Astondoa opinions

[MapisM]

72 feet seams as a great size for a family motor boat

It seems so because it is, as I'm sure also BartW of this parish with his Canados can confirm.
If you do need 4 cabins + crew, that's just the ticket, and the SL62 doesn't cut the mustard in this respect.
The only decent 4 cabins boat in the SL62 size I can think of was her main competitor back in the days, the VZ18.
Which is another boat I'd prefer to any Astondoa hands down.

Then again, I agree that conditions are paramount, in any 20+ yo boat.
Lazy and/or penny pincher owners can wreck even the best built boats PDQ!

 

[red124]

It seems so because it is, as I'm sure also BartW of this parish with his Canados can confirm.
If you do need 4 cabins + crew, that's just the ticket, and the SL62 doesn't cut the mustard in this respect.
The only decent 4 cabins boat in the SL62 size I can think of was her main competitor back in the days, the VZ18.
Which is another boat I'd prefer to any Astondoa hands down.

Then again, I agree that conditions are paramount, in any 20+ yo boat.
Lazy and/or penny pincher owners can wreck even the best built boats PDQ!

Thanks for your answer. The Astondoa has conquered me, next Monday I will be taking on my sea trial: it will be the definitive test.
I really liked the boat....
My broker also showed some 82 feet boats, and the size leap seams huge...

 

[Seastoke]

Thanks for your answer. The Astondoa has conquered me, next Monday I will be taking on my sea trial: it will be the definitive test.
I really liked the boat....
My broker also showed some 82 feet boats, and the size leap seams huge...

Good luck and we expect plenty photos.

 

[Sticky Fingers]

Be great to see some pictures after your trial! Love a boat buying thread.

 

[BartW]

Thanks for your answer. The Astondoa has conquered me, next Monday I will be taking on my sea trial: it will be the definitive test.
I really liked the boat....
My broker also showed some 82 feet boats, and the size leap seams huge...

Yes, I can confirm that 72ft is a good size, for that number of guests, and that kind of useage, we own a 70..75ft Canados now soon starting the 13th season, and still love the boat and its size, a few years ago I've looked at SL82, but that didn't give any substantial benifit, Zero speed fins, and big hilo platform are indispensible features for us, we carry a Spark, a superjet and 4.3m tender onboard. At the time I looked at Astondoa, and the one you have found for shure is a nice boat ! but I fell in love with Italian models, and if I would ever change again, it would be for a SL,

 

[red124]

Yes, I can confirm that 72ft is a good size, for that number of guests, and that kind of useage, we own a 70..75ft Canados now soon starting the 13th season, and still love the boat and its size, a few years ago I've looked at SL82, but that didn't give any substantial benifit, Zero speed fins, and big hilo platform are indispensible features for us, we carry a Spark, a superjet and 4.3m tender onboard. At the time I looked at Astondoa, and the one you have found for shure is a nice boat ! but I fell in love with Italian models, and if I would ever change again, it would be for a SL,

Thank you for your answer. Wanted to ask how do you feel between about gyro stabilization?
The only real benefit I find on the next size up (80-86 feet) is that most come equipped with fins.

By the way, sea trial went smooth: engines run beautifully, balance seams perfect, thruster worked great….
Went up to top speed (around 31 knots), then cruised at around 18 knots. The boat seams really well built, at the end of the trial the sea was a little rough and went to the lower deck and all doors still worked so the flex is not a problem here (I had a terrible experience with Princess in this aspect).

I’m still looking around, I’ve also visited a sl88 (witch is well above the size of what I want), a Fairline Squadron 68 and a Manhattan 70.
I only liked the Sl88, but condition seamed sketchy…

 

[BartW]

Thank you for your answer. Wanted to ask how do you feel between about gyro stabilization?
The only real benefit I find on the next size up (80-86 feet) is that most come equipped with fins.

tbh I'm a big fan of fins, I have retrofit CMC electric fins (zero speed) and very pleased with that,
I have zero experience with Gyro, but what I hear from boating friends, is that they only work at anker (thats basic fysics)

we navigate a lot at 10..11kn, and at that speed, the fins have to work hard ! but we can cope with the rough stuff !
we try to avoid bad sea state, but thats not alway's possible
my family especially the wife, are used / adicted to the behaviour of the boat with fins !

did you do a search for SL82 ? or SL72? none with fins I guess,
SL fits CMC fins now as standard, so the know how to fit / retrofit them is around !
this upgrade is money well spend imo.

 

[jfm]

Thank you for your answer. Wanted to ask how do you feel between about gyro stabilization?
The only real benefit I find on the next size up (80-86 feet) is that most come equipped with fins.

