Mainship 31 purchase advice

[falcon]

Wow! What a great web site! I look forward to using this valuable resource a lot in the future. At present I am searching for our next boat. We are planning on retiring to Maine (at least for the boating season), and we are looking for a dayboat/occasional overnighter cruise boat for these waters. I have been studying the Back cove line, primarily a used 29 or 30. I am also considering the Mainship Pilot series in the same size range. I am hoping to draw on this vast sea (get it?) of knowledge. Any input into these two boats, or others of a similar style/value would be sincerely appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[DavidM]

I know both boats fairly well as my slip mate had a Back Cove 29 that I helped him maintain and I looked hard at the Mainship Pilot 30 before settling on the bigger model.

I much prefer the Mainship over the Back Cove. The upper cabin of the Mainship is more useable and the forward V-berth of 2003+ models has a flip down feature that lets the area aft of the V berth be used as a lounging area.

The Mainship comes with either the Yanmar 4LH 240 hp engine or the Yanmar 6LP 315 hp engine. The Back Cove only comes with the latter engine. The bigger engine is preferred on the Mainship and will let it cruise in the upper teens.

The Mainship comes in either hardtop or softop vesions. The hardtop is preferred and commands a $5-10K premium.

Good luck on your purchase. Either are great boats.

David

 

[falcon]

Hi David,

Thanks for the rapid response. Your points all make sense. I was looking at 2004 and newer in the Mainship line. Pricing on Mainships is much more "comfortable" as well. Any thoughts on hull design for boating in the more open waters of Downeast Maine?

Dick

 

[DavidM]

Even though the lobstermen over on downeastboatforum.com make fun of the Mainship Pilots as not being a true downeaster hull, it is. They have a full keel that terminates at the prop stern tube. It has a full skeg underneath to protect the prop. Some say that a hard chine boat which the Mainship has is not a downeaster but I can give you plenty of examples of Maine built boats with hard chines.

So like most downeasters it handles well in rough seas. You can cruise fast, about 17 kts in the Pilot 30 and not kill yourself (figuratively of course) in up to 4' seas.

It is the perfect picnic type boat that can also handle an occasional overnighter. We would have bought one if my wife hadn't said bigger. And I am glad we did. The Pilot 34 has been comfortable for us on week long cruises.

David

 

[ALAN54]

Hi, after coming from a sailing background, I switched over to a 1998 Mainship 30 Pilot with only 200 original engine hours on it's diesel. It has turned out to be a great 1 couple boat that handles very well.

 

[falcon]

Thanks Alan54!
Glad you found a good one! Which engine are you running?
Dick

 

[ALAN54]

The 175 hp Yanmar..not real fast...12 knots, but I am good with that, not to mention excellent fuel consumption.

 

[falcon]

I was curious what the speed was with the 175. Thanks for that. We used to have a 33 foot Cruisers Inc. when we lived down at Burnt Store. Great cruising in your area! Thanks for your reply!
Dick

 

[Keysdisease]

The Pilots due have a reputation for being "wet" boats, but the addition of spray rails fixes that easily.

 

[falcon]

I wouldn't think 12 kts would require spary rails (?)

 

[ALAN54]

12 knots does not require a spray rail. Boat is dry at that speed.

 

[Earl34Mainship]

The Flybridge is a very nice feature.. mine is a 34'... everyone likes going topside...

 

[falcon]

Thanks Earl,

We haven't looked at vessels quite as large as yours yet. I'm sure that stepping up one more "size" offers many more amenities!

 

[Earl34Mainship]

Dick... I looked for over a year for a trawler that met my "must have" list and I kept coming back to the Mainship. There are hundreds of boats to choose from and my 34' Mainship hasn't disappointed me. I think that most boat owners feel the same way about their boat. There are some discussions about "the perfect" boat, but the consensus seems to be whatever meets your "must have" list is your perfect boat. Happy boating with whatever you choose.

 

[kutter]

I have been looking at the Mainship 30 Pilot as well, 2005 model. I haven't seen it in person yet only in pictures. I was curious about overnight accommodations. It says it can sleep 4, but I am having trouble envisioning how. My wife and I expect occasional overnight guests but not often. With the queen birth down does the dinette provide adult sleeping space?

