Albin 25 motor sailer

wombat88

wombat88

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As part of my search for a motor sailer I chanced upon the Albin 25.

Does anyone have any direct experience of one of these? I know they were based on the motor boat hull and tend to have quite big engines but has anyone sailed one...and just how small is the aft cabin?
 
My father bought an Albin 25 DeLux Motorsailer at the 1973 boat show. He had it for a number of years, it was a very well designed and put together craft. As a teenager I managed fine in the aft cabin.
Under sail she could make some way off the wind, but with no proper keel beating was not really possible and going about required the engine or a gybe as she would not tack through the wind.
Although my father found he was not that interested in sailing (he went on to buy a pure powerboat) the mainsail was nearly always hoisted for steadying or motor-sailing purposes. With the 36hp engine and flatter stern the delux could just about touch 9knots if required.
We took her cross channel several times and cruised as far as Jersey in the south, Salcombe to the west from her home port of Chichester. We always felt safe and secure protected in the wheelhouse area.
 
Thanks, another to add to the list that now covers Fisher, LM, CW, Albin, Cox, Steadfast, Swin Ranger etc etc. though some of these are well over budget.

ithet's post emphasises that some of these would not come about without wearing or help from the engine...OK, so I had not expected much in the way of windward performance under sail but...
 
A Fisher, Colvic, Cox, LM, Colvic Watson etc will all tack nicely through the wind, they're 50/50 motorsailers and if set up half way right will tack as well as say a Centaur. Nothing will turn like a fin keeler does but I'd rather have the space, comfort, safety etc etc etc
 
I'm tending towards something with a long keel plus bilge keels in order to sit flat on the beach. This should mean that any turn is 'steady' at best. I still sail dinghies if I want to point close and charge around getting wet and uncomfortable but my dinghy sailing seasons appears to get shorter every year.

A Fisher 25 has come up for sale near here. Huge price for a 1976 boat, nearly 4 feet deep and no bilge keels. I'm sure they are great but these are three simple reasons for removing them from my list.
 
A Fisher 25 deserves its sky high price and you'll always sell it easily and for a good amount. Try a Colvic or a Colvic Watson that's had bilge plates fitted, some don't like the retro fit because they weren't designed to be there but owners with them are big fans. I think the Cox Master Mariner is tripple keeled? That's an awesome small m/s - one of the very best coastal/estuary small m/s, the others come into their own in the bad stuff!
 
I reckon that having a long keel tends to result in a design that has a lower cabin sole and consequently less 'top hamper' for a given headroom. Also it allows a 'normal' prop shaft and stern tube rather than a saildrive type leg (or whatever they are called) which is just something else to worry about. Well, that is what I think anyway, I may be wrong.

The Cox is well up my list, long keel plus bilge keels, just a little less than 3 feet deep, nice and wide and comfy. My ambitions no longer extend beyond Chichester to the east and Studland to the west.
 
Colvic Watson said:
A Fisher, Colvic, Cox, LM, Colvic Watson etc will all tack nicely through the wind, they're 50/50 motorsailers and if set up half way right will tack as well as say a Centaur. Nothing will turn like a fin keeler does but I'd rather have the space, comfort, safety etc etc etc
Click to expand...

I suspect you've only come across badly sailed Centaurs then - I thought the old impressions had been dispelled by now, these boats had an unfair reputation as poor sailers for two reasons;

they had a big engine for their time, but that was only due to a deal offered by Volvo

A lot of novices bought them, as they were such an obviously good all rounder.

In fact a well sailed Centaur goes - and tacks, once the baby stay is mastered - very well indeed, and shouldn't really be mentioned in the same paragraph as those motor sailers. :)
 
Thanks for the Monarch which I will add to my list.

Many of these boats are from the '70s and early '80s which in itself is not a problem. However many still have their original engines which although well known for being reliable Volvos, Yanmars etc are now really quite old. Who knows what the water galleries look like after 30 - 40 years of raw salt and little documented service history?
 
wombat,

quite right; all the Centaurs I know have been re-engined, a friends' has a 3 cylinder Nanni, which is turbine smooth compared to the original Volvo thumpers !

Re-engining will of course be even more vital on a motor sailer; after experiencing corrosion snags ( core plugs rotting through on an 8 year old Volvo ) on another boat, I reckon fresh water cooling as Nanni's and others use has to be the only way.
 
wombat88 said:
Thanks for the Monarch which I will add to my list.

Many of these boats are from the '70s and early '80s which in itself is not a problem. However many still have their original engines which although well known for being reliable Volvos, Yanmars etc are now really quite old. Who knows what the water galleries look like after 30 - 40 years of raw salt and little documented service history?
Click to expand...
Your rationale is impeccable. My own motor-sailor, the only one Hallberg-Rassy ever made, a 1981 HR94 Kutter, had the original Volvo Penta MD-17C engine when I bought it in 2005. But last year, with obvious cooling problems and a marina mooring 5nm through narrow winding lagoon channels to reach the open sea, a reliable engine was critical; I replaced it with a Nanni N4.38.

Despite its reliable service, I had worried about such an old engine in such an environment and five years ago raised the matter in this very forum, asking for opinions from the many wise ones that can be found here. The balance of opinion was to re-engine, with a small number supporting my reluctance to do so with the adage of 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it.' As I had a very good mechanic with a workshop full of old Volvo Penta engines he had replaced as potential spare parts when reconditioned, I delayed the decision.

Wrong! Inevitably I had to bite the bullet and replace as eventually the raw cooling water had practically closed the waterways with rust and sludge such that as much steam was emitting the exhaust as smoke and the electrics were very delicate with corroded contacts and crumbling insulation.

The point is that the weight of forum opinion was correct and by ignoring it I had four years of temperamental engine performance and a shed-load of worries.
 
Albin's hull is not like any of the others on your list - pretty far from 'sailing' and often seen without a mast at all.

indretning.gif


Always some for sale in Sweden, prices vary a lot:
https://www.blocket.se/hela_sverige?q=albin+25&cg=1060&w=3&st=s&ps=&pe=&c=&ca=5&is=1&l=0&md=th
 
Last edited:
Yup, the Albin is quite common without a mast. As you say, it may be too MOTOR - sailer.

As to corrosion in engines, I drive an Austin Seven. It doesn't particularly matter if it breaks down since someone will always stop and help but the gentle weeping around core plugs etc is gentle reminder of what is going on in an 84 year old casting...
 
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