The first hull, Morning Cloud, won its class in the 1969 Sydney Hobart. The type soon proved itself both as an IOR racer and as the boat of choice for solo circumnavigation attempts. Jon Sanders, David Dicks, Jesse Martin, and Jessica Watson all sailed examples around the world alone.
Over more than 40 years, the S&S 34 has remained a quick, stiff, and forgiving sea boat. Its long production history—spanning the UK, Australia, Denmark, Italy, and the US—also included versions called the Sagitta 35, Impala 35, and Palmer Johnson 34, reflecting the durability of the concept.
Design and Hull Form
Viewed from above, the S&S 34 has a distinct diamond plan, with a fine bow, narrow stern, short waterline, and long overhangs. Together with generous tumblehome and relatively high freeboard, these features gave it a remarkably modern shape for its era.
Below the waterline, a short fin keel carries nearly all the ballast amidships. The skeg-hung rudder sits well aft, preserving the distinct separation between keel and rudder that Olin Stephens had pioneered on the 12 Metre Intrepid.
The Mk II refined this arrangement with a deeper keel, a straighter leading edge, a better aerofoil profile, and a lower centre of gravity. A curved spade rudder on a smaller skeg further improved hydrodynamic efficiency.
The hull measures 33 ft 6 in overall and 24 ft 2 in on the waterline, with a beam of 10 ft 1 in. Displacement is roughly 9,195 lbs, with a 50% ballast ratio. The hull is easily driven and stiff, and the boat takes its first reef only at a hefty 25 knots.
Construction and Builders
Original UK boats from Winfield & Partners and Aquafibre had decks lowered below the sheerline to form a toerail, along with a doghouse and lower forward cabin trunk. After Winfield sold one of its two moulds to Aquafibre, that firm produced hulls until 1974; other yards often completed them.
Swarbrick Brothers in Western Australia acquired the second mould set. To gain headroom forward, the company developed its own deck mould, with a flush cabin trunk rising to the sheerline. This uninterrupted profile distinguishes the Australian version from the slightly raised doghouse found on the English boats.
Swarbrick built 34 hulls between 1969 and 1984. Maybrook Marine added four more from 1986. In 2003, Mike Finn of Cottesloe Yachts returned the moulds west and introduced foam-sandwich vacuum-infusion construction. The resulting Constellation class, produced from 2004, has a hull that is 25% lighter, physically stiffer, and more impact-resistant.
In all its forms, the S&S 34 is robust in every detail and forgiving of rough treatment.
Rig and Sail Plan
The S&S 34 carried a relatively tall masthead rig, with a high-aspect mainsail and enlarged foresail. Innovative in its day, this configuration later became ubiquitous among racing yachts.
The original S&S specification gave the short rig a 40 ft forestay and a 35 ft mainsail luff. On the Mk 2 tall rig, the forestay increased to 43 ft and the mainsail luff approached 38 ft. Genoa area grew from 395 sq ft for the original No. 1 to 442 sq ft, while the tri-radial spinnaker increased from 836 to 1,031 sq ft.
Swarbrick initially offered a straight-trunk Mk 1 with a single-spreader cruising rig and later offered a twin-spreader tall rig. Maybrook built both cruising and racing versions of the tall rig.
On British and early Australian boats, the forestay terminated aft of the bow. On later Australian hulls, it reached the stem. Boats built during the 1980s variously used keel-stepped or deck-stepped masts with larger sections.
Accommodations
The standard Australian cabin provides 6 ft 1 in of headroom, tapering to an inch less at the main bulkhead. A seagoing quarter berth lies to port, with the navigation station immediately forward.
The galley is to starboard. Farther forward, hanging lockers and the head separate the saloon from the forepeak, where a tight V-berth has 5 ft 10 in of headroom.
It’s a straightforward offshore-cruising interior, with the navigator’s seat and sea berth placed where they belong for passagemaking.
Handling and Performance
When introduced, the S&S 34 was considered exceptionally fast to windward and in heavy weather. Even today, she is hard to beat to windward in more than 10 knots, and owners report tacking angles of 80 degrees.
The easily driven hull needs only about 20 hp to reach hull speed, though owners claim it requires less in practice. As the boat heels, its waterline length increases significantly; Olin Stephens’ criteria put the ideal angle of heel at 23.5 degrees.
The S&S 34 is wonderfully balanced. In suitable sea states, she can hold a windward course without active steering, which helps make her easy to handle single-handed.
Verdict
The S&S 34 demonstrated Olin Stephens’ belief that a good offshore racer could also be a good cruiser. Four decades of solo circumnavigations and club racing bear that out. She is stiff, quick, and balanced, and versions ranging from solid-glass construction to infused foam retain the essential diamond-plan hull.
The chief penalty is a wet ride, a trait shared with most S&S designs of the period.
Pros
- Stiff, with a 50% ballast ratio and first reef at 25 knots
- Exceptional windward performance that remains competitive today
- Easily driven hull requiring only around 20 hp to reach hull speed
- Proven bluewater and solo-circumnavigation pedigree
- More efficient Mk II keel and rudder
Cons
- Wet in typical sea conditions
- Tight forepeak V-berth, with 5 ft 10 in of headroom
- Original UK deck profile is lower than the later Australian trunk
