Design and Construction
The 38-1 is built around a fin-keel hull carrying 6,000 pounds of lead ballast inside a 16,000-pound displacement, a 37.5 percent ballast-to-displacement ratio that places real emphasis on righting moment for a vessel of this size. The beam measures 10.92 feet against a 26.67-foot waterline, yielding a length-to-beam ratio of 3.50 and a displacement-length ratio of 376.53 — figures that categorize the boat among medium-weight cruisers rather than featherweight racers. Le Comte built the hull in solid fiberglass with Airex-cored decks, and the wider Northeast 38 line shared that all-fiberglass hull and Airex-cored deck approach with classic, varnished interiors. Adolf "Dolf" LeComte, who had been turning out wooden boats in Holland for high-profile clients before switching to fiberglass in 1961, built the Northeast 38 as his second fiberglass boat; the 38-1 specifically was produced by Le Comte in the Netherlands between 1962 and 1965.
Rig and Handling
Tripp drew the Northeast 38 in both yawl and sloop versions, with the 38-1 carrying the masthead sloop rig. The reported sail area is 590 square feet, broken down as 308.88 square feet in the main and 281.52 square feet in the foretriangle, on a rig with a 40.80-foot I measurement and 13.80-foot J. The calculated sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 14.93 marks the 38-1 as moderately powered rather than overcanvased; with the ISO 8666 reference sail the Mk III's SA/D reads 18.2 and with a 135% genoa 21.5, confirming the basic design's conservative cruising bent. The theoretical hull speed is 6.92 knots, and the capsize screening value of 1.74 together with a comfort ratio of 33.98 place the boat in the stable, seakindly end of the spectrum for a 38-footer.
Accommodations
The interior follows a classic Tripp-era cruising layout: a V-berth forward, a main cabin with a drop-leaf table and benches on either side, and the navigation table and galley set at the foot of the companionway. Owners touted its seakindly ride, large cockpit and warm interior, and some went so far as to call it a "perfect classic cruiser for the nostalgic mariner." The varnished joinery and period arrangement speak to a boat conceived for comfortable coastal and offshore wandering rather than stripped-out racing.
Known Issues and Evolution
The 38-1 occupies the first of a three-step evolution. Across the Northeast 38 series, LeComte-Holland introduced the Mk II in 1966 and Mk III in 1969 during a nine-year production run, with minor changes in the hull and transom angle, an altered keel shape, and different rudders offered between versions. The 38-1 itself was superseded after its 1965 end of production, and the broader Northeast 38 line was replaced by the ALC 40 sloop in 1971. Buyers comparing generations should note that the 38-1's fin keel configuration differs from later long-keel Mk III descriptions in the archive, a reminder that "Northeast 38" covers meaningful variation.
The Verdict
The Northeast 38-1 is a low-production Tripp design that pairs a racer's hull logic with a warm, classic cruising interior. Its 20-boat run makes it a comparatively rare find, but the documented numbers show a coherent medium-displacement sloop with seakindly proportions and a conservative rig.
Pros
- 37.5% ballast ratio and 1.74 capsize screening reflect a stable, righting-moment-rich hull
- Classic varnished interior with practical foot-of-companionway galley and nav station
- Designed by a foremost American racing naval architect; built by an established Dutch yard
Cons
- Only 20 built (1962–1965), so sparse availability and limited spares commonality with later Mk II/Mk III
- Sail-area-to-displacement of 14.93 means no emphasis on light-air performance
- Series evolved quickly (Mk II 1966, Mk III 1969), so 38-1 specifics differ from later long-keel variants
