The light oak finish
helps to accentuate
a spacious interiorany easy solution to this problem without a signifi cant
engineering modifi cation and my own solution would be to
stand when hand steering and use the chair as a look out
position while the autopilot was engaged. In reality, I wonder
how many owners of the Amel 50 will actually choose to hand
steer when sailing any distance.
The instrument and control panel sit in front of the wheel,
housing navigation screens and all operational controls. All
winches and furlers can be controlled from the wheel as well as
the windlass and engine. Furling controls are on joysticks
rather than buttons, which I found very user friendly.
DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION
Not only has this new sloop broken a 20-year run of ketches by
Amel, but it is the fi rst model to be made using vacuum
infusion and also the fi rst to sport twin rudders. Despite these
substantial changes the Amel trademarks are still evident: all
bulkheads and furniture are laminated in place; there are four
watertight bulkheads, the deck is made from ‘Amel Teak’ – a
no-maintenance gelcoat fi nish moulded to look like a teak
deck – and there is a solid, hip-height stainless steel handrail
surrounding the entire deck.
The 50 has a angular, modern look with a blunt stem head
and stainless-steel bowsprit and anchor housing, a full volume
bow, and little sheer along the length. Under the water the hull
has a fair amount of rocker and a cast iron L-shaped keel.
Everything about the Amel 50 seems well engineered with
foresight to avoid failure or breakages. The result is solid, but
surprisingly has not brought a huge weight penalty – with a
displacement of 18.75 tonnes the Amel 50 is comparable to
other boats of this genre.RIG & SAILPLAN
Previous Amel ketches have made sail handling easier by
splitting the aft sail area between two masts. This 50 footer,
with a mainsail of 64m^2 has been considered small enough to
handle on a single mast and I agree. Building the 50 as a sloop
has kept costs down, and created more space both on deck and
down below; no need for mizzen reinforcement.
The standard boat comes with an in-mast furling mainsail
and electric roller furling genoa. Our test boat had the optional
self-tacking staysail, also on an electric furler. For me the
addition of a staysail is a ‘no brainer’; on our test we tried
sailing upwind both with genoa only and as a cutter. Using the