Review of Fingal 27

Fingal 27 anno 1965.

Basic specs.

The Fingal 27 aka Fin-Gal or Fingal aka Fingal is a sailboat designed by the Swedish maritime architect Knud Hielmberg Reimers in the mid sixties. A few hundred boats have been produced.

Looking for a new boat? Find a Fingal 27 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 of Fingal 27 anno 1968. Selv om båden har en hel del år på bagen,så er der hyggeligt om LÆ

The boat is equipped with 4 berths, a galley and toilet facility.

Rig

The Fingal 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

Keel of Fingal 27 anno 1968. Maj-2004,klar til søsætning,efter osmose beh.

Engine

The Fingal 27 has been equipped with different engine alternatives.

Alternative 1:

An outboard motor is often used on this boat. In that case the boat will typically require a power of 6 - 7 hp, alternatively 133 - 160 lbs thrust if you prefer an electrical motor. Electric outboards are becoming popular for sailboat owners who want clean instant power with less noise and no exhaust fumes.

Alternative 2:

Fingal 27 may be equipped with an inboard engine

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 Fingal 27 is 1.70, 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 6.1 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 Fingal 27 is about 103 kg/cm, alternatively 578 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 103 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 578 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 Fingal 27 is 28.1.

Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 88% 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 Fingal 27 is 3.42.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is slimmer than 88% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a significantly more speedy hull design.

D/L (Displacement Length Ratio)

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Fingal 27 is 326 which categorizes this boat among 'heavy cruisers'.

15% 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.

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

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

The SA/D for Fingal 27 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 13.8, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 16.4.

The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 24% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.

RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Fingal 27 is 18

The relative speed performance is 18 which means that a it is faster than 18% of all similar sailboat designs.

Maintenance

Rig

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.

**Guiding dimensions of running rig**
Usage	Length		Diameter
Mainsail halyard	23.3 m	(76.4 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard	23.3 m	(76.4 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Spinnaker halyard	23.3 m	(76.4 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Jib sheet	8.3 m	(27.3 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet	8.3 m	(27.3 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet	20.8 m	(68.2 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	18.3 m	(60.1 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 Fingal 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

[Ref 1]: ISO 8666 Small craft — Principal data.
[Ref 3]: ISO 12215-5 Small craft — Hull construction and scantlings.