Beneteau First 285
Description
The Beneteau First 285 is a versatile French cruiser-racer sailboat designed by Jean-Marie Finot of Groupe Finot and produced by Beneteau from 1985 to 1993, with 451 hulls built in France and the United States. At 27 feet 10 inches in length overall (with a waterline length of 24 feet 3 inches), it features a lightweight fiberglass hull—solid laminate construction with balsa-cored deck—for agile performance and coastal cruising, available in deep fin keel (draft 4 feet 7 inches), shoal draft (3 feet 9 inches), winged keel (3 feet 10 inches), or keel/centerboard (up to 6 feet 3 inches raised to 3 feet 1 inch) variants. Despite its compact size, the boat accommodates four comfortably with a V-berth forward, U-shaped galley, saloon with convertible settees, and enclosed head, while its fractional sloop rig delivers responsive handling, quick acceleration, and a balanced sail plan suited for club racing or relaxed day sails. Though out of production, the First 285 holds strong resale value due to its elegant styling, low-maintenance build, and lively seaworthiness.
Construction Details
| Designer | Jean-Marie Finot |
|---|---|
| Builder | Beneteau |
| Length | 28.770 ft |
The standard boat dimensions
| i | 29.92 ft |
|---|---|
| j | 10.30 ft |
| p | 31.24 ft |
| e | 11.09 ft |
| p2 | - |
| e2 | - |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29.92 ft | 10.30 ft | 31.24 ft | 11.09 ft | - | - | - | - |
Sails
| Sail Type | MAINSAIL |
|---|---|
| Luff | * 31.24 ft - (9522 mm) |
| Foot | * 11.09 ft - (3380 mm) |
| Leech | * 32.44 ft - (9888 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 87.98 ° |
| Diagonal | * 32.78 ft - (9991 mm) |
| Head (inches) | * 5.25 in - (133 mm) |
| Area | * 177.61 ft² |
| Sail Type | JIBSAIL |
|---|---|
| Luff | 29 ft - (8839 mm) |
| Foot | 12.67 ft - (3862 mm) |
| Leech | 26 ft - (7925 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 110.29 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 11.36 ft - (3463 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 7.3 ° |
| Area | * 164.71 ft² |
| Sail Type | JIBSAIL |
|---|---|
| Luff | 25.31 ft - (7714 mm) |
| Foot | * 13.81 ft - (4209 mm) |
| Leech | * 21.71 ft - (6617 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 114.95 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 11.84 ft - (3609 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 12 ° |
| Area | * 149.81 ft² |
| Sail Type | GENOA |
|---|---|
| Luff | 29 ft - (8839 mm) |
| Foot | 16.75 ft - (5105 mm) |
| Leech | 27.33 ft - (8330 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 150 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 15.45 ft - (4709 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 3.69 ° |
| Area | * 224.09 ft² |
| Sail Type | GENOA |
|---|---|
| Luff | 29 ft - (8839 mm) |
| Foot | 17.25 ft - (5258 mm) |
| Leech | 27.5 ft - (8382 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 154.76 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 15.94 ft - (4859 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 3.47 ° |
| Area | * 231.14 ft² |
| Sail Type | GENOA |
|---|---|
| Luff | 29 ft - (8839 mm) |
| Foot | 15.58 ft - (4749 mm) |
| Leech | 27.25 ft - (8306 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 140.1 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 14.43 ft - (4398 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 3.19 ° |
| Area | * 209.19 ft² |
| Sail Type | GENOA |
|---|---|
| Luff | 30.06 ft - (9162 mm) |
| Foot | * 16.78 ft - (5115 mm) |
| Leech | * 28.13 ft - (8574 mm) |
| Percentage LP | * 150 % |
| Length Perpendicular | * 15.45 ft - (4709 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 3.99 ° |
| Area | * 232.19 ft² |
| Sail Type | ASYMMETRICAL |
|---|---|
| Luff | 31 ft - (9449 mm) |
| Foot | 18 ft - (5486 mm) |
| Leech | 28.75 ft - (8763 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 165 % |
| Area | * 418 ft² |
| Sail Type | SPINNAKER |
|---|---|
| Stays | * 30.06 ft - (9162 mm) |
| MidGirth | * 18.54 ft - (5651 mm) |
| Foot | * 18.54 ft - (5651 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 180 % |
| Area | * 474 ft² |
| Sail Type | STORMJIB |
|---|---|
| Luff | * 17.4 ft - (5304 mm) |
| Foot | * 7.84 ft - (2390 mm) |
| Leech | * 14.01 ft - (4270 mm) |
| Perc LP | * 60 % |
| Length Perp | * 6.18 ft - (1884 mm) |
| Deck Angle | * 19 ° |
| Area | * 53.75 ft² |
Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.