Design and Construction
Magnusson's design reflects a deliberate cruiser-racer brief: the 33 carries a 10-foot-1-inch beam and a 5-foot-4-inch draft, with 3,748 pounds of lead ballast in a 45.7 percent ballast-displacement ratio and an 8,200-pound displacement that gives her a displacement-length ratio near 181. The hull is solid fiberglass while the deck is a sandwich construction, and the boat was produced not only by Contrastbåtar AB but also at other yards, with some hulls sold as home-completion kits — a fact that means finished quality can vary from one example to the next. Her 27-foot-3-inch waterline and roughly 312-square-foot wetted surface place her firmly in the moderate-displacement family of Nordic 33-footers.
Rig and Handling
The 33 is built on a 5/6 fractional rig, and her sail plan centers on a 440-square-foot total area with a 25-square-meter main and a 32-square-meter genoa 1. Period comparison data puts her rig larger than two-thirds of similar sailboats, and her SA/D sits at 17.3 on the designer's reference or 19.2 with a 135 percent genoa, a number that explains the lively performance owners associate with the class. The LYS rating of 1.16 and a relative speed performance index of 79 place her among the quicker mid-size cruisers of her era, while a capsize screening value near 1.93 to 2.0 and a motion comfort ratio around 20 mark her as a reasonably steady seaboat without being a heavy voyager. With a Yanmar 2GM/SD20 diesel she has been logged at 7.5 knots; the theoretical displacement-hull speed is about 7.0 knots.
Accommodations
Below, the Contrast 33 is laid out with three cabins and six berths, a galley, and a toilet facility, with the interior finished in mahogany like many of her Nordic contemporaries. Tankage is modest but adequate for weekend cruising: 26 gallons of water plus 20 liters in the heater, 8 gallons of diesel, and a 55-liter septic tank. The 3.05-meter beam translates to a usable interior volume for a boat of her length, and the three-cabin arrangement gives more privacy than the typical open-plan 33-foot racer-cruiser.
Known Issues
The only structural caveat the record raises is the home-completion route: because some Contrast 33s were sold as kits for owner finishing, the consistency of hull-to-deck joint, tabbing, and systems installation cannot be assumed uniform across the fleet. A buyer evaluating one of these owner-finished boats should treat every system as potentially non-standard until verified.
The Verdict
The Contrast 33 is a well-balanced Scandinavian fractional sloop that rewards the sailor with a large rig, a stiff lead-ballasted hull, and a practical three-cabin interior. She is quick for her length and composed in moderate conditions, though the home-completion boats introduce a variable that demands individual inspection.
Pros
- Fractional 5/6 rig exceeds two-thirds of comparable sailboats in size
- Lead fin keel with 45.7 percent ballast ratio and 8,200 lb displacement
- Three cabins and six berths with mahogany interior
- 7.5-knot speed under Yanmar 2GM/SD20 diesel
Cons
- Some hulls were home-completed, so build quality varies
- Modest tankage limits extended off-grid cruising
