Soco2
Member
That’s the one
Squaddie 52?
- Thread starter GravyStain
- Start date
Sticky Fingers
Well-known member
Excellent!
fred247
Active member
was tempted to make a blind offer on that, but you beat me to it 
looks a great boat
looks a great boat
Soco2
Member
was tempted to make a blind offer on that, but you beat me to it
Lol, I had fallen behind before and really liked this so offered back in February ??
It really is a cracking boat though, sea trial went very well and systems are in very good order ??
your only really down one berth compared to the standard 50ft three cabin boats so i don’t think it’s a deal breaker. The heads are absolutely massive ?
sorry about that?
GravyStain
Active member
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Soco2
Member
Yes
Soco2
Member
??
GravyStain
Active member
Sent you a PM...
dj43
Active member
On my boat hunting I've been doing tons of searching (as everyone does when spending the thick end of Very Great Deal Of Money)!
Aaaaand.... I'm slightly taken by the oddball Fairline Squadron 52. It ticks a lot of boxes at a decent price point (which is a good £50 - 70k less than a Squaddie 58)
2 master cabins, each en suite. Crew quarters, utility room. We only have one child and nobody likes us so we'd never take more than one couple away with us
This boat was from when Fairline were arguably in their pomp, 2005 ish.
I'd like your thoughts please - anyone owned or used one?
What's the engine access like?
Are the engines decent in general?
Decent fuel economy on pootle mode?
Is the Flybridge any good?
Any major flaws?
Thanks guys. Happy Easter!
We have owned one for the last eleven years , as with most things its a personal choice if you like them or not, we happen to like ours very much, we feel the style has aged well, and is very distinctive compared to some other makes that all look very similar.
There is normally only the wife and I on board , but if some of our family or friends want to come, we have slept six on board,
It's a very good boat in all types of sea, we have cruised the east coast ,all over Holland, south,and west coast as far as Falmouth ,Channel Isles, never had to abort a trip,
Ref the fly bridge, we have never had a problem accommodating lots of folk, if you consider the actual usable space it works very well.
Boats of this age ,some will have been looked after better than others ,but all will require the normal interior refit, ours has been relined ,carpets, fridges,ice maker, navigation equipment ,radio, upholstery , thrusters, teak deck and bathing platform, all the things that start to Where out after ten years or so on all boats,
Our boat is fitted with the TAMD 122 engines,and have been fault less, will still top out at 30 knts with clean bum fully loaded, we cruise at around 1600 to 1800 rpm that gives us a cruising speed around 20 to 24 depending on condition, 6 to 7 ltrs a mile.
I do all my own maintence and find them easy to work on , and get around them,
We find that with the Fairlines hull length ,as it goes to the end of the bathing platform ,this gives us a much better tick over speed , when we are pottering along , just in gear tickover is around 6 to 7 knots if you factor in the tide we have crossed Lyme bay averaging 8 to 10 knots , on a nice sunny day, and for a fifty three foot boat is amazingly good on fuel
Things to check, as with boats this age and size ,maintence, crew cabin leaks under the bathing platform, window leaks ,
We had over one season without a thruster and managed very well, ( we now have two as I sometimes have to move the boat on my own and find it very easy)
Quality wise, I think this boat was built when Fairline were at there best, We have considered changing to a newer boat,but so far nothing has compared for our boating requirements,
Hope this helps, if you need any further information please ask or pm me if you would rather
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GravyStain
Active member
Fantastic reply, thanks so much for this information, it helps a great deal.
Sticky Fingers
Well-known member
Brochure is a timewarp piece. I see that bullsh*t copywriters aren't a new phenomenon! What 1990's new boat buyer, equipped with the necessary funds and presumably some idea of what they're doing, would read this blurb and think "ahah, that's what I was missing when I looked at all those other boats... "???
Soco2
Member
Might see you in the Solent at some point Later in the year?
dj43
Active member
Very good chance, look forward to seeing you out there, enjoy your new craft
Soco2
Member
Thanks, I look forward to it. ??
