All X-Yachts have a steel backbone that takes much of the load from the keel, mast and rig, allowing greater rig tension and increased sailing performance from its tall, efficient rig. Underwater, the modern keel shape features a lead bulb on a cast iron fin and a blade rudder with tapered rudderstock to save weight. Though weight and performance are important considerations, comfort and luxury have not been sacrificed, with plenty of teak finishing below and on deck. The X-46 comes in three- and four-cabin layouts with either an in-line or an L-shaped galley. Promising speed and reliability in a variety of conditions, the X-46 will deliver a lot of fun to a family or couple looking to get maximum performance whether cruising or on the racecourse.

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X-43 •

For almost 25 years the Danish company X-Yachts has been successfully building boats for modern sailors who look for fast, safe and comfortable yachts. The company specializes in mixing high quality and performance and the new X-43 is a continuation of this tradition. Unveiled in early 2003, the 43 is one of X-Yachts’ new generation of performance cruising boats and is slated to take over from the successful 442 as the company’s mid-range performance cruiser. Designed by Niels Jeppesen, who with his brother Lars and partner Birger Hansen started the company, the X-43 claims to be the hottest performance production cruiser on the market. They label the boat a “trendsetter,” and with the 43 X-Yachts has tried some new things. From an optional shoal draft keel and a new muffler system, which makes the 43 the quietest boat I have ever been on, to a new cabin sole that is less slippery when wet, the 43 takes the quality of X-Yachts one step further.

She is built in-house by X-Yachts in Denmark. From the bottom of her keel to the top of the mast the 43 is exemplary in the quality of her design and systems. She is built, using a female mold, out of biaxialE-glass with a 15- to 30-millimeter core of Divinycell. A solid laminate is used around high stress areas such as the keel bolts and rudderpost for added strength.

ALL AROUND TEST

In early October I was able to sail the boat 250 miles south from Stamford, Conn., to Annapolis, Md., in preparation for the boat show. This sail proved to be an excellent all-around test for both the boat and her crew. Conditions ranged from flat calm motoring to 18 hours of bashing to windward in 25 knots of wind to a wonderful screaming reach and back to flat calm again.

Michael Franks, the North American importer for X-Yachts, myself and two others, left Stamford on the chilliest morning of the fall and sailed out into Long Island Sound in 15 knots of northwest wind. We beam reached toward New York and the East River as the sun came up with not a cloud in the sky. By the time we were at the Throgs Neck Bridge at the entrance to Hell’s Gate the wind had died completely. Shedding layers of foul weather gear, we turned on the engine and motored through the river and bustling city harbor and out under the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. The boat comes with a 55-horsepower Yanmar diesel that drives the 43 easily at 6.5 knots at 3,000 rpms. X-Yachts has developed a new system to dampen noise and, as I said, it is the quietest engine I have ever heard. As we cleared Sandy Hook a light southwesterly began to fill.

I swear that I’m cursed. Every one of these deliveries that I’ve done the wind has blown like stink straight up the New Jersey coast. This time was no different. The afternoon started out with a lovely light southerly but steadily built. The 43 sailed beautifully under her 1,152 square feet of main and 135 percent genoa. As the wind built to 10 knots we sliced south at 5.5 knots, 35 degrees off the wind. A displacement of 18,960 pounds with a ballast ratio of nearly 50 percent means that the 43 is easily driven while being stiff and weatherly.

As the afternoon progressed the wind steadily built to 10 knots and then to 15 knots with gusts reaching into the low 20s. At around 3 p.m. we put a single reef in the main and rolled up the jib to the first reef. The boat happily powered along at 6.5 knots through the one- to two-foot chop. The boat that I sailed came equipped with a shoal draft five-foot, six-inch keel. The standard keel is seven feet, six inches, and it also comes with an eight-foot racing keel if so desired. In spite of the smaller keel, the boat handled the rising conditions well and made little leeway. By sunset we were 30 miles north of Atlantic City, beating into a steady 25 knots under two reefs and half the jib. The consensus was to go to delivery mode: roll up the jib and turn the motor on to get us through the night.

LIGHT AND EASILY DRIVEN

The night was clear with no moon, and when I came on watch at 9 p.m. we were bashing our way through four- to five-foot square faced chop. Every now and again the boat would come off a particularly bad wave and thud down with a jarring crash; the whole boat would shudder. Overall it handled the trying conditions very well. There are few 43-footers that would not have been bounced and jarred around out there. It is a price that modern boats pay for being light and easily driven.

