Swan 51

The Swan 51 is a Finnish sailboat that was designed by Germán Frers as a racer-cruiser and first built in 1980. It was the first Swan design by Frers and led to a long collaboration between Frers and the manufacturer.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Swan 51

Development
Designer	Germán Frers
Location	Finland
Year	1980
No. built	36
Builder(s)	Oy Nautor AB
Role	Racer-Cruiser
Name	Swan 51
Boat
Displacement	39,600 lb (17,962 kg)
Draft	8.90 ft (2.71 m)
Hull
Type	monohull
Construction	glassfibre
LOA	51.25 ft (15.62 m)
LWL	42.33 ft (12.90 m)
Beam	14.67 ft (4.47 m)
Engine type	Perkins Engines 73 hp (54 kW) diesel engine
Hull appendages
Keel/board type	Fin keel
Ballast	16,500 lb (7,484 kg)
Rudder(s)	Spade-type rudder
Rig
Rig type	Bermuda rig
I foretriangle height	69.50 ft (21.18 m)
J foretriangle base	20.90 ft (6.37 m)
P mainsail luff	62.70 ft (19.11 m)
E mainsail foot	18.00 ft (5.49 m)
Sails
Sailplan	Masthead sloop
Mainsail area	564.30 sq ft (52.425 m2)
Jib/genoa area	726.28 sq ft (67.474 m2)
Total sail area	1,290.58 sq ft (119.899 m2)
Racing
PHRF	27-54

Production

The design was built by Oy Nautor AB in Finland, from 1980 to 1985, with 36 boats completed, but it is now out of production.^{[1][2][3][8][9]}

Design

Swan 51 showing mast height and spreaders

The Swan 51 is a racing keelboat, built predominantly of glassfibre, with wood trim. It has a masthead sloop rig, three sets of unswept spreaders and aluminium spars. The hull has a raked stem, a reverse transom, an internally mounted spade-type rudder controlled by a wheel and a fixed fin keel or optional keel and centreboard. It displaces 39,600 lb (17,962 kg) and carries 16,500 lb (7,484 kg) of lead ballast.^{[1][2][3][10]}

The boat has a draft of 8.90 ft (2.71 m) with the standard fin keel.^[1][2][3]

The boat is fitted with a British Perkins Engines diesel engine of 73 hp (54 kW) for docking and manoeuvring. The fuel tank holds 69 U.S. gallons (260 L; 57 imp gal) and the fresh water tank has a capacity of 184 U.S. gallons (700 L; 153 imp gal).^[1][2][3]

The design has sleeping accommodation for six people, with a double bunk beds in the forward cabin, a U-shaped settee and a straight settee in the main cabin with a pilot berth above to port and an aft cabin with a double berth and a single berth. The galley is located on the port side just aft of the companionway ladder. The galley is U-shaped and is equipped with a three-burner stove, an ice box and a double sink. A navigation station is opposite the galley, on the starboard side. There are two heads, one in the bow cabin on the starboard side and one on the port side in the aft cabin.^[1][2][3]

The design has a hull speed of 8.72 kn (16.15 km/h) and a PHRF handicap of 27 to 54 for the fin keel model and 42 to 54 for the centreboard version.^{[1][2][3][10]}

Operational history

In 2013 boats.com named the design as one of the "6 of the best Nautor's Swan yachts of all-time".^[7]

See also

• List of sailing boat types