Design and Construction
The 486's fiberglass hull carries a solid layup rather than a cored skin, and Kirie offered the model with different keel alternatives so that owners could tune draft to their cruising grounds. The iron fin keel draws about 6.73 to 7.03 feet dependent on load, which confines the boat to major marinas, while the lead fin option reduces the draft to roughly 5.25–5.55 feet and lets her into most harbours. Ballast is 26 percent of displacement at 5,732 pounds of lead, a ratio the data ranks higher than only 7 percent of similar designs — light on ballast by class standards, yet the 2.07 capsize screening from the design parameters and the 2.09 figure recorded in review both place her outside ocean-race acceptance. Her displacement-length ratio of 223 sorts her among "moderate racers," with 62 percent of peer designs weighing more.
Rig and Handling
As a masthead sloop the 486 carries a 961-square-foot sail plan against that 22,046-pound hull, yielding a sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 19.50 — enough to keep her moving without demanding a race crew. The wetted surface runs about 570 square feet, and the standing sheet inventory is generous: jib and genoa sheets are 44.9 feet long at 5/8 inch diameter, the mainsheet stretches 112.2 feet, and the spinnaker sheet measures 98.7 feet, all at the same 16 mm diameter. The theoretical hull speed for a displacement boat of this length is 8.0 knots; fitted with a Yanmar 4JH2 she calculates to 7.4 knots max, and a 60 hp installation drops that marginally to 7.3.
Accommodations
Eight to ten berths across a 47.5-foot hull is only possible because Vaton treated volume as a primary design brief — the boat's length-to-beam ratio of 3.07 and that 85th-percentile spaciousness ranking are what make the count credible rather than cramped. The Motion Comfort Ratio of 24.8, however, tells a less flattering story: against similar sailboats she proves more comfortable than just 21 percent of them, so the interior's generosity does not translate into a soft motion at sea.
Performance Envelope
The numbers sketch a boat built for coastal and moderate offshore cruising rather than competition. A capsize screening value of 2.09 bars her from ocean racing, and the immersion rate of about 1,802 pounds per inch means she loads heavily for her length. Yet the moderate-racer DL classification and the SA/D of 19.50 suggest a hull that responds to sail rather than slogging, and the lead-keel variant's marina-friendly draft extends her practical range.
The Verdict
The Feeling 486 is a volume-driven cruiser from the Kirie era of the Feeling line: Vaton's beamy, 85th-percentile-spacious hull delivers eight to ten berths and a lead-keel option that keeps her out of the major-marina-only penalty box, while a moderate sail plan and 7.4-knot calculated speed make her a willing coastal traveller. The trade is clear — a low ballast ratio and a comfort ranking behind 79 percent of peers mean she gives up stiffness and ride quality to get there, and a capsize screen that excludes ocean racing defines her ceiling.
Pros
- More spacious than 85% of similar designs with 8–10 berths
- Lead fin keel option draws just 5.25–5.55 ft, suiting most marinas
- Sail-area/displacement of 19.50 and DL-ratio of 223 mark a responsive moderate cruiser
Cons
- Ballast ratio of 26% ranks above only 7% of comparable designs
- Motion Comfort Ratio places her ahead of just 21% of similar boats
- Capsize screening of 2.09 excludes her from ocean races
