LM 27 Sailboat Review, Specs, and Listings

Design and Construction

The LM 27 is built as a heavy long-keel double-ender with a pilothouse offering a second internal steering position, a configuration almost impossible to find in anything under thirty feet. The hull and deck are both fibreglass construction, and the deck itself is a sandwich construction that improves the indoor climate, reducing condensation when cold water temperatures meet warm cabin air — a genuinely practical benefit for northern European sailing. The hull's displacement places it firmly in the heavy cruiser category, which translates directly into the seakeeping comfort that defines the boat's reputation.

Rig and Sailing Performance

The LM 27 carries a masthead sloop rig, and the choice is deliberate: compared with a fractional arrangement, the masthead configuration carries a given sail area lower, reducing heeling moment. That lower centre of effort, combined with a ballast ratio higher than the majority of comparable sailboat designs, gives the boat a stiffness that surprises first-time sailors aboard a vessel of this type. When the LM 27 was first introduced, Yachting World reported that she sails surprisingly fast, and Yachting Monthly confirmed she can sail undoubtedly and in a very satisfactory way — praise worth noting for what is, at heart, a motorsailer. The motion comfort ratio sits well above the average for similar sailboat designs, a consequence of the heavy displacement and the long keel's damping effect on quick, uncomfortable motion in a seaway.

Accommodation and Interior

For a 27-footer, the LM 27 offers a genuinely generous interior. The layout provides six berths, a galley, and toilet facility, arranged across two cabins. Both settee berths in the saloon can convert to doubles, and the forecabin carries a V-berth with infill to make a double, giving real flexibility for a cruising couple or small family. A folding concertina door separates the forecabin. The heads are practical: a marine WC with a pull-out washbasin above. The headroom is above average for a boat of this length, and the mahogany interior joinery lends a warmth that later GRP production boats rarely matched. Fresh water capacity of 120 litres and a fibreglass fuel tank of the same volume make extended passages viable without constant reprovisioning.

Engine Options and Motoring

The LM 27 was fitted with several engine alternatives across its production life. Most common is a Bukh diesel, typically producing around 20 hp, though some examples were fitted with up to 35 hp engines. Higher-powered options — including the Volvo Penta MD17 at 36 hp — give a calculated maximum speed of approximately 7.3 knots. The shaft drive transmission is consistent across all variants, a reliable arrangement that demands less long-term maintenance than a saildrive. The wheelhouse houses a second helm position, making motoring in heavy weather or confined waters a far more sheltered experience than an open tiller would allow.

Directional Stability and Handling

The long keel provides superior directional stability compared with fin-keel contemporaries, making the LM 27 a reassuring passage-maker that holds its course with minimal helm input. The tradeoff is well understood: that same directional stability makes the boat more difficult to handle in a harbour with limited space. The draft of approximately 0.95 to 1.05 metres dependent on load keeps a good range of shallower marinas accessible, which offsets some of the tight-harbour difficulty. A removable tiller can also be fitted in the cockpit as a backup to the wheelhouse helm, a practical redundancy on a cruising vessel.

The Verdict

The LM 27 is one of those rare designs where the original brief was simply the right one. A small, seaworthy double-ender with wheelhouse shelter, strong sailing performance relative to type, and genuine cruising accommodation — executed in low-maintenance fibreglass and backed by a long production run. The design was reworked into the LM 28, and its lineage continued even further as the Scanyacht 290, testament to how sound the underlying concept remained. There are few modern equivalents to what it offers at this size.

Pros