7:19 AM Sat 13 Jun 2009 GMT Jet Tern Marine has delivered close to 400 Selene Ocean Trawlers around the world in sizes ranging from 36 to 66 feet. Selene yachts have proven to be of a design capable of serious passagemaking, yet are graceful and comfortable for extended coastal cruising.
Howard Chen, designer of the Selene line, and founder and CEO of Jet Tern Marine, has announced that extensive tank tests have proven the benefits of a new generation of hull design for his Selenes that produces improvements in hull efficiency, seakeeping, comfort, capacity, and style. In addition, innovations in interior layout and upgrades to standard equipment are the result of suggestions by dealers around the world and feedback from customers.
By the end of 2009, Jet Tern will have completed the construction of new molds and tooling for the new generation of Selene Ocean Trawlers and will announce their availability and delivery over the next several months. Many of the new molds are already finished and in production and have begun to supersede the earlier line of Selene models.
The foundation of the new generation of Selene Ocean Trawlers is a hull design that turns the chines inward to the keel deeper in the water than earlier designs. Each of the next generation molds features the 'cruiser stern' increasing the overall waterline length which produces a slightly greater hull speed.
Advantages of the new generation of hull design and interior layout include: Without changing the draft, headroom in the engine room is increased by a foot or more; some of this increased headroom is carried into the lazarette.
Each new mold is 1 to 2 feet longer than its predecessor. This fact plus the added length of the cruiser stern increases the waterline length producing a slightly greater hull speed.
Greater headroom permits fuel tanks of the same capacity to be taller but narrower, increasing the effective area in the engine room for improved access, storage, and usability.
Engines are mounted relatively lower in the hull. This results in a flatter angle of the shaft, and therefore more efficient transmission of power to the propeller.
A prop tunnel is now molded in to the hull, further enabling a flatter propulsion angle and the resultant improvement in efficiency and performance.
Test tank results indicate the cruiser stern is 7 to 8 percent more efficient through the water than traditional transoms. Some mechanical loss always must be accepted, but this efficiency could translate into 4 to 5 percent improvement in fuel consumption at a given speed.
The cruiser stern, with its curved sides and bottom dissipates following seas for improved seakeeping in those conditions.
The first models of this series of next generation Selenes are the Selene 38, 42, and 49 which are all currently in production.
The new Selene 38 and 42 evolved from the popular double-cabin layouts of their predecessors. With LOAs of almost 42 and 45 feet respectively, the yachts are proven and dependable. Headroom is 66 inches in the engine room of both-unprecedented in yachts of this size. Both are designed with the cruising family in mind. These coastal cruisers provide all the same quality and safety of their larger siblings. Each comes equipped with a 230hp Cummins diesel, bow thruster, anchor windlass, full galley, island master berth, separate shower, full guest stateroom with head, and much more.
The Selene 49 is a 'next generation' evolution of the very popular Selene 48. It features the new hull design with its cruiser stern, a full foot increase in engine room headroom to 5 feet 6 inches, and the larger, standard Cummins QSL 9.0 330hp engine. The Selene 49 remains an excellent long range cruising boat. At 1,800 rpm, the engine offers a cruise speed of 8.6 knots for a range of 2,000nm. LOA is over a foot longer which translates to an 8 inch increase in the cockpit length and an additional 4 inches in the saloon.
Howard Chen explains, 'Another significant difference is a full width flybridge with much more space for entertaining friends and family with style in the open air. A new flybridge layout incorporates an 'L' settee and table to one side, a bar/sink/BBQ unit opposite, and ample room for a substantial dinghy and hydraulic crane.'
The new Selene 49 boasts a level of luxury equal to that of her larger sisters that's easy for a couple to handle.
More information, including world-wide dealer locations, is available at www.selenetrawlers.com.
Macquarie Island, TAS
