Anybody had an Antares 9?

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RichieB

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Hi all
Finally sold my boat(sun odyssey 32) and about to make the change to power!
Am viewing an Antares 9 (single shaft\bow thruster)over weekend and wondered if anyone had any views\advice on how they handle, particularly close-quarters, astern etc. (Obviously there's going to be a steep learning curve for me whatever I decide to move to after 20 years in sailing boats- all part of the fun!)
I'm also looking at twin outdrive sports cruisers up to 10 metres - have seen a very nice 310 ambassador.
Look forward to some help, thanks.
 
RichieB said:
Hi all
Finally sold my boat(sun odyssey 32) and about to make the change to power!
Am viewing an Antares 9 (single shaft\bow thruster)over weekend and wondered if anyone had any views\advice on how they handle, particularly close-quarters, astern etc. (Obviously there's going to be a steep learning curve for me whatever I decide to move to after 20 years in sailing boats- all part of the fun!)
I'm also looking at twin outdrive sports cruisers up to 10 metres - have seen a very nice 310 ambassador.
Look forward to some help, thanks.
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Philiz of this Parish has one
But He is selling and moving to sail:D
You Guys should get together me thinks!!!
Great motor boats imho
Nice transition from a raggie whatsit, more so than a sports boat
Roof, shaft and diesel, ideal for the uk climate and choppy seas
Handling is predictable, prop walk will need to be understood and mastered at close quarters but it's just practice.
Single engine for economy and simplicity
Oh and Phil's has got a bowthruster too an a fly bridge;)
 
We've had ours for 2 years, hard to fault to be honest. As Kwackers says, use of propwalk and prop wash is the key when manouvering at close quarters as you get no steerage until you have quite a bit of way on (something you don't want in that situation). But they are quite predictable once you get the hang of it. There's quite a bit of windage but you get used to that too. All in all they're a very good sea boat IMHO but personally I wouldn't have one without a bowthruster.

Happy hunting, if you fancy a run up to Anglesey you're welcome to a run out on ours which, as has been said, is for sale at a very competitive price ;)

PM me if you would like any details.
 
Thanks chaps - most helpful.
The one I'm viewing has a bowthruster and seems well maintained etc. I'll let you know how it goes.
Thanks for the offer of a trip out if I get up to Anglesey, (and good luck with your sale)
 
Philiz said:
Good job, I can reach you, Goochies too far away :)
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Wouldn't have said it if i were closer :)

On a serious note, when we bought the MF805 i wished it had a bow thruster. Soon got used to it without and never think of it now.

Oh, we're thinking of moving to sail too, very seriously. Looking into motor sailers and pilothouse yachts. Don't mind some cheap wind power, still like to be in the warm when needs be :)
 
Philiz said:
We've had ours for 2 years, hard to fault to be honest. As Kwackers says, use of propwalk and prop wash is the key when manouvering at close quarters as you get no steerage until you have quite a bit of way on (something you don't want in that situation). But they are quite predictable once you get the hang of it. There's quite a bit of windage but you get used to that too. All in all they're a very good sea boat IMHO but personally I wouldn't have one without a bowthruster.

Happy hunting, if you fancy a run up to Anglesey you're welcome to a run out on ours which, as has been said, is for sale at a very competitive price ;)

PM me if you would like any details.
Click to expand...

Why don't you include a link to your boat ad in your signature?
 
RichieB said:
Hi all
Finally sold my boat(sun odyssey 32) and about to make the change to power!
Am viewing an Antares 9 (single shaft\bow thruster)over weekend and wondered if anyone had any views\advice on how they handle, particularly close-quarters, astern etc. (Obviously there's going to be a steep learning curve for me whatever I decide to move to after 20 years in sailing boats- all part of the fun!)
I'm also looking at twin outdrive sports cruisers up to 10 metres - have seen a very nice 310 ambassador.
Look forward to some help, thanks.
Click to expand...

