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Hard Chines

This year's new boat fleet featured several boats with aft sections that have more than a hint of hard chine. The question is: Do these creases in the hull improve performance? Check out the chines.
  • Updated: January 10, 2011

This year’s new boat fleet featured several boats with aft sections that had more than a hint of hard chine. The question is: Do these creases in the hull improve performance? The answer is: The added buoyancy aft may help the hull dig in on upwind beats, and be flat and fast downwind, but by the looks of the chines we saw in Annapolis, creating hull lines with a more modern and angular look may have been just a important as performance considerations. Check out the chines.

To read more Cruising World reviews of Beneteau sailboats, click here. To visit Beneteau America’s website, click here.

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The answer is: The chine aft may help upwind performance a bit but by the looks of the chines we saw in Annapolis, creating hull lines with a more modern and angular look may have been just a important as performance considerations. Here you can see the chine on Beneteau’s Sense 50 gives the hull a slightly sexier look than a rounded chine would.

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The First 30 from Beneteau also features a wide stern and hard chine section aft.

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The Jeanneau 409 has a similar hard chine aft to the Sense 50, but a whole different look.

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Now that’s a hard chine! Of course this is an aluminum double keeler I saw at the Paris boat show. The french have always loved their aluminum, hard chined cruising boats.

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In Paris, hard chines need not be confined to metal cruising boats. Here’s a sporty fiberglass daysailer with a significant hard chine.
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