(Taking it) in the right order
With the launch of the ClubSwan50, Nautor has rewritten the book on how to ensure the best possible one-design racing with a new offshore class
A great deal has happened in Finland since the sea started to freeze over and the sun dipped lower in the sky last autumn. In fact, a lot has been happening since the first three ClubSwan50s appeared at the marina outside the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda back in September 2016 for the Rolex Swan Cup. In most cases when a new
one-design is developed there is little time or drive to improve on the boat after the first examples hit the water. The incentive is simply to fill the order books based on that first impression. While first impressions of the ClubSwan50 were all extremely positive, Nautor, along with the ClubSwan50 steering committee, saw potential to not just produce a good boat out of the box, but to spend a little time and make it really stand out from the crowd. So rather than accepting that the
first boat and the 20th boat would all be tied to the problems that are only found with the benefit of a proper shake-down, Nautor took the opportunity over the autumn and winter to work on and refine the ClubSwan 50 based on the input of the designers, Nautor experts and professional sailors. Following on from this process
refinements were made, focused on making the boat easier to sail
6 SEAHORSE
under a strict owner-driver rule and further enhance overall performance. Many of the changes are subtle, like tweaks to the sail dimension limits, all based on the standard World Sailing measurement methods used by both ORC and IRC. For example, some will say that
removing the teak from the cockpit floor is ‘not very Swan’. But the decision was based on making the boat work better, not reducing cost or weight. The CS50’s powerful hull form works best upwind when the chine gets a chance to really dig in – at a higher angle of heel than your typical cruising yacht. It was found that the teak used was simply not providing the grip needed in the wide cockpit. Rather than seeing boats sporting grip tape covering the teak and ruining the look, the decision was made to provide a more functional solution from the yard, removing the teak altogether. There is the nice side-effect of reducing weight. In that respect it is rare that a one-design meets its original concept design weights. The winter months have been
spent reviewing every single component as well as the build process itself to ensure that not only is the finished weight correct, but it is distributed where it is wanted. To achieve this, all boats
When launching a new offshore one-design
there will always be conflicting priorities of getting the boat absolutely right at the same time as ensuring that the final product is practical for one-design manufacture. In the case of the ClubSwan50, Nautor took the pragmatic step of accepting that post-launch changes would be needed if they were to offer the best possible boat. But then, before the final product and class rules were set in stone, they
brought back all the early boats to put them into exactly the
same final spec. A lot of extra time and money, but if you want a new one-design to remain one- design it’s really the only way…
are weighed in various stages through the build, and the main components are all carefully standardised. For example, every keel bulb is weighed and corrected to exactly the same weight before the carbon keel fin is installed. The suppliers for the main components, such as the bulb, fin, mast, boom and so on, all provide a declaration with each item that arrives at the Nautor yard so that compliance is established before these items go anywhere near the finished boat. It is also recognised that many
competitive teams will take a boat fresh from the production line and, before it even gets wet, go into a shed and fair the hull and appendages for themselves. Rather than take the impossible-to-police attitude of prohibiting this, Nautor’s solution has been to remove the incentive – that is, the potential benefits. Every hull is finished and painted after it comes out of the female tool and little else is really needed. The rudders and keel fin are each built in extremely accurate CNC-machined tools so that the surface only requires paint, not fairing. The keel bulb is first cast, then CNC machined to ensure absolute consistency of shape. Only a small range is needed in the bulb corrector weight pocket to compensate for the small variations
EVA-STINA KJELLMAN
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