J/42: Get There Fast

In the last 20 years, J Boats has shown itself to be a company of remarkable marketing acumen fused with superb design concepts. The result, ever since the first J/24 was launched, has been a series of boats that, on the whole, are straightforward performers with simple, well thought out accommodations. They make good one-designs, fast racer-cruisers, fun coastal cruisers and high placers in short-hop offshore events.

But J Boats has never been known for creating traditional blue water boats for voyaging and long-distance cruising. That's why BWS wanted to review the 42. If we fail to question traditions in the light of new and interesting designs, we'll miss an evolutionary step when it comes.

Even at first glance it is easy to see that the 42, with a displacement/length ratio of 203, is a moderately light boat. One characteristic of lighter boats is the lack of storage space for all the equipment and supplied often carried on world cruising boats. Look at the design and ask yourself where you'd store a spare primary anchor, a storm anchor and a complete spare rode and chain and you'll understand the problem. Additionally, what would 300 feet of chain in the forward chain locker (necessary for anchoring in many atolls) do to the trim of the boat? Add to that the weight of a wind vane self steering device on the transom, a cockpit arch with solar panels on it, a 10-foot dinghy rolled up on deck and a 8-horsepower. outboard sitting on the stern rails and one wonders if the 42 should be considered in the blue water category?

But we've applied a traditional measure to an non-traditional boat. What if we're not talking about going around the world, or even living aboard for years on end? What if we look for a boat that will be great for a winter in Mexico, the Bahamas or the Caribbean or a season in the Med that is not a load carrier first and a sail boat second, but the reverse. What if we cross off our must have list the solar panels and wind generators and use high output alternators instead? What if we use a lightweight storm anchor like a Fortress instead of a 100-pound Luke, and store it disassembled beneath the quarter berth? What if?

There are different ways to skin the cat and for those who love to sail an efficient sailing machine, that combines comfortable accommodations with an intelligent hull design, then a boat like the J/42 begins to make more blue water sense. Moreover, if you're prepared to make port to take on fuel, water and supplies every two weeks or so, then the design's limited storage capacity will not be a hindrance. Lastly, if you like sailing by other boats, if you like having the ability to make 7 knots to windward while taking through 85 degrees, if you like the idea of knocking off a 200-mile day in the trade winds, then this boat has something for you.

Design concept

The boat was conceived to replace the J/40 which was one of the most successful cruising boats ever built by J Boats and has a devout following. But a decade has passed since the 40 was designed and designer Rod Johnstone and marketing brother Bob have evolved their thinking many miles ahead.

The problems the 42 had to solve were these: the boat had to provide comfort and privacy for two couples cruising together, and enough space and storage for a couple spending extended periods aboard; the boat had to be stable, it had to be fast, and it had to be easy for a couple to sail for long periods.

The first criterion, the interior, is in part a marketing concern. It's nice to have another couple or children cruise with you for a while and prospective buyers like to imagine all the fun times they'll have. For weekend cruisers, pushing the living space far forward into the bow and way under the cockpit is fine. For voyagers, having comfortable guest accommodations is often a lower priority than having convenient storage space. That said, for a couple going to the Bahamas or Mexico, the 42 has adequate storage.

The stability of the 42 is one of the boat's most attractive qualities. When you step aboard, the boats feels life a 50-footer under foot. The narrow beam might seem to indicate that the boat is tender, and initially it is. But narrow beam also removes crew weight from the ballast equation, so apes hanging from the weather rail are not needed to get the boat to stand up to a blow. The keel does it all. Using a hydro-dymanic bulb keel that has evolved over the past five or six years, the design has limit of positive stability of 133 degrees, which is 10 percent higher than many fin-keel sloops in this category. Coupling the low center of gravity provided by the bulb with a light hull means that the boat does not have to fly a sky-full of sail to get it going. Instead, the boat carries a working sail area of 790 square feet, which is certainly manageable by a crew of two. The ability to sail the boat efficiently with only a 100 percent headsail is one of the net results of the keel-hull design.

Performance in most sailing conditions is not an issue. The 42 sails well and will get its crew where it is going as fast as any boat in this size range and faster than most. Long beats in choppy conditions will be bouncier and noisier than in heavier boats but you'll get there much sooner. Running and reaching the 42 will put its light weight to excellent use. How the boat performs in heavy weather will depend to a large degree on the ability of the crew because light displacement boats need to be managed in a gale more intensely than do heavy displacement boats.

The problem of designing a boat for a couple to sail easily and efficiently has been solved primarily by meeting the preceeding requiremnts. Because the boat does not require a lot of sail area to move it, big headsails, tall rigs and huge mainsails are not part of the equation. The rest of the puzzle is solved with cockpit layout. In the 42, the main sheet can be handled by the helmsman, who can reach both the double-ended sheet and the traveler adjustment from behind the wheel. Using a 100 percent headsail means the jib trimmer can do most of his work as the boat is moving through stays and will have to grind in only the last few inches on the winch. Lastly, like other Johnstone designs, the 42 will sail under mainsail alone, which means you can roll up the jib when the wind pipes up and carry on under main alone. Although not shown in the cockpit photo, a winch for the roller furling control line is essential cockpit equipment on a boat of this size.

Sailing and Handling

The numbers tell the story of how the 42 performs. A simple measure of relative performace, although not a competely scientific one, is how the boat rates under PHRF (lower numbers mean higher speed). In a list provided by the Rhode Island PHRF committee, the comparison is revealing for the J/42 has a nominal rating of 66 as compared to a Swan 42 at 78, a Little Harbor 42 at 114, a Passport 42 at 144 or a Whitby 42 at 174.

