Hi, & boat suggestions/opinions please

Hi,
Thanks for the "welcome mat" message. I have been reading this forum for
a while & decided to say Hi.
We are Aussie's getting ready to do some cruising in Queensland.

We are after "what boat to buy" suggestions and opinions please.

We already know (think?) we want diesel, shaft drive, v/double berth.

Prefer smaller rather than bigger.
Sleep 2pple, capacity 7pple daytime.

Maybe nice to have keel protecting prop/rudder, bow thruster if not twin screw.
Also possibly option of economical slow cruiser (eg 7knots) & occasional fast cruise (eg 14knots), shallower draft, & a side door next to helm.

Price range up to around Au$150K.
Use around Australia's South Queensland, Moreton Bay/Goldcoast/Rivers & hopefully some coastal trips.

Thanks in advance for your time.

Welcome another Ozzie here that knows every boat on the Australian market for sale that has diesel shaft drive 30 to 40 foot but first question why a v/double berth ???

hi gaston, thanks for your reply.

We are after a sleeping area for hubbie+wife &
we only need sleeping for 2.
Have seen some with a "aft cabin" & they seem to have steps connecting inside & outside areas; & we prefer something with few steps between saloon & cockpit.

Just to confuse things re steps,
we are happy to have a flybridge.
Hope that clarifies what we mean.

We are hoping for something closer to 30 ft.

tjotter said:

hi gaston, thanks for your reply.

We are after a sleeping area for hubbie+wife &
we only need sleeping for 2.
Have seen some with a "aft cabin" & they seem to have steps connecting inside & outside areas; & we prefer something with few steps between saloon & cockpit.

Just to confuse things re steps,
we are happy to have a flybridge.
Hope that clarifies what we mean.

We are hoping for something closer to 30 ft.

Click to expand...

I think you may regret the v birth unless you dont like your wife Im in the market for something the same as your looking for and the biggest MUST is a full island bed not V bunks. This would suit you and happy to have a chat if you like

Island Gypsy 32 Euro Sedan: Power Boats | Boats Online for Sale | Fibreglass/grp | New South Wales (NSW) - Balmain Nsw | Boats Online

A smaller Grand Banks would be OK.Except for the 14 knot bit.
Maybe a 32,they are in your price range.
Might be a bit more staid than your after,however a good boat to learn on.
V berths can be a bit noisy if the weathers up.
Welcome to the forum from another Aussie.
Although we are in Tassie which some think is almost another country.

Look at many boats in your price range. Sit in them, walk the decks, lay on the bed, sit in the control position etc. In short evaluate as many boats as you can without regard to what style they are called. Eventually you both will come to understand some of what it is like to spend time with various features. Decide on a few must have features then go shopping, again without regard to what the maker called the model.


Your goal should be to look at enough boats so that you don't ever see a boat, in your price range, you wish you had bought instead.




PS. in my experience bigger is better, don't be scared off by size as a few feet makes a big difference in living space.
Bigger boats are not more difficult to handle and for most purposes, within similar size ranges, the differing fuel used by different boats at the same speed is unimportant.

Thanks for the feedback guys, appreciated.


I am an "east islander" which some think is almost another country.


OK, I can see a pattern of "no V Berth".
I guess choices are
- sometimes noisy V berth at front of small boat,
- sometimes noisy, bigger, Island berth at front of boat,
- aft cabin [& steps b/n inside living & rear deck areas],
- midships double berth in a bigger boat.


I have also looked at Cats, but not many used as Cruisers unless over 40ft.

Mainship 350/390??? Have any made it over that way and if so, is that within the budget? I know we can get them easily for that price USD. I know boats go for more over there.

bayview said:

PS. in my experience bigger is better, don't be scared off by size as a few feet makes a big difference in living space.
Bigger boats are not more difficult to handle and for most purposes, within similar size ranges, the differing fuel used by different boats at the same speed is unimportant.

Click to expand...

We accept what you say except we do not know and are wary of what the yearly maintenance/ownership costs might be.


Using fuel $20 hr cruising is fine,
using fuel $40 hr maybe too much ??,
cf to a 6cyl car using $10 hr fuel.

We used new Ranger Tugs to analyse differences in size:
25ft = 2835kg/150hp [us$129],
27ft = 3152kg/200hp [us$160],
29ft = 4762kg/216hp [us$216],
31ft = 4990kg/275hp [us$275],
a 25% incr ft = 80% incr kg/hp.

gaston said:

I think you may regret the v birth unless you dont like your wife Im in the market for something the same as your looking for and the biggest MUST is a full island bed not V bunks.

Click to expand...

You have almost the perfect boat (for what you have outlined) in your back yard! The Halvorsen 32 Europa! She won't do 14 knots but she is very comfortable and comes with & without a fly bridge.

One of the Forum's members is about to start a voyage (middle of this month) in his Halvo 32. dwhatty is his Forum identifier and he has a "beautiful Halvo 32 Europa.

