Mainships?

I would like any information / opinions on Mainship boats. They are definitely lower priced than most other brands, so I am wondering about their quality and or value.

Thanks

Welcome to the forum! Lots of people like there Mainships.

Ted

We own a 2004 34MS Trawler and love the boat. We have put over 200 hours on the 370 Yanmar without any problems. Excellent living space for two people and the engine room is well designed for access and servicing the engine. Our eighth boat and most likely our last, looking at eighty years old.

Seacruz...

Welcome aboard TF...

From your location (Ohio) I'm guessing you will be boating mostly on great Lakes. We've had our MS 34HT for 3 seasons now and really like it - great boat for 2 people.
There is a Mainship sub-forum where you may find more interesting reading.
Also check our website (signature link) for some photos, projects, info & other useful links.
I was unsure of how I'd like a single (having had twins previously) but after a little adjustment I really like it. Our PO had the optional stern thruster so it's a piece of cake to handle. I doubt I would bother as the single & bow thruster seem perfectly adequate w/ a little practice.

Things we like...
saloon - plenty of light & ventilation
wide - safe - covered side decks / walkaround
helm side door - allows easy locking, docking & single handing when/if req'd
covered aft deck
ease of engine rm access (no need to move furnishings)
engine rm space - working + storage (single engine)

Not so much...
storage was a bit of a challenge vs our previous 28 Carver but reworking cabinets & closets have helped a lot (some pics on website)
sleeper sofa - not all that comfortable for seating - we removed it and added 2 recliners - liking the new arrangement

Any specific questions - ask away

I look at the automobile market for an analogy. Far more happy owners of Chevrolet's than Cadillac's. Hyundai has one of the best owner satisfaction ratings of any car.

Mainship and Bayliner often get put down as "cheap" boats, but just because they are less expensive doesn't mean they aren't quality boats. In fact, they've both stood the test of time well and have very large groups of happy owners. Some of the words you hear used over and over are "spacious" and "nice layout for two people". I use the word "utilitarian" as they are laid out well and serve the needs of the typical coastal or Great Lakes cruiser very well.

Every boat has its specific quirks, so it would help if you could post which model you are interested in. But in general Mainships provide good value, not hell for stout that can cross oceans like the Nordhavn, but good for coastal cruising which is what 99% of us do.


David

Not sure if you're looking for new/used/old? I have a 1985 Mainship 40' DC.......twin Perkins engines. When we're home my wife and I live on it as well as cruise a bit. PLENTY of room for 2.........adequate room for 4.........And as far as quality, it's well built and so far has posed us NO problems. We love it because of the layout, covered aft deck, galley down............

Had an '87 34 Mk III. Good boat. (Good Chevy.) Good design, features we could use, well laid out, suited us, decent systems, adequate (mostly very good) fit and finish...


-Chris

I keep reading the Mainship discussion and, much like Bayliner, I continue to be impressed that the present or former owners of them are all so happy with them. It's obviously a good choice if it's the right boat for you. A lot of happy Mainship owners.

We've had our Mainship 430 for a year and a half now and we love it. It's not an ocean going trawler like a Nordhavn and the interior doesn't have fancy woodwork, but it's good enough for us. It's well laid out, has plenty of storage, the engines aren't too difficult to work on, there's no exterior wood, and from what I've seen it's well built. I would probably compare it to a Ford truck though.

porman said:

I would probably compare it to a Ford truck though.

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Wifey B: Oh, Oliver....where are you? Needed here.... Magical words being used. I'm sure it wouldn't compare to your truck. Nothing does.

Almost four years into our 2005 400T. I really love the boat. She's not the prettiest girl at the dance and not perfect (no boat is) but has been reliable, comfortable, safe and pretty easy to maintain. The boat has grown on me more and more since we bought it.

Mainship built a lot of different models over their long history. In general, I think their overall quality improved with the later model boats, though you could probably say that of any builder.

This is our second trawler, we had our old Gulfstar for 8 years and put a ton of miles on it (also a pretty extensive rebuild). I have also owned a ton of smaller fishing boats (I still have one). When it came time for a new boat we had $200,000 to spend and looked for a long time at a lot of boats. In the end, the Mainship met our needs the best for our budget, and honestly it wasn't even close.

BandB said:

Wifey B: Oh, Oliver....where are you? Needed here.... Magical words being used. I'm sure it wouldn't compare to your truck. Nothing does.

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So Oliver....you have an Isuzu truck?

Missed you in Ft Pierce...Isuzu parts on back order at Auto Zone?

Just kidding, for hot rod momma to compliment a truck...bet it is special...

psneeld said:

So Oliver....you have an Isuzu truck?



Missed you in Ft Pierce...Isuzu parts on back order at Auto Zone?



Just kidding, for hot rod momma to compliment a truck...bet it is special...

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You nailed it! lol.

Isuzu white is a nice color, hahaha.

I am new here, so I hope I am doing this right. I appreciate all of the feedback and now feel pretty confident in the Mainship product line. We are looking at Nordic Tugs, American Tugs, Camanos, and Mainships. Both the Camano and Mainships are much lower in price but seem to be able to do the job just fine. We are planning on traveling the ICW and along the Atlantic coast from Florida to Maine. Again, thanks to everyone.
Jim

psneeld said:

So Oliver....you have an Isuzu truck?

Missed you in Ft Pierce...Isuzu parts on back order at Auto Zone?

Just kidding, for hot rod momma to compliment a truck...bet it is special...

