– LeComte Yachts Archive –

The Northeast 38 Mk III is built with a masthead rig. The sail area for the mailsail + jib is 58.3 m² (628.0 ft²). The advantage of a masthead rig is its simplicity and the fact that a given sail area – compared with a fractional rig – can be carried lower and thus with less heeling moment.

The Northeast 38 Mk III is built with a long keel. A long keel provide a better directional stability than a similar boat with a fin keel. The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.62 – 1.72 meter (5.31 – 5.61 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

The capsize screening value for Northeast 38 Mk III is 1.86, indicating that this boat could – if evaluated by this formula alone – be accepted to participate in ocean races. The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 6.9 knots. The term “Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed” is widely used even though a boat can sail faster. The term shall be interpreted as above the theoretical speed a great additional power is necessary for a small gain in speed.

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Northeast 38 Mk III is about 181 kg/cm, alternatively 1015 lbs/inch. Meaning: if you load 181 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 1015 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Northeast 38 Mk III is 27.4. Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 42% of all similar sailboat designs. This comfort value is just below average.

The l/b ratio for Northeast 38 Mk III is 3.50. Compared with other similar sailboats it is slimmer than 73% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a slightly more speedy hull design. The DL-ratio for Northeast 38 Mk III is 305 which categorizes this boat among ‘medium weight cruisers’.

27% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A heavy displacement combined with smaller water plane area has lower acceleration and is more comfortable.

The SA/D for Northeast 38 Mk III with ISO 8666 reference sail is 18.2, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 21.5. The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 62% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it’s nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 30m² (322 ft²).

Based on this, your favourite maritime shop can tell you the quantity you need.