DeFever offshore cruiser vs KK42 ?

Both mid 80s vintage. Both priced comparably.

I plan to cruise the Bahamas and eventually the Caribbean.

DeFever is stabilized. KK is not. Hours lower on DeFever. Both in good shape. Lots of teak decks on KK, no teak on side or foredecks of DeFever. New tanks in KK. Original on DeFever.

Is there an obvious reason I should pick one over the other ?

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In my opinion, anything with teak is a no-no.

The KK has a full displacement hull w the general advantages of a stern that is much more like the bow and in the really big stuff the seas will not push the boat around nearly as much. When a sea rolls under the stern the lifting and pushing forces will happen later on the KK and will have considerably less tendency to roll the boat to leeward because the stern quarters aren't sticking out ther'e to catch the wave.

The KK will be more efficient too. I'll be interested in what Larry M has to say when he weighs in. The DFs are wonderful boats but for seaworthiness the KKs got my vote. See it in Voyaging under Power (the book).

You may find a build quality difference. I've heard nothing but good about the DeFever.

Yea, but that "pointy" stern makes for a a smaller aft deck for those evening adult beverages with friends and family.

I'd much rather pick my weather window and not have to worry about leaky teak and spending precious time refinishing it.

Is that a DeFever POC or performance offshore cruiser? If so they are not quite the same type design as say Daddyo's 48. They usually have bigger engines for more speed. As far as the regular Defever long range cruisers and Krogen, I would get the one that fits my needs. They are both great cruising boats.

Like Eric said, I believe that I would give the edge for seaworthiness to the Krogen. However, not by much. Either should do the job. That is a good decision to have to make.

cardude01 said:

Both mid 80s vintage. Both priced comparably.

I plan to cruise the Bahamas and eventually the Caribbean.

DeFever is stabilized. KK is not. Hours lower on DeFever. Both in good shape. Lots of teak decks on KK, no teak on side or fore-decks of DeFever. New tanks in KK. Original on DeFever.

Is there an obvious reason I should pick one over the other ?

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Given the information, I'd say it was a toss up. When you and your partner go onto the boat (s), which one "rings" the bell. I'd buy that one. Every boats a compromise. You'll want stabilization if you cruise the Caribbean regularly though. Lots of beam seas.

The decks and fuel tanks, that depends on how they have been maintained. Full displacement vs semi-planing and fuel economy, not enough to worry about for the cruising areas IMHO.

If both have good surveys and you're thinking about stabilization for the KK, they are both winners.

Moonstruck said:

Is that a DeFever POC or performance offshore cruiser? If so they are not quite the same type design as say Daddyo's 48. They usually have bigger engines for more speed. As far as the regular Defever long range cruisers and Krogen, I would get the one that fits my needs. They are both great cruising boats.

Like Eric said, I believe that I would give the edge for seaworthiness to the Krogen. However, not by much. Either should do the job. That is a good decision to have to make.

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I must admit I covet a POC.

Oddly, I was having this exact conversation with my surveyor today. He was doing the survey mandated by some insurance company stooge. Anyway, alway dreaming of the next boat, I asked about what his experience was with the KK42 and the Defever 49RPH. He noted that the defevers were built by several different yards and that build quality varied significantly. He had just done a Defever survey in Monterey and was surprised by the issues. In his opinion the KK had a consistently high build quality.

I'm right next to a guest end tie in Monterey and I am skilled at inviting myself onto visiting boats for tours and Defever owners love their boats so I think a careful survey would be in order no matter which you choose.

New tanks would be a scale tipper for me as we read quite a bit about that issue.

E

The original poster didnt mention the models of the DF or the KK so without that its stabbing in the dark.
For us the 49RPH is a good vessel for others a DF 44 or a DF48 might be better choice, eitherway stabilization is key to me and as I am learning make sure you check when the stabilizer seals were last changed.

There is no vessel that has everything especially when cost comes into the equation and I agree with Eric he is good at inviting himself aboard and his great deameanor makes conversation easy - E see you back in Monterey in a couple of weeks once i get out of this 120 degree heat of Lake Havasu.

gwkiwi said:

The original poster didnt mention the models of the DF or the KK so without that its stabbing in the dark.
For us the 49RPH is a good vessel for others a DF 44 or a DF48 might be better choice, eitherway stabilization is key to me and as I am learning make sure you check when the stabilizer seals were last changed.

There is no vessel that has everything especially when cost comes into the equation and I agree with Eric he is good at inviting himself aboard and his great deameanor makes conversation easy - E see you back in Monterey in a couple of weeks once i get out of this 120 degree heat of Lake Havasu.

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The DeFever is a 44 POC.

Stabilizer seals? How hard are those to change out?

One of the reasons I lean towards the KK is it seems to be a simpler boat with its single Lehman. Also I like the pilothouse design better than the 44 POC. The DeFever has twin 120 Lehmans and active stabilizers so it seems more complex. If I get a KK42 I would like to install paravanes eventually for stability, and simplicity.

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Gerald, I think you owe us lots of pictures and descriptions of the work you have done. It would be interesting to hear what you learned from purchasing a boat from another state.

Come by the boat when you are back in the civilized part of the country.

E

Cardude,
As you know I have plenty to say about both of these models. Give me a shout with the specifics.

You may also want to check on what type of stabilizers are installed. Some of the newer Niad stabilizers have a rol console foe following seas. I instated a pair on my 48LRC and when I had a following 8 foot sea I switched on the following sea control on the controls and it was amazing how the seas didn't effect the boat at all, all I saw was a big wave passing me, it also worked on a rear quartering sea.

We owned a 44 Defever for 6 years and lived aboard for 6 months until we bought a 46 Nordhavn which we have lived aboard for 7 years. I agree with most of what's been said here but have one more comment. The 44 Defever, like most boats of that style, has basically one living area while a pilothouse boat adds another area, the pilothouse. If you are living aboard or have extended periods on board the added area is nice to have. In warm weather the bridge can serve as another living area on both boats.

We have over 15K miles on our Nordhavn and prefer the pilothouse style for extended cruising. I would also emphasize that some form of stabilizers are needed for offshore cruising. We didn't have stabilizers on the Defever but only used it in Puget Sound and BC. We've taken the Nordhavn from Alaska to southern Mexico and have paravanes, no active fins. I like the simplicity of paravanes and a single engine is easier to maintain and uses less fuel than twins.

Both boats are well built so how they were maintained is the big issue as with any older boat. Both are great boats and you can't go wrong with either. Go with your gut.