Her proportions put her firmly in the modern lightweight cruiser-racer camp rather than the heavy-displacement tradition. She measures 10.42 metres overall, with a 3.12 metre beam, a 29.99-foot waterline, and a displacement of 4,273 kilograms. The fin keel draws 1.70 metres, while 4,079 pounds of lead ballast gives a ballast-to-displacement ratio near 43 percent.
Design and Construction
The hull is solid GRP, as are the deck, rudder, and internal mouldings. An aluminium gunwale is worked into the moulding for edge protection. Built in Australia by Northshore, the 340 uses straightforward solid-laminate construction rather than cored experimentation below the waterline.
A newly designed deep rudder gives the boat inherent tracking ability. Together with the 29.99-foot waterline, that keeps her steady on course under autopilot or short-handed steerage.
Auxiliary power comes from a 21 horsepower Nanni diesel driving through a saildrive leg and fixed three-blade propeller. It’s a compact installation suited to the boat’s 13-gallon fuel capacity and 4,200-pound lightness.
Rig and Handling
The aluminium fractional rig has a single-spreader, deck-stepped mast and an adjustable backstay. It was set up to provide maximum control and make the boat manageable shorthanded.
The basic sail inventory consists of a Dacron mainsail and a Dacron No 3 furling headsail. Total sail area is 46.7 square metres, carried on a 44.29-foot mast. A sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 18.03 tells the familiar cruiser-racer story: enough canvas to move briskly in a modest breeze without requiring a full crew.
The deep rudder and fractional rig together make the 340 a tractable introduction to keelboat sailing, as the original brief intended.
Accommodation
Below, teak panelling, solid teak trim, and laminates give the interior a warm, luxurious feel. The saloon has a straight settee berth to port and an L-shaped settee to starboard, arranged around a centrally located teak drop-leaf dinette table.
There are two double-berth cabins. A double-berth stateroom lies aft, opposite the skipper’s chart table and seat at the base of the companionway. A quarter berth aft of the chart table can instead be used for storage. Forward, a second double V-berth matches the aft cabin’s accommodation.
The L-shaped galley follows the chart table and includes a stove and oven, a stainless-steel sink with pressurized hot and cold water, and storage. An icebox sits forward of the chart table. Opposite the galley, the enclosed head has a toilet, washbasin, and shower; the built-in shower is standard.
Storage is provided beneath the berths and in deep shelves along both sides. There’s also a locker aft, a larger storage area to starboard aft, and a forward port locker.
The cockpit is spacious and could be ordered with a portable teak table positioned forward of the steering station.
Equipment and Options
A walk-through transom with a stainless-steel boarding ladder was optional, as was the cockpit table. The standard shower, pressure-water galley, and furling No 3 headsail make up a useful baseline for coastal cruising.
Water capacity is 100 litres. The listed fuel figure is 51 litres, while the installation is also described as having a 13-gallon capacity. Together, these provide a self-sufficient baseline for a couple or small family.
Verdict
The Northshore 340 is a coherent 1990s Australian cruiser-racer: light, beamy, and simple enough to sail shorthanded, yet finished below with genuine teak warmth and a practical two-cabin layout. She trades tankage and an offwind sail wardrobe for easy handling and tracking stability. Her solid-GRP construction also avoids the search for core issues that troubles some contemporaries.
Pros
- Inherent tracking from the deep-rudder design
- A genuine shorthanded layout, with a fractional rig and furling headsail
- Warm teak interior, two double berths, and an enclosed head
- Solid-GRP hull and deck, with no cored structure below the waterline
Cons
- Modest 13-gallon fuel and 100-litre water capacities for extended cruising
- Basic sail inventory limited to the mainsail and No 3 furling jib
- Walk-through transom ladder and cockpit table were optional rather than standard
