Any experience of Mascot yachts? Or recommendations for similar DS type?

[Norstar69]

Hi all. Former stink boat owner here but I also qualified on the rag and stick and am looking to buy my first sailing yacht.

The needs of the wife are a significant consideration on this one and she wants a boat like a Moody Eclipse 43 where the saloon seats look out the windows for when we are motoring in foul weather. Ideally there'd be an internal helm too. We have two children who need to be physically separated so suitable accommodation is a must or at least a possibility that the forecabin can be adapted into two bunks.

The two I'm really liking the look of are the Moody Eclipse 43 and the Mascot 35DS.

Others seemed to be:

Nauticat 35
Nauticat 321
Sirius 36 DS
Trident Voyager 35
Moody Eclipse 33 (but accepting I need to adapt the forecabin)

I can't find a thing on the internet about the Mascot yachts. I know the company folded in the mid 90s so would this be a problem for spares etc?

Any input gratefully received.

 

[pvb]

I can't find a thing on the internet about the Mascot yachts. I know the company folded in the mid 90s so would this be a problem for spares etc?

Welcome to the forums!

Spare parts generally are required for equipment, so it all depends on whether Volvo Penta, Selden, Jabsco, Lewmar, etc still have the spare parts you need. I think only Sirius (out of your list of alternatives) are still in business, and indeed the Sirius 36DS is no doubt the nicest of those you've listed.

 

[Concerto]

I still have a soft spot for the Moody Eclipse 43 as my late parents had one. Not the most brilliant sailing yacht with a relatively small rig which included a furling main. The forward cabin has a large toilet compartment, but the family toilet compartment is a lot smaller. The twin cabin has quite narrow berths. Galley was quite well equipped for the period. The main saloon was nice being able to see out but had limited headroom and not that easy to access. The internal helm was a good view point, but we very rarely used it. There was a big sail locker in the cockpit, even after adding a powerful generator. There were only 38 Eclipse 43's built, so you could possibly add the Moody Eclipse 38 to your list, but only 24 were built. All motor sailers were a lot more expensive to buy, hence the limited choice.
High Quality Sailing Yachts - Moody
High Quality Sailing Yachts - Moody

 

[Tranona]

This is a sort of holy grail question. Many people find the idea of a deck saloon attractive. However it really only starts to work when you get over 40' or so and the extra cost of building and equipping (deckhouse, two sets of controls etc) means they are more expensive and therefore sell in smaller numbers. There are of course exceptions and you have identified some, but few have sold in any volume meaning the choice is poor for the secondhand buyer. The best are Scandinavian because the format suits their conditions but few are under 40' and even fewer were sold in the UK. Nauticat has probably the best range, and there is always a good choice of 33 and 331 which were popular here, although these are more motor than sail. The more sailing models, 321, 35, 371, 385 etc are rare in the UK.

As suggested the Moody Eclipse 38 is a good bet if you can find one and it is also worth looking at the larger Southerlys such as the 115 although they do not have seating in the raised deckhouse. LM Vitesse 35s sometimes come up and a few were actually built here as Scanyachts.