Design and Construction
Siltala Yachts built the 515 at Riihikoski, Finland, with a meticulously hand-laid fiberglass hull. Long overhangs distinguish its profile. Now rare among new cruising designs, they give the boat a traditional, elongated silhouette rather than the plumb-bowed profile common today.
The 515 measures just over 50 feet overall, with a 15-foot beam and a fin keel drawing about 7.2 feet. It carries roughly 18,000 pounds of lead ballast and displaces nearly 53,000 pounds—a mass that Sail magazine noted would make it a stately offshore passagemaker.
Nauticats have always been solid, stable, and comfortable, and the 515 continues that lineage without experimental departures.
Accommodations
Below, the teak interior has the fit and finish expected of a true gentleman’s yacht. The layout is available with as many as nine berths in four separate cabins, while the two-cabin version is decadently spacious.
Nearly all the accommodation space forward of the mast is devoted to the master cabin and its ensuite head. The aft cabin is almost as large. If elbowroom equals luxury, the 515 has it to burn. By devoting so much volume to private sleeping quarters rather than passageways, the boat achieves a residential feel unusual in a cruising sloop of this length.
The Verdict
The Nauticat 515 is a conservative, heavily built passagemaker designed around long-term liveaboard comfort rather than speed or novelty. Its long overhangs and hand-laid hull place it firmly within the builder’s tradition of solid, stable yachts. Meanwhile, the accommodation plan ranges from a nine-berth charter layout to a spacious two-cabin private retreat without sacrificing the overall sense of room.
Pros
- Meticulously hand-laid fiberglass hull with long overhangs that are rare among new cruisers
- Near-53,000-pound displacement promises stable offshore passagemaking
- Teak interior finished to the standard of a gentleman’s yacht, with elbowroom to burn
- Generously proportioned master and aft cabins
- Accommodation for up to nine people in four cabins
Cons
- The lack of anything radical in the design may disappoint buyers seeking modern performance
- Long overhangs and heavy displacement imply a stately rather than brisk pace