D
Deleted User YDKXO
Guest
I think it was generally acknowledged at the time the Sq52 was launched that Fairline dropped a bollock with their decision to design it with only 2 cabins which rather reduced its target market, especially in the Med. The small flybridge didnt help there either. Fairline realised this pretty quickly which is why they shoe horned a 3rd cabin into later models. I dont doubt that for the right owner who doesnt want 3 cabins that the 2 cabin version would make a fine boat but they should be aware that when the time comes to resell, their boat will be on the market competing with 45 footers with 3 cabins which is why of course the Sq52 doesnt fetch anywhere near what a Sq58 fetches. Personally I'd be selling everything including the mother in law to raise the cash to buy a Sq58 which is without doubt one of Fairline's best boats ever
GravyStain
Active member
This is my great dilemma Mike.I think it was generally acknowledged at the time the Sq52 was launched that Fairline dropped a bollock with their decision to design it with only 2 cabins which rather reduced its target market, especially in the Med. The small flybridge didnt help there either. Fairline realised this pretty quickly which is why they shoe horned a 3rd cabin into later models. I dont doubt that for the right owner who doesnt want 3 cabins that the 2 cabin version would make a fine boat but they should be aware that when the time comes to resell, their boat will be on the market competing with 45 footers with 3 cabins which is why of course the Sq52 doesnt fetch anywhere near what a Sq58 fetches. Personally I'd be selling everything including the mother in law to raise the cash to buy a Sq58 which is without doubt one of Fairline's best boats ever
Thanks for reminding me
dj43
Active member
I think it was generally acknowledged at the time the Sq52 was launched that Fairline dropped a bollock with their decision to design it with only 2 cabins which rather reduced its target market, especially in the Med. The small flybridge didnt help there either. Fairline realised this pretty quickly which is why they shoe horned a 3rd cabin into later models. I dont doubt that for the right owner who doesnt want 3 cabins that the 2 cabin version would make a fine boat but they should be aware that when the time comes to resell, their boat will be on the market competing with 45 footers with 3 cabins which is why of course the Sq52 doesnt fetch anywhere near what a Sq58 fetches. Personally I'd be selling everything including the mother in law to raise the cash to buy a Sq58 which is without doubt one of Fairline's best boats ever
There,s no question the 58 is a great boat the numbers prove this, we were moving up from a Sealine F43, anything under 50foot
did not compare, at the time the 58 was double the price of the 52 , Our problem was we could not get an offer on the mother inlaw,
, so we decided to buy a boat with no room for her, same with my car only has two seats
petem
Well-known member
Eh ....... it's true!Brochure is a timewarp piece. I see that bullsh*t copywriters aren't a new phenomenon! What 1990's new boat buyer, equipped with the necessary funds and presumably some idea of what they're doing, would read this blurb and think "ahah, that's what I was missing when I looked at all those other boats... "???
View attachment 112907
jakew009
Active member
I think it was generally acknowledged at the time the Sq52 was launched that Fairline dropped a bollock with their decision to design it with only 2 cabins which rather reduced its target market, especially in the Med. The small flybridge didnt help there either. Fairline realised this pretty quickly which is why they shoe horned a 3rd cabin into later models. I dont doubt that for the right owner who doesnt want 3 cabins that the 2 cabin version would make a fine boat but they should be aware that when the time comes to resell, their boat will be on the market competing with 45 footers with 3 cabins which is why of course the Sq52 doesnt fetch anywhere near what a Sq58 fetches. Personally I'd be selling everything including the mother in law to raise the cash to buy a Sq58 which is without doubt one of Fairline's best boats ever
Speaking as someone who doesn't own a boat in the med but aspires to, is it really that enjoyable to spend a week 'camping' with 3 couples on a 45' boat in the med? Sounds like hell to me.
I'm drawn to the Squadron 52 precisely because it only has 2 massive cabins with massive en suites (and loads of room for all the other crap on board).
petem
Well-known member
It's not my cup of tea (without crew) but like a lot of men, I'd rather be onboard on my own I suspect!