J/130
J/Boats · Rod Johnstone · 1994
Updated
The J/130 is a 13.06 m semi-displacement racing yacht designed by Rod Johnstone and built by J/Boats, first launched in 1994. It races in Class A.
Length
13.06 m
42′ 10″
Beam
3.91 m
Draft
2.19 m
Displacement
7.8 t
Sail area
117 m²
On the podium
Where a J/130 finishes when she goes racing.
0
Wins
0
Seconds
0
Thirds
1
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 1 start by 1 boat between 2019, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a J/130 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2019
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: 1 race over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a J/130 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Met too few times for a figure:
Hanse 630e (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (1 meeting), IMX 40 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 43 (Maletto) (1 meeting), First 34.7 (1 meeting), Mat 101 (1 meeting), X-332 (2 meetings), First 40.7 (1 meeting), Dufour 34 (1 meeting), X-35 (1 meeting), Elan 31 (Humphreys) (1 meeting), First 36.7 (1 meeting), First 44.7 (1 meeting), Impala 36 (1 meeting), First 305 (1 meeting), X-342 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 54 (1 meeting), First 30 (Kouyoumdjian) (1 meeting), Comet 38 (Vallicelli) (1 meeting)
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
6.01
37°
Beam reach
9.40
90°
Broad reach
11.46
135°
Downwind VMG
8.79
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. Give it a fresh day and long legs and it delivers more than it promised; in a drifter it is working uphill.
Where it gains
Its best ground is on a broad reach in a strong breeze, where it outruns what it looks like on paper, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage running deep as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
There is no condition where it falls away badly, which is worth something over a season of mixed weather.
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 0.8 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the upwind.
How fast is a J/130
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.97 | 5.38 | 5.83 | 6.01 |
| 52° | 6.05 | 7.73 | 8.11 | 8.30 |
| 60° | 6.36 | 7.92 | 8.33 | 8.55 |
| 75° | 6.57 | 8.06 | 8.59 | 8.98 |
| 90° | 6.44 | 8.10 | 8.75 | 9.40 |
| 110° | 6.46 | 8.34 | 9.10 | 10.00 |
| 120° | 6.34 | 8.32 | 9.34 | 10.67 |
| 135° | 5.68 | 7.97 | 9.14 | 11.46 |
| 150° | 4.76 | 7.11 | 8.45 | 10.15 |
| Run VMG | 4.12 | 6.16 | 7.36 | 8.79 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. A bowsprit is standard across the fleet. Crew weight is declared around 850 kg.
Rigging
J/130 rig and sail dimensions
A J/130 carries 15.99 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.64 m boom, a forestay 17.29 m above the deck and a 7.24 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 7 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 158 to 198 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.