DavidWilb
New member
Hope this works as I emerge from the anon users! Has anyone knowledge/experience of the Barbican 33 with lifting centreplate eg motion at sea, sailing to windward, stability etc. Thanks in anticipation
Barbican 33
- Thread starter DavidWilb
- Start date
Twister_Ken
Well-known member
How can I put this politely?
Robust, comfortable, you can park it on the beach, sails like a brick-built dunny.
Robust, comfortable, you can park it on the beach, sails like a brick-built dunny.
ashanta
New member
The hull is from Maurice Griffiths Atlantic Clipper and was developed by Mike Spry who I believe worked for Philips on the Dart were the Atlantic Clipper was built.
A colleague of mine owned the Barbican 33 and performed as the earlier post indicates. Solid and comfortable but not a great performer to wind.
Regards.
Peter.
A colleague of mine owned the Barbican 33 and performed as the earlier post indicates. Solid and comfortable but not a great performer to wind.
Regards.
Peter.
jamesjermain
Active member
I tested this design in difficult conditions out of Plymouth when it was new. She lacked power for her displacement and had a tendency to hobbyhorse and go nowhere to windward in a lumpy sea.
The accommodation was OK in a traditional way and reasonably well built.
The accommodation was OK in a traditional way and reasonably well built.
jerryat
Active member
I sailed one owned by a friend of mine in the Med. and concur with the others here. It was pretty awful in just about every respect I'm afraid. I won't say it was the worst boat I've 'sailed' in the last 38 years, but it comes very close. There are far better boats about for the same sort of money IMHO.
DavidWilb
New member
Thank you for the responses they are very helpful and will helpfully cause me to keep looking for something else and prevent me making an expensive mistake.
webcraft
Well-known member
Welcome aboard, and congratulations on getting a brilliant and helpful response to your first post.
(And no-one can accuse James of being non-commital in that review!)
- Nick
(And no-one can accuse James of being non-commital in that review!)
- Nick
andybussell
Member
Hello David, As a Barbican 33 owner I’ve watched the contributions coming in, initially with a smile, but became surprised at the later strong tone which I don’t believe does this boat justice. A fair and knowledgeable assessor of this design wouldn’t call the results of the thread “brilliant”. There are well-researched reports you could read and I list them at the end of this contribution,
I acquired my boat last July and am very happy with her. The 33 is no goer to windward but she is reasonably quick reaching and running, very seakindly with a comfortable motion in a sea and strongly built. I’ll just pick a quote from David Harding which encapsulates a fair view of the design: “For those … used to more performance-orientated designs, she takes some getting used to. But there’s little doubting her sea-keeping qualities and ability to carry on in the sort of conditions that would find most other boats wanting; her record of long-distance and trans-oceanic passages speaks for itself. As a comfortable, go-anywhere, shoal draft cruiser she would be extremely hard to beat”.
It’s worth mentioning that despite the damning with faint praise that came through in his most recent post, James Jermain offered the Barbican 33 as one of a number of others to consider as alternatives to the Rival 32, Contessa 32 and Nicholson 32 in his post which was timed 1820, date 16/05/01.
References
Bennett, J. 1990. “An easily handled cruising yacht of shallow draught”. Classic Boat 26, pages 77-80.
Desoutter, D. 1980. “Dream ship sailing”. Practical Boat Owner, 161, pages 51-53.
Harding, D. 1995. “Made to measure”. Yachts and equipment, Autumn/Winter edition, 1995, pages 69-71.
I acquired my boat last July and am very happy with her. The 33 is no goer to windward but she is reasonably quick reaching and running, very seakindly with a comfortable motion in a sea and strongly built. I’ll just pick a quote from David Harding which encapsulates a fair view of the design: “For those … used to more performance-orientated designs, she takes some getting used to. But there’s little doubting her sea-keeping qualities and ability to carry on in the sort of conditions that would find most other boats wanting; her record of long-distance and trans-oceanic passages speaks for itself. As a comfortable, go-anywhere, shoal draft cruiser she would be extremely hard to beat”.
It’s worth mentioning that despite the damning with faint praise that came through in his most recent post, James Jermain offered the Barbican 33 as one of a number of others to consider as alternatives to the Rival 32, Contessa 32 and Nicholson 32 in his post which was timed 1820, date 16/05/01.
References
Bennett, J. 1990. “An easily handled cruising yacht of shallow draught”. Classic Boat 26, pages 77-80.
Desoutter, D. 1980. “Dream ship sailing”. Practical Boat Owner, 161, pages 51-53.
Harding, D. 1995. “Made to measure”. Yachts and equipment, Autumn/Winter edition, 1995, pages 69-71.
webcraft
Well-known member
knowledgeable assessor of this design wouldn’t call the results of the thread “brilliant”.
Fair comment; however, I was assessing the level of apparently well-informed response, not the design - of which I know nothing, zilch, zero.
But . . . going with the majority on 'Ask The Audience' usually seems to be a sound move - although I admit not always - I would need more than one owner's reply (which is likely to be naturally biased no matter how well informed) before deciding the others were wrong.