Click to expand...

Hot Rod Momma: What makes it special is how proud he is of it and how he's fixed it up and takes care of it. I'd never own a truck. He and I have about the same miles on my car vs. his truck. Only difference is I've had my car
3 1/2 years and he's had his truck 3 months. I love how happy his truck makes him.

"We are planning on traveling the ICW and along the Atlantic coast from Florida to Maine"

Good choice of destinations and route for the boat..

Here is my hands on experience with the Mainship 34T and Camano and some thoughts on the others:


Mainship 34T- Perfect boat for a couple, not so good for more. Huge fly bridge for hanging out or party time. Main salon is also huge as there is no second cabin and galley is below. Engine access from under fly bridge stairs is great for the single, ok for twin. Cruise at trawler speeds burning about 3 gph- read the under loading thread ;-) or fast at about 12 kts.


Camano- Less room overall than the Mainship. The table in the main salon intrudes on usable hang out room. V berth forward. Consider this boat if budget won't let you go with the 34T. Engine access through salon sole is ok. Same speeds as 34T. More fuel efficient than 34T.


Nordic and American Tugs- They are built to a slightly higher standard than the Mainship, kind of like an Olds vs Chevy. But you have to want to helm the boat from the pilot house, not the fly bridge (not available on most models). This is good for colder climates, not so good for warmer ones. Main salon is smaller due to pilot house space.


David

djmarchand said:

Camano- Less room overall than the Mainship. The table in the main salon intrudes on usable hang out room. V berth forward. Consider this boat if budget won't let you go with the 34T. Engine access through salon sole is ok. Same speeds as 34T. More fuel efficient than 34T.


David

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You forgot the biggest negative of the Camano.....NO SIDE DECKS!!!!! Does one really want to tightrope the side of the boat to get to the bow....or pop up through the forward hatch???? No offense to any owners on here....but that is just a dumb design. You are completely/effectively cut off from the bow. Maybe I am missing something......

Hard to compare Camano and Mainship, both great looking boats, but Camano's are very light boats at around 12k vs Mainship at 20k.

Baker said:

Maybe I am missing something......

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No, maybe the boat is missing something...lol

Mainship would be an excellent choice for ICW cruising. They have space. They have creature comforts. They will certainly handle anything you'll see on the ICW.

I chartered a Camano for a week in the PNW. Yes the lack of full side decks is a limitation and I wouldn't want to go forward in a heavy sea without. But I was able to "tightrope" it forward by hanging on to the grab handles to get to the bow and deploy the anchor. Not difficult to do if it is calm.


And yes, the Camano is much lighter than the Mainship 34T. That is why it gets by with 200 hp vs the 34T's 370. The Camano is very efficient on fuel as a result. We mostly cruised at 7 kts (displacement speed) with a short burst to 12-13 kts while bucking a 4 kt current and I was amazed at how little fuel it took to fill the tank at the end of the week. Can't remember exactly how much but I will bet we averaged somewhere near 2 gph.


And used Camano's are selling at 1/4 to 1/3 less than 34Ts.


David

Nordics trade off side decks for saloon width... obviously a trade-off
Similar on American Tugs but not exactly)

One has to weigh how they will use the boat and which is the best for them.

We love the MS side decks for locking, docking & rafting

We decided having to enter the helm - down stairs & out saloon door was a negative if / when one does 100+ locks on Trent - Severn or Rideau - or NY Canals

To each his own

djmarchand said:

I chartered a Camano for a week in the PNW. Yes the lack of full side decks is a limitation and I wouldn't want to go forward in a heavy sea without. But I was able to "tightrope" it forward by hanging on to the grab handles to get to the bow and deploy the anchor. Not difficult to do if it is calm.


And yes, the Camano is much lighter than the Mainship 34T. That is why it gets by with 200 hp vs the 34T's 370. The Camano is very efficient on fuel as a result. We mostly cruised at 7 kts (displacement speed) with a short burst to 12-13 kts while bucking a 4 kt current and I was amazed at how little fuel it took to fill the tank at the end of the week. Can't remember exactly how much but I will bet we averaged somewhere near 2 gph.


And used Camano's are selling at 1/4 to 1/3 less than 34Ts.


David

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Thats very interesting, I never knew that the Camano was a s/d hull, and very light at only 10,000 pounds. Sounds like a perfect combo, light weight/ fb/big cockpit/single.

Just wondering if it maxed out at 13 kts/200hp, or did it have little bit extra left in reserve?

This was eight years ago, but it seemed like 13 kts was a high cruise value. You wouldn't want to run it any faster than that long term. Top speed was about 16 kts. I remember being impressed with that performance from a 200 hp engine.


Here is a review by Jack Horner- BoatUS - Boat Reviews - Camano 28/31 I agree with all of his findings except the 8.5 NM/gallon at 7 kts. I think it is about half of that. Still very good.


David

djmarchand said:

This was eight years ago, but it seemed like 13 kts was a high cruise value. You wouldn't want to run it any faster than that long term. Top speed was about 16 kts. I remember being impressed with that performance from a 200 hp engine.


Here is a review by Jack Horner- BoatUS - Boat Reviews - Camano 28/31 I agree with all of his findings except the 8.5 NM/gallon at 7 kts. I think it is about half of that. Still very good.


David

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Thanks for the link.

Rustybarge,
The Camano is't a SD boat either.
They are planing hulls .. IMO.

Isn't this a mainship thread?