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Perry on Design
2022 April 1 - 12:00 am

First 36

The revival of Beneteau’s First series of racer-cruisers continues with this midsized family boat

By Robert H. Perry
This new Beneteau First model was designed by a team led by Kristian Hajnsek. Samuel Manuard, known for his Class 40 and IMOCA 60 class racers did the basic design. Structural design came from Pure De
Perry on Design
2022 April 1 - 12:00 am

HH 44

This sexy looking cruising cat was designed for speed

By Robert H. Perry
At first glance at the 2D sailplan this 44-foot catamaran appears to be a stubby and kind of awkward looking cat. But don’t be fooled. Add the third dimension, the depth and the complex geometry of
Perry on Design
2022 March 1 - 12:00 am

PC 55

A wolf in sheep’s clothing, this classic cruiser is deceptively powerful

By Robert H. Perry
Here’s an elegant design from the Hoek design office in Holland for Performance Classic Yachts in the United Kingdom. The company has built a series of Hoek designs in Turkey that have proven quite
Perry on Design
2022 March 1 - 12:00 am

Ollie

This beautiful daysailer will be created by build-it-yourselfers

By Robert H. Perry
I was cruising around on Facebook one day and I saw a boat that jumped out at me. It was a great looking boat and very nicely drawn. Clearly the designer had some well honed skills and a good eye
Perry on Design
2022 January 1 - 12:00 am

Lagoon 55

This cruising catamaran has room for a crowd to sail in comfort

By Robert H. Perry
I don’t know if many of you have heard the story of how I got my job as “technical editor” of SAILING but I’ll tell it again. It’s a funny story.It was late in 1974 and SAILING Editor M
Perry on Design
2022 January 1 - 12:00 am

Balance 482

With a emphasis on performance, this cruising catamaran doesn’t skimp on comfort and styling

By Robert H. Perry
I understand that it is difficult to sell boats from two-dimensional working drawings for a new design. Many sailors have trouble reading 2D drawings and need 3D renderings to understand the new
Perry on Design
2021 November 1 - 12:00 am

Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 380

This good-looking family cruiser’s deck is laid out for easy sailing

By Robert H. Perry
Now let’s see what Marc Lombard, the same designer as the Oceanis 31.4 can do when you give him a very similar design brief and an additional 2 feet 8 inches of additional hull length. Looking at th
Perry on Design
2021 November 1 - 12:00 am

Beneteau Oceanis 34.1

This swift family cruiser is handsome and thoughtfully laid out

By Robert H. Perry
Holy cow! My editor has given me two new French boats to review this month, the Oceanis 34.1 by Beneteau and the Sun Odyssey 380 by Jeanneau. I had to study these two boats carefully to even tell them
Perry on Design
2021 October 1 - 12:00 am

Hylas 57

This elegant cruiser is meant for ocean sailing

By Robert H. Perry
When I was 15, I worked in a meat market, Ray’s Meats, after school. My walk home would take me past an old-fashioned drug store that had an extensive assortment of magazines including at least four
Perry on Design
2021 October 1 - 12:00 am

J/45

With a racer-cruiser pedigree, this performance cruiser will make speedy offshore passages

By Robert H. Perry
Sometimes when I listen to an old Jackson Brown album, I get the feeling that Mr. Brown had been following me around taking notes. I get a similar feeling when I look at a new J/Boats cruising design.
Perry on Design
2021 September 1 - 12:00 am

BP 28

After 50 years and hundreds of designs, Bob Perry revisits one of his classics and redesigns it for the modern era

By Robert H. Perry
It was 1973. I had left my job drawing ferrocement boat plans for Jay Benford and was headed to Boston to work for Dick Carter—my dream job. I never bought into the ferrocement “craze” that Benf
Perry on Design
2021 July 1 - 12:00 am

Bali 4.2

This comfortable cruising cat has plenty of space for three couples to lounge about

By Robert H. Perry
I try to keep my reviews objective. I don’t always succeed. If I see what I consider to be a “design flaw” I’ll point it out. But aesthetics are so subjective. I hesitate to impose my sen
Perry on Design
2021 July 1 - 12:00 am

Kinetic 54

This new cruising catamaran boasts good performance with comfortable living space

By Robert H. Perry
Let’s add 12 feet to the LOA and see what designers Simonis Voogd can do with an LOA of 54 feet 3 inches. I think the main difference between this big cat built by Kinetics Catamarans and the Bali 4
Perry on Design
2021 June 1 - 12:00 am

Jeanneau 60

This powerful performance cruiser has speed and style for world cruising

By Robert H. Perry
Here’s a big, stylish cruising boat from Jeanneau with the focus on comfort. The Jeanneau Yacht 60 is designed by Philippe Briand, a very accomplished designer of both racing and cruising boats.Look
Perry on Design
2021 June 1 - 12:00 am

Hallberg-Rassy 50

With all kinds of bells and whistles available, this cruiser can make ocean passages in comfort

By Robert H. Perry
I always enjoy getting a new Hallberg-Rassy model to review. I like German Frers hull designs and the layouts and decks of the H-R boats are always very well thought out. This new model at 50 fee
Perry on Design
2021 April 1 - 12:00 am

Shogun 50

The racer-cruiser is 200% fast and comfortable

By Robert H. Perry
I frequently ask my editor Greta to give me something interesting and different to review. Well, I got my wish this month. This new design by Oscar and Haken Södergren is really different. If yo
Perry on Design
2021 April 1 - 12:00 am

Oyster 495

The raised-saloon cruiser has creature comforts for two couples

By Robert H. Perry
Here’s a new Oyster model that is about the same LOA as the Shogun 50, but this is a cruising boat with no pretense to being a race boat. Oyster did not invent the raised saloon configuration.
Perry on Design
2021 March 1 - 12:00 am

Dehler 38SQ

This racer-cruiser puts the focus on speed with a slick deck layout

By Robert H. Perry
This month we have two new European builds to review, the Dehler 38 SQ and the Dufour 430 Grand Large. It would be nice to compare the differences in the two designs, but most of the differences are i
Perry on Design
2021 March 1 - 12:00 am

Dufour 430

Sleek performance cruiser checks all the right boxes for offshore sailing

By Robert H. Perry
Dufour is one of the oldest French production builders still in business. In 1974 I raced a Dufour Arpege in the Chicago-Mackinac race. The Arpege was an older design at that time. This latest Dufour,
Perry on Design
2021 January 1 - 12:00 am

Jeanneau Yacht 60

By Robert H. Perry
This month we have two very nice cruising boats to review. It’s hard these days to clearly define “cruising boat.” My definition is any boat that you can cruise. That leaves a lot of latitude.&n
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Perry on Design

  • Swan 51

    Carrying on the tradition of Nautor Swan, this cruiser takes a modern twist

  • Sun Odyssey 350

    This cruiser has plenty of options for comfortable family cruising

  • Nautitech Open 48

    A svelte cruising cat that has performance front and center

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