About 150 boats were built from the early 1970s through the final hull in 1986. The design used the same hull molds as the earlier Bristol 39, but with a slightly longer overall length and, according to the builder, somewhat fuller hull sections aft and an altered stemhead fitting.
Design and Construction
The Bristol 40 is a traditional CCA-era cruiser-racer, with prominent overhangs, a sweet sheer, low freeboard, and an undistorted hull shape. Its narrow 10 ft. 9 in. beam spans a waterline length of 27 ft. 6 in.
Rather than a bolt-on external keel, the boat has a molded keel cavity filled with 6,500 pounds of lead. The hull itself is substantially lighter than those of most long-keel CCA 40-footers, though the boat still displaces around 17,000 pounds in measurement trim.
Practical Sailor found the molded-in basket-weave deck non-skid less effective than more aggressive patterns. It also noted that the colored gelcoat was not colorfast. None of the owners surveyed reported major structural flaws, although leaking ports, deck hardware, and hull-to-deck joints were common annoyances.
Rig, Stability, and Sailing Performance
The Bristol 40 was rigged as a basic masthead sloop or yawl, with an untapered, keel-stepped anodized mast, single spreaders, and double lower shrouds. A good number of the boats were completed as yawls.
Owners report that the Bristol 40 is very sensitive to the amount of sail carried. Both keel and centerboard versions are fairly tippy because of their narrow beam and shoal draft, and the mizzen makes the yawl more tippy while adding windage that works against upwind performance. The keel version loses positive righting moment at about 120 degrees; the centerboard variant’s range of stability is closer to 110 degrees.
Like most CCA boats, the Bristol 40 reaches well without the rounding-up tendency found in fuller-sterned modern designs. Downwind, however, she tends to squat and dig a hole that is difficult to climb out of. A full-keel Bristol 40 won the 1983 Marion-Bermuda Race, a largely close-reaching event sailed in light to moderate breeze. Most owners rate handling in reverse as poor.
Cockpit and Accommodations
The original Bristol 40 had a wide-open offshore-racing interior, with a sail locker forward and the head in the space normally occupied by a forward cabin. Most boats, however, were built with one of several more conventional layouts. Bristol made extensive use of mahogany rather than teak below, and the galley sits at the aft end of the main cabin in every layout except the original racing version.
Headroom is about 6 ft. 4 in. on the centerline aft, dropping to roughly 6 ft. forward. The main-cabin ports don’t open.
The cockpit is huge, with seats almost 7 ft. long. Its scuppers are too small, however, and there is no bridgedeck—only a raised companionway sill. That makes quick cockpit drainage especially important.
Engines and Access
Later-model 39s and Bristol 40s were powered by either the Atomic 4 gasoline engine or a range of diesels: Westerbeke 4-91, 4-107, and 4-108; Perkins 4-108; and Volvo MD2B and MD3B.
Access to the front of the engine is fair. It requires removing the front of the engine box, which also serves as the companionway ladder. There is little room between the shaft coupling and the stuffing box, and several owners reported that repacking the stuffing box is almost impossible without removing the shaft.
Early diesel-powered boats had black iron fuel tanks. At least one owner had to replace a tank after it rusted out. Later boats received aluminum tanks, which are less prone to corrosion. When Bristol switched to larger diesels, it did not enlarge the propeller aperture to match.
On all models, the fuel tank sits beneath the cockpit sole and above the engine. The engine compartment has no sound insulation.
Known Issues and Owner Modifications
The lower-shroud chainplates don’t line up exactly with the pull of the shrouds, a condition that will fatigue the chainplates over time.
The combination of a huge cockpit, undersized scuppers, and no bridgedeck also warrants attention, particularly given the boat’s low initial stability. One owner surveyed added 1,500 lb. of lead pigs in the bilge to improve stability.
Practical Sailor judged that, because of the large cockpit, small drains, slightly vulnerable companionway, and low initial stability, the boat would not be a good choice for extended offshore cruising. Even so, Bristol 40s have completed many ocean crossings, and the boat is capable of taking you anywhere in the world.
The Verdict
The Bristol 40 is a stable and well-mannered traditional cruiser with a Ted Hood pedigree and a proven record of ocean passages. At the same time, it wears its CCA origins plainly, with modest speed, tippy initial behavior, and details that call for a careful survey. It rewards an owner who reefs early and respects the limits of its cockpit drainage and chainplates.
Pros
- Ted Hood design conceived for blue-water sailing, with many ocean crossings to its name
- Molded lead-keel cavity and solid construction, with no major structural flaws reported by surveyed owners
- Huge cockpit and conventional, mahogany-trimmed interior layouts with good headroom
- Strong reaching performance and a classic CCA profile
Cons
- Lower-shroud chainplates misaligned with the shroud loads, leading to fatigue over time
- Tight stuffing-box access and a propeller aperture that wasn’t enlarged for the larger diesels
- Small cockpit scuppers, no bridgedeck, and non-opening main-cabin ports
- Poor handling in reverse, tippy initial behavior, and a tendency to squat downwind
