Nauticat 40

Overview

The Nauticat 40 is a Sparkman & Stephens pilothouse design built by Siltala Yachts in Finland from 1984 to 1993. It was one of three S&S designs that moved Nauticat away from its earlier, tubbier motorsailers.

Design and Construction

S&S replaced the old full keel with a long-chord fin keel and hung the rudder on a skeg, cutting wetted surface while keeping directional stability. The hull is hand-laid, and the teak decks are laid over balsa core. sailboatdata.com lists 39.37 ft overall on a 32.81 ft waterline, 13.12 ft of beam and 5.75 ft of draft, with 8,819 lb of ballast in a heavy 30,865 lb displacement. The staysail ketch carries about 948 sq ft; some were rigged as cutters. The helm is in the pilothouse, with a raised center cockpit outside and a full-height aft cabin below. The mast is stepped on the keel. On the boat Good Old Boat sailed, the main halyard exits the mast from nearly deck level, so hoisting the large mainsail meant using the two-speed winch. On ketches the mizzen mast step and partners rise a few inches above deck just behind the wheel.

Under Sail

Good Old Boat’s reviewer found it sailed very well in light Pacific Northwest air and tacked smoothly, but expects motorsailer performance rather than that of a cruiser-racer. The 90 hp engine cruises at about 7.5 knots. The review calculates a low sail area/displacement ratio of 12.9 using a 100 percent foretriangle. In about 7 knots of wind the boat reached 5 knots on a close reach.

Ocean Racing Record

Bremer Speck finished the Marion-Bermuda Race in 2005.

Buyers Notes

Check the teak decks and the steering (see Known Issues). The reviewer also found the high cockpit made sheet leads awkward. The aft cabin has a queen-size berth with 6 feet 3 inches of headroom, and 230 gallons of fresh water ride in two tanks under the galley. The engine and fuel tanks are under the pilothouse and reached by removing three panels.