Design and Construction
The GT 36 is built around a solid fiberglass hull with a lead-and-iron ballast and a solid fiberglass deck, yet the engineering beneath that plain description is anything but ordinary. Cruising World reported that the hull is laid up with vinylester resin vacuum-infused into E-glass laminates, while Kevlar and carbon fiber reinforce the high-load areas where rig and keel stresses concentrate. The deck itself uses a Divinycell core for stiffness without weight. Below the waterline, the keel is a modern-shaped steel fin carrying a trailing lead bulb, and the boat draws either 6 feet 9 inches or 7 feet 3 inches depending on the draft option chosen. At a displacement of roughly 4.8 to 5.2 tonnes, the design leans on a sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 26.79 and a capsize screening value of 1.98 to signal both liveliness and blue-water restraint.
Rig and Performance
The fractional sloop carries a 45.5-square-meter mainsail and a 106-percent jib of 33.6 square meters, with an I dimension of 15 meters and J of 4.16 meters supporting a versatile headsail plan. A 105-square-meter spinnaker is part of the advertised inventory, and the builder claims exceptional sea-keeping ability and performance from the hull's design and engineering. The two-style approach splits the character: the Club is a flat-out racer, while the CR adds amenities for family weekend racing. The builder positions the GT 36 as a yacht to master for both long cruises and challenging regattas, a claim grounded in the same laminate and reinforcement strategy that keeps weight low and stiffness high.
Accommodations
The CR version is laid out as a family's favored second home on the water. The builder says the CR has an aft cabin with a double berth, while forward is another double cabin for guests or children. Between them, the saloon features a U-shaped dinette and a settee, and the head sits to starboard of the companionway opposite the galley and nav station. The GT 36 allows the owner to fine-tune details and features, so each yacht becomes directed by the owner's requirements rather than a fixed production template. That owner-directed specification is what lets the same 11-foot-2-inch beam feel like a cruise-ready home one month and a stripped race boat the next.
The Verdict
The Finn Flyer GT 36 is a genuinely dual-purpose 36-footer: a structurally advanced vacuum-infused hull with carbon and Kevlar reinforcement, a bulb keel, and a sail plan that rewards both the regatta sailor and the cruising family. The CR layout delivers sensible belowdecks separation, and the builder's open specification policy means a used example can reflect its owner's priorities. The principal trade-offs are draft depth on the deeper bulb and a design philosophy that expects the owner to tailor the boat rather than receive a finished turnkey package.
Pros
- Vacuum-infused vinylester hull with Kevlar and carbon reinforcement in high-load areas
- Modern steel fin with trailing lead bulb and twin draft options
- Fractional rig with large mainsail and spinnaker inventory for racing and cruising
- CR layout offers two double cabins, U-dinette saloon, and practical head placement
Cons
- Deeper 7-foot-3-inch draft limits some shallow anchorages
- Owner-directed specification means fit-out varies widely between boats
