First 28 Swing keel

Sailboat specifications

The First 28 is a 28’2” (8.6m) cruiser-racer sailboat designed by Groupe Finot (France). She was built between 1980 and 1983 by Bénéteau (France). The Swing keel version features an appendage configuration without compromise between draft and performance. The only drawbacks are the space is taken inside and the effort needed to lift the keel....

The First 28 is as well listed, on Boat-Specs.com, in Shoal draft and Deep draft version (see all the versions compared).

First 28's main features

Model: First 28
Version: Swing keel
Hull type: Monohull
Category: Cruiser-racer sailboat
Sailboat builder: Bénéteau
Sailboat designer: Groupe Finot
Sailboat range: First
Country: France
Construction: GRP (glass reinforced polyester):
- Hull: Single skin fiberglass polyester
- Deck: Sandwich balsa fiberglass polyester
Number of hulls built: About 600
First built hull: 1980
Last built hull: 1983
Appendages: Lifting keel : swing keel
Helm: Single tiller
Rudder: Single spade rudder
Unsinkable: No
Trailerable: No
Standard public price ex. VAT (indicative only): N/A €

First 28's main dimensions

Overall length: 28’ 10”8.79 m
Hull length: 28’ 2”8.6 m
Waterline length: 24’ 4”7.4 m
Beam (width): 9’ 10”3 m
Draft: 6’ 11”2.1 m
Draft when appendages up: 3’ 10”1.15 m
Light displacement (M_LC): 5952 lb2700 kg
Maximum displacement (M_LDC): 2205 lb1000 kg
Ballast type: Cast iron
French customs tonnage: 6.98 Tx

First 28's rig and sails

Upwind sail area: 472 ft²43.85 m²
Downwind sail area: 853 ft²79.25 m²
Mainsail area: 164 ft²15.25 m²
Genoa area: 308 ft²28.6 m²
Solent area: 251 ft²23.3 m²
Jib area: 167 ft²15.5 m²
Stormjib area: 46 ft²4.3 m²
Symmetric spinnaker area: 689 ft²64 m²
I iFore triangle height (from mast foot to fore stay top attachment): 34’ 5”10.5 m
J iFore triangle base (from mast foot to bottom of forestay): 11’ 6”3.5 m
P iMainsail hoist measurement (from tack to head): 29’ 11”9.12 m
E iMainsail foot measurement (from tack to clew): 9’ 6”2.9 m
Rigging type: Sloop Marconi masthead
Mast configuration: Deck stepped mast
Rotating spars: No
Number of levels of spreaders: 1
Spreaders angle: 0 °
Spars construction: Aluminum spars
Standing rigging: 1x19 strand wire continuous

First 28's performances

HN (French rating) iHN or "Handicap Nationale" is an empirical rating system used in France allowing various monohulls, of different sizes and designs, to race each other fairly. It is particularly suitable for cruiser and cruiser-racer. Therefore, by comparing these values, we can have an indication of the relative speed of 2 boats.: 15.0
Upwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size. Upwind: under 18 the ratio indicates a cruise oriented sailboat with limited performances especially in light wind, while over 25 it indicates a fast sailboat.: 243 ft²/T22.61 m²/T
Downwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size.: 440 ft²/T40.87 m²/T
Displacement-length ratio (DLR) iThe Displacement Length Ratio (DLR) is a figure that points out the boat's weight compared to its waterline length. The DLR is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement in tons by the cube of one one-hundredth of the waterline length (in feet). The DLR can be used to compare the relative mass of different sailboats no matter what their length: a DLR less than 180 is indicative of a really light sailboat (race boat made for planning), while a DLR greater than 300 is indicative of a heavy cruising sailboat.: 189
Critical hull speed iAs a ship moves in the water, it creates standing waves that oppose its movement. This effect increases dramatically the resistance when the boat reaches a speed-length ratio (speed-length ratio is the ratio between the speed in knots and the square root of the waterline length in feet) of about 1.2 (corresponding to a Froude Number of 0.35) . This very sharp rise in resistance, between speed-length ratio of 1.2 to 1.5, is insurmountable for heavy sailboats and so becomes an apparent barrier. This leads to the concept of "hull speed". The hull speed is obtained by multiplying the square root of the waterline length (in feet) by 1.34.: 6.60 knots