Finn Express 83
Nykra · Eivind Still · 1981
Updated
The Finn Express 83 is a 8.32 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by Eivind Still and built by Nykra, first launched in 1981. It races in Class C.
Length
8.32 m
27′ 4″
Beam
2.79 m
Draft
1.43 m
Displacement
2.4 t
Sail area
37 m²
On the podium
Where a Finn Express 83 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
59%
of 17 starts by 4 boats
Wins
35%
Read from 17 starts by 4 boats between 2021 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Finn Express 83 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Kopun Kaksinpurjehdus2026- Björkholmen - Blekholmen2026
- Porkkala Race2026
Tallinn Championship W/L2023- A.Le Coq 64. Muhu Vaina Regatt / Moonsund Regatta 2021 - offshore2021
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
—
Not enough data yet: no races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
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Not enough data yet: 5 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Finn Express 83 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
First 31.7 (4 meetings), Ridas 31 (4 meetings), Finngulf 28 (3 meetings), Salona 34 (1 meeting), Bavaria 35 (1 meeting), X-332 (1 meeting), J/11 (1 meeting), J/105 (1 meeting), First 36.7 (1 meeting), Antilla 36 (2 meetings), H 323 (1 meeting)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Finn Express 83 has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
4.38
40°
Beam reach
7.10
90°
Broad reach
7.59
135°
Downwind VMG
6.75
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
It needs pressure to show what it can do. On a windy coastal course it is in its element; on a light-air windward-leeward it has to be sailed well to hold on.
Where it gains
Its best ground is on the beam in a strong breeze, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short cracked off in light air, giving away time it never gets back.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 0.4 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Finn Express 83
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 2.79 | 3.84 | 4.32 | 4.38 |
| 52° | 4.29 | 5.66 | 6.13 | 6.25 |
| 60° | 4.53 | 5.85 | 6.29 | 6.45 |
| 75° | 4.68 | 6.00 | 6.47 | 6.79 |
| 90° | 4.62 | 6.13 | 6.64 | 7.10 |
| 110° | 4.61 | 6.15 | 6.81 | 7.65 |
| 120° | 4.42 | 6.04 | 6.75 | 7.75 |
| 135° | 3.88 | 5.71 | 6.54 | 7.59 |
| 150° | 3.34 | 5.16 | 6.26 | 7.22 |
| Run VMG | 2.90 | 4.50 | 5.73 | 6.75 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 360 kg.
Rigging
Finn Express 83 rig and sail dimensions
A Finn Express 83 carries 9.24 m of mainsail hoist on a 3.60 m boom, a forestay 8.25 m above the deck. Typical figures across the 6 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 32 to 36 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.