Advice on boat replacement

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oldestgit

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Advice on boat replacement and Legends please.

I am looking to purchase a secondhand 38 to 40 ft yacht with the 3 cabin layout and amongst the Bavs and Bennys I am considering the a pre gantry type legend 40ft yacht, those with a backstay.

Any advice or points to look at and consider either good or bad would be much appreciated,
especially on the Legend.

My thanks
 
Legends

I have only seen two boats with severe panel depression in the forward part of the hull caused by pounding in heavy seas, yet both had never been outside the Irish sea. One was a Legend but not as big as 40'. I examined it aashore at the time and attributed the problem to a combination of hull shape and construction. This was about seven years ago and the boat had only been afloat for one season. I can't recall if she was UK or American but they were being made in England at the time. Since the I have always regarded them as inshore floating caravans.
Do they all have the Bergstrom rig, or are the bigger ones conventional, you don't need soo much hull strength to support a bergstrom mast, so that may explain it?
However I have always been prone to respond negatively to experiences like this so I would wait for some more specific responses to balance this post.
 
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Not much help to you, but the only time I have sailed on a Legend was in 1998. Can't remember the model but it was around 40ft and it was new or nearly new then. It may be that earlier or later boats are different, but the impression that has remained with me is of a boat that felt flimsy and sailed poorly.
 
I don't think that I would ever go for a Legend. A couple I know put down a deposit on one at LIBS, subject to a test sail, around 2002 IIRC. On that sail, the rudder actually fell off, almost unbelievable but true!!
The rest of the tale is interesting but irrelevant, apart from their demanding their money back. They bought a Moody.
I believe the Legend rudder stock was moulded integral with the rudder, AFAIK, this failure wasn't unique.
 
oldestgit said:
Advice on boat replacement and Legends please.

I am looking to purchase a secondhand 38 to 40 ft yacht with the 3 cabin layout and amongst the Bavs and Bennys I am considering the a pre gantry type legend 40ft yacht, those with a backstay.

Any advice or points to look at and consider either good or bad would be much appreciated,
especially on the Legend.

My thanks
Click to expand...
Ive got a lovely Bene 381, twin aft cabins, all the bits, thoroughly recommended. Make me an offer!
Stu
 
Dufour, Beneteau, Janneau

I do frequent charter holidays and chartered Janneau, Beneteau and Dufour.
Beneteau are OK, but I do not particularly like the style of the interior, both Oceanis and First do look cheap inside The First series is not really recommended as a cruiser. I heard of Beneteaus with dislodged interior panels and furniture in high seas, but I have never seen one.
Ja=anneau are similar to Beneteau but of a more pleasing interior. They do feel better built. Those I like best are Dufour, perhaps due to their warm mahogany interior and the excellent build quality. The first impression is of a luxury yacht. The older Classic series (I sailed 36 and 43) do sail better then the newer large cockpit and give an overall impression of a better quality build standard. I like the two wheels of the 385, but I find it more difficult to manouver then a Classic in close quarters when the engine controls are the opposite side I would like them to be.

I have only visited Legends and never sailed one. They do look large for their size!
 
harpo said:
I do frequent charter holidays and chartered Janneau, Beneteau and Dufour.
Beneteau are OK, but I do not particularly like the style of the interior, both Oceanis and First do look cheap inside The First series is not really recommended as a cruiser. I heard of Beneteaus with dislodged interior panels and furniture in high seas, but I have never seen one.
Ja=anneau are similar to Beneteau but of a more pleasing interior. They do feel better built. Those I like best are Dufour, perhaps due to their warm mahogany interior and the excellent build quality. The first impression is of a luxury yacht. The older Classic series (I sailed 36 and 43) do sail better then the newer large cockpit and give an overall impression of a better quality build standard. I like the two wheels of the 385, but I find it more difficult to manouver then a Classic in close quarters when the engine controls are the opposite side I would like them to be.

I have only visited Legends and never sailed one. They do look large for their size!
Click to expand...
What a load of cods, I am the webmaster for the BOA and the forum has thousands of posts on it, not one of them mention "Beneteaus with dislodged interior panels and furniture in high seas" In fact on both of my Benes I have been out in winds of between 38 and 46 knots and they both coped admirably! First hand knowledge dear boy, first hand knowledge!
Stu
 
You have just missed a Dufour 41 classic but the pictures are still on my site. The interior of these older boats was very good for a production boat and they sail well.

Another vote for a Moody 38 though....as that's what I've got.:)
 
""Beneteau are OK, but I do not particularly like the style of the interior, both Oceanis and First do look cheap inside The First series is not really recommended as a cruiser.""

Had a 1992 Bene 38s5 which we mainly cruised & the occasional club race. I was slightly apprehensive about the build quality when I bought it but am pleased to say it was good, never had anything move in high winds including a knock down in a 45Kt squall and a Chinese gybe!
I liked the First as a cruiser because you have decent sail controls and the boat can actually be made to sail well by using then correctly and they have better light air performance. We would frequently sail past larger boats.
The only downside was the Amiot mainsheet and traveller which was tired and a bit agricultural; once that was replaced the boast was fine.
Now on my second First - a 1992 310 - and have to say I am as satisfied as with the larger boat and when buying I didnt see any other makes that looked as good & gave the same value for money/design/quality. Still needed a new mainsheet & traveller!
 
If you can find any have a look at pre 92 Bav's, my theory is if more come into the country before I buy my next boat I'll have a bigger selection to choose from. They are lovely boats but not that many around. The model numbers are all three didgit such as 390 (which relates to the beam 3.9m) this is the 12.15m boat that I had.
 
Many thanks for all the words of wisdom.

I am surprised I didn't have even One Legend owner respond to sing their praises, only those with tales of woe.

Thanks again.... Peter
 
Hi Peter

Having only just joined this forum and read your thread I have to reply. I have been sailing my Folk Dancer (a folk boat variant for thos who havent heard of them) and not many left in commission, however due to her size and the constant moans from 'er indoors' I searched for something bigger !

Of course for every single boat out there, you are obviously going to get people knocking them whether they are Benny's, Bavarias etc, there is always something gone wrong with all boats from time to time.

I believe when we think of our new boat, we all have to consider, our budget, mooring costs and restrictions, what we want to do with the boat and where we are going to sail.

After a long search climbing in and out of various boats, I bought a Hunter Legend 335. Yes there were some issues I had to address after the survey but all in all a lot of boat for the money. She is beamy, well laid out, light and airy, all in all, a great cruiser/racer. She is not designed for transatlantic sailing but lets face it, most of us do not buy a boat for that reason.

Now this may come as a shock. I entered her in this years RTRIR and came 3rd in class and 39th overall !!! Not a bad result for these so called caravans ?

The boat is a wing keeled 335 with a 7/8 rig, slab reefed and 110% Genoa,
You should have seen the look on the faces of the competition as we passed boat after boat !!!!

The only downside to our particular boat is the 18hp Yanmar far too small for her but we plan to change that.

Our 21 yr old Legend that thankfully does have backstays certainly sails far better than the newer ones.

I hope this helps I just felt someone had to stand up for the Legends. Horses for courses but we love her.
 
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