Review of Chess

Chess anno 1990.

Basic specs.

The Chess is a small sailboat designed by the Swedish maritime architect Carl Beyer in the late eighties. Less than 100 boats have been produced. The Chess is built by the Swedish yard Fiskebäckskils Båt.

Looking for a new boat? Find a Chess or similar boat for sale

Rig

The Chess 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 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.

The boat can enter even shallow marinas as the draft is just about 1.03 - 1.13 meter (3.38 - 3.68 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 Chess is 2.27, 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 Chess is about 69 kg/cm, alternatively 388 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 69 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 388 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 Chess is 9.7.

Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 24% 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 Chess is 3.26.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is slimmer than 95% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a significantly more speedy hull design. This type of design is also referred to as 'needle'.

Ballast Ratio

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Chess is 48%.

This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 85% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) significantly above average.

D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Chess is 109 which categorizes this boat among 'ultra light racers'.

85% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A light displacement requires less sailarea and has higher accellerations.

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

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

The SA/D for Chess with ISO 8666 reference sail is 26.2, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 29.8.

The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 97% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.

Over- / underrigged

The Chess has more rig than 97% of all similar sailboats, which indicates that the boat is significantly overrigged.

RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Chess is 98

The relative speed performance is 98 which means that a it is faster than 98% 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 12m² (129 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	20.3 m	(66.6 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard	20.3 m	(66.6 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Spinnaker halyard	20.3 m	(66.6 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Jib sheet	6.2 m	(20.5 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet	6.2 m	(20.5 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet	15.6 m	(51.3 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	13.8 m	(45.1 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Cunningham	3.0 m	(9.8 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Kickingstrap	6.0 m	(19.7 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Clew-outhaul	6.0 m	(19.7 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 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 Chess 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.