2001 311 Swing Keel

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bbyer

.
Mar 25, 2013
4
macgregor 26X Newfoundland
Hi folks,
I am new to this forum and would appreciate some information.
I am presently looking for a boat to keep in Florida as a live aboard.
Any thoughts on the Beneteau 311 swing keel would be appreciated.
Not sure about the swing keel aspect but being the owner of another swing keel boat at home it seems as it would be ideal for the thin water in FL.
Thanks for any help.
Rick
 
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
Hi folks,
I am new to this forum and would appreciate some information.
I am presently looking for a boat to keep in Florida as a live aboard.
Any thoughts on the Beneteau 311 swing keel would be appreciated.
Not sure about the swing keel aspect but being the owner of another swing keel boat at home it seems as it would be ideal for the thin water in FL.
Thanks for any help.
Rick
I have a friend in the UK that loves it. The keel is more of a centerboard that retracts into a shoal keel with winglets. The single blade rudder is replaced with two smaller outward canted rudders to keep the rudder draft the same as the retraced board.
 

reworb

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Apr 22, 2011
234
Beneteau 311 Ft Myers Beach
I have one. I bought it used and once I got the previous owners bugs worked out love the boat. To tell you the truth we very rarely put the board down as the water in Gulf is very thin and we just day sail. It's not a speed demon but it sails very nicely and really hits it's stride in about 8 knots of winds. If you have specific questions just ask here or send me a private message and I will be happy to answer them.

As an aside our first sailboat was a 26x.
 
Mar 5, 2011
14
Beneteau 311 keel/CB Suamico Wi.
On my boat, if I am overpowered it has a tendancy to round up. With the Beneteau with centerboard and the twin rudders it would appear to lack that safety feature. It appears a knock down could result. Any comments?
 
Last edited:
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
On my boat, if I am overpowered it has a tendancy to round up. With the Beneteau with centerboard and the twin rudders it would appear to lack that safety feature. It appears a knock down would be the result. Any comments?
Why would you think that? ;^) No matter what the underwater appendages look like, both boats you mention (like most modern boats) are designed to have the sailplan's CE slightly aft of the boats CLR. When the breeze comes up, all else being equal this will push the nose up and into the wind, decreasing the angle of attack of the sails and depowering the rig.
 
Oct 25, 2011
576
Island Packet IP31 Lake St. Louis, Montreal
What jackdaw said plus, as the boat heels, the path the water takes around the imersed shape of the boat becomes more asymetrical. on the windward side it becomes more straight and on the leeward side it becomes more curved. This will also help in pushing the boat up into the wind.

Matt
 
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
On my boat, if I am overpowered it has a tendancy to round up. With the Beneteau with centerboard and the twin rudders it would appear to lack that safety feature. It appears a knock down would be the result. Any comments?
Oh, maybe you are wondering about the twin rudders? People mistakenly believe that roundups is caused by a (normally single) rudder blade loosing grip. Now that will cause a wipe-out, but on most boats, round-ups are caused by the aft part of the sail-plan (normally the main) overpowering the jib and turning the boat up around its keel.
 
Jan 18, 2010
43
Beneteau 311 Cayman Islands
Mine's a swing keel and I love it. I can go pretty much anywhere in my sailing areas and not worry about the depth. Boat itself sails great. I'd buy a 311 again in a heartbeat.

As for the round-up... what they said above. It will round-up if over-canvassed. I find the twin rudders provide outstanding steering both under sail and power.
 
Mar 5, 2011
14
Beneteau 311 keel/CB Suamico Wi.
Thank you all for your info. I was definitly thinking that it had to do more with the twin rudder set up. I guess it was an uninformed opinion. Thanks for clarifying that.
 
Nov 21, 2011
4
Beneteau 311 Cape Coral
311 Swing keel for Florida

I sail a 311 swing keel out of Cape Coral.

This boat will take you places that other sail boats fear to tread, I'd say it is the ideal boat for the shallow gulf side.

Be advised that the swing keel can tend to stuck in the up position - it is a rust issue, there is not much space in the slot, and rust bubbles can fill the gap and jam it, requiring either a haul out or some scraping away at the rust while using a scuba tank.

That said, I would not swap mine because of the advantages of the swing keel.

They do heel more with the keel up, but I've not had any fear of a knock-down.

Bill
 

bbyer

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Mar 25, 2013
4
macgregor 26X Newfoundland
Thanks

The replies to all my questions have been very helpful.
Thank you all very much.
 
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