Recommended Nordhavn over 55’ to 70’

[twistedtree]

Originally Posted by bkcorwin

Just to add, i think what you did by eliminating the curved glass was a great idea. Drives me nuts on our boat when trying to look through binoculars.

I heard about it from my wife EVERY DAY.

[bowball]

Originally Posted by twistedtree

Our 60's registered length was 64.5'. That excludes the pulpit & anchor, but includes the extended swim platform. I think I used 67' or 68' as the LOA for moorage. On the 68 I use 71' as the LOA, but that could be off by a foot or so. I haven't done an exact measurement - just eyeballing it from dockside, then measuring along the dock.

My 55 has a loa of just about 61’ and the 65 is just about 71’, everything included. (Swim deck, etc). Big difference to the Nordhavn is my air draft is only 16’ to the top of the radar mast (plus all the antennas up there). Draft just 5’.

I’m going to explore further for a few reasons.

[RedRascal]

Originally Posted by Retriever

I've spent about a month on an N60, and in many ways it feels like a bigger version of my 50. A great boat, but Peter hit the nail on the head when he said the 60 is a big small boat, and the 68 is a small big boat.

I had the chance to have some great tours of an N68, N52 and Fleming 58. In landlubber terms the 68 salon, galley and master stateroom had the feeling of a small condo where as the N52 and F58 felt like boats.

[twistedtree]

Originally Posted by RedRascal

I had the chance to have some great tours of an N68, N52 and Fleming 58. In landlubber terms the 68 salon, galley and master stateroom had the feeling of a small condo where as the N52 and F58 felt like boats.

That's a good way to put it, and a big part of what we like about the N68. In terms of space, accommodations, and facilities it feels like a home rather than a boat. A small one, but our primary home is small too at less than 2000 sq ft. Since we are on the boat for about half the year, we like having the same accommodation level.


Sam brought up systems and redundancy, which is also part of it. There honestly isn't much on our N68 that wasn't on our N60, but there are a few things. We now have two generators, and two water makers, but keep in mind that many 60/63s have two generators - I just didn't want to give up the space. And the gray and black water discharge pumps are now cross-valved so either can stand in for the other in case of a failure. But I think that's about it in terms of additional system and redundancy.


For us, all the redundancy is more about not disrupting our travels vs getting stranded at sea. Pretty much anything can break and we can keep on going with minimal impact, then fix things when convenient. I suspect most of us have experienced a break down or other mandatory repair that has kept us stuck in port, and that's what we are trying to avoid.

[Mako]

Originally Posted by twistedtree

For us, all the redundancy is more about not disrupting our travels vs getting stranded at sea. Pretty much anything can break and we can keep on going with minimal impact, then fix things when convenient. I suspect most of us have experienced a break down or other mandatory repair that has kept us stuck in port, and that's what we are trying to avoid.

Interesting how things have changed over the decades. I think we need more redundancy today because there are fewer things that we can fix ourselves.

In the "old days" my 65 footer, very simple by today's standards, suffered an autopilot failure in heavy seas. In port I fixed it (old Wood Freeman). Same thing with the Jimmies. Nowadays there is too much sophistication (ie computer chips) to make repairs practical at sea. So we need 2 APs, about $10k worth of electronic spares and diagnostic tools for our engines, etc.

Today's gear is certainly much more efficient, intelligent and helpful, so this isn't necessary a bad thing, just different.

[rslifkin]

Originally Posted by Mako

Interesting how things have changes over the decades. I think we need more redundancy today because there are fewer things that we can fix ourselves.

In the "old days" my 65 footer, very simple by today's standards, suffered an autopilot failure in heavy seas. In port I fixed it (old Wood Freeman). Same thing with the Jimmies. Nowadays there is too much sophistication (ie computer chips) to make repairs practical at sea. So we need 2 APs, about $10k worth of electronic spares and diagnostic tools for our engines, etc.

Today's gear is certainly much more efficient, intelligent and helpful, so this isn't necessary a bad thing, just different.

Depending on what system failed and your level of redundancy, it can also be the difference between "head to the nearest port or anchorage to make repairs" and "I'll have some parts shipped to the place I'll be in a few days, continue as-is until then and fix the problem when I meet up with the parts".

[sunchaser]

BB
Regarding air draft, within reason why does it matter? Big boats are just that, big. While dock walking yesterday I noticed an N76 that is by design lower with less verticality on the inside. You can see both a 76 and a 68 at Van Isle for a comparison.

[bowball]

Originally Posted by sunchaser

BB
Regarding air draft, within reason why does it matter? Big boats are just that, big. While dock walking yesterday I noticed an N76 that is by design lower with less verticality on the inside. You can see both a 76 and a 68 at Van Isle for a comparison.

It only matters since I have a floating shed which has a door opening with door 25’ tall. I’d have to give that up reluctantly.

[bowball]

Originally Posted by RedRascal

I had the chance to have some great tours of an N68, N52 and Fleming 58. In landlubber terms the 68 salon, galley and master stateroom had the feeling of a small condo where as the N52 and F58 felt like boats.

That is my impression from video watching too. Feeling like a boat though actually has some appeal to it, which is why I’m torn. I’m in the Twistedtree camp of preferring a small primary house too. I just need to educate myself more so I appreciate everyone’s input.

[twistedtree]

Originally Posted by rslifkin

Depending on what system failed and your level of redundancy, it can also be the difference between "head to the nearest port or anchorage to make repairs" and "I'll have some parts shipped to the place I'll be in a few days, continue as-is until then and fix the problem when I meet up with the parts".

That’s pretty much my goal - fix at the next convenient opportunity with minimal disruption of cruising. Obviously different failures will generate different levels of motivation to fix sooner rather than later.

[twistedtree]

Originally Posted by bowball

That is my impression from video watching too. Feeling like a boat though actually has some appeal to it, which is why I’m torn. I’m in the Twistedtree camp of preferring a small primary house too. I just need to educate myself more so I appreciate everyone’s input.

Nothing beats getting on them. Drop me a PM if you want to visit sometime.

[RedRascal]

Originally Posted by bowball

...Feeling like a boat though actually has some appeal to it, which is why I’m torn...

On the 68 it was only the salon, galley and master stateroom that had that "small condo feel" or "home like feel" to me. The footprint of the salon was more like a small "living room" because of the width and fore and aft distance from the cockpit door to galley. The galley had "home like" counter space, cabinets and appliances. The smaller boats(F58, F55, N52) felt more "boat like" with smaller sized cabinets and counter space. The 68 galley seemed more like a home with a row of cabinets that you would expect to see in a home kitchen. The master stateroom being beam width of course felt large. All other spaces on the 68 felt very much boat like. Guess cabins, utility spaces, wheel house, decks were all definitely boat. The wheel house to some may feel more like a "mini ship".

Well at least you have a few more words describing my impression, hope you get a chance to get aboard a few of the bigger boats to see what feels right to you.

[bowball]

Originally Posted by twistedtree

Nothing beats getting on them. Drop me a PM if you want to visit sometime.

Thank you. Will do. I should be back there in a few weeks