Bayliner "trawler" vs Mainship

Hello all,

We are old sailors who are looking at buying a trawler to live aboard in the warm south during our cold winter months. The budget isn't high, so we (think) we have narrowed it down to either a Mark 111 Mainship 34(1984) or a 1988 Bayliner 3870. Apart from the obvious difference in fuel consumption, what other comments do people have about the pros and cons of each of these boats?

We appreciate any and all input.
Cheers,
Alison

Never been aboard the Mainship so no comment.

I was aboard a couple late 1980's Bayliner 38's and liked what I saw. Good use of space and fairly efficient layout. That said it was just more boat than we felt was needed for the gunkhole day and overnight trips we planned. We stopped investigating them after that.

Good luck in your search and welcome to the forum Alison.

Greetings,
Welcome aboard.

I looked at Mainship 34's when looking for a liveaboard as my last boat...a friend who was a broker said I wouldn't be happy with the smallish head...he was correct and I bought a 37 foot sportfish instead (back when diesel was reasonable).

If only for 4-5 months it may be OK for you but if you are looking for a liveaboard to cruise south for the winter (which is exactly what I do for 4 months with my current job) then REALLY look at household creature comforts.

When people start talking seaworthiness or construction....basically that's the end of that conversation because unless you plan on farther than Florida or the Bahamas...just about any boat in decent repair is OK. Yes economy both in operation and size for dockage and repairs, especially if on a budget are important, but which brand is entirely debatable...at that point getting what's comfortable is tops because if you hate the trip because of the boat's discomfots...wh cares what it CAN do in a hurricane....

These are great comments. Keep them coming!
I'm focused on the creature comforts - berth, head, galley(!) and my husband can worry about the engine and whether or not there are soft decks.
Alison

When we bought the Eagle the 47 Bayliner was our compare to boat. Bayliner is a great for the best bang for the buck and very few boats can even come close to. My wife was concerned about safety, room, and creature comforts. Being we were planning on using the boat as a dock condo, we where not concerned about its capability.

I will say at 38 ft is a little small to be a live a board for a long period of time, but in the warmer climates, might be OK as you can go and be out side.

psneeld said:

If only for 4-5 months it may be OK for you but if you are looking for a liveaboard to cruise south for the winter (which is exactly what I do for 4 months with my current job) then REALLY look at household creature comforts.

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That's good advice.
Having been aboard a BL 38, 45 & 47, I'd opt for either the 45 or 48. They both have a really nice layout for liveaboards and if it doesn't work out the re-sale is excellent for these two boats. Not knowing what your budget is, it's hard to make a decent suggestion.

If you are somehow locked into that size range, consider also the Krogen Manatee 36. My personal favorite mid-30s boat for long term use. As well as that of some experienced folks who actually have and do use them for that purpose.

But you really need to spend some real time on boats (days being much better than hours, and minutes being useless) and then you can determine what is comfortable for YOU.

I have not spent all that much time aboard the 38' Bayliners but they are roomy with a nice layout. They can also be purchased for a suprising low price in todays economy.

We have a member at the Bayliner Owners Club that keeps his boat on the great lakes and lives aboard with his wife all summer to escape the heat of Florida where he resides in the winter.

He loves the boat and has had this lifestyle for a very long time.

Personally I think as others have mentioned the 45 or 47' Bayliners make an almost perfect liveaboard coastal cruiser. I admit at being biased since I own a 2001 4788, so take it with a grain of salt I supose.

Best of luck in your hunting.

Leading Edge said:

Hello all,

We are old sailors who are looking at buying a trawler to live aboard in the warm south during our cold winter months. The budget isn't high, so we (think) we have narrowed it down to either a Mark 111 Mainship 34(1984) or a 1988 Bayliner 3870. Apart from the obvious difference in fuel consumption, what other comments do people have about the pros and cons of each of these boats?