Hopefully the references you gave will provide that backup information.
A good thread just got better . . .
- Nick
Fair comment; however, I was assessing the level of apparently well-informed response, not the design - of which I know nothing, zilch, zero.
But . . . going with the majority on 'Ask The Audience' usually seems to be a sound move - although I admit not always - I would need more than one owner's reply (which is likely to be naturally biased no matter how well informed) before deciding the others were wrong.
Hopefully the references you gave will provide that backup information.
A good thread just got better . . .
- Nick
Twister_Ken
Well-known member
Not dissing the Barbie, but you said "The 33 is no goer to windward but she is reasonably quick reaching and running,"
Difficult to find a boat which isn't an OK performer reaching and running, buit going uphill well is what marks a good sailing boat out from the crowd. Nothing is more miserable than a wet slog upwind when you're going nowhere very fast, and sliding off to leeward. Of course, if you've got a taxi engine you can turn on in that situation, windward performance doesn't really matter.
Difficult to find a boat which isn't an OK performer reaching and running, buit going uphill well is what marks a good sailing boat out from the crowd. Nothing is more miserable than a wet slog upwind when you're going nowhere very fast, and sliding off to leeward. Of course, if you've got a taxi engine you can turn on in that situation, windward performance doesn't really matter.
jmp
New member
Have read with interest the posts to date and have been interested in the prospect of aquiring one for some time.
I would be interested to hear from the better informed of suggestions as to which might be better boats,rather than just criticism.In this respect I am interested in a boat about the same size,capable of ocean crossing ,draught no more than 4ft at minimum for navigating shallows,and stable and kindly for a mature sailer!.
I would be interested to hear from the better informed of suggestions as to which might be better boats,rather than just criticism.In this respect I am interested in a boat about the same size,capable of ocean crossing ,draught no more than 4ft at minimum for navigating shallows,and stable and kindly for a mature sailer!.
Johntheyachty
Member
I have come across the posts re: the Barbican 33 rather late in the day, but I could not let the adverse comments go unchallenged.
Firstly, I wonder if some of the commentators actually know which boat they are talking about. On several occasions I have had people who ask me what sort of boat I have, mistakenly think I am talking about another 33 with a similar but slightly different name ( and definitely inferior performance). I won't name the make to avoid upsetting any owners!
To describe her as 'sailing like a brick dunny' is absolute garbage, and I wonder what actual experience of the type backs up that comment.
I have owned a Barbican 33 for 20 years out of some 50 years of sailing experience, mainly in similar size moderate displacement boats, and including a lot of racing in the North Sea.
My boat is a cutter rigged version, which makes for easy sail handling for just two of us. I have always found her to be close-winded, and in a full sail breeze she tacks through 90 degrees, is well balanced, and makes 5 to 6.5 kts close-hauled depending on sea conditions. Now that may equate to being 'no great goer', compared to modern boats, but I reckon it's pretty respectable for an old fashioned long keel design. Off the wind she is remarkably slippery, and overall she easily keeps up with similar size/displacement boats, plus some modern lightweights, although they will have the edge in light airs. Below the waterline she has a fine entry, and a sweet run aft, which gives her an easily driven hull, which is very noticeable in light airs. The slightest increase in wind speed brings an instant response. She is a very good sea-boat, with a lovely soft motion, tracks easily, and one thing you will not have is a wet flog to windward ( Twister Ken please note ! )
I have no experience of the sloop rigged version, other than sailing in company with one, when the performance seemed fine.
For cruising her shallow draft is a great advantage for going places deeper boats can't get to, and her relatively narrow beam is a boon when trying to find a slot in a busy French marina!
On the domestic front she has superb stowage, both in the cockpit, and down below - far better than any similar size boat we looked at. Her traditional accomodation is comfortable, and we have no problems living aboard for 3-4 months each year
It is perhaps worth noting that many Barbican 33's stay in the same ownership for many years - a fact that speaks volumes for the class.
None of this is of use to David of course, but I hope that anyone else looking for a good, comfortable, go anywhere boat with a bit of character, and which draws many complimentary comments, will find it useful.
Firstly, I wonder if some of the commentators actually know which boat they are talking about. On several occasions I have had people who ask me what sort of boat I have, mistakenly think I am talking about another 33 with a similar but slightly different name ( and definitely inferior performance). I won't name the make to avoid upsetting any owners!
To describe her as 'sailing like a brick dunny' is absolute garbage, and I wonder what actual experience of the type backs up that comment.
I have owned a Barbican 33 for 20 years out of some 50 years of sailing experience, mainly in similar size moderate displacement boats, and including a lot of racing in the North Sea.
