(I am assuming that you are referring to the J-41 and not the 41 foot J-125)The J-41 was designed as a IOR one tonner. They were moderately successful winning the 1 Ton class at the SORC, back when the SORC was a world class event, and they won the One-Ton worlds held in Annapolis. This was an era when One-tonners had become strictly race boats and so there is almost no headroom or interior accomodations on these boats. IOR boats of that era required very big crews (8-10 people) to be raced successfully, or even keep the rig in the boat.

Boats like these took a lot of skill to sail, and more skill to sail well. They are tender and easily overpowered. Their rigs were fragile and needed careful playing of the checkstays to keep in column. I had looked at one that was very cheaply priced but ultimately ruled it out as being unsuitable for adaptation to a single-hander and concluded that the J-41 requiring too many people to even go out daysailing.

It hard to say what should be done with these old IOR era raceboats. They are a real bear to race under IMS where poor ratings and crew number restrictions really clobber them. They have often have great gear and sails but proportioned in a manner that makes them hard to handle and which requires a big strong crew to manhandle.

They do not do well under PHRF either. Compared to IMS designs these old IOR designs are comparatively very slow boats. This difference in speed is quite dramatic if you compare a J-41 which rates 72 to IMS boats of the same era such as the Farr 39ML which rates 18 or a Tripp 40 which rates 15.

Under PHRF, J-boats own J-35 is scratch with the J-41 (both at 72) and for a similar purchase price a J-35 can get by with smaller crew, cheaper sail inventories, has better accomodations and can sail more easily to their ratings in a wider range of windspeeds. If you have a smaller budget and want to short-hand at all, you might look at a J-36 as well.

So what do you do with a boat that can''t be raced competitively, or cruised, or even easily daysailed but which costs a whole lot to properly maintain no less compaign, (even when they are as beautiful to look at as a J-41)? I don''t have an answer although though I have wrestled with this on many an occasion. (If you feel compelled to go the old IOR One Tonner route you might look for an older Farr one tonner as they tend to be a little bit more rounded in their sailing abilities. http://www.yachtworld.com/core/listing/pl_boat_detail.jsp?currency=USD&units=Feet&checked_boats=1015473&slim=quick& )

Respectfully,
Jeff

 

Hi Jeff, thanks a lot for the wealth of information you have provided me with.

You are correct; I was referring to the J41, not the J125. When I checked the available information on the boat, I saw that there is almost no interior, except pipe berths. I was not aware of the strength of the rig, or the sailing capabilities. I will be sailing the boat on the Long Island Sound, day sailing most of the time, shorthanded, and maybe some racing at some point later on in time. I have sailed on a J24 and a J29 but that’s as far as my experience with the J-Boats goes. I am not familiar with any of their other models.

I followed your advice and checked out the J-35’s and J-36’s on www.yachtworld.com. There were a lot more J-35’s for sale than J-36’s, does that mean that the 35’s are structurally better or more desirable than the 36’s? It seems that both boats are similar but their major difference is the price. A J-35 is almost twice as expensive as a J-36. Why is that? They both seem to be same size boats, with same capabilities. Do you happen to know their PHRF ratings? Have you ever sailed / raced on a J-35 or a J-36? How do they handle under sail? Do you know what their performances are?

Thanks again for any information you can provide.

 

The J-36 was the third design that J-boats produced after the J-24 and J-30. It was a fractionally rigged design that was not rule based but which was set up like the ocean racers of that day in terms of interior layout and deck plan. They are very good boats for that era but are a bit spartan down below.

J-boat eventially cut down the hull mold for the J-30 and used the weight savings to add a heavier, more efficient keel and an optional masthead rig to produce the J-29. That treatment was so successful that J-boats cut down the hull mold for the J-36 and went to a simplified deck plan, a deeper/ heavier keel, tiller steering and a masthead rig version that became the J-35. The J-35 is a very versitile design offer good performance in a wide range of conditions. Later J-35''s were offered with an optional pretty full interior but of course minimal headroom and cruising gear.

J-35''s are still competitive race boats typically rating somewhere around 72 and still with active one design fleets in much of the country. The J-35 is generally considered 9 to 12 seconds a mile slower, especially in a lighter air venue like Long Island Sound. The J-36 is actually an easier boat to handle and certainly the easier of the two to single-hand assuming that the deck layout has been modified.

Three reasonable alternatives to these boats would be the Express 37, Frers 36 (F3) and the Farr 11.6, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

Jeff

 

The J-36 was the third design that J-boats produced after the J-24 and J-30. It was a fractionally rigged design that was not rule based but which was set up like the ocean racers of that day in terms of interior layout and deck plan. They are very good boats for that era but are a bit spartan down below.

