There's Just So Much One Can Do
While boats have changed in many ways over the years there is just so much one can do with a design for livability in a certain length. Going "up" (higher freeboard) and "wider" (increased beam) is about it. Fortunately the "going wider" wars appear to be over. With regard to going up it seems Nauticat has done really well by keeping some good visual lines while at the same time incorporating a huge aft cabin and a pilot house. Esthetically they have done really well. Also, if you look around, they have lots of very inovative ideas. With regard to the Henderson Hunters, I took a picture of a 41 Deck Salon model at the Seattle show because of it's underbelly. It's obvious that the bow is more plumb compared to earlier models but what is not so obvious is the underbelley. It appears to me that the bow centerline comes down deeper than earlier models - maybe to provide the flotation that was taken away due to beam reduction in the forward sections? Then notice the depth below waterline at the keel section - does this look a bit deeper than earlier models? It seems to me that it does. The result here may be to create a larger bilge for plumbing, wiring, and equipment - plus - shorten the vertical keel dimension. A deeper midsection has the effect of reducing the amount of ballast ($lead$) to obtain the required righting force. As far as a “fast” design goes, well, I don’t know. It's all relative. Until one comes up with a competitive PHRF rating that can be used for comparison purposes I’ll withhold judgment. For comparisons sake, I’d take a 15-year old C&C design, say a C&C 37/40 like a 37+ or 37XL, this boat has a PHRF in the neighborhood of around 80, + or -. I wonder what the 40DS would rate at? And Gary, as long as we’re dreamin’ here, what about taking a look on the Nauticat factory web site and check out the used boats for sale. Take a peek at the 50-footers. For “just a little bit more”, why not buy a used one there and I’ll help you sail ‘er back? Nauticat "pre owned yachts": http://www.siltala.fi/
But it was on the knot-meter twice for 30 seconds or more. Not GPS, so we really were moving that fast through the water.