First 42s7 Shoal draft

Sailboat specifications

The First 42s7 is a 41’8” (12.7m) cruiser-racer sailboat designed by Farr Yacht Design (United States). She was built since 1994 (and now discontinued) by Bénéteau (France). The Shoal draft version features a shorter keel to grant access to shallow areas.

The First 42s7 is as well listed, on Boat-Specs.com, in Lead keel version (see all the versions compared).

First 42s7's main features

Model: First 42s7
Version: Shoal draft
Hull type: Monohull
Category: Offshore cruiser-racer sailboat
Sailboat builder: Bénéteau
Sailboat designer: Farr Yacht Design
Sailboat range: First
Country: France
Construction: GRP (glass reinforced polyester):
- Hull: Single skin fiberglass polyester
- Deck: Sandwich balsa fiberglass polyester
First built hull: 1994
Last built hull: Discontinued
Appendages: Keel : wing keel
Helm: Single helm wheel
Rudder: Single spade rudder
Unsinkable: No
Trailerable: No
Former French navigation category: 1
Standard public price ex. VAT (indicative only): N/A €

First 42s7's main dimensions

Overall length: 42’ 6”12.95 m
Hull length: 41’ 8”12.7 m
Waterline length: 35’ 10”10.9 m
Beam (width): 13’ 6”4.12 m
Draft: 5’ 8”1.75 m
Light displacement (M_LC): 18739 lb8500 kg
Ballast weight: 6173 lb2800 kg
Ballast type: Cast iron

First 42s7's rig and sails

Upwind sail area: 1033 ft²95.97 m²
Downwind sail area: 1705 ft²158.42 m²
Mainsail area: 467 ft²43.42 m²
Genoa area: 566 ft²52.55 m²
Symmetric spinnaker area: 1238 ft²115 m²
Rigging type: Sloop Marconi 7/8
Mast configuration: Keel stepped mast
Rotating spars: No
Number of levels of spreaders: 2
Spreaders angle: 14 °
Spars construction: Aluminum spars
Standing rigging: 1x19 strand wire

First 42s7's performances

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.: 248 ft²/T23.04 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.: 409 ft²/T38.04 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.: 186
Ballast ratio iThe Ballast ratio is an indicator of stability; it is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement by the mass of the ballast. Since the stability depends also of the hull shapes and the position of the center of gravity, only the boats with similar ballast arrangements and hull shapes should be compared. The higher the ballast ratio is, the greater is the stability.: 33 %
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.: 8.01 knots