Beneteau First 40 Sailboat Review, Specs, and Listings

Design and Construction

The First 40 is built with a solid hull and a balsa-cored deck, using a vinylester resin-infused layup with zone-specific stitchmat laminates placed for extra strength in high-load areas anchor. A structural grid forms part of a hull liner laminated to the hull, while the main bulkheads are bonded to the hull through 360 degrees and molded deck beams add support. Reinforced solid glass laminates sit beneath deck hardware such as the sheet winches, tracks, and anchor windlass. The deck itself is balsa cored for lightness, thermal insulation, and acoustic quiet. From the plumb bow to the subtle raked stern, the lines are essentially straight and modern, with a low-profile wedge-shaped cabintrunk and wide, workable side decks. A small teak toerail lends a bit of elegance, and the hull is set off by subtle decoration with black stripes on a grey background.

Rig and Handling

The tall rig carries a tapered three-spreader spar as a 9/10 fractional setup, with the standard spar using double spreaders and standing rigging of flattened dyform wire. Single pod chainplates virtually eliminate the worry of crevice corrosion down the road. A hydraulic vang and a double foil on the headstay are standard, and the single backstay comes with a hydraulic adjuster. The boat is primarily designed around nonoverlapping headsails, and a retractable carbon bow sprit simplifies asymmetric spinnaker work. The sheeting follows the German system, where the sheet winches also handle the mainsheet, and the mainsheet traveler sits on the sole just forward of the wheel. Test sailors found her extremely light and well balanced upwind in 5–8 knots true, and in 10–13 knots she tracked nicely with a very light helm thanks to the high-aspect rudder. With the deep T-keel she feels akin to the First 10R but nowhere near as fidgety, and when pressed in 20–22 knots she pinches high and feathers in gusts with a precise rudder feel, though her motion then takes on an unexpected urgency.

Keel Options and Performance

Two keels are offered: a standard shoal version drawing 6 feet 4 inches and a deep-draft T-keel of lead cast-iron drawing 8 feet. The deep keel weighs about 760 pounds less than the shoal one and carries substantially less wetted surface, producing a significant performance advantage anchor. The hull's powerful stern sections and a generous but shallow overhang aft trim the static waterline and wetted area. In cruising mode testers found her plenty stiff and safe enough to do the work for the crew, and downwind with the kite she soaked low even in light breeze with a good helm feel. She made 6.7 knots and more with minimal effort and no rail weight in 15–22 knots.

Accommodations

Nauta's interior is a bright mix of white laminate and light oak veneers that creates an airy, contemporary ambience. The layout below is similar to the 40.7, with the head forward to make an ensuite bow cabin; the V-berth runs 6 feet 8 inches long. Two equal double cabins aft are spacious, with 6 feet of headroom and berths about 6 feet 6 inches long. The galley is immediately to port going below, with double forward-facing sinks, a good icebox, and a small two-burner stove, and the wraparound nav station opposite is the standout interior feature. A centerline table opens to seat most of the crew, though its position makes the saloon poor for laying out sails when racing, and testers noted a want of hand-holds when moving about well heeled. The cockpit is excellent: a scooped-out single wheel, removable seat/lockers that can be left dockside for racing, and an open transom with a fold-down ladder. The cockpit drains almost instantly through the transom.

Equipment and Power

The standard Yanmar is a 3-cylinder 40-horsepower diesel on saildrive with a two-bladed folding prop. The electrical system starts with one house and one starting battery, pressure water is standard with a manual backup pump, and freshwater runs through two 26-gallon rotomolded tanks under the settees. The deck is prefitted for spinnaker gear, Harken 48ST primaries and spinnaker winches sit on the coamings, and 44STs are mounted aft on the coachroof. A liferaft locker is cleverly placed beneath the sole, and the Carbon Edition adds a carbon mast, lead keel, black composite wheel, and a Raymarine regatta pack, delivered ready to race.

The Verdict

The First 40 is a genuinely dual-purpose 40-footer: a Farr hull with real IRC and ORC pedigree that also lives well at anchor. The deep keel rewards the serious racer, the Nauta interior is both handsome and practical, and the cockpit ergonomics serve both crew and cruising couple. She is stiff, quick, and well built, though the centerline saloon table and thin hand-hold count show her racing DNA.

Pros