By 10 a.m the next day we were off Cape May, N.J., and the only thing that had changed was that it was daylight. At this point the boat and crew were quite exhausted. But on this brand new boat none of the systems faltered after the night of pounding. It took what seemed like an eternity for us to slog around the shoals off of Cape May and turn up the Delaware Bay.

With a huge sigh of relief fromeveryone on board we bore away to a broad reach and put some more sail up. The next few hours proved without a doubt that there is a healthy trade off to the pounding of the light displacement boat. With a reef in the main and the full jib in 20 knots of breeze we scooted along at nine knots with regular surfs to 10. The wide and powerful aft section kept the boat on her feet as we blasted along. Hand steering proved great fun and the large spade rudder made the 43 sports-car responsive.

The cockpit most reflects the boat’s racing brethren. It is set up so that five people can work easily together when racing. In spite of this, the seats are comfortable and long enough for a person to nap on. A removable cockpit table with a storage bin proved to be very useful. The steering wheel is a large Edson unit that offers very good visibility and with a twitch of the helm the boat responds instantly. The mainsheet is two-to-one purchase on a full-width traveler. It runs forward to the mast and than aft underneath the teak side decks to the Andersen secondaries that are within easy reach of the helmsman. All of the halyards and other lines from the mast are led aft under the cabin top to winches on either side of the companionway. Going to weather in that slop, the cockpit offered good protection from the sheets of spray flying aft. It is possible for two people to stay quite dry even in the worst conditions. The only problem is that the Andersen primary winches were impeded when the dodger’s removable side flaps are down. We ended up rolling the leeward side up which solved the problem nicely. The cockpit lockers offer good storage for sails, fenders and lines and also give good access to the rudderpost and steering system.

LONGITUDINAL GALLEY

Down below the 43 comes in two standard arrangements finished in teak with extremely high quality craftsmanship. The boat I sailed has the three cabin “modern” layout. The master cabin is up forward with a large double bunk and a private head. There is ample storage space up there for two people living aboard. In the saloon the longitudinal galley runs along the port side. This is an awkward arrangement because the sink seacocks have to be closed while sailing. The settee offers comfortable seating for six people. X-Yachts also offers a “classic” layout with an L-shaped galley back by the companionway, a more traditional settee and a table with lifting flaps. In my opinion this arrangement is superior because the galley is better suited to cooking under way and the bench on the port side of the settee makes a great sea birth. Both interiors have two aft cabins on either side of the companionway.

As day two ended we slid up Delaware Bay toward the C&D Canal. The wind slowly came forward of the beam and started to die. As we approached the canal we came upon four other cruising boats heading our direction. One by one we picked them off and sailed on. It is a very nice feeling at the end of a long day to effortlessly sail past boats. The wind finally shut off as we reached the entrance to the canal at 6:30 p.m. and on came the engine. The motor to Annapolis was uneventful. The wind switched back to the northwest and started its clockwise cycle again. By midnight we were tied to the dock and off to bed for sweet, well-deserved dreams.z

Overall I was extremely impressed with every aspect or the X-43. The level of quality in design and construction is some of the best on the market. The 43’s price puts it just above the middle for boats of its size while its value is among the highest. X-Yachts keeps growing and getting better and better. The company is one of the top production builders in Europe and is slowly gaining a faithful following here in the U.S. BWS gives them

our full support.

LOA 42.5 ft.
LWL 37.6 ft.
Beam 13 ft.
Draft (standard) 7.2 ft.
Draft (alternative) 8.2 ft.
Ballast 9,480 lbs.
Displ. 18,960 lbs.
SA 1,000 sq. ft.
Displ./L 159
SA/Displ. 22.5
Auxiliary 38-horsepower Yanmar
Base price $350,000

X-Yachts USA
Foot of Washington Blvd.
Stamford, CT 06902
Ph: 800-926-2878
E-mail: info@x-yachtsusa.com
Website: www.x-yachts.com

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In ways both subtle and stunning, Denmark-based X-Yachts has parlayed two decades on the European production front into a strong contemporary U.S. presence. More the steady evolution of a solid line of yachts than the invasion of a market force, the phenomenon in this country began small and has come to reflect high levels of performance, boatbuilding and refinement carried in a range that spans 30 to 73 feet. Blue Water Sailing had the opportunity to spend some time aboard the X-482 in Chesapeake Bay last fall on a 150-mile trip from Annapolis, Md., to Norfolk, Va. Conditions included flat water and fluky breezes that varied between eight and 15 knots. The boat was a joy to sail and steer.

