First 38 S

Sailboat specifications

The First 38 is a 38’6” (11.75m) cruiser-racer sailboat designed by Berret Racoupeau Yachts Design (France). She was built between 1982 and 1985 by Bénéteau (France) with 566 hulls completed. The S version displays a taller mast and larger sail area.

The First 38 is as well listed, on Boat-Specs.com, in Deep draft and Shoal draft version (see all the versions compared).

First 38's main features

Model: First 38
Version: S
Hull type: Monohull
Category: Cruiser-racer sailboat
Sailboat builder: Bénéteau
Sailboat designer: Berret Racoupeau Yachts Design
Sailboat range: First
Country: France
Construction: GRP (glass reinforced polyester):
- Hull: Single skin fiberglass polyester
- Deck: Sandwich balsa fiberglass polyester
Number of hulls built: 566
First built hull: 1982
Last built hull: 1985
Appendages: Keel : fin without bulb
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 38's main dimensions

Overall length: 40’ 2”12.25 m
Hull length: 38’ 6”11.75 m
Waterline length: 33’ 11”10.32 m
Beam (width): 12’ 10”3.9 m
Draft: 6’ 11”2.1 m
Mast height from D_WL: 52’ 6”16 m
Light displacement (M_LC): 15653 lb7100 kg
Ballast weight: 6614 lb3000 kg
French customs tonnage: 14.00 Tx

First 38's rig and sails

Upwind sail area: 893 ft²83 m²
Downwind sail area: 1582 ft²147 m²
Mainsail area: 355 ft²33 m²
Genoa area: 538 ft²50 m²
Jib area: 355 ft²33 m²
Stormjib area: 83 ft²7.69 m²
Symmetric spinnaker area: 1227 ft²114 m²
Rigging type: Sloop Marconi masthead
Mast configuration: Keel stepped mast
Rotating spars: No
Number of levels of spreaders: 2
Spreaders angle: 0 °
Running backstays: 1 set(s)
Spars construction: Aluminum spars
Standing rigging: 1x19 strand wire

First 38'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.: 242 ft²/T22.47 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.: 428 ft²/T39.79 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.: 183
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.: 42 %
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.: 7.80 knots