Speed is good on the race course, of course. But speed is also valuable in a cruising boat, as it allows you to sail out of the way of danger, whether it be an approaching squall, a distant storm or the shipping lanes. Quick, efficient passages are exhilarating and fun. Slow, ponderous passages are enervating and annoying.

The 42 will tack reliable through 85T and closer than that in a good breeze and when well sailed. That does not make the boat the most close winded on the market, but considering the low amount of leeway it will make, but you can count on a true 43 to the good on each tack. While we all hate to cruise to windward, when we do it is best to do it efficiently.

Being able to tack a boat easily, as noted above, makes it more fun for a couple to sail and more likely they will sail it instead of switching on the engine at the least hint of head winds. With a small foretriangle and moderate aspect rig, the 100 percent headsail on the 42 will create enough drive to power the boat along well. The exception is when sailing to windward in light breezes and a sloppy sea when more power is needed. Large headsails should be carried for racing, and we would suggest that long range sailors also carry a 125 to 130 percent headsail for light-wind areas. The use of cruising chutes in light wind makes all the difference between motoring and enjoyable sailing.

Under power the boat handles like a sports car, motoring ahead at 6.5 knots without strain on the engineering. A feathering prop is a must to maintain sailing and motoring performance and it is important to chose one that will have the power to push the bow into a head sea. Being light, the hull does not carry a lot of momentum, so short chop will stop the boat when you're powering straight into it.

Around the docks, the boat handles easily. It turns within its own length, stops quickly, and the large rudder enables it to steer easily in reverse. Because the boat is light, it can be manhandled with normal docking lines, but, also because it is light, the bow blows off easily when maneuvering in a cross wind. The 42 was designed with performance in mind and without question the boat delivers on the promise.

Construction

While the boat has many interesting features and qualities, the new construction techniques used by TPI, manufacturers of J Boats are certainly evolutionary. Cored fiberglass construction has been around for decades and balsa coring has always been used in J Boats.

Two problems have long existed with this building technique. The first has been called ?skin creep? in which the outer or inner skin of fiberglass sheers from the balsa coring and begins to move independently, damaging the structural integrity of the composite structure.

The second problem is the problem of ?core rot? when water migrates from a damaged area of outer skin into the balsa core, which will then begin to decompose. This can happen due to punctures, ruptured skin fittings or other hull damage.

The solution TPI came up with, known as SCRIMP, combines modern vacuum bagging techniques with traditional composite layups. By infusing resin into the laminate and composite structures of the hull panels, they are able to get very high saturation levels, while maintaining optimum glass to resin ratios. The result is a composite panel that is lighter and stronger than hand laid panels, and is far less likely to suffer from skin creep or core rot.

Importantly, SCRIMP provided higher strength to weight ratios, so designers can sound hulls that are lighter than traditional hulls. The boat?s displacement, then, can be dropped to the buld at the end of the keel, where it will do the most good.

Still a relatively new building technique, SCRIMP is an evolutionary step in composite, production boat building that should measurably increase the life of a balsa cored boat while creating the panel strength and light weight needed to built boats with good sailing characteristics.

Interior

With only a 12-foot beam, the boat is narrow by modern standards. Even so, the interior is open and airy and provides the requisite sleeping and head facilities for two couples. The galley is one of the best we've seen in boats of this size. The sinks are on the centerline so they will drain on both tacks. The galley, which J Boats calls the "J-shaped galley" is a useful seagoing galley, with good support for a sea cook no matter what the angle of sail. The only design feature that couldbe improved in our view is the aft head door that opens into the galley. Surely it woul be bettere to have the door open into the head, where it could be left open and out of the way. The aft head, in passing, is large enough to be the boat's only head, should an owner decide to dispense with the somewhat redundant forward head.

The main saloon is a comfortable living area that will be airy in the tropics and will be easy to illuminate at night. While dark interiors of varnished teak or mahogany appeal to many owners, it?s good to remember that many extra amp-hours will be needed in the evening to provide enough light for reading or playing cards. Ventilation is good, via the main opening hatches and the eight opening ports.

As we mentioned above, the sleeping accommodations offered with the stock boat are more for coastal and weekend cruising than long range voyaging. The two settee benches make satisfactory temporary sea berths, and the quarter berth will be a good sea berth if fitted with a mid-mattress weather cloth.

V-berths are popular because they can be pushed far forward in the narrow sections of a boat and because they allow each sleeper to move about independently without waking their cabin mate. For couples who prefer a ?harbor double? we would suggest eliminating the forward head and using the space for a large double berth. A second forward bulkhead could be added at the forward end of the berth and a large, water-tight sail and storage locker created in the boat?s bows.

Yet, as is, the interior is liveable with a great galley, large and convenient nav station and a pleasant and comfortable sitting area. The old adage was, "a good boat should drink eight, feed six and sleep four." The 42 does just that.

Conslusion

The J/42 is probably not the boat you would choose to take you to Antarctica or Greenland. It's probably not the boat for those who live aboard but don't go anywhere. And, it's probably not the boat for winter passages in the high latitude.

But the 42 is a boat for sailors who like to sail and are going places and want to go there efficiently. It has the storage needed for some but not total independence, which is fine for most sailors. Even in the vastness of the South Pacific Ocean, you can always find groceries, propane and diesel.

As a boat for cruising Europe, the Caribbean, the Bahamas and Central America, the J/42 has a lot going for it, not the least being the pleasure of sailing a boat that not only gets out of its own way but gets smartly out of the way of every other 42-footer as well.