42 first's drafts

[lyall]

Can anyone tell me what the standard draft is on a first 42.And is it a fin or whotever style of keel?And is the 5'4" shoal draft design a good west coast boat for up wind and down wind sailing?On the west coast of British Columbia we get very little reaching

 

[Steve Fredrick]

First 42

LyallAssuming you mean the First 42 produced from 1983 to 1987, the standard draft is 7'3"; the shoal dfraft is 6'4". Most keels are cast iron, but there are a few lead keels out there, some of which are custom with bulbs at 5' 6" /-. I know of one bulb keel in the northeast.The 6'4" keel performs quite well to windward and will point with a J105, Tripp 33, etc. I race them regularly. Off the wind the boat is very fast. I have no experience with any of the custom shoal keels, but I would investigate carefully before I strayed too far from the Frers designStevev Fredrick