Nauticat 42

BoatsNauticat 42

See her sail

The Nauticat 42, on the water

The fleet's own footage — the truest look at how she really moves.

Footage from Sailboat Magazine

Is it for you?

Character

Where this design lands on the numbers a shopper trusts — read straight from her own ratios.

LivelySea-kindly

Her heavy displacement on a moderate beam gives 48 — a heavy, notably soft motion offshore.

Comfort ratio 48

CoastalBluewater

At 1.60 she sits well under the 2.0 line — a solidly ocean-capable hull for her size.

Capsize screening 1.60

LightHeavy

402 — very heavy for her waterline, a serious load-carrying cruiser.

Displacement / length 402

EasygoingPowered-up

11.5 — modest power for her weight; easygoing rather than lively, and happier with a breeze.

Sail area / displacement 11.5

TenderStiff

29% of her weight is ballast — on the tender side; she'll heel readily and want a reef sooner.

Ballast 29%

Built heavy and sea-kindly — a boat made to cross oceans and forgive a rough night.

Heavier than ~96% of boats her size on file

Compared with 2623 boats of the same type within a quarter of her length.

What the fleet has seen

The Nauticat 42, as the fleet has seen it

Derived from the videos the fleet has analysed of this model. ▶ marks open the moment aboard.

The Nauticat 42 is a 13.0-meter masthead sloop designed by Kaj Gustafsson and built by Nauticat Yachts OY since 1995. It features a fin keel with a rudder on a partial skeg, a 4.0-meter beam, a 1.9-meter draft, and a displacement of 16,000 kg. Standard sail options include a 39.5 sqm main and a 58 sqm genoa I. Aboard the *Bella Sarah*, stepping the main and mizzenmasts in La Paz, Mexico, required a mobile crane and careful strap placement to clear the bow pulpit and stanchions.4:15 Aligning the mast base into the tabernacle necessitated a timber lever and a 2x4.11:10 The mizzenmast installation involved identifying unmarked chain plates.18:11

The living fleet

Sailed by the fleet

Where the fleet has filmed this boat.

Seen once across one channel of the fleet.

Basemap © Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

The record

Full specifications

The complete reference set — tap any figure to switch between metric and imperial.

Dimensions

Weights

Ballast / displacement

28.8%

Rig & sail area

Rig

Masthead Sloop

Ratios

SA / displacement

11.5

Displacement / length

402.1

Comfort ratio

48.4

Capsize screening

1.60

Hull speed

7.8 kn

Pounds / inch immersion

1592

Hull

Hull type

Fin w/rudder on partial skeg

Construction

Fiberglass

Ballast type

Lead

Production

Years built

First built 1995

Designer

Kaj Gustafsson

Builder

Nauticat Yachts OY

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.

Henri Wauquiez Amphitrite 4313.03 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA masthead ketch also marketed as the Palmer Johnson 43CR, offering a stable fin keel and skeg-hung rudder configuration

Is This The End? - The Brutal Reality of Sailing Solo Around The World0:06 from Jakob Lang Sailing

Grand Soleil 40 (Polli)12.90 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA Matteo Polli-designed fractional sloop optimized for ORC competition with a high sail-area-to-displacement ratio

Sailing Alone in Fog Without Losing Your Cool11:09 from The Mariner

Swan 43 (S&S)13.04 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthDrawn for the RORC rule, this masthead sloop features a high ballast-to-displacement ratio for a stiff, stable ride

113. Pedro Millet, the silver medal that changed everything.4:07 from A Son de Mar

Sirius 40 DS12.90 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA 12.9-metre fractional sloop built since 2015, offering a deep 2.3-metre draft for performance and stability

Sailing West in the English Channel Isn’t Easy Ep 493:51 from Sailing Northern Brees

Pearson Yachts 424 Ketch12.90 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA masthead ketch featuring an aft cockpit layout and a 1.6-metre draft for versatile coastal and offshore cruising

The MIGHTY But CHEAP Pearson 424 from Practical Sailor

Hunter Marine 42 Passage CC12.95 mSame hull familyNear-identical lengthA 12.95-metre centre-cockpit cruiser with a wing keel and a 1.5-metre draft, built for stable, easy-handling cruising

SPLASH DAY is Finally Here! SAILBOAT LAUNCH, Beauty of a SAIL and a creative BOAT INVENTION - Ep 540:17 from Sailing Jibsea

The family

Boats like this

Nearby designs by size, type, and era — worth a look alongside her.

Nauticat 37A 1.85m draft fin-keel masthead sloop built since 2002, offering a stable and comfortable platform for coastal cruising Nauticat 515A 15.42-metre masthead sloop with a 2.2-metre draught, built for high-comfort, heavy-displacement offshore passages Nauticat 44A 13.31-metre masthead ketch with a long keel, built since 1974 to provide a stable, high-comfort platform for blue-water passages Nauticat 40A Sparkman & Stephens staysail ketch designed for heavy-displacement comfort and stable, long-range cruising

Keep asking

The fleet has more to say

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