We bought an Antares series 9 new in 2003 and kept it for about four years. It was a fantastic boat. We had little experience beforehand and did our day skipper practical on board which was really good experience. I accept what everyone says about single engine handling with propwalk etc but we didnt find it a problem. Just needed a bit of practice. As we needed a bit of experience we had our instructor spend a weekend in Brighton with us before the week of dayskipper and we spent a few days on Marina handling. Up and down, backwards and forwards, turning on the spot just using the engine (not bowthruster which we did have!), all that stuff. It became fairly straightforward. Windage could be an issue but again you just need to be aware of the conditions before you start mooring or whatever. It did have a big and effective rudder so by using a good amount of rudder and a touch of drive it was surprising how it could be moved around. Just need to move the helm around a lot with just a hint of power.
Only real problem we had was a head gasket. We had the KAD43 and eventually we got Volvo to admit there was a problem on some of those engines. They called it a "bleeding" head gasket, as in water bleeding out not as a derogatory term. Doesnt really matter as they didnt pay anything towards it!!! Thanks VP. The area to study carefully is the forward starboard corner of the head and you look for a stain on the engine block. It really is only a tiny weep of water and ours only happened at full load. No water in the oil or oil in the water just a tiny external leak. Still costs a bit to put a new head gasket on and those six cylinder heads are big and heavy!
We had an injector pipe fail at 60 hours which dumped a few gallons of diesel in the engine room. Not the end of the world but could have been. We stopped in Osbourne bay and smelt diesel. Could'nt smell it driving from the small flybridge with the wind in the hair chugging along and not going so fast didnt even notice the drop in power. Opened the engine room hatch to a fog of atomised diesel, it was dripping of everthing, including the alternator!! Lucky there was no stray sparks!!
We had no other problems with the boat.
It was a good sea boat for the size and we travelled between Brighton and the Solent many times, occassionaly in more weather than we would really choose. It felt very safe and secure.
You will notice they seem to sit a bit bows down. I guess the original design never anticipated the weight of both bow thruster and anchor windlass sitting in the bows. This was not a problem except draining water from the shower tray etc. We offset it a little by carrying a spare anchor chain right in the stern.
Really good boat. We only sold when an opportunity came up on a 9.80.
 
PaulGooch said:
Oh, we're thinking of moving to sail too, very seriously. Looking into motor sailers and pilothouse yachts. Don't mind some cheap wind power, still like to be in the warm when needs be :)
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Really.... limited to 6 knots and more usually 3 or 4... and 70-80% of time under power anyway...

OKOK... I am leaving!
 
We had one delivered new in Feb 2006, doesn’t seem so long ago now but it’s her 6th anniversary this month, apart from service and loads of added goodies there have been no issues, none, not any. As for handling and sea keeping, all good except a very wet boat in the snot and I’m finally getting around to fitting pantographs as the wipers don’t clear the screen in the right places for my line of sight unless running bow high, sits well at anchor and really good ditch crawler due to the prop & rudder protection which with legs also allows you to dry out. Handling astern with a bow thruster is a piece of wee wee, even without it's as good as any and better than most singles I've tried, I moor in a very tight spot indeed and never have a problem. A great boat for ease of access to all systems for maintenance and most stuff seems over engineered with telegraph pole thick battery cabling and the like, best motor (We tried both before ordering) is the D4 but that is just my opinion, others I know disagree. We had the whole interior floored with Tek Deck as the carpet is a bit poor. All in all a great little boat to have lived with and incredibly economical but getting a bit small for us now.
 
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David2452 said:
We had one delivered new in Feb 2006, doesn’t seem so long ago now but it’s her 6th anniversary this month, apart from service and loads of added goodies there have been no issues, none, not any. As for handling and sea keeping, all good except a very wet boat in the snot and I’m finally getting around to fitting pantographs as the wipers don’t clear the screen in the right places for my line of sight unless running bow high, sits well at anchor and really good ditch crawler due to the prop & rudder protection which with legs also allows you to dry out. Handling astern with a bow thruster is a piece of wee wee, even without it's as good as any and better than most singles I've tried, I moor in a very tight spot indeed and never have a problem. A great boat for ease of access to all systems for maintenance and most stuff seems over engineered with telegraph pole thick battery cabling and the like, best motor (We tried both before ordering) is the D4 but that is just my opinion, others I know disagree. We had the whole interior floored with Tek Deck as the carpet is a bit poor. All in all a great little boat to have lived with and incredibly economical but getting a bit small for us now.
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totally agree had ours 4years from new handles the rough stuff well piece of cake to park forwards or backwards sips the fuel too
 
Thanks for the feedback everyone.
Went to see the boat this pm. Really liked the overall feel - deck access, view from flybridge, fit-out in wheelhouse and below-deck etc. Engine looked immaculate and boat generally well-cared for. (you can tell a lot about a boat from the state of the bilges in my view!) Definitely felt like the right boat for first move to power - feel comfortable with single engine and shaft-drive - so will be making an offer.
 
RichieB said:
Thanks for the feedback everyone.
Went to see the boat this pm. Really liked the overall feel - deck access, view from flybridge, fit-out in wheelhouse and below-deck etc. Engine looked immaculate and boat generally well-cared for. (you can tell a lot about a boat from the state of the bilges in my view!) Definitely felt like the right boat for first move to power - feel comfortable with single engine and shaft-drive - so will be making an offer.
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good luck you wont be disapointed.
 
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