50ft HT Sports Cruisers

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...I'm sure in a previous post you mentioned the P54, and said you didn't get a response from Fairline?



...giving the Irish dealer a chance to redeem themselves?



...Interesting about the UK spec Abs 52. I completely agreed with you about the saloon, far too small for long stays on board.



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Did I say Fairline in a previous thread? - if so, oops, sorry about that, I should have said Princess /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Actually, I have received good service from Fairline Ireland when I need underwater gear for SV2 following the grounding /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

I didn't mention who the Princess dealer is because I didn't want this to be a dealer/broker thread (too late).

The UK spec Absolute 52 looks promising. As Trevor is a regular here I won't go into to too much detail. He knows the pros & cons and the will get a fair shot at the deal.
 
I hear what you are saying but I won't be calling them again.

The V53 is indeed a smashing boat but, not withstanding the problem above, it dosen't have the sliding doors /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

We like the idea of making the area under the hard top into a soloon with galley up. No saloon down below leaves much more room for bedrooms / showers etc.
 
Hi Tom.

Nope not a bigger boat. 52 ft is plenty thanks very much. We could beat you to Bardsey on tickover - just need to time the tides/weather a bit better /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Are you taking LS over in April or are you flying over to meet those hairy arsed sailors from Poolbeg?
 
Taking Little Ship over and also meeting any of the hairy arsed sailors who want a drink! Cranberry juice included /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Malahide is on the list for at least one night! /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Tom
 
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Come on spill the beans, if Absolute is one of the two what's the other?

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Hi Kevin,

Look at my original thread again /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

OK, maybe it's not obvious /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

The other boat is the Predator 52.
 
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Malahide is on the list for at least one night
Tom


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We look forward to hosting you.

take care mind because the channel from the SWM to the Marina entrance is over a mile long.

In April, make sure you arrive at the SWM before 16:00 hrs to you leave plenty of time to make the journey before it gets dark /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Probably best is you leave now /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
I second houghn's comments. if you like p54 but not the dealer just buy from another dealer. I did the same back in 2004 - there is a fairline dealer just by Cannes and we often anchor almost outside his front door. But their service seemed shoody (they promised a seatrial on a sq58 and when we turned up on the appointed day they said there was no sea trial to be had and denied even offering us one...) so we just bought the boat from another dealer and shipped it to Frnace ourselves. Ok were were a bit PNG on local warranty support but I figured we'd hardly need any (which is how it turned out) and for the few small warranty breakages Fairline just sent the parts on my request and I fitted them myself. So dont let crappo dealer stop you having your 1st choice of boat imho.

Before you order, have you seen the new Sq65 (which is a 61 foot hull with a high/low bathing platform stuck on). It's fab and should be #1 on your list :-) Utterly brilliant flybridge design and a glass foredeck strip (2 foot wide, down the centreline) so lots of light in cabins.

I also think Fairline are more consistenly screwed together than Princess currently. Some (not all) Princesses creak a lot. The bulkhead/hull joints, and other fit out, flex and creak. Magnum's P67 creaked like mad even just bobbing at anchor. Bit like Azimuts (though they are more consistent than Princess - they all creak; the 62 at LIBS last week felt like nothing at all was stuck to anything else). Fairlines dont creak (as you know) Mine has 8000nm and some big waves bashed through, and absolutely no creaks.
 
Crikey - creaky boats - yikes. The only creaks we hear on SV2 are the ropes and fenders. Our C39 creaked us to distraction and we were aways having doors adjusted coz they were hard to shut after a bit of a sea.

I have corresponded with Magnum about the P42 and P67 and his report on the P67 in particular is pretty damning on the Mallorca dealer.

I have spoken with Fairline about the Sq55 but they are being unreasonable about the deposit requirements imo (€100k up front to buy from plans - not likely).

To be honest, I really want to put the HT SC's to the test v Flybridge and that's the plan for now. Remember we do all our boating around Ireland / UK so HT boat should work ?

The boat must have sliding doors, saloon up, big master suite and big shower (s). I really appreciate the main shower on SV2

Man60 too big so I reckon the same for Squaddy 65.

Azimuts are not on the list due to the jump onto the bathing platform from alongside - and that's without any wind pushing the boat off .
 
Agree with that. I'm sure somebody will correct me but I coud'nt see much if any difference in the size and layout between the new P50 and the P54. Mind you the price of the new P50 is a bit higher too
 
That all makes good sense SV. Ref Azimut, the UK importer used to stick teak on that slippy bit of GRP at the back, but I agree with you, they're no good for side-on berths. All academic though, becuase they are incredibly lightly built and not screwed together imho. Creakers, basically.