X-Yachts was developed in 1979 by a partnership composed of designer Niels Jeppesen, builder and market specialist Lars Jeppesen, and laminate and production mastermind Birger Hansen – all three of whom still run the company today. They struck pay dirt in May of 1979 with the introduction of the X-79, a high-octane 25-foot one-design developed in the vernacular of the American J/24 and Sweden’s Albin Express. By 1983, the X-79 Class was 350 boats strong and dominated the Northern European one-design scene. For X-Yachts, it was, quite literally, off to the races.

With a well established emphasis on performance and cutting-edge production, the company continued to ratchet up its international persona with successful forays into high-tech racing fare, from Half-Tonners to One Tonners and right on up to 50- and 60-foot offshore racers. Significant was a continuing effort to design for and incorporate state-of-the-art materials and fabrication techniques such as carbon fiber, Nomex honeycomb core, and autoclave curing.

In the past ten years or so, X-Yachts has applied diligently learned lessons to the development of what the company calls its Performance Cruising line. The harbinger of this effort was the popular X-412 introduced in 1990, currently in Mark III production and still in demand. The boat combined graceful good looks with IMS championship-level jets. The X-482 followed in its wake in Europe five years later. Both vessels pursue the mission statement developed by X-Yachts for the entire range: “That is, to have the most comfortable, easily handled yacht possible which, in the right hands and with the right sails and crew, is capable of winning the most prestigious regattas against the toughest competition.”

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

Niels Jeppesen’s approach with the 482 has been to invoke elements of classic appeal in terms of its lines and accommodations, and wrap this up in a high-performance hullform with plenty of sail power and good stability numbers for heavy-weather work. The boat boasts a long, lanky profile that allows it to carry considerable freeboard; this, in consort with a subtle rising sheer forward, suggests a conscious attempt by Jeppesen to divert boarding seas upwind and keep the vessel as dry as possible. Hull entry is V-shaped, fine and deep, resolving as you move aft into a fairly substantial U-shaped underbody with plenty of deadrise for good tracking and directional stability under way. Max beam of 14’1” occurs fairly far aft, around Station 6, then tapers back gracefully astern.

All in all, it makes for a versatile boat, extremely controllable and fun to sail, whether you are eyeing coastal day hops or settled in for some long-distance transoceanic passagemaking. Deeper sections reduce the uncomfortable tendency of so many modern thoroughbred racers – with their flattened, pan-shaped underbodies – to pound relentlessly in headseas while thrashing into breezes forward of the beam. The keel is short in chord length, deep and hydrodynamically astute; it’s there to hold the boat upright, aid tracking and provide lift while minimizing drag. The rudder shows a lithe, tapered, semi-elliptical profile; it is balanced keenly, and the fingertip control you reap at the helm is worthy of emphasis here.

A run through the numbers offers a telling profile of the 482. Ballast/Displacement tips in at a reassuringly stable 42 percent. Given a deep keel that keeps this ballast low (the standard torpedo fin is 8’2”, and even the optional “shoal” keel is fully 7’2”), the figure becomes even more impressive. It is comparable to the Swan 48 (39 percent) and the Morris 48.6 (44 percent), both of which aspire to similar performance goals. Displacement/Length (D/L) at 171 is light without being featherweight, again falling midway between the Swan (200) and the Morris (147). The sailplan, featuring 1,195 square feet of sail area flown off a three-spreader tapered aluminum Sparcraft/X-Yachts masthead rig, delivers a potent Sail Area/Displacement (SA/D) ratio of 21.5, which edges out both the Swan and the Morris. In short, the math points to a powerful yacht with a stiff stability component and restrained displacement. True to form, the X-482 favors a healthy blend of performance and seakeeping.

