The vast majority of you have totally missed the point...except David and Ranger and PSneeld.
He mentioned how he was going to use the boat. You get the best boat for how you are going to use it.
I will say this. A Nordic Tug 32 is TINY!!!!....regardless of how well built it is. The Mainship likely has TWICE the space if not more!!! Is that important to you????? It is to me. And it likely is to most of you. I would not be comfortable cruising on any NT under 37 feet. Somebody using a NT32 as a retirement boat is likely a blind brand loyalist...or someone that does not value space!!!!
While the Mainship build quality is not as good as NT, it will absolutely positively serve the purpose of the OP. Main ships are fairly basic boats sourced with easily available equipment and easy to maintain. The thing is not going to implode and sink anytime soon.
If it is value we are talking, the Mainship wins hands down. If it is living space we are talking, the Mainship wins hands down. The only edge the NT holds is build quality. And just how is that going to make you feel while doing the Great Loop???? I don't know about y'all....but one of things about boating and cruising to me is enjoying the space aboard the boat. Where is that space on the NT??? A smallish salon and an even smaller uncovered cockpit. On the Mainship you have a much larger salon that opens up to a large COVERED cockpit. The Mainship provides very easy and safe access to the bow. While a nice thing to have it is also a safety issue. And finally the 34T has a HUGE flybridge. Look how the Mainship overhangs flare out. Yes it looks slightly odd....but that is because they carry the width of the flybridge FULL BEAM!!!! Anyway....I have made my point....opinion.
And this is with due respect to our NT32 owners out there. Not a bad weekend boat. But not a great retirement boat....IMO.
In my opinion, unless you are crossing oceans, living space is the single most important thing for someone spending extended time aboard.
Especially when you have a sled dog team.
AC weather in Southern BC yesterday. How is Seward's weather? We're headed to Glacier Bay soon.
Or we just don't agree with you.
"or someone that does not value space!!!!"
A roomaran may have more empty space , mere volume , but the measure of an inteior is how well it functions , how comfortable it is , how it ventilates and admits light.
Being able to be thrown an extra 10 ft across a cabin may not be a great advantage.
Interesting! I now have a pair of Yanmars that I was really concerned about as I was a confirmed Cummins fan. I wanted a 42 OA sedan with a hard top, twin births in the guest cabin & Cummins engines. The boat I bought had everything I wanted except Cummins engines. I am slowly moving to the Yanmar camp as (so far) I haven't had a hint of trouble. Could it simply be explained as demonstrating a bias for what we bought?I actually lean towards the Yanmar simply because they have offered me such excellent service in the past. Now I am married to a pair of Cummins and they are slowly winning me over.
Those were my thoughts, exactly, when I first saw the engines. Crawling around in the ER with the manual, however, reduced my stress level. They are not really that complicated.Codger, that's a very complicated-looking machine with all those tubes and roundy things. but it's still clean and spotless!
Good comments. I never considered the "comfort on the hook" argument.
The extra three feet in cabin width you'll get in a boat without them is something you'll use every minute you are aboard.
That's certainly been my experience. I loved the 32' Havorsen but when we got Sandpiper and all that extra room, my wife fell in love with the boat. Sandpiper was supposed to be my "man cave" but such is not the case. She's on it more than I am.Comfort cannot be overstated if you are planning on extended time aboard.
...
But that full deck-- that's one of the best features of our PNW boat and after years of enjoying its advantages we insisted on it for our other one. We're we in the market for a boat today, new or used, we wouldn't even consider a boat without a full deck, no matter how clever and roomy the boat was otherwise.
If I'm not mistaken the newer KK North Sea 48 has only a side deck at the salon on the starboard side, the 48 WhaleBack has no side decks. I have had two 48' pilot house boats with marginal side decks, 4788 Bayliner and the 48 LRC Hatteras. The only use I see for side Decks would be deploying fish. The advantages of the larger salon with it's larger entertainment area on the boat deck far out weigh any occasional use of side decks aft of the pilot house.The Nordic Tugs are excellent boats and very well built. But they may not be the best boat for the OP. The Mainship may be just fine for his intended purpose.
WRT space, the NT isn't as spacious as others in the same length-on-deck class. We found that the KK42 was by far the largest of the 42' LOD group. Much bigger than the NT, Nordhavn 40, the North Pacific Trawler and others. Our wheelhouse has floor space that is 10'6" wide and 4'2" deep not including the helm dash that is 34" deep and the watch berth that is 33 deep and 6'8" long.
Side decks...this docking newbie sure appreciates them as does his admiral and sometime crew!
Jim
Sent from my iPad using Trawler Forum