By the way, sea trial went smooth: engines run beautifully, balance seams perfect, thruster worked great….
Went up to top speed (around 31 knots), then cruised at around 18 knots. The boat seams really well built, at the end of the trial the sea was a little rough and went to the lower deck and all doors still worked so the flex is not a problem here (I had a terrible experience with Princess in this aspect).

I’m still looking around, I’ve also visited a sl88 (witch is well above the size of what I want), a Fairline Squadron 68 and a Manhattan 70.
I only liked the Sl88, but condition seamed sketchy…

I agree with Bart. At this size of boat, fins are much better. Gyros are good at anchor, but quickly become useless underway.

 

[red124]

tbh I'm a big fan of fins, I have retrofit CMC electric fins (zero speed) and very pleased with that,
I have zero experience with Gyro, but what I hear from boating friends, is that they only work at anker (thats basic fysics)

we navigate a lot at 10..11kn, and at that speed, the fins have to work hard ! but we can cope with the rough stuff !
we try to avoid bad sea state, but thats not alway's possible
my family especially the wife, are used / adicted to the behaviour of the boat with fins !

did you do a search for SL82 ? or SL72? none with fins I guess,
SL fits CMC fins now as standard, so the know how to fit / retrofit them is around !
this upgrade is money well spend imo.

I haven´t found any boat below 82 feet with fins within my budget.... I´m not willing to get into a retrofit process with this upcoming boat, I just want to try out how living onboard is during two seasons or so, later on I will be getting into a new build.

I agree with Bart. At this size of boat, fins are much better. Gyros are good at anchor, but quickly become useless underway.

How important do you find stabilization underway?
I´ve never had stabs in any of my boats, so new territory to me.

 

[jfm]

I haven´t found any boat below 82 feet with fins within my budget.... I´m not willing to get into a retrofit process with this upcoming boat, I just want to try out how living onboard is during two seasons or so, later on I will be getting into a new build.

How important do you find stabilization underway?
I´ve never had stabs in any of my boats, so new territory to me.

VERY important. Game changing. It makes you try to cruise in the 240 degrees where waves are on your stern, quarter or not too far ahead of your beam, because no stabilisers can cure a head sea, but within that small limitation fin stabilisers (not gyros) are amazing. The boat simply never rolls at all, and that is hugely important for comfort, guest seasickness, cooking, etc.

Don't think retrofitting fins is too hard. My brother and I have done it on two boats with hydraulics; BartW has done it with electrics. It is possible to do. However, for 2 seasons I get your point of course.

Once you have had fins, you will never not have them ever again.

 

[red124]

VERY important. Game changing. It makes you try to cruise in the 240 degrees where waves are on your stern, quarter or not too far ahead of your beam, because no stabilisers can cure a head sea, but within that small limitation fin stabilisers (not gyros) are amazing. The boat simply never rolls at all, and that is hugely important for comfort, guest seasickness, cooking, etc.

Don't think retrofitting fins is too hard. My brother and I have done it on two boats with hydraulics; BartW has done it with electrics. It is possible to do. However, for 2 seasons I get your point of course.

Once you have had fins, you will never not have them ever again.

Will defetinelly get them on my upcoming new build. I just want to check this size is suitable for us.
I´m not considering any kind of retrofit.... I´m not keeping it long enough

 

[red124]

Dear @jfm :
In recent times, I have noticed a trend where new boats of considerable size, up to 82 feet, are being equipped with only a single anchor instead of the traditional two-anchor setup. This departure from the norm has piqued my curiosity, and I am keen to understand the rationale behind this decision. Could you please shed some light on why new production boats are increasingly adopting a single-anchor setup?
Do you know if SanLorenzo would allow modification to the SL78 for a dual-anchor configuration?

The AS72 has twin anchor set-up, and I feel like this is important

 

[MapisM]

The AS72 has twin anchor set-up, and I feel like this is important

For peace of mind it is, but not so much in practice.
I owned a boat with the very same pocket anchors arrangement as the AS72 for 17 years, and I only used both anchors once, mostly for the sake of giving it a try than anything else.
Besides, beware: I appreciate you may like the safety feeling that twin anchors give you, even if you'll use them 0.01% of the times - if that.
BUT, with a single winch/twin gipsy setup like the one that IIRC is fitted on the AS72 (and I also used to have on my boat), you will dislike the anchor handling 100% of the time, also when using a single anchor.
In fact, fiddling with two interconnected brakes and clutches is a proper PITA, and if by chance you are used to send your wife to the bow to handle the anchor, she'll hate you.
Eventually, I managed that fairly well, also because I'm used to leave my wife and the helm and go to the bow myself, but the new owner of my boat rates that arrangement as the most annoying boat feature.
For a proper twin anchors ground tackle, two separate winches are even more crucial than the two anchors as such, and it's no coincidence that this is the route SL take on their twin anchors boats.