We appreciate any and all input.
Cheers,
Alison

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Having owned a 3870, I think they are great boats. They are 2 cabin boats; the "cave" cabin is plenty large for my 6'2" frame, and comfortable. I really liked the tub/shower combination.

Another nice feature is engine room access- there's a door in the cockpit, port side, that allows for easy engine access without lifting floorboards.

I think they are a truly underrated value for the money.

Based on the OPs selections so far...boats ike a 36 KK or even the bayliner pilothouse models are WAYYYYYY abouve the budget line.

A 34-36 taiwan boat in reasonable shape would be closer.

If I was never going to the islands...then a houseboat would be my first choice.

Even though I'm a Mainship guy, i think the early 34's would be a little tight to use as alive aboard. The Bayliner 38's are a really good looking boat with a pretty good amount of interior space. the lower helm is worthless because the bow is so high off the water visability is poor. A guy near us had a custom flybridge extension made that covers the cockpit. He bought a davit, had chocks mounted and thats where he stores his dinghy. If you were looking at the boat you would swear it came from the factory like that. If you're having trouble visualizing this, look at my avitatar. Of course mine is a 390 Mainship but his final product was similar. The interior's of 1980's Bayliners (i had an 88) are designed in "Early Miami Vice" (pink and grey pastels), so redecorating is in order.
One other consideration for the Bayliner is that the flybridge ladder is a looong way up and when you're underway it's beyond straight up and down
John
MS390

The Bayliner has about twice the room of the Mainship. I have a hard time with the interior colors of the Bayliner as Johnma suggested. But that can be changed. For a live aboard, the Bayliner wins....and I am a Mainship fan and owner as well.

Mainship 34T

We have a later model Mainship 34T and love it.Using it as a cruising couple boat it works great .We think that the fit and finish is impressive and would recomend it.

Mainship 34T

Thanks to all for your comments. We will have a look at both again with these comments in mind. And....now the water has been muddied by the sighting of an old Defever 40! Good thing we aren't in a hurry!
Cheers,
Alison

Pick your boat based on what you will use it for.
A Bayliner is not a "trawler". A Trawler is a Full Displacement vessel. Bayliners are "Planing" hulls.

Taras said:

Pick your boat based on what you will use it for.
A Bayliner is not a "trawler". A Trawler is a Full Displacement vessel. Bayliners are "Planing" hulls.

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You are going to start a war. How many of these avatars are displacement hulls.

For god's sake don't tell anyone but I completely agree with you

Taras said:

Pick your boat based on what you will use it for.
A Bayliner is not a "trawler". A Trawler is a Full Displacement vessel. Bayliners are "Planing" hulls.

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I'm not so sure that a trawler can be defined as a Full Displacement vessel. Se about a thousand posts on what is a trawler in other threads. I would suggest that a Bayliner could be efficiently operated as a trawler at certain speeds, likely 6 to 8 knots?? I consider my boat to be a trawler and it is semi planing. I also have looked at both the early Mainship and the 3870 Bayliner when we were looking. I would pick the Bayliner for better utilization of space and comfort imho.

LaBomba said:

I also have looked at both the early Mainship and the 3870 Bayliner when we were looking. I would pick the Bayliner for better utilization of space and comfort imho.

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At the risk of starting another war, I agree with your comments about the Bayliner which also has far superior build quality. Any Bayliners below this size are low quality boats but from this size up they rival any other top line production boat.

FWIW:
I find it difficult to recognize any vessel that travels greater than 10.0 knots through the water as a trawler.