I think the HT s/cruiser with glass doors is great idea for UK/Irl waters. Hope it works out well - an experiment I suppose becuase if it doesn't work SV4 can be another f/bridge

My only thoughts on those boats (and it's just personal opinion) are that the downstairs saloons are claustrophobic, and dark, you never sit in them, and they just become just a lobby. When lounging around you will ALWAYS sit in the deck saloon. So i'd get one with a tiny/non existent lower saloon and big/more cabins. And a fab deck saloon that feels like it's "inside" ie proper sofas and furniture not white vinyl and GRP. Many of the med designs recognise this - lots of big Leopards and Mangustas are built with no lower saloon at all, just cabins and galley on the lower deck. And I reckon you need to be very careful to get the right size, after the sapce you have in the p50. I think you should get the biggest one you can so the deck saloon is fab - you might be a touch undersized at 50 feet; 55 would be better? You dont want to end up with a too-small deck saloon and a small downstairs dark saloon. The windscreen is usually further aft on a s/cruiser than on a f/b boat for styling reasons so a 50 footer will have a smaller saloon than your p50.

If you want to stay close to 50ft then an Absolute 52 is the biz, becuase it has an "inside" feel to the deck saloon, with "inside" furnishings and floor surface. It also has a v clever reverse angle on top half of transom, where the sofa squab goes, to create more cockpit room. In contrast, the Targa 52 has an "outside" feel to the deck saloon, with vinyl and GRP. If you want to go quite a bit bigger then howsabout stretch to Fairline Targa 64? - has a fantastic deck saloon and virtually no downstairs saloon

All imho!
 
Yep, agree with all that.

SV, have you looked at the Prinz 54? Even if you don't like the brand or build, its an interesting layout to compare against others. I think the galley down option with dinette and saloon at deck level is best for northern waters.
 
What about a Windy 52 Xanthos, that seems to stack up well against the competition?
http://www.windyuk.eu/model52.html

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Good advice, jfm. Having a lower saloon on an HT sports cruiser is as nonsensical as having a lower saloon on a flybridge boat. I guess it's because a lot of HT boats on the market are still soft top sports cruisers with a hard top nailed on top either because the builder is hedging his bets and offers both types or it's just an old design. I guess also that's why some HT cruisers still have cockpit type seating under the hard top. Good point about FB saloons being bigger as well because of the cab forward design and I agree that going from a 50ft FB to a 52ft HT is probably a step down in overall accomodation terms especially as you lose the flybridge space as well
Interesting comments on Azimut. Not entirely sure that I agree with them. My old AZ46 was a bit of a lard arse in actual fact and I don't remember it particularly creaking and the engineering was definitely a cut above most Brit boats. Of the various boats I've had, Sealines were the worst for feeling and sounding lightly built but I never experienced any structural failures with them. In fact the only structural failures I've experienced have been with a Fairline Targa 48 which had bulkhead and windscreen frame bonding failures as well as being quite shoddily built in general
 
I agree on Deleted User about AZ
just an e.g. the 55 weights about 27 tons loaded a new Princess 54 weight 23 Tons
I sold a few of these and never had any problem, I must admit that most AZ are better bulkheaded, stringered then some british competition, and Italian surveyors I pretty stuck on this structural issue
just a little last note, I sold a 74 Solar to a client a few years back who owned a Princess 20 M, now this one navigates in the not so easy Aegean Sea and himself and the captain a year after the purchase called the Princess just a Marina Boat unlike the Azimut which to his knowledge felt much reassuring in this not much gentle sea
BTW for a lightweighted boat what about a V55 weighs only 14.5 tons with MAN engines, that is for sure a light built boat
now that some AZ in a boatshow want be not complete it is natural, but if AZ was the first to do this mistake then I tell you to indicate me the builder which always does it perfect at the shows, especially if the boatshow is not a home one, like SS in Italy or AZ in UK
there was some blistering problems with AZ especially on some careless owners who leave a boat without gelshield or protection for 2 years in the water but to my knowledge if taken care as any other boat this does not happen

sold 6 AZ and had friends who bought other 10 models in the last 2 years from old 1988 and new 2005 models but none of them had any structural but also osmosis problems whatsoever
 
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none of them had any structural but also osmosis problems whatsoever

[/ QUOTE ]Where did anyone mention osmosis?
Sounds like a case of "excusatio non petita, accusatio manifesta"...
 
Spot on, poweryacht. My AZ suffered minor blistering on the hull because the boat had been left in the water for a couple or three years before I bought it. It was repaired by AZ under their hull warranty without any argument and they even extended the hull warranty for a further 1 year after the standard 5 years
 
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