 

[Baker]

I owned a 2004 Mainship Pilot for 6 years. It is about the most perfect DAY boat or picnic boat you can reasonably have. I say day boat because overnight accommodations are pretty slim. It is the only reason I sold that boat. It was just too small. In 2003 and later they made significant hull modifications as well as interior changes. The hull they made more into a planing type hull. It is still a semi planing hull but they just flattened it out a little sooner which means it was a a little faster. While theoretically it should ride rougher due to the flattening of the hull, it did not. They also put the prop up into a pocket which made the thrust vector more parallel to the longitudinal axis...again, increasing performance. The keep was cutaway after the prop exited the hull about midship to provide for the flatter after sections. It is still provided a strut as well as a "sandshoe" all the way back to the rudder. All of this really did help performance. I cruised easily at 15 knots with the 4LHA. A close friend of mine has a 1998with only 10 less horsepower and they cruise at 13 at the same power setting. With all of that said, I like the earlier interior better. The 2003 and later were subject to market pressures of adding a fold out centerline queen. When that bed was folded up it pretty much completely blocked off the forward 12 feet of the cabin....whereas the older boats had a V-berth and you could access the entire area all the way up to the forpeak. It just gave a feeling of more space....and you need every bit of that feeling on that boat!!! Given the choice....I would still take the newer boats and their performance. BUT given a clean slate....I would take new boat hull and engine with old interior.
NOW....all of this can be remedied if you went with the 34. Still not a big boat. BUT, much more space than the 30.

You also have to be honest with yourself in how you are going to use it. If all you are going to do is use it mostly as a day boat....then the 30 will serve wonderfully!!! If you are going to spend a lot of time overnight.....then I would stretch for the 34. Seriously, overnighters on the smaller boat are a challenge. There is absolutely NO storage...ok a little...but it is minimal and you are constantly rearranging your **** just so you can walk around.

Hope this helps. I got more but I am tired of typing!!!

 

[Earl34Mainship]

All good information/advice Baker... overnighting on my 34 is doable - not ready for the loop with guests, but some may attempt that. Again, great advice - go for the arrangement that syncs with intended use..

 

[falcon]

Thanks for your input Baker. All very good advice. After putting my wife on a Pilot 30 for the first time the other day, she was pretty happy with the arrangement, but it has so much less storage and sleeping space than our current 28ft. Bayliner Express cruiser, that she has started to look (on her own) at what's available in the 34 ft.!

 

[BruceK]

What engines are fitted to Mainship 34s in USA? There is a 2008 for sale here with a single 380hp Yanmar. Seems excessive for a trawler, maybe not if they are really intended to plane.

 

[BandB]

What engines are fitted to Mainship 34s in USA? There is a 2008 for sale here with a single 380hp Yanmar. Seems excessive for a trawler, maybe not if they are really intended to plane.

Most have single Yanmar 370/380's. A very few have twin 240's.

 

[Dougcole]

You know, before we bought our 2005 400 trawler, I was worried about the poor reputation for quality that Mainship has but we just felt that boat checked more of our boxes than anything else we looked at that was even close to our price range.

I realize you are not looking at our exact boat, but I can tell you that I have been pretty pleased with the build quality of our boat. It is not perfect (perhaps you have stumbled upon my post about the crazy wiring for the fwd cabin lights) but I really haven't found anything major. We have had the boat two years now, and have put about 400 hours on it.

Just from looking around at a lot of Mainships, it seems to me that they improved their overall quality about 2003 or 2004. I don't mean to dis anyone's boat, but the 400 has a lot of things that I much prefer from a build and design standpoint to the older 340/390 which went out of production around 2003.

For us, a big thing was that they use quality components for the most part. A Vacuflush head is a Vacuflush head wether it is in a Mainship or a Nordhaven.

We looked at the Back Cove a little as well, I just couldn't do without a flybridge and the $ were quite a bit more.

One advantage of buying a used Mainship is that there are a lot of them around, so you can play one off of the other to your negotiating advantage. That is what we did and bought our boat about 15% below the market.

Sorry to ramble, and I hope this helps.

Doug

 

[falcon]

Good stuff Doug!
Thanks,
Dick

 

[Baker]

What engines are fitted to Mainship 34s in USA? There is a 2008 for sale here with a single 380hp Yanmar. Seems excessive for a trawler, maybe not if they are really intended to plane.

And we have to be careful in what kind of boats we are talking about. Pretty much all PILOTS were meant to plane. Earl's 34T probably barely planes. The "trawlers" with the twin 240s will plane easily. I would assume that People with the 34T singles cruise their boats off plane. I would agree. Personally, if the boat is not gonna plane, it should be equipped with a smaller engine. If it is meant to plane, it should be equipped with a larger engine. The same was the issue with the 350/390. Most of those were equipped with a Cat 300hp. Those likely go 12 knots balls out making a bunch of noise and wake....when a 140hp NA John Deere would have been just about right. Anyway....a big Mainship fan here. I just wish the management would have listened to the architects/engineers and not so much the marketing folks.

 

[Codger2]

You also have to be honest with yourself in how you are going to use it. If all you are going to do is use it mostly as a day boat....then the 30 will serve wonderfully!!! If you are going to spend a lot of time overnight.....then I would stretch for the 34.

