- Price: from 14 000 € euros
- Built since 2002 with 250 units
B2 Marine, a shipyard based near Bordeaux, was very early interested in transportable sailing yachts with its Djinn. Launched in 1986, this range includes the 18, 22 and 26. Sailboats of rather classic construction - François Sergent designs - declined in keelboats or weighted dinghies. It is the Blue Djinn, the extended version of the 18, that requires the integral dinghy configuration. The boat, although classic, is a success thanks to its tight price. Its big brother, the Djinn 7, offers a more refined design and of course more volume.
A hull signed Jacques Fauroux
For this model, the shipyard called on Jacques Fauroux. The architect - assisted for the Djinn 7 by his son Nicolas - is familiar with small integral dinghies - we owe him the Neptune 550 and the Gib'Sea 68. The hull is very tight, with almost vertical sides to respect the road gauge and an almost straight bow to increase the length at the waterline. When you get on board, you are pleasantly surprised by the stability: despite a measured weight of ballast and necessarily placed very high, the width at the waterline ensures good shape stability. And of course the Djinn 7 can land flat in 30 cm of water!
High performance, but not at all speeds...
Upwind, the Djinn 7 suffers from its basic anti-drift plan - a quarter brie daggerboard made of galvanised steel and a pivoting rudder made of aluminium sheet. And the furling genoa, combined with a rig without backstay, is struggling to maintain a good attack. The boat accelerates as soon as it is full, especially if the gennaker is out. The boat walks hard to the mainsail or the mainsail, open, quickly stumbles into the guying - again due to the absence of backstays. The most recent models sometimes have a mainsail with horn. And some of them are equipped with a homemade backstay. Djinn 7 remains healthy for a long time in the breeze. It is only from 25/30 knots downwind that it is preferable to calm down: the Djinn 7 remains a small, lightly weighted dinghy.
Deck layout: the main part of the cockpit
The shipyard has opted for the cockpit, with a clever mainsail turret that also acts as an external table stand. The transom consists of the outboard and rudder... but there is still a passage for swimming or joining the sand. The fittings are simplified to the extreme but in the end correspond perfectly to a family cruise use. However, the gangways are narrow and the lower shrouds hinder movement to the forward beach.
In open space mode
No partitions for maximum volume printing! The yard's tour de force is to have managed to accommodate six berths, including an incredible rear double berth that occupies the entire area available under the cockpit. The kitchen and chart table remain symbolic. And the storage spaces are mainly confined under the bunks. But the Djinn 7 is able to accommodate a family for a few days of cruising.
The diagnosis of Bateaux.com
B2 Marine's sailing yachts are a bit like the Dacia des mers: nothing revolutionary, but only simple and proven solutions, such as glitter paint that replaces traditional crockery. On board, everything is easy to replace, at no significant cost. The aluminium daggerboard, raised, invites itself through the saloon table... we quickly get used to it; it is the price to enjoy a sailboat perfectly adapted to sailing on shallow water and/or subject to the tide.
The benefits include
- Simple construction and finishes that age well
- Reduced draught and easy transport
- Sleeping capacity
The disadvantages
- Rigging difficult to optimize
- Lack of tone upwind and downwind
- Narrow gangways
But what is it missing?
Not much except a better studied rig and a wider rear skirt.
The equivalent today?
A new one to start with, since the Djinn 7 is still in the catalogue... but also the seductive Maxus 24 Evo and the comfortable TES 246 Versus.