I live on my 3870 Bayliner from mid-March to mid-December, gets a little cool in the winter to stay aboard. For a liveaboard there are certain things that make a boat more comfortable than one you only spend weekends or a few days on. 1st on my list is a berth that makes it easy to get a good nights sleep. 2nd is a decent size & well equipped galley. 3rd Good size tankage that allows several days between pump outs & having to fill the freshwater tank. 4th Plenty of storage, the 38 hits all these marks reasonable well. For the last 2 years my fuel burn has been 2.7 gph for over 225 hours, so the 304 gallons of capacity gives a pretty decent range. I also like the 45 & 47 but I don't want to wash or rent a slip for anything bigger than the 38. I have only been on a 430 Mainship & there is no comparison to a 38, so I really can't give a opinion on a 34. If I can answer any specific questions feel free to ask. Good luck

River Cruiser,
Thanks very much for your post. You've hit the mark with your comments about the key requirements for living aboard - berth, galley, tankage. Have only been on the Mainship 34 and we are thinking it's probably too small. Glad to hear so many good things about the Bayliner!

Leading Edge said:

River Cruiser,
Thanks very much for your post. You've hit the mark with your comments about the key requirements for living aboard - berth, galley, tankage. Have only been on the Mainship 34 and we are thinking it's probably too small. Glad to hear so many good things about the Bayliner!

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Recommend you register/log onto the Bayliner Owners Club and ask about the 38xx there- yes, the answers will be biased, but you'll get real data about the pros and cons of the 38.

BAYLINER® OWNERS' CLUB

Also, the BOC is the most comprehensive manufacturer specific boating site on the web- there is an overwhelming amount of technical data, do-it-yourself project info, and help from owner (the "been there, done that" type of help).

boatpoker said:

At the risk of starting another war you just did but from this size up they rival any other top line production boat.

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No, they rival Carvers and Searays. But they certainly don't rival planing boats like Fleming, Riviera, Tiara, Ocean Alexander or Princess to name a few.

And they certainly don't rival the weight, sea keeping ability or range of the trawlers like Nordhavn, DeFever, Selene, Northwest or North Pacific.

Bayliners are and have been built to be planing boats and to a price point for mass consumption. That is OK and has proven quite acceptable in the market place. The fact that a capable skipper like Kevin can take a Bayliner to Alaska speaks for the skipper and not the boat.

A Taurus or Impala can drive down the highway just as far and carry as much as a BMW, Mercedes or Infiniti - but we all know what the difference is - the same applies to watercraft. Nor is a Cessna Cardinal a Beechcraft Bonanza.

El Sea said:

FWIW:
I find it difficult to recognize any vessel that travels greater than 10.0 knots through the water as a trawler.

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That's OK. The Bayliner isn't a trawler but here on this forum we have a number of trawlermen that don't own trawlers. But what's the difference? Not much except that normal cruisers don't have the range of trawlers, the weight of trawlers and the extra seaworthyness of trawlers. However some cruisers are more seaworthy than some trawlers. But most of us don't go that far or in heavy seas or wandering about in the ocean. So we're doing the same thing and experiencing almost entirely the same issues. When trawlers first started out they were called Heavy Cruisers. The word "heavy" should give one a hint as to the most defining difference between the trawlers and normal cruisers. Cruisers aren't all in one basket either as there's the 50 knot Sea Ray's and the 12 knot Bayliners and all their cousins.

But re your comment the only thing trawler about the Bayliner is the diesel engines.

manyboats said:

But re your comment the only thing trawler about the Bayliner is the diesel engines.

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Your right Eric, but their engines are too big and propped for planing speeds

I own a 40 Albin trawler....I'm neither wrong or right. Nor is anyone else.

If I ever list the boat for sale...I'll list it as a trawler so I get more responses from people who are interested in my type of vessel.

I won't worry about a handful of people out of a huge boating population that I have met that won't buy it because it is caled something they disagree with.

Plus many of the same probably wouldn't buy it because it doen't meet every ABYC standard...even though it meets more now than when I bought it....

boatpoker said:

At the risk of starting another war, I agree with your comments about the Bayliner which also has far superior build quality. Any Bayliners below this size are low quality boats but from this size up they rival any other top line production boat.

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It's be a war only if the elite element takes offense. No all can afford a Fleming, Nordhavn, or Defever- if a Bayliner, Carver, or whatever meets the needs of the owner, then it's the perfect boat for them.