I had a Halvo 32 for 8 years & loved it! here's a couple of pics. (The white boats are just for comparison...the other pics are my old boat.)

tjotter said:

We accept what you say except we do not know and are wary of what the yearly maintenance/ownership costs might be.


Using fuel $20 hr cruising is fine,
using fuel $40 hr maybe too much ??,
cf to a 6cyl car using $10 hr fuel.

We used new Ranger Tugs to analyse differences in size:
25ft = 2835kg/150hp [us$129],
27ft = 3152kg/200hp [us$160],
29ft = 4762kg/216hp [us$216],
31ft = 4990kg/275hp [us$275],
a 25% incr ft = 80% incr kg/hp.

Click to expand...

15 knots on a 32 " single would need close 300hp so that you aren't running at 80% and I cant see that would be closer to $80AU a hour

There are a couple of Halvorsen Island Gypsy and Grand Banks listed on Boatpoint, just slightly above your price range, which would be worth investigating. You may be able to haggle if you like one of them.

I agree with Bayview - go a bit bigger if you can.

H.

I have a Clipper 34 for sale, although I am just about to the point that someone would have to make me an offer I could't refuse to let her go now, but I concur re the V-berth thing. Not having an island double is our one regret, although not a major one at our age. However, I also agree that your speed range is not one you are likely to find within your price range. A near new Mainship, as John Baker suggested, or a Beneteau Swift 34 Trawler are about the only 30-40 ft vessels capable of your preferred top of about 14kn, I can think of, unless you were thinking full on semi-planer like the Riviera 30/35 or Mariner 31 to 34, type of boat, which would be in your price range, but much older, and trawler style they are not.

Thanks for all your replies and all the great comments & info & photos.


BERTH
an ISLAND berth is now on list as essential.


SPEED
We started looking at semi-planer [eg Mariner/Riveria] style & then moved to Trawler style. Was just starting to work out that our current price range will likely not get a semi-planer Trawler.


I had never heard of Mainships and the Mainship35 looks very good, there is the odd one down under & it is now on the list.


Have already admired the Grand Banks,
Thanks for the photos & is interesting to see how you use it, and with visitors.


Yes, good idea to sit/walk/lay at many boats.
Will also look at chartering one of these as well
http://www.airliebeach.com/bareboatcharters/boats/sundecker36.php

I have just been down the same process of looking for a bigger boat, we had a 33 Riviera, which had a V berth and a single Volvo diesel, we just sold the 33 last week, and on Monday we purchased a Riviera 35 aft cabin (40 foot inc duckboard) , although it does not have a island bed it has everything else that was on our list, 2x Cummings 210's, 3 cabins, 2 heads, genset and aircon, on the sea trial at WOT 2600 rpm ( boat was light and bottom cleaned) it got to 20 knots and at 1600 Rpm 10 knots. Which is fast enough for me

Have a look on boat sales for the offshore 38 , this boat came back on the market the day after I put a contract on the Riv
http://www.boatpoint.com.au/boats-for-sale/dealer/used/OAG-AD-975520/1989-OFFSHORE-38-AFT-CABIN

Thanks Yobbo, that Offshore is a lot of boat for the money and ticks a lot of boxes.

tjotter said:

Thanks Yobbo, that Offshore is a lot of boat for the money and ticks a lot of boxes.

Click to expand...

The Offshore 38 is a marina neighbour, a big volume boat well kept by sensible owners,has Cummins engines recently extensively serviced, new sundeck covers,new swim platform, etc. Worth a look.

Island berth, Island shmerth.

Nobody sleeps together on a trawler.

The captain is up half the night and the mate covers the other half.

Between the anchor dragging and the juvenile delinquents on the dock you are going to be up every night. You need a nice V-berth that you can take a nap at lunch. You really need a clothes washer.

You'll be sleeping on the salon settee if you get any sleep at all.

If there is a Camano 31 available down there, check it out, they are great boats!
good luck

I suggest you look at a Cuddles 35 (aka Resort 35). Lots of these in Oz & they tick all your (revised) boxes.

Aquabelle said:

I suggest you look at a Cuddles 35 (aka Resort 35). Lots of these in Oz & they tick all your (revised) boxes.

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I like the Resort nicely set out . We hired one for a weekend before we put our money down 2 years ago and its still for sale . And OMG you get sea sick on the mooring when a 12' boat passes by . Owners/brokers have delusions on there true value.

alormaria said:

Island berth, Island shmerth.

Nobody sleeps together on a trawler.

The captain is up half the night and the mate covers the other half.

Between the anchor dragging and the juvenile delinquents on the dock you are going to be up every night. You need a nice V-berth that you can take a nap at lunch. You really need a clothes washer.

You'll be sleeping on the salon settee if you get any sleep at all.

Click to expand...

Have you ever considered giving up boating you must hate it

I'm still a fan of island berths or beds depending on how nautical you want to get.
Here's photo of mine.
I think I've got a V berth somewhere as well.
Actually if you want a island berth in a smaller boat try a Defever 43 or 44.
Just about the most amount of boat you can get in that length.Very easy boat to live with.Here the layout.