SeaPiper 35 Delivery Update and Reviews

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Looks like the center cockpit is deep.


I wonder how long it takes to drain if a comber flops in?
 
nwboater said:
A few boats have been delivered with optional AC and 3.5Kw NextGen.
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First off, I like the boat design and I wish the company great success.
What hull number are they on? Where do the SanPiper folks hang out. I would like to read of their experience and opinions.

I have not heard anything good or bad about folks using the NextGen.
If the bimini were fiber glass, one should be able to mount a couple of solar panels on it.
I wonder what size charger/inverter is suggested.
 
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From the looks of the size of the cockpit , to drain in 15 seconds the drains must be huge!


Then the question becomes how are huge drains set up to not take in water?
 
FF said:
From the looks of the size of the cockpit , to drain in 15 seconds the drains must be huge!


Then the question becomes how are huge drains set up to not take in water?
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a one way flapper door?
 
FF said:
From the looks of the size of the cockpit , to drain in 15 seconds the drains must be huge!


Then the question becomes how are huge drains set up to not take in water?
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They talk about this briefly in their brochure - take a look at it.
 
BrianG said:
The longest 15 seconds of your life.
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This is not unfamiliar territory WRT sailboats, many have large cockpits. Usually in the sort of seaway that floods the cockpit, the next roll is going to slosh half of it out. I don't think I want to be in that boat (or any small powerboat) in that sort of seaway - a sailboat would be far safer, even a considerably smaller one. I did not see the angle of vanishing stability stated in their literature, though it does have some ballast.
 
Geez guys, boarding seas? Getting pretty nit picky it would seem for a well thought out vessel. Interesting to note the vessels we respondents have in comparison.
 
"Geez guys, boarding seas? Getting pretty nit picky"


True most folks cruise in lakes, bays and rivers , but stick your nose out past the last buoy and seagoing questions need to be addressed.
 
Many thanks to everyone for a very informative discussion!

I'm really interested in the SeaPiper, though frankly horrified by the price (I have only owned older sailboats, never anything new, so I'm not used to boat-show price tags). It seems to me the only palatable recent motorboat design on the market. Speaking as a lifelong sailor, I find most motor yachts alarmingly large and appallingly over-engined -- super expensive to fuel up... and I'm really not in a hurry, I like the world at 5.5kts or so!

I'm too old now to own a wooden troller, much though I love them -- a good ol' Wahl Bros troller with a vintage Gardner would be my dream boat, until it was haulout time! Been there, not doing that again :)

Gillnetters are way overengined and imho not so pretty (though the Barrie Farrell design is somewhat easy on the eyes). Love the "workboat look" of many of the tug-alikes, but again they seem unnecessarily large when you're used to cruising on a British-built 32 foot racing sloop. I've never had -- or wanted -- refrigeration or hot water or any of that luxury stuff. Just a propane stove and furnace, that's enough to keep me happy.

So I'm following this discussion with the greatest of interest. I wonder how long it will be before a *used* Seapiper is available? The horsepower seems appropriate, the boat is clean and simple (if you skip a bunch of the luxury features). I wonder a little bit about ultimate stability (coming from a Contessa 32 which is the queen of righting moment!). But there's a lot to like here if you're coming from sailboat-land. The builder seems to be aiming it at exactly my demographic: the sailor who's starting to get a bit old and creaky and yet not wanting to give up the cruising experience.

Given my budget however, maybe I should be hunting around for an old beater Finn 8! Never heard of that marque before, but it looks interesting. Thanks everyone. I will keep watching for Seapiper news.

[BTW I find the freshwater head incomprehensible, the only really peculiar decision they made. My head never smells -- all you need is a bit of vinegar and paying attention :)]
 
Tazling said:
Many thanks to everyone for a very informative discussion!
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LOL The older I get the more I like the luxury items. Any lady will appreciate the luxury items too.

Just because you have all the luxury items doesn't mean you have to use them. :thumb:
Over time you will come around.... Hot water showers sure do feel good.:D
 
conveniences can be time consuming :)

OldDan1943 said:
LOL The older I get the more I like the luxury items. Any lady will appreciate the luxury items too.

Just because you have all the luxury items doesn't mean you have to use them. :thumb:
Over time you will come around.... Hot water showers sure do feel good.:D
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LOL back atcha, it's actually my husband who starts to whine after 5 days without a hot shower... no problem by me! Garden sprayer in the cockpit works just fine. Not all "ladies" want the four-star accommodations! No shower? great! one less thing to clean!

But seriously, the problem with all the mod cons for me is the maintenance that goes with increased complexity... I used to crew on a Whitby 42 (great lumbering thing) and spent all my time fighting with the refer compressor... the older I get the more I want my boats to be simpler, simpler, and even simpler. By age 80 I'll be paddling a kayak!

The SeaPiper is getting there as Simple Motoryacht goes, but if I bought one I would probably simplify it a bit further yet (that freshwater head would be history, for a start).
 
LOL Hot shower in the cockpit while in a marina?
Granted the Seapiper does have its place but, hot shower and hot coffee and a galley are a necessity. A well equip Seapiper can fulfill the 'necessities'
 
Ah well, lifestyles differ, to each their own. We hardly ever visit marinas... spend most of our cruising time in places as remote as we can possibly get to. A really good week is one where we don't see even one other boat :) Marinas? that's where you have to go, reluctantly, when you're running out of fuel and/or water :) But that's just us. I know for many people, marinas are destinations. Whatever, as they say, floats yer boat!
 
