Yachting Monthly — November 2017

NOVEMBER 2017 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com 83

USED BOAT TEST

OUR VERDICT

What’s she like to sail?

The Jeanneau Sunfast 42 is an exhilarating sailing machine,

a design where performance comes before all else. With

her huge rig and 140 per cent genoa she requires a full

crew to get the best out of her, but, handled seriously, she

will give you some very fast passages, even when sailed

short-handed.

The boats do not come with retractable bowsprits, but

they can be retrofi tted. This will ensure there is no dirty

wind spilling from the genoa into the spinnaker and can

also help alleviate any unwanted weather helm. Furling

sails will make her more managable.

She can be sailed solo as the sheet winches are not too

far from the wheel, but taking this boat offshore alone

would not be for the faint-hearted.

With her shallow entry, beam carried well aft, swept

back keel and minimal wetted surface, she is a boat which

will pick up speed quickly, but just as quickly lose way

when the breeze drops.

What’s she like in port and at anchor?

The Jeanneau Sunfast 42 is not the sort of boat you would

expect to fi nd nosing up a shoal creek – this test boat had

the optional lead keel and over 7ft draught. In any exposed

anchorage, with her top hamper and little hull below water,

she would be a skittish craft at anchor. Her single bow

roller means the anchor would have to be kept in the locker

if you pick up moorings.

Her cockpit has long, clear seating on either side and

the aft end of the coachroof makes a good back rest, it's

also sheltered by the sprayhood. The foredeck is free from

clutter, except if you choose to store your spinnaker pole

here, and there's room to work warps.

In a marina she'll behave predictably; this boat had the

55hp engine with a 2-bladed feathering propeller, which

gave her good power when required.

Would she suit you and your crew?

Like her name suggests, she's a fast boat, but she is from

a time when trying to make sailing ‘easy’ wasn't really a

consideration. The saloon can accommodate 10 around

the table and her galley can cater for that. Many of the 25

boats built will have had a racing career at some point, so

attention should be paid to the condition of the rig.

Below decks, she's comfortable and has has twin aft

cabins, both with double berths. There’s a double in the

bow, and the saloon can be converted too.

This is not the sort of boat for a nuclear family, unless

they are all performance-crazy, super fi t, Ben Ainslie

clones. She can be cruised, but might be a handful for

the inexperienced or those with a young family. That

said, if you can fi nd a delivery crew to get you to the

holiday destination of your winter dreams, then her

accommodation, deck space and cooking facilities are as

good or better than many tubby cruisers. Once your family

join you the Sunfast 42 will reward you with some great

sailing opportunities.

FACTS AND FIGURES
■ Price £60,000 - £100,000
■ LOA 12.70m (41ft 8in)
■ LWL 10.69m (35ft 1in)
■ Beam 3.91m (12ft 1in)
■ Draught 2.3m (7ft 7in)
■ Displacement 8,500kg
(18,739lb)
■ Ballast 3,300kg (7,040 lb)
■ Ballast ratio 38.8%
■ Sail area 102.90m^2
(1107 sq ft)
■ SA/D ratio 25.1
■ Diesel 150 litres (40 gal)

Jeanneau

Sunfast 42

Would she

suit your style

of sailing?

COASTA L

PORT-HOPPING

★★★★★

CREEK

CRAWLING

OFFSHORE

PASSAGE-MAKING

★★★★★

TRADE WIND

VOYAGING

★★★★★

HIGH-LATITUDE

ADVENTURE

★★★★★

GRAPHICS: LIZA SAWYER

■ Water 350 litres (90 gal)

■ Engine 55 hp

■ Transmission Shaft drive

■ RCD category A

■ Designer Philippe Briand

■ Builder Jeanneau Yachts,

La Rochelle

■ UK Agent See Website

■ Tel See website

■ Website

http://www.jeanneau.com

■ Owners Association

http://www.jeanneau-owners.com

Both aft cabins have good space beneath the cockpit sole