 

[jfm]

I don't feel twin anchors set up is important. The only benefit is that if you lose an anchor on rocks, and dump the chain, you can still continue your holiday. But that has never happened to me in 15+ years of med boating. I have got an anchor stuck, but the €€€ cost of s/s anchor and s/s chain (essential, in my view) is so high that I'm always strongly incentivised to dive and unstick the anchor

You might think dual anchors and dual winches guards against a winch failure, but i think that's a very rare event.

I expect never to use both anchors together on the new sanlorenzo. It is in my view a dumb decision to put 2 anchors down when you're expecting a storm. In a storm, it is all about getting unanchored, not staying anchored. Eg if another boat upwind drags, or if you decide to move and seek shelter. The very last thing you want in a stormy anchor recovery is two of them tangling, which is a quite plausible occurrence. One anchor never gets tangled with its sister.

The one exception is stern-to berthing in a harbour with no groundlines when I'm expecting headwind or cross wind. Then two anchors might help. Pretty rare to find such berths these days in the western med though - the only one I regularly use is Port Tino Rossi in Ajaccio, Corse.

Extra capstans on the foredeck like below are imho really useful.

 

[MapisM]

Extra capstans on the foredeck like below are imho really useful.

Indeed, but that's just the icing on the cake, so to speak.

I googled for a pic of the AS72 bow, just to be sure that its arrangement is the one I had in mind - which it is, as per pic below.
Now, extra capstans aside, the difference in normal anchor operation between your boat and any other with single winch/twin anchors like the AS72 is as follows.
All you have to do for dropping one anchor on your SL is release the safety lock and press the down button on whatever side you fancy using - job done.
With the single winch arrangement below, that I know all too well, you must:
1) on the side you are NOT going to use, check that the brake is tightened and release the clutch;
2) on the side you want to use, do the opposite (in reverse order);
3) press the down button.
And when weighing the anchor, on top of tightening the brake when you are done, you must remember to re-tighten also the clutch on the other side.

No big deal, in principle - and I appreciate it can sound relatively simple on paper - but don't ask me how I know that it can and does get confusing!
There are several things I'm missing of my old lady, including her full timber construction, at least in some ways (not maintenance!).
Her single winch with twin anchors just ain't one of them.

 

[jfm]

Urgh! That's not a set up I would choose.

If both anchors are down, you can't weigh them simultaneously but with a bit of on/offing (where helpful) done separately. It's both winding in, or neither winding in. I would hate that

 

[red124]

Urgh! That's not a set up I would choose.

If both anchors are down, you can't weigh them simultaneously but with a bit of on/offing (where helpful) done separately. It's both winding in, or neither winding in. I would hate that

Is this set up an easy to upgrade system?
I feel like issues come when wanting to use both anchers

 

[jfm]

Can be upgraded to two separate windlasses, but that'a a difficult upgrade. Possible, but difficult.

 

[red124]

Can be upgraded to two separate windlasses, but that'a a difficult upgrade. Possible, but difficult.

Looks like it will have to wait for the new build

 

[benjenbav]

Indeed, but that's just the icing on the cake, so to speak.

I googled for a pic of the AS72 bow, just to be sure that its arrangement is the one I had in mind - which it is, as per pic below.
Now, extra capstans aside, the difference in normal anchor operation between your boat and any other with single winch/twin anchors like the AS72 is as follows.
All you have to do for dropping one anchor on your SL is release the safety lock and press the down button on whatever side you fancy using - job done.
With the single winch arrangement below, that I know all too well, you must:
1) on the side you are NOT going to use, check that the brake is tightened and release the clutch;
2) on the side you want to use, do the opposite (in reverse order);
3) press the down button.
And when weighing the anchor, on top of tightening the brake when you are done, you must remember to re-tighten also the clutch on the other side.

No big deal, in principle - and I appreciate it can sound relatively simple on paper - but don't ask me how I know that it can and does get confusing!
There are several things I'm missing of my old lady, including her full timber construction, at least in some ways (not maintenance!).
Her single winch with twin anchors just ain't one of them.
View attachment 175692

Is it possible to lock one side off permanently and just use the other anchor all the time with this arrangement?