CONSTRUCTION HIGHLIGHTS

Production certification and plan approval don’t necessarily beget a great boat, but in terms of pedigree they clearly don’t hurt. The 482 has been built in accordance with European CE-Certification and meets the requirements of the CE directive 94/25/CE for recreational craft, which dictates minimum standards for items such as hull and deck modulus, structural bulkheads, foil attachments, equipment and systems installations, and safety compensation in general. Furthermore, items including hull, deck, keel attachment, bulkheads and frames are plan-approved and built in accordance with American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) prescribed scantlings.

It is probably safe to say that X-Yachts exceeds these criteria by more than a comfortable margin. Hull and deck are fabricated of Divinycell foam core in varying densities with biaxial and triaxial E-glass in an isophthalic polyester resin matrix. Solid laminate occurs in all high-load areas, including a rather impressive hull framing grid, keel and rudder attachment points, and thru-hull locations.

Indeed, the crux of the structure is the hull framing grid itself – a fully integrated 1,100-pound heat-galvanized steel floor frame and girder system that accepts loads from the keel, mast and rig, reinforces the hull in general, and allows the remainder of the vessel to be built light. Monocoque integrity is underscored by structural bulkheads of marine plywood that vary in thickness from 16 to 30 millimeters and are tabbed to hull and deck, tying together the whole ball of wax. The boat feels solid as a rock, whether you are running around the teak decks topside or spending time below; it moves as one, nothing creaks, and the impression you form aboard is one of confidence in the way that everything is put together.

The keel consists of antimony-hardened lead let into a cast-iron top flange. The idea here is to concentrate weight low and to optimize structurally the keel-hull interface. The rudder blade is hand laid in solid biaxial and triaxial E-glass and laminated directly to a tapered aluminum rudder stock with three sets of welded wings. It bears at hull and deck and is operated by way of a custom Whitlock direct-link steering system. We found the helm to be smooth as silk under way, and very responsive in tight maneuvering situations.

SYSTEMS AND MECHANICAL

The 482 lends itself well to being owner maintained – the installation of systems is logical and access to major components is optimized. A 75-horsepower Yanmar 4JH 2-HTE lives beneath the companionway and you can get to it pretty much all the way around by lifting up the companionway steps (assisted by handy pneumatic struts) and by opening large panels port and starboard. There is room for a diesel generator and additional equipment including a watermaker, cabin heaters and air conditioning in the large space beneath the cockpit and between the two after cabins.

Stainless steel water and fuel tanks are installed between floor frames to keep the weight of these components low and to relieve space in the main cabin for provisioning and storage. Tank volumes are recounted on digital readouts at the electrical panel. Cleverly, deck fills are separated to avoid cross-pollination; three freshwater fills are located on the port side, while one diesel fill and two holding-tank pumpouts reside all the way across the deck to starboard.

Electrical distribution is neatly addressed in a main panel at the nav station that hinges outward to reveal a well organized mélange of bundled, carefully identified wires and bus bars. The AC component is isolated from the DC and shielded by a clear plastic safety cover. Discrete switchboards control 12-Volt house and nav circuits on the one hand, and generator/shorepower feeds on the other. Capacities include one 70-amp-hour dedicated engine start battery, and six 70-amp-hour house batteries. Standard charging (not including the genset) is by way of an 80-amp 12V alternator on the engine and a shorepower charger at 110V and 12V/25-amp.

ACCOMMODATIONS AND DECK PLAN

The 482 is available in four standard interior versions, all of which feature satin-finished teak, modern molded furniture for that soft radiused look, and an emphasis on open, airy, functional space. The alternatives include three-cabin and four-cabin arrangements, each in so-called “modern” and “classic” configurations. The three-cabin option features doubles aft in the hips, two heads (forward and aft), a large main saloon, and a spacious double V-berth forward; the four-cabin option features the same, but with an added two-bunk stateroom sharing space with the V-berth in the bow. Sail storage is forward of this and accessed from the deck.

In the modern versions, the main saloon features a nav station on the starboard side at the base of the companionway, and forward of that a large oval dinette and U-shaped settee. Stretched along the port side is a long, longitudinal, Euro-style galley. In the classic versions, the nav station is located on the port side, opposed to starboard by a traditional L-shaped galley in its own niche. Forward are conventional longitudinal settees port and starboard, with a fold-out dinette amidship and pilot berths tucked in above the settees.