J-boat eventially cut down the hull mold for the J-30 and used the weight savings to add a heavier, more efficient keel and an optional masthead rig to produce the J-29. That treatment was so successful that J-boats cut down the hull mold for the J-36 and went to a simplified deck plan, a deeper/ heavier keel, tiller steering and a masthead rig version that became the J-35. The J-35 is a very versitile design offer good performance in a wide range of conditions. Later J-35''s were offered with an optional pretty full interior but of course minimal headroom and cruising gear.

J-35''s are still competitive race boats typically rating somewhere around 72 and still with active one design fleets in much of the country. The J-35 is generally considered 9 to 12 seconds a mile slower, especially in a lighter air venue like Long Island Sound. The J-36 is actually an easier boat to handle and certainly the easier of the two to single-hand assuming that the deck layout has been modified.

Three reasonable alternatives to these boats would be the Express 37, Frers 36 (F3) and the Farr 11.6, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

Jeff

Great stuff Jeff. To the OP, if you're going to do some racing, it's all about a boat's ability to sail near it's rating and the cost involved to make it do so. As Jeff mentions, and it can never be repeated enough, before you buy any boat, talk to several people to get an idea of the actual cost of running the boat that's caught your eye. A quick call and a couple of ball park estimates from a sailmaker is one of the first things that will reduce your dreams by about 5' LOA (if not more) in a heartbeat!

 

Thanks Jeff for all the great information you have provided me with!

 

J 41 continued

Jeff-
If gotten cheaply could this J 41 be turned into a comfortable live aboard? and single handed or double handed safely around the chesapeake and eventually the BVI's? Without breaking the bank to convert things?

I'm dreaming of being a liveaboard. It seems that if I am going to buy anything, I'm going to have to do it without much help from the banks. They need it to be a newer boat which means more expensive boat or smaller boat. I'd like something like a 36 or 38' Catalina, but to gather that much in cash would take me a while. So the idea is to get a deal on a boat that I could make into something just right for myself over time.
Thanks,
Jose

 

I think Jeff already answered this when he said:

Boats like these took a lot of skill to sail, and more skill to sail well. They are tender and easily overpowered. Their rigs were fragile and needed careful playing of the checkstays to keep in column. I had looked at one that was very cheaply priced but ultimately ruled it out as being unsuitable for adaptation to a single-hander and concluded that the J-41 requiring too many people to even go out daysailing.

Jeff-
If gotten cheaply could this J 41 be turned into a comfortable live aboard? and single handed or double handed safely around the chesapeake and eventually the BVI's? Without breaking the bank to convert things?

I'm dreaming of being a liveaboard. It seems that if I am going to buy anything, I'm going to have to do it without much help from the banks. They need it to be a newer boat which means more expensive boat or smaller boat. I'd like something like a 36 or 38' Catalina, but to gather that much in cash would take me a while. So the idea is to get a deal on a boat that I could make into something just right for myself over time.
Thanks,
Jose

 

I would add that you should get a clear picture in mind of what kind of sailing you really want to be doing. If you want to daysail, especially shorthanded, then you should look at a smaller boat. The bigger the boat the more it costs to operate, the more effort is required for even short daysails, with the result being that you will use it a lot less. If you are thinking about living aboard, that brings up a whole other set of issues, but chances are you would be doing little daysailing at that point too.

When you see a boat like a J41 advertised for what seems like peanuts, it can look like a winning lottery ticket someone dropped on the ground. I promise you that is only an illusion. There is a reason why the boat is that price, and it is because it has a very narrow range of uses, and costs a ton of money to run.

 

This is a six year old thread guys.

 

That it is, that it is.

For my part, I was replying to Jose, who popped in more recently with some new questions about the J-41.

 

Guys I just want to say that old threads are awesome... they answer a lot of questions even a decade after the OP!

 

Hi Guys

I just want to say I had a J/41 and had the time of my life with it...and was fast.. Ran in the Rolex International in St Thomas 4 years and many other races down there. I loved every minute of it her name RIVOLI formerly DAZZLER.. John Gallo Princeton, NJ
Rivoli was sold to a guy who sailed her to Panama ... I have been looking for her ever since. I wish someone would let me know where the boat is located.
All the best, John Gallo

 

Hi John,
I am new(2nd) owner of a J/41 in San Diego. I also had time of my live on her for 20 years before my Captain passed. Would love guidance on getting her in shape.

 

Guys,
I bought a J/41 named Liquid Sky two years ago. Been spending weekends in San Diego fixing her up. Would love to connect with anyone who owns one.