First 405
Beneteau · Jean Berret · 1990
Updated
The First 405 is a 11.97 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by Jean Berret and built by Beneteau, first launched in 1990. It races in Class C.
Length
11.97 m
39′ 3″
Beam
3.93 m
Draft
1.96 m
Displacement
8.4 t
Sail area
76 m²
On the podium
Where a First 405 finishes when she goes racing.
0
Wins
0
Seconds
0
Thirds
6
Starts
Not enough races yet for a percentage — these are the counts so far. We keep collecting results, so this will fill in.
Read from 6 starts by 1 boat between 2020 and 2023, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a First 405 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
"Κυπελλο Χριστουγεννων 2023"2023- "Ag. Nikolaou 2021"2021
- Kypello Amfitheas2021
- Κυπελλο Αμφιθεας2020
- Επιδαυρος2020
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
—
Not enough data yet: 6 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a First 405 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Sun Fast 37 (5 meetings), Atlantic 31 (7 meetings), Discovery 300 (6 meetings), Oyster 37 (5 meetings), Carter 33 (5 meetings), Sigma 33 (5 meetings), Sun Odyssey 36 (4 meetings), Triton 48 (4 meetings), Dufour 34 (Dufour) (6 meetings), Oceanis 393 (4 meetings), First 35 (Berret) (4 meetings), Dufour 325 (4 meetings), Sun Shine 36 (5 meetings), First 30 (Berret) (3 meetings), Dehler 38 (Stadt) (3 meetings), Gin Fizz (5 meetings), Feeling 920 (4 meetings), First 45 (Farr) (3 meetings), Sun Odyssey 34.2 (3 meetings), Sun Odyssey 40 (3 meetings), Sun Odyssey 37.1 (3 meetings), Moody 34 (3 meetings), First 30 (Mauric) (2 meetings), Dromor 26 (2 meetings), Sun Odyssey 36.2 (2 meetings), Ecume De Mer (2 meetings), Grand Soleil 34 (Finot) (2 meetings), Maxi 84 (2 meetings), Dufour 30 (2 meetings), X-332 (2 meetings), Apollo 12 (2 meetings), X-402 (2 meetings), Hallberg Rassy 352 (2 meetings), Melody (2 meetings), First 28 (2 meetings), Rush 31 (2 meetings), Elan 410 (2 meetings), Olympic Sea 42 (2 meetings), Sun Shine 38 (2 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the First 405 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
5.03
40°
Beam reach
8.08
90°
Broad reach
8.91
135°
Downwind VMG
7.64
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.
This design is even-tempered. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is cracked off in light air, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short on a broad reach when it blows, giving away time it never gets back. That is weight that has to be driven rather than released.
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 broad reach.
How fast is a First 405
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.14 | 4.36 | 4.88 | 5.03 |
| 52° | 4.85 | 6.43 | 7.03 | 7.23 |
| 60° | 5.15 | 6.67 | 7.24 | 7.46 |
| 75° | 5.37 | 6.88 | 7.45 | 7.80 |
| 90° | 5.47 | 7.11 | 7.59 | 8.08 |
| 110° | 5.60 | 7.29 | 7.93 | 8.52 |
| 120° | 5.44 | 7.22 | 7.96 | 8.88 |
| 135° | 4.88 | 6.89 | 7.77 | 8.91 |
| 150° | 4.14 | 6.21 | 7.37 | 8.38 |
| Run VMG | 3.58 | 5.39 | 6.59 | 7.64 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 460 kg.
Rigging
First 405 rig and sail dimensions
A First 405 carries 14.27 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.93 m boom, a forestay 15.27 m above the deck. Typical figures across the 2 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails