Building a 55' Trawler

Hi all,

Just found this forum and very happy with all the information! My husband and myself live in Dubai and are planning to have a 55' Trawler (Bruce Roberts design) build in India. The boat will be build in full aluminum and will be used for living aboard.
As we have a dog (German Shepherd) and 2 cats I was just wondering if anyone has experience with living aboard with pets or the full building process?

We will be hiring a wharf to do all the building but am looking for all advice on any pittfalls, things I have to watch out for etc. All help is welcome .

We initially would only use the boat for weekend trips (while living on it all the time) and probably go for a long trip (upto 3 years) in another 5 years. Is the 55' the right size according to your experiences? By the time we will travel on it full time our dog most probably will be either old and love to rest or gone.

Thanks again for any help!
Winifred

Welcome Winifred,
Great to have you on board. Sounds like a nice project you are starting. I was very keen on one of the Bruce Roberts sailing trawlers when I was boat shopping. He has some nice designs. Is it the Voyager TY55?

Building in India will be a challenge. I spent a while working there. If you have the right connections, you can build anything in India at a very good price. Just beware of the scammers. I'm sure you've done your homework.

As far as size goes - whatever works for you. I'm happy with 30ft, others think 60ft is not enough room. Chartering a similar boat for a week or two would be worthwhile, to give you a better feel for the boat compared to a quick walk-through.

Best of luck - and keep us informed of your progress. Everyone here loves watching other people building a nice boat. Post pictures of your progress!

I second AusCan on be careful in India. Unless your builder is very experienced at building Al motor vessels, think twice. You may want tor read the Setsail website about building Al vessels in NZ.

I know where there is a very nice, late model Bruce Roberts design steel vessel for sale. Also you can likely get a low hour Nordhavn 55 for less $$ than a new Al build 55'. PM me for any advice or thoughts, I AM NOT a broker.

sunchaser said:

I second AusCan on be careful in India. Unless your builder is very experienced at building Al motor vessels, think twice. You may want tor read the Setsail website about building Al vessels in NZ.

I know where there is a very nice, late model Bruce Roberts design steel vessel for sale. Also you can likely get a low hour Nordhavn 55 for less $$ than a new Al build 55'. PM me for any advice or thoughts, I AM NOT a broker.

Click to expand...

Hi Sunchaser, thanks for the advice. We got the contacts from the wharf from Bruce Roberts so that instilled some confidence. We have visited the yard and they have some experience in building aluminum yachts. They are hiring in experienced aluminum tig welders so I am pretty happy with that to.
We have looked at secondhand as well but looked at the cost and trouble of shipping, interior rebuild etc. and have decided on new build. If properly managed this should work.

Thanks,
Winifred

I hope that as this project moves forward you will bless us with many photos and a good narrative of your progress.

I wish you much success with your venture.

winifred said:

Hi Sunchaser, thanks for the advice. We got the contacts from the wharf from Bruce Roberts so that instilled some confidence. We have visited the yard and they have some experience in building aluminum yachts. They are hiring in experienced aluminum tig welders so I am pretty happy with that to.
We have looked at secondhand as well but looked at the cost and trouble of shipping, interior rebuild etc. and have decided on new build. If properly managed this should work.

Thanks,
Winifred

Click to expand...

I know of several projects in alum in Thailand that were supposedly done in a good yard (built some naval vessels), and supposedly had real good welders. Bottom line, a great majority of one vessel had to be redone, or maybe it got scrapped....never did follow up on it. Alum welding can be tricky

I've gone for a week at a time with two small dogs and they are no trouble for us. As a matter of fact, they seem to enjoy it as well as providing us with great company.

We have 3 dogs and like to take them with us as much as possible. My advice to you is have a nice cockpit and as close to 3' (or more) "long" swim platform. Having room to remain stable while transferring pooches to and from dinghy is necessary to your comfort level when it come time for animal shore excursions! I'm still thinking of ways to securely "dock" the dinghy bow to the swim platform during these exercises.