Beneteau First 345
Masthead Sloop · Fin keel, spade rudder · 1984–1988
A 36-foot masthead sloop from the mid-eighties, designed for offshore speed with a stiff 36% ballast ratio
Designed by Jean Berret & Berret-Racoupeau.
- LOA
- Beam
- Draft (max)
- Displacement
- Ballast
- Hull type
- Fin w/spade Rudder
See her sail
The Beneteau First 345, on the water
The fleet's own footage — the truest look at how she really moves.
Footage from The Sailing Doodles Podcast
Is it for you?
Character
Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.
Her moderate displacement on a moderate beam gives 23 — a moderate, middle-of-the-road motion.
2.00 — right around the 2.0 line, the edge between coastal and offshore.
217 — moderately heavy for her waterline, a balanced cruising weight.
15.6 — moderate power for her weight; steady, all-round performance.
36% of her weight is ballast — moderately stiff, a middle-of-the-road stability.
A balanced, easily-driven cruiser — comfortable and forgiving for coastal work.
The living fleet
Sailed by the fleet
Where the fleet has filmed this boat.
Seen 3 times across 2 channels of the fleet.
What broke, what changed
Gear aboard, as the crews told it
Moments from individual boats of this model that the fleet has filmed — one crew, one piece of kit, one day on the water. Not a review of the class, and not a count of anything.
FailedStarlink
The Starlink stopped working offshore because the speaker forgot to enable ocean mode.
aboard Sailing With Phoenix | Oliverseen August 202513:26
WorkingIridium
The speaker used the Iridium GO to receive a verification email for Starlink when Wi-Fi was unavailable.
aboard Sailing With Phoenix | Oliverseen August 202514:01
Each line is one crew's account of their own boat. Another Beneteau First 345 may be fitted out entirely differently.
What they go for
Market signal
Where the fleet has seen this model come up for sale.
Rhodes is selling his Beneteau 45 to buy a heavy displacement cruiser
from Sailing With Phoenix | Oliverseen August 2025watch
From the fleet's own footage — our observed signal, not broker listings.
The record
Full specifications
The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.
Boats like this, on the water
More boats like her, on the water
Comparable boats the fleet has on camera: same type, within a quarter of her length. Open the boat, or watch the video — a timestamp means she only appears in passing.
The family
Boats like this
Nearby designs by size, type, and era — worth a look alongside her.
Keep asking
The fleet has more to say
Search what's been said about the Beneteau First 345, or ask a specific question — the answer comes back written out, with links to the moments it draws on.
The newsletter
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