That is sage advice! I had a 99 Pilot 30 that I loved. (My wife did not!) I used it almost exclusively as a day boat for fishing.

No one has mentioned how "tender" the Pilot 30 is. When taking a wake, abeam, the boat rocks almost uncontrollably and I have had the s_ _t scared out of me on several occasions. Always cross a wake at an angle or straight on if possible. (It would be nice if the ocean waves cooperated in this regard.) Baker's advice about stepping up to the 34 is right on the money. I wish I had done that and not opted for the less expensive 30.

Summary: The Pilot 30 is a great little boat with the operative word being "little." You (and your wife?) will be much happier in a 34.

 

[MrJim]

That is sage advice! I had a 99 Pilot 30 that I loved. (My wife did not!) I used it almost exclusively as a day boat for fishing.

No one has mentioned how "tender" the Pilot 30 is. When taking a wake, abeam, the boat rocks almost uncontrollably and I have had the s_ _t scared out of me on several occasions. Always cross a wake at an angle or straight on if possible. (It would be nice if the ocean waves cooperated in this regard.) Baker's advice about stepping up to the 34 is right on the money. I wish I had done that and not opted for the less expensive 30.

Summary: The Pilot 30 is a great little boat with the operative word being "little." You (and your wife?) will be much happier in a 34.

I'm also interested in buying a Pilot 30 (looking at Albin 28s too) and I've seen other places where you mentioned the boat being tender in beam seas. Has anyone else experienced that or was that unique to Codger's boat? The only thing I'm concerned about is the seakeeping characteristics of this boat. Would you guys say this boat is offshore capable -- at least up to 50 miles out in 3'-4' seas? Would we be able to make it back in safely if things got a bit rougher than that (e.g, 6')?

I prefer the looks and interior and cockpit arrangement of the Pilot over the Albins, but I've read nothing but praise for the rough water handling capabilities of the Albin.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Hey, Mr. J...Welcome aboard.

 

[Codger2]

I prefer the looks and interior and cockpit arrangement of the Pilot over the Albins, but I've read nothing but praise for the rough water handling capabilities of the Albin.

I agree on the interior and cockpit comment but can't comment on the Albin other than I've heard the same thing.

 

[Baker]

I'm also interested in buying a Pilot 30 (looking at Albin 28s too) and I've seen other places where you mentioned the boat being tender in beam seas. Has anyone else experienced that or was that unique to Codger's boat? The only thing I'm concerned about is the seakeeping characteristics of this boat. Would you guys say this boat is offshore capable -- at least up to 50 miles out in 3'-4' seas? Would we be able to make it back in safely if things got a bit rougher than that (e.g, 6')?

I prefer the looks and interior and cockpit arrangement of the Pilot over the Albins, but I've read nothing but praise for the rough water handling capabilities of the Albin.

I would say the Mainship is at least a very good sea boat bordering on excellent. I never really felt it was all that tender in a beam sea....UNLESS....you were not on plane. Being on plane stabilizes the boat significantly...that could be said for any planing boat. I will also say that mine was a 2004...and the other guy a 1999. If you read my previous review, the hulls were different. Not terribly but still there were different. The boat has a very deep entry and slowly flattening out as you go aft. I think the newer boats got flatter quicker which gave them better planing performance and could possibly give them better initial stability. I also personally believe that the hull work Mainship did produced a positive impact on performance with no real downside. In theory the flatter hull might pound but I never experienced any pounding and I operated that boat for 800+ hours. To answer your question, I would have no problem taking it offshore. The deep forefoot cuts right thru the weather. And because it cuts right through it and it is a relatively small boat, the ride can be wet.... no comida gratis!!!

How does it compare to the Albin 28??? In reality, I don't know. I do know the Albin is designed on a more planing hull...IOW...an even flatter hull. That would give it potentially more speed but it could pound into a head sea. I cross shopped the Albins a well. They are good boats and I would say better built!!! BUT...like y'all.....I did not like the layout. It was even smaller. And if curb appeal matters, the Mainship is a much better looking boat. My boat had the tan gelcoat which really made it look great...IMO.

If my choice was to buy the A28 or the Pilot 30 again, I would choose the Pilot 30 again. I absolutely loved the boat. You just simply cannot beat a 30 foot planing boat that gets about 3MPG(6GPH@15kts) and is so easy to operate and maintain!!! My only knock, as I previously stated, was it was a bit too small for me for overnighting.

 

[Baker]

I mean....COME ON MAN....that is just a flat out damn good looking boat!!!

 

[MrJim]

I mean....COME ON MAN....that is just a flat out damn good looking boat!!!

Agreed! She's beautiful. I read your other reviews of this boat and found them very informative. Thanks for the additional comments. This decision is getting easier...