Tazling said:
The SeaPiper is getting there as Simple Motoryacht goes, but if I bought one I would probably simplify it a bit further yet (that freshwater head would be history, for a start).
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I also love the Seapiper ethos, having also come from a sailboat. I just got a tour of a friend's Offshore 48 & was traumatized by the number and complexity of the systems aboard. We love our composting head & solar, and our single battery bank, and are envious of boats with no exterior wood and single engines. Hard to find a simple boat that can fit our family though.

If I were looking at a Seapiper there's one luxury I'd look seriously at, and that'd be the Seakeeper gyro - we are by a very roll-y part of the ocean though.

As for buying used, it seems like the price of 2-6 year old boats is about the same as new builds these days - and they're selling fast!

Edit based on your last reply: maybe also a water maker & more fuel/less water tankage? That'd keep you out of the marinas for longer!
 
socalrider said:
I also love the Seapiper ethos, having also come from a sailboat. I just got a tour of a friend's Offshore 48 & was traumatized by the number and complexity of the systems aboard. We love our composting head & solar, and our single battery bank, and are envious of boats with no exterior wood and single engines.
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I hear ya -- and yes I do hate my exterior teak and wish it would go away. Of course, if I neglect it too long it may actually go away, which would not really be a good thing. Anyway, Seapiper remains a bit of a... hmm.. Seapipe-dream for me. But I do like its workboaty, little-shippy look.
 
Tazling said:
I hear ya -- and yes I do hate my exterior teak and wish it would go away. Of course, if I neglect it too long it may actually go away, which would not really be a good thing. Anyway, Seapiper remains a bit of a... hmm.. Seapipe-dream for me. But I do like its workboaty, little-shippy look.
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Ah yes, one of the things that sold my on the American Tug, no exterior teak.
On my Nordhavn, maintaining the teak rail cap kept me poor....
 
Tazling, I really believe there is a massive unexplored market for the Seapiper. They need to build their inventory so people can see them on the water.
Although the Seapiper can fill a certain niche, it is not for me.
I wish the company every success.
 
". the older I get the more I want my boats to be simpler, simpler, and even simpler."


Agree , but to sell boats the internal space has to also fit the goodies of the house folks.
 
I keep hoping some Seapiper owners would find this forum too chime in with the good and bad point and ways to improve it with 'stuff' and accessories.
 
Sort of funny, one of the major selling points is that it is trailerable. I guess that makes my AT34 trailerable too but, I would hate to personally trailer the boat.
 
Tazling said:
...A really good week is one where we don't see even one other boat :) Marinas? that's where you have to go, reluctantly, when you're running out of fuel and/or water :)...
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Welcome aboard :thumb:

We boat much the same way, staying 'out there' for as long as possible. Fuel pulls us in. We can get water from steep mountain streams.

In over ten years we've slept in a marina twice; once in Prince Rupert and once tied to the breakwater floats in Shearwater.

The fuel capacity/engine/hull design of the Seapiper is intriguing.

We've entertained dreams of Cortes if where we live goes ape sh$t crazier in an industrial way...in a nutshell, what's it like living on an island, off an island, off an island?
 
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OldDan1943 said:
I keep hoping some Seapiper owners would find this forum too chime in with the good and bad point and ways to improve it with 'stuff' and accessories.
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Yes. But how many owners are there? Reading their blog and extrapolating from some of their comments, they’ve delivered what so far? Maybe 12? 10? Not critiquing.
 
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Alaskaflyer said:
Yes. But how many owners are there? Reading their blog and extrapolating from some of their comments, they’ve delivered what so far? Maybe 12? 10? Not critiquing.
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Seapiper has taken a big step with this design. They apparently have sorted out some minimum design changes, I think they were all interior to the boat. Plus some additional options such as the Sea-keeper gyro, generator, bimini for the center cockpit and A/C or heat(?). They seem to have come up with a great boat for a select group of people.
They brag that is flat bottom and can be trailered. I see the flat bottom as an advantage, for other reasons. Be that it may, that is one big boat to trailer and I doubt if many of us are skilled enough to trailer such a boat.
Returning the the flat bottom, takes less to float it and if you are of a mind to explore out of the way place with skinny water comfortably, Seapiper may be the best option for you.
Weather wise, gotta be careful. I doubt if one want to take 3ft cresting waves with a short period in this boat. I dont even want to do that in my AT even it is designed to survive. Let me generate a fake news report, 'An AT34 survived a big storm but everyone inside perished. Last word on Channel 16 was, "Where are the seat belts?"'

I wish there were more first hand articles published about the Seapiper.

*** Weak points:
The lack of storage for clothing and a small fridge. The small fridge can be overcome with 2nd portable 12vt fridge or freezer in the aft or center cockpit.
As with my boat, the hanging closet may be termed as "ample". Trust me, it aint ample for 2 people for a long distance cruising. LOL Especially if the lady's name is Yen. LOL

Price....may seem a bit steep but, it's a boat. Large RVs, equal size, can cost far more than this boat.

Let's all wish the company well and many more Seapiper are sold and delivered. Specifically, I want one delivered to the east coast of Florida so I can actually see and walk through one.
 
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