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Review of Fulmar 32


Basic specs.

sail specifications
The Fulmar 32 is a sailboat designed by the French maritime architect Edward George Dubois in the late seventies. Several hundred boats have been produced. The Fulmar 32 is built by the British yard Westerly Marine Ltd..

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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

The boat is equipped with 102.0 liter fresh water capacity.


Rig

The Fulmar 32 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

The Fulmar 32 has been built with different keel alternatives.

Fin keel

One option is a fin keel. The fin keel is the most common keel and provides splendid manoeuvrability. The downside is that it has less directional stability than a long keel.

The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.60 - 1.70 meter (5.25 - 5.55 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Bilge keel

Another option is a bilge keel. A bilge keel is a double keel, which allows the boat to be beached. Bilge keels are the most popular keel for tidal waters.

Fulmar 32 can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.60 - 1.70 meter (5.25 - 5.55 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.


Engine

The boat may be equipped with an inboard Bukh DV20 diesel engine at 20 hp (14 kW). Calculated max speed is about 5.4 knots


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 Fulmar 32 is 2.04, 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 6.8 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 Fulmar 32 is about 176 kg/cm, alternatively 989 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 176 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 989 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 Fulmar 32 is 22.6.

Low High 42% 0 50 100
Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 42% 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 Fulmar 32 is 2.92.

Slim Wide 73% 0 50 100
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.


Ballast Ratio

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Fulmar 32 is 43%.

Low High 62% 0 50 100
This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 62% 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 Fulmar 32 is 251 which categorizes this boat among 'light crusers & offshore racers'.

Heavy Light 50% 0 50 100
50% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. This boat has a precise average ratio between displacement and length!


SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

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

The SA/D for Fulmar 32 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 16.2, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 18.7.

Low High 46% 0 50 100
The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 46% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.


Over- / underrigged

Low High 54% 0 50 100
The Fulmar 32 has more rig than 54% of all similar sailboats, which indicates that the boat is slightly overrigged.


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 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.


Rig

Dimensions of sail for fractional rig.

mainsail specifications headsail specifications

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
UsageLengthDiameter
Mainsail halyard 31.0 m(101.8 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard31.0 m(101.8 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker halyard31.0 m(101.8 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Jib sheet 9.7 m(31.9 feet)12 mm(1/2 inch)
Genoa sheet9.7 m(31.9 feet)12 mm(1/2 inch)
Mainsheet 24.3 m(79.8 feet)12 mm(1/2 inch)
Spinnaker sheet21.4 m(70.2 feet)12 mm(1/2 inch)
Cunningham4.0 m(13.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Kickingstrap7.9 m(26.0 feet)10 mm(3/8 inch)
Clew-outhaul7.9 m(26.0 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 Fulmar 32 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