Review of Helmsman 23

Basic specs.

The Helmsman 23 is a small sailboat designed by the Swedish maritime architect Håkan Södergren in the mid seventies.

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Interior

The interior is like most other boats made of teak. Teak has the advantage of being naturally very oily and therefore water-repellent, which is suitable on boats.
The boat is equipped with 4,5 berths and a galley.

Rig

The boat equipped with a fractional rig. A fractional rig has smaller headsails which make tacking easier, which is an advantage for cruisers and racers, of course. The downside is that having the wind from behind often requires a genaker or a spinnaker for optimal speed.

Engine

An outboard motor is often used on this boat. In that case the boat will typically require a power of 3 - 4 hp, alternatively 72 - 87 lbs thrust if you prefer an electrical motor. Electric outboards are becoming popular for sailboat owners who want clean instant power with less noise and no exhaust fumes.

Sailing characteristics

This section covers widely used rules of thumb to describe the sailing characteristics. Please note that even though the calculations are correct, the interpretation of the results might not be valid for extreme boats.

Stability and Safety

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Helmsman 23 is 2.24, indicating that this boat would not be accepted to participate in ocean races.

Immersion rate

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Helmsman 23 is about 122 kg/cm, alternatively 688 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 122 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 688 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

Sailing statistics

This section is statistical comparison with similar boats of the same category. The basis of the following statistical computations is our unique database with more than 26,000 different boat types and 350,000 data points.

L/B (Length Beam Ratio)

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Helmsman 23 is 2.67.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 76% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a significantly more spacy hull design.

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)

What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?

The SA/D for Helmsman 23 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 14.2, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 16.7.

The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 24% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.

RSP (Relative Speed Performance)

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Helmsman 23 is 42

The relative speed performance is 42 which means that a it is faster than 42% of all similar sailboat designs.

Maintenance

Rig

Dimensions of sail for fractional rig.

Are your sails worn out? You might find your next sail here: Sails for Sale

If you need to renew parts of your running rig and is not quite sure of the dimensions, you may find the estimates computed below useful.

**Guiding dimensions of running rig**
Usage	Length		Diameter
Mainsail halyard	21.1 m	(69.1 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Jib/genoa halyard	21.1 m	(69.1 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Spinnaker halyard	21.1 m	(69.1 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Jib sheet	7.0 m	(23.0 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Genoa sheet	7.0 m	(23.0 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Mainsheet	17.5 m	(57.4 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Spinnaker sheet	15.4 m	(50.5 feet)	10 mm	(3/8 inch)
Cunningham	2.5 m	(8.0 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Kickingstrap	4.9 m	(16.1 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)
Clew-outhaul	4.9 m	(16.1 feet)	8 mm	(5/16 inch)

Boat owner's ideas

This section is reserved boat owner's changes, improvements, etc. Here you might find (or contribute with) inspiration for your boat.

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Finally

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Helmsman 23 it would be a great help.

If you have any comments to the review, improvement suggestions, or the like, feel free to contact us. Criticism helps us to improve.

References

[Ref 1]: ISO 8666 Small craft — Principal data.
[Ref 3]: ISO 12215-5 Small craft — Hull construction and scantlings.