NOT a Mainship Trawler!

We've decided to move aboard, but before jumping into a big debt commitment, a friend of ours is going to allow us to rent her boat since she's been unable to sell it. This will give us an opportunity to make sure we really like the lifestyle, and what we must have in a boat before purchasing our own.

The boat is a 1996 Mainship 37 MY. I assume that its a full planing hull, but am not sure. It's powered by two Marine Power 454's. (I know, gas engines go boom, lets not beat that horse.)

I cannot seem to find any historical data on this model at all.

Does anyone know where I can find the specs on it? I.E. LOA, LWL, fuel performance etc etc? Broker listings are, well, less than accurate and you'll get three different sets of numbers from three different broker listings.

Also, has anyone had any experiences with this model?

From the Powerboat Guide:

The Mainship 37 Motor Yacht was very an innovative design when she came out in 1995 with several unique features. Most small motor yachts this size have an open front windshield, but not the Mainship. This allows for a very unusual interior configuration with the step-down galley and dinette completely merged into the salon. The result is a truly cavernous main cabin area with a sculptured overhead and extraordinary headroom throughout. While the salon windows are located at head-level, there’s an unusual starboardside window at the dinette level opposite the galley. Given the extravagant salon dimensions, it’s hardly a surprise that the staterooms are small. The aft deck is also small, but the flybridge is huge with a centerline helm console and wraparound seating for eight. Because of her narrow side decks, a walk-through in the forward flybridge coaming provides direct access to the foredeck. A hardtop was a popular option, and the molded boarding steps on either side of the aft deck are very unique. A heavy boat with lots of freeboard, twin 370hp gas inboards cruise the 37 Motor Yacht at 14–15 knots with a top speed in the low 20s.

Specifications
©2017 PowerBoat Guide
www.powerboatguide.com
Length w/Pulpit ..................39'6" Hull Length ........................37'9" Beam ..................................13'5" Draft .....................................3'7" Weight...........................21,000#
Fuel ..............................300 gals. Water ...........................100 gals. Clearance ...........................13'6" Hull Type ...................Modified-V Deadrise Aft ..........................17°

Ah. Well don’t I feel like a dummy.

Yeah, Mainship wandered off toward planing hulls in between approx '88 and maybe '96/'97 or so... before returning to semi-displacement "trawler" designs.

-Chris

Don't feel like a dummy.

I can say that for live-aboard vs. weekender is very different. When you live aboard day after day, little things are huge. Insufficient galley space is inconvenient when you're weekending. Its a giant PITA week after week and is downright frustrating if you don't have a place to put a cutting board. The novelty of liveaboard wears off and then you see what really matters.

All boats are tradeoffs -- getting your priorities is important. Some boats are just better suited for daily life/rough wear. I wouldn't judge too much by the Mainship MY -- from what I've seen of them, they're more a weekender type boat, if that makes sense. Your experience living aboard that vessel may not be the same as living aboard a trawler type or other motoryacht.

The Mainship trawler styles are great boats. I think their foray into the planing hulls leaves something to be desired... it wasn't a good venture, IMHO.

KevinCT said:

I wouldn't judge too much by the Mainship MY -- from what I've seen of them, they're more a weekender type boat, if that makes sense.

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Weekender? It has more room than our RV that we live full time in!

I'm pretty sure the Mainship 37 was the same as the Silverton 37 (same parent company)
A friend of mine had a Silverton. Nice boat, but very, very thirsty with those 454's. He rarely stayed onboard overnight.
John

johnma said:

Nice boat, but very, very thirsty with those 454's. He rarely stayed onboard overnight.
John

Click to expand...

Wonder why? I find it to be a very comfortable boat, inside and out. The only thing that I dont like about it so far (besides the gas engines) is the fact that there is only one helm on top.

When we finally decide to buy our own, I want a forward placed, inside helm.

johnma said:

I'm pretty sure the Mainship 37 was the same as the Silverton 37 (same parent company)

Click to expand...

No. Similar in over-all form and function, but different hulls, layouts, etc.

-Chris