Advice re: choice of boat.

[Alpha22]

Hi,

I am looking to upgrade from my Freeman 22 to a larger/faster boat.

The budget is arround 10,000 UKPounds.

Must be able to sleep 4 or 5 at a push.

Primeraly the boat will be used on the Gt. Ouse, but I would like something that is big/fast enough to use coastal / France - Holland???

Contenders are:-

Princess 25 - Not too sure about coastal? Tunnel drive?

Fairline Fury - Expensive to run? (Twin Petrols)

Fairline 24 Weekender - What's it like on the river? Too small for 4???

Any opinions gratefully recieved.



<hr width=100% size=1>I didn't intend to do it! She made me!

 

[martynwhiteley]

I'll offer something on the Princess 25 since I owned one up until a year ago.

My first reaction would be that (esp. for a £10K budget - assuming that's the total vaule of the new boat, and not £10K + your Freeman), any choice would not be suitable for reasonable coastal/channel use.

A good P25 with a newish single diesel, or older twin petrol/diesels, would be ok for coastal use, but very hard to find for £10K unless you want to spend a lot of time and money refurbishing. Plus a twin petrol would be very expensive to run, and far from ideal for river use, that will prob account for 80% of your boating.

Also, although it can theoretically sleep 5 (inc one under cockpit cover), the dinette is little more than a good single, and hopless for tall people.

My current Birchwood is only 2 1/2 ft longer, but feels twice as big inside with 4 full size berths, and two more under canvas. Also the toilet comp on the P25 is too small for a shower if your fatter than Posh.

I'm not as familiar with the Failines, although I've looked around many weekenders, and although I like their layout, they are also too small IMHO.

For your budget, you may come close to the next size up of older boats, eg. Project 31, RLM 31, and perhaps a very old Princess 32 with twin petrols. They would require a lot of work, but perhaps worth the investment more.

I sold my P25 because I wanted to upgrade it and knew it wasn't worth doing, because the beds would never be big enough, and not worth fitting a shower.




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[Nick_XChurch]

I bought a cruisers International Holiday 224 as a first boat, and to be honest, it staggers me how much is packed into such a small boat. It has a single AQ151 (150 horse petrol) which isn't that expensive to run if you don't run it flat-out all the time, sleeps 4 easily, plus two under the rear hood. We've done some small-distance-stuff (round the IOW, Christchurch to Lulworth etc) all easily and I highly recommend it. We paid 12k for ours. MBM gave it a very good review too; check the back-issues service for a reprint. They also did a 130horse diesel, but it wasn;t quite enuff to keep her planing with more than 2 people.

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[Nick2]

I think you will find that the Princess 25 has always had sterndrives fitted and perhaps you are thinking of the Birchwood 25 of which many but by no means all were tunnel drive.

Nick

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[Alpha22]

Ahhh! Yes, that would be the one.

What are these tunnel drives all about? Pros and cons....

Thanks.
Dean

<hr width=100% size=1>I didn't intend to do it! She made me!

 

[oldgit]

Agree with all comments.P25 is good little boat for couple of peeps but would not give you enough space for more.Solid hull but pay major atten.to engine/outdrives.
My 175HP version would do 17 ish knots on a very good day.Smaller engines will give less.Only diesel version I ever saw was silly money 15K or summat.

<hr width=100% size=1>Two boats please one here n one in the Med