Arvor 18/20

[Guest]

Anybody use or know anything about these ? I believe Mariner bought them out and are making them in UK. They come with Nanni 50hp diesel inboard. They 'look' a much nicer boat than their equivalent Warrior or Orkney for equal or even less money. Any info. gratefully received......Simon.

 

[Guest]

It's kinda busy here tonight. Must be the 'sunny' weather.

Isn't this one of these peche-promenade things? Nanni diesel ok on my boat ( 80hp) spares ok, nice shade of blue etc. Lots of peche-proms to choose from though. 50Hp on a shaft will be good for about 10-12 knots.

First question: Is this enough?

Sue

 

[Guest]

Thanks for your reply Sue...what do you mean by peche promenade ? I presume it's a 'class'..... I'm looking at getting something along the lines of the Orkenay 19+/Warrior 165/ and came across the Arvor 18 while looking.Do you know of any sites that have reviews etc... archives of magazine reviews etc.....Thanks again...Simon.

 

[Guest]

Most of the Arvors give around 10 knots... so remember if you want to fish 10 miles off, and have a 8 knot current it'll take you 5 hrs to get there - and that is FLAT OUT!

If this is enough fair enough - personally I would like to get there in a sensible time and enjoy my day even if it does cost more in fuel.

 

[Guest]

Simon

Peche-promenade is Frog for fish-cruiser. Generally a day-boat come weekender, with an enclosed wheelhouse, and walk-round decks in all sizes from about 17 foot up to 30 foot. Outboard engined boats generally have planing hulls ( 20 knots plus) inboard engined boats have say between 50- 88 hp inboard diesel, often a Nanni, driving a big prop through a shaft and skeg, with a semi-displacement hull which lifts the bow at around 10 knots.

I went through the same hoop last year, and spent the day with Orkney boats. I then looked at Warriors, Benetau Antares, Phaeton, etc. There's a lot to choose from. Orkneys were on the short list, but the only diesel option then was a Mercruiser Dtronic and out drive leg which pushed the costs up to about 30K. An outboard 21 footer came out at 25K, with plenty of options installed.

The advantages of peche-proms are ( generally):

Enclosed wheelhouse for the English Summer,

Walk around side decks and guard rails for either fishing, sunbathing or retrieving lost spouses

Reasonably large cockpits and deck areas for fishing etc.

Room for a chemical loo in the cabin and a small galley area - often in the wheelhouse.

Disadvantages are: not much room in the cabin - but a 21 footer is big enough for two adults overnight - and 'workboat' looks which do not suit everyone. Also the semi-displacement boats run at a high trim angle which can strew the contents of the wheelhouse around, but they do plough through the rough stuff, given enough throttle. Consequently it's a very wet ride into a tide, but exhilerating to see the spray going completely over the boat. Semi-displacment hulls seem more stable in a swell, or at rest for fishing, photography etc.

The Warrior boats (there's one parked next to me at the Marina) have fast planing hulls, and outboards, the owner claims 30 knots from a 75hp Suzuki, although he grumbles about fuel costs of sixty quid per day. The Orkneys come in Day Angler flavours, with either outboards or petrol or diesel stern drives and the Orkadian which is more of cruiser based semi-displacement boat. Neat boat, but the wheel house wasn't fully enclosed. There are a lot of outboard engined Day Anglers around on the secondhand market, by the way.

I guess the questions you have to answer are :

Will your boat live on a trailer, or in marina?

The diesel inboard peche proms are quite 'tall' on a trailer due to the prop and skeg arrangement. An outboard engined boat may be easier to manage overall if you intend to trail. My MF635 weighs nearly 2 tonnes, all up without the trailer.

Is speed an issue? My boat does 12 knots with an 88 hp diesel. She'll do that through almost anything up to a Force 5 and is rated for wave heights of two metres, which she's coped with admirably. But 12 knots can leave you panting for more speed!

In planing hulls rough seas can force the helmsman to slow down to avoid slamming, at which point fuel consumption rockets and speeds come down to displacement or semi- displacment speeds of around 12-15 knots. After twenty years with planing hulls I opted for semi-displacement for the Solent, - but I still miss the speed.

Finally, there's a lot of choice. I bought a Jeanneau because the standard of finish, the internal mouldings were all pretty good and showed a lot of development money behind them. I got a boat show demonstrator with lots of options and two grand off the price. I chose a diesel inboard for fuel economy ( 1.3 litres per nautical mile at 12 knots) , and I wanted a fully enclosed wheelhouse, with those charming tinted patio doors to keep the weather out.

My boat lives on a marina berth so I didn't need a trail boat. If I did I would have bought an outboard Day Angler or one of the O/B Jeanneaus. Or maybe a cuddy cabin sportsboat like a Sessa.

If you think what you want to do with the boat you'll answer your own questions. For anything more than weekend use an enclosed wheelhouse (and heating) sure takes some beating if you boat in the UK. But if you get this, you'll be cheesed off when you see fly-bridge cruisers going past on a hot day!

My day range on the MF635 is about 80 miles maximum, before refuelling. That's a ten hour day on board - sufficient to get me the other week from Eastbourne to Cowes, via Portsmouth. Fuel costs for that day were 32 quid.

I would have dearly liked 20 knots performance, but fuel costs would have gone right up.

In summary - the diesel peche proms are ideal estuary/ tidal coastal day boats, perfect for the Solent or short hops. A planing boat might get you further offshore in the same time, but hey man, you also have to get back!.

Your pays your money, and you takes your choice.

See

www.jeanneau.fr

for a big range of day/boats weekenders. Distributed by Sea Ventures in Lymington.

Orkney boats are distributed by

www.caleymarina.co.uk

or contact Orkeny direct on 01243 551 456

Ocqueteau are on 01245 324241.

Warrier : 01257 277 444

Beneteau Dickies of Bangor: 01758 701 828

Benetau, Phaeton, Starfisher. Ocquetau, Dell Quay Arvor etc and many others all make peche-proms.

Jeanneau make the prettiest!.

Happy hunting!

Sue