We sailed aboard the Three-Cabin Modern Version, but would recommend the Three-Cabin Classic Version shown on page 48. Longitudinal galleys tend to impinge on living space in the saloon, and they are less secure at sea. The traditional arrangement featuring the galley aft and settees with pilot berths is more convenient in a number of ways offshore – from easier, safer cooking,to greater versatility with regard to sleeping and stowing personal gear.

Moving topside, you enter a roomy but secure cockpit with coamings angled nicely to give lumbar support without hitting you the wrong way in the small of the back. The main hatchboards slide conveniently into spring-loaded pockets at the companionway, so they are out of the way yet ready for deployment on a moment’s notice. Halyards, reefing lines and other cordage are organized conveniently through banks of Antal stoppers at the cockpit’s forward bulkhead. The primary and secondary winch component – four two-speed self-tailing Andersen 58s – reside port and starboard. The helm features an oversize Whitlock wheel, just forward of which is the main traveler servicing end-boom mainsail sheeting. All the way aft is a snazzy teak-stepped transom.

The deck forward of the cockpit is clean, wide-open and easy to get around. The cabin is decidedly low-profile, surrounded by luscious teak decks. A lot of people are over the teak deck thing, but there’s no denying that teak is comfortable and solacing underfoot. Discontinuous rod rigging is secured to chain plates with annotated turnbuckles for tuning ease. A detachable intermediate forestay secures in the middle of the foredeck; it is opposed by running backs led aft to the hips. All the way forward are the obligatory windlass, anchor locker, stemhead rollers and jib furling gear, which in the case of the boat we tested was a shiny new Reckmann unit.

BLUE WATER THOUGHTS

Under way, we found the 482 to be well balanced, responsive and stable. It has the power and feel of a big boat with the control and handling characteristics of something much smaller. On flat water in up to 15 knots of breeze we charged along upwind at 35 degrees apparent hitting easy eights and nines. Cracking off to a reach, acceleration was keen. The boat is light and powerful enough to pick up speed readily; it is also big enough, with a long enough waterline, to carry that speed in puffy light-air conditions.

Certainly there is a lot to like about the X-482; in fact it is difficult to find any glaring flaws. As advertised, it is a “performance” boat, which is to say that there is a lot of potential in it worthy of a savvy crew and a premium suit of sails. The sporting owner with whom we sailed is a devoted Melges 24 racer with a particularly strong yen for boats that go fast and trim to form. To subject the 482 to anything less than this mindset behind the wheel would be to sail it well below its capabilities.

That said, however, it bears emphasizing that this same owner is not a professional sailor but rather an enthusiastic outdoorsman with a land job, a family, and a core of buddies with whom he enjoys spending time on the water, whether it is in round-the-buoys competition or cruising passionately over the horizon on his own timetable. When this reporter got off his boat in Norfolk after a full-moon delivery down the Bay, he was headed offshore for the islands.

Notable about the 482 are its strength and stability. The deep keel is well suited to oceangoing service, as is the powerful hullform. The rig is strong and simple – able to carry plenty of canvas, but not dependent on an elaborate spider’s web of running backs and checkstays. The hull and deck are constructed with a lot of attention to detail and stamina. Accommodations are comfortable and basic, hardly overdone but refined nonetheless. Equipment spec’d is first-rate. In short, here’s a 48-footer at a competitive price capable of combining the performance experience with an offshore voyager’s wanderlust.

LOA 48’0” (14.6 m.)
LWL 41’0” (12.5 m.)
Beam 14’1”
Draft (std) 8’2” (2.5 m.)
Draft (opt shoal) 7’2” (2.2 m.)
Ballast 11,023 lbs.(5,000 kg.)
Disp 26,455 lbs. (12,000 kg.)
SA (100%) 1,195 sq.ft. (111 sq.m.)
Ballast/Disp .42
Disp/Length 171
SA/Disp 21.5
Beam/LWL .34
Brewer Comfort 27.8
Fuel 66 gal. (250 ltr.)
Water 118 gal. (450 ltr.)
Auxiliary Yanmar 4JH 2-HTE 75-hp

Designer Niels Jeppesen

X-Yachts
Fjordagervej 21 • Box 104
DK-6100 Haderslev • Denmark
Ph: +45 74 52 10 22
Fax: +45 74 53 03 97
X-Yachts USA
Konrad Woermann
Box 3316 • Annapolis, MD 21403
Ph: 410-268-8098 • Ph: 800-926-2878

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