Review of Columbie 66

The hull is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season. And outside the sailing season, just bottom cleaning and perhaps anti-fouling painting once a year - a few hours of work, that's all.
The hull is a double hull which improves the indoor climate. Especially when the water is colder than the air in the cabin, then the double hull insulates against cold water and reduce the condense water in the cabin.

The interior is like nearly all boats made of wood.
The boat is equipped with one cabin, 4 berths, a galley, toilet facility and 15 liter waste water capacity.

The boat equipped with a fractional rig. A fractional rig has smaller headsails which make tacking easier, which is an advantage for cruisers and racers, of course. The downside is that having the wind from behind often requires a genaker or a spinnaker for optimal speed.

The keel is made of iron. Many people prefer lead keel in favour of iron. The main argument is that lead is much heavier than iron and a lead keel can therefore be made smaller which again result in less wet surface, i.e. less drag. In fact iron is quite heavy, just 30% less heavy than lead, so the advantage of a lead keel is often overstated.

The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.50 - 1.60 meter (4.92 - 5.22 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Columbie 66 is typically equipped with an inboard Bukh diesel engine at 8.0 hp (5 kW), which gives a max speed about 4.6 knots.

The transmission is a saildrive.

The fuel tank has a capacity of 30 liters (7 US gallons, 6 imperial gallons).

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Columbie 66 is 2.08, indicating that this boat would not be accepted to participate in ocean races.

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 5.8 knots. The term "Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed" is widely used even though a boat can sail faster. The term shall be interpreted as above the theoretical speed a great additional power is necessary for a small gain in speed.

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Columbie 66 is about 95 kg/cm, alternatively 534 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 95 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 534 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Columbie 66 is 17.8 - 18.6.

Comparing this ratio with similar sailboats show that it is more comfortable than 82% of all similar sailboat designs. This is a comfort value significantly above average.

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Columbie 66 is 2.64.

Compared with other similar sailboats it is more spacy than 73% of all other designs. It seems that the designer has chosen a slightly more spacy hull design.

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Columbie 66 is 43%.

This ballast ratio shows a righting moment that is higher than 69% of all similar sailboat designs. A righting moment (ability to resist heeling) just above average.

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Columbie 66 is 261 which categorizes this boat among 'light crusers & offshore racers'.

21% of all similar sailboat designs are categorized as heavier. A heavy displacement combined with smaller water plane area has lower acceleration and is more comfortable.

What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?

The SA/D for Columbie 66 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 12.5, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 14.5.

The SA/D ratio indicates that it is faster than 12% of all similar sailboat designs in light wind.

The Columbie 66 has more rig than 12% of all similar sailboats, which indicates that the boat is significantly underrigged.

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Columbie 66 is 38

The relative speed performance is 38 which means that a it is faster than 38% of all similar sailboat designs.

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 17m² (182 ft²).
Based on this, your favourite maritime shop can tell you the quantity you need.

Note: If you use a paint roller you will need more paint than if you use a paintbrush.

Dimensions of sail for fractional rig.

Are your sails worn out? You might find your next sail here: Sails for Sale

If you need to renew parts of your running rig and is not quite sure of the dimensions, you may find the estimates computed below useful.

This section shown boat owner's changes, improvements, etc. Here you might find inspiration for your boat.

Do you have changes/improvements you would like to share? Upload a photo and describe what to look for.

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Columbie 66 it would be a great help.

If you have any comments to the review, improvement suggestions, or the like, feel free to contact us. Criticism helps us to improve.

[Ref 1]: ISO 8666 Small craft — Principal data.
[Ref 3]: ISO 12215-5 Small craft — Hull construction and scantlings.