

The Prima 38 is a sailboat designed by the maritime architect Stephen Jones in the late nineties. The Prima 38 is built by the British yard Seaquest Yachts.

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Hull

Both the hull and the deck is made of hand laid fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of hand laid fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season.

Interior

The interior is like most other boats made of teak. Teak has the advantage of being naturally very oily and therefore water-repellent, which is suitable on boats.
The boat is equipped with 4 cabins, 8-10 berths, a galley, 270.0 liter fresh water capacity and toilet facility.

Rig

The Prima 38 is equipped with a fractional rig. A fractional rig has smaller headsails which make tacking easier, which is an advantage for cruisers and racers, of course. The downside is that having the wind from behind often requires a gennaker or a spinnaker for optimal speed.

Keel

Unknown keel type

The boat can only enter major marinas as the draft is about 2.50 - 2.60 meter (8.20 - 8.50 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Engine

Prima 38 may be equipped with an inboard Yanmar 3GM30 diesel engine at 28 hp (20 kW). The speed is 7.0 knots.

The transmission is a saildrive.

The fuel tank, which is made of stainless steel, has a capacity of 90.0 liters (23 US gallons, 19 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 Prima 38 is 2.10, indicating that this boat would not be accepted to participate in ocean races.

EU classification

Prima 38 holds a CE certification:

The boat is by European Union certified as Class A. OCEAN:

Designed for extended voyages where conditions may exceed wind force 8 (Beaufort scale) and significant wave heights of 4 m and above but excluding abnormal conditions, and vessels largely self-sufficient.

Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 7.9 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 Prima 38 is about 267 kg/cm, alternatively 1496 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 267 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1496 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 Prima 38 is 19.6 - 20.1.

Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 14% of all similar sailboat designs. This is a comfort value significantly below average.

L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Prima 38 is 3.04.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 73% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a slightly more spacy hull design.

D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Prima 38 is 146 which categorizes this boat among 'ultra light racers'.

88% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A light displacement requires less sailarea and has higher accellerations.

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 50m² (538 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 for fractional 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.

**Guiding dimensions of running rig**
Usage	Length		Diameter
Mainsail halyard	39.8 m	(130.4 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard	39.8 m	(130.4 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Spinnaker halyard	39.8 m	(130.4 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Jib sheet	11.6 m	(38.1 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Genoa sheet	11.6 m	(38.1 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Mainsheet	29.0 m	(95.1 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	25.5 m	(83.7 feet)	14 mm	(0.55 inch)
Cunningham	5.5 m	(17.9 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Kickingstrap	10.9 m	(35.9 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 inch)
Clew-outhaul	10.9 m	(35.9 feet)	12 mm	(1/2 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 Prima 38 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.