My boat is a cutter rigged version, which makes for easy sail handling for just two of us. I have always found her to be close-winded, and in a full sail breeze she tacks through 90 degrees, is well balanced, and makes 5 to 6.5 kts close-hauled depending on sea conditions. Now that may equate to being 'no great goer', compared to modern boats, but I reckon it's pretty respectable for an old fashioned long keel design. Off the wind she is remarkably slippery, and overall she easily keeps up with similar size/displacement boats, plus some modern lightweights, although they will have the edge in light airs. Below the waterline she has a fine entry, and a sweet run aft, which gives her an easily driven hull, which is very noticeable in light airs. The slightest increase in wind speed brings an instant response. She is a very good sea-boat, with a lovely soft motion, tracks easily, and one thing you will not have is a wet flog to windward ( Twister Ken please note ! )
I have no experience of the sloop rigged version, other than sailing in company with one, when the performance seemed fine.
For cruising her shallow draft is a great advantage for going places deeper boats can't get to, and her relatively narrow beam is a boon when trying to find a slot in a busy French marina!
On the domestic front she has superb stowage, both in the cockpit, and down below - far better than any similar size boat we looked at. Her traditional accomodation is comfortable, and we have no problems living aboard for 3-4 months each year
It is perhaps worth noting that many Barbican 33's stay in the same ownership for many years - a fact that speaks volumes for the class.
None of this is of use to David of course, but I hope that anyone else looking for a good, comfortable, go anywhere boat with a bit of character, and which draws many complimentary comments, will find it useful.
KerryB
New member
Very late entry to this discussion, but I have to second everything said by @Johntheyachty above.
In the summer of 2018, we were considering buying a Barbican 33. This thread could easily have put us off the boat completely, and it certainly caused us some unease. Luckily we preferred to attach more importance to the opinions of people who had known the boat really well for years, and we went ahead and bought her. I'm sickened to think how much we would have missed out on if we'd believed the naysayers above.
We haven't regretted buying this boat for one moment. We have owned and/or sailed many different types and keel configurations of yacht over the decades, and the Barbican 33 stands up really well in comparison to all of them. Of course she doesn't point quite as high as some modern boats, but we regularly sail at 30 degrees and tack through 90. We expected very poor light air performance, and she is perhaps a little slow to get going with her relatively heavy displacement, but once on the move she slides through the water very easily. Her hull shape makes for comfortable sailing in big seas and we've found her to be a dry boat, even when her crew get the passage planning wrong and end up with wind over tide in the North Channel. Again. No slamming, and she steers herself under sail as long as her crew haven't also mucked up the sail trim.
Her accommodation compares favourably with other yachts of her length and we are planning to live onboard her in the near future, sailing her to Rouen from Northern Ireland, then taking her down through the French canals (try doing that in a deep fin Keeler!), and out to the Eastern Med to stay for a while. We've even added a keel-cooled fridge in anticipation of warmer climes.
Ours is a 1984 boat with the original long keel and centreboard configuration. I'm not sure how much difference the centreboard makes to her sailing abilities, but I like to think it gives us a little more manoeuvrability in marinas. Either way, it's easy enough to raise and lower, and the shoal draught (1.2m) it gives us is a boon. Our last boat was a Southerly that would float on a wet lawn! She has only had two owners from new, each of whom held onto her for more than 15 years, and both owners only sold her because they were retiring from sailing completely due to age/injury. She's not a boat you'd willingly part with once you have her.
I think that if you want to race your boat and win big, shiny trophies, walk away from the Barbican 33. If you're looking for a beautifully designed, comfortable, safe, sea kindly yacht that will take you efficiently pretty much wherever you want to go, then take a second look at the Barbican 33.
In the summer of 2018, we were considering buying a Barbican 33. This thread could easily have put us off the boat completely, and it certainly caused us some unease. Luckily we preferred to attach more importance to the opinions of people who had known the boat really well for years, and we went ahead and bought her. I'm sickened to think how much we would have missed out on if we'd believed the naysayers above.
We haven't regretted buying this boat for one moment. We have owned and/or sailed many different types and keel configurations of yacht over the decades, and the Barbican 33 stands up really well in comparison to all of them. Of course she doesn't point quite as high as some modern boats, but we regularly sail at 30 degrees and tack through 90. We expected very poor light air performance, and she is perhaps a little slow to get going with her relatively heavy displacement, but once on the move she slides through the water very easily. Her hull shape makes for comfortable sailing in big seas and we've found her to be a dry boat, even when her crew get the passage planning wrong and end up with wind over tide in the North Channel. Again. No slamming, and she steers herself under sail as long as her crew haven't also mucked up the sail trim.
Her accommodation compares favourably with other yachts of her length and we are planning to live onboard her in the near future, sailing her to Rouen from Northern Ireland, then taking her down through the French canals (try doing that in a deep fin Keeler!), and out to the Eastern Med to stay for a while. We've even added a keel-cooled fridge in anticipation of warmer climes.
Ours is a 1984 boat with the original long keel and centreboard configuration. I'm not sure how much difference the centreboard makes to her sailing abilities, but I like to think it gives us a little more manoeuvrability in marinas. Either way, it's easy enough to raise and lower, and the shoal draught (1.2m) it gives us is a boon. Our last boat was a Southerly that would float on a wet lawn! She has only had two owners from new, each of whom held onto her for more than 15 years, and both owners only sold her because they were retiring from sailing completely due to age/injury. She's not a boat you'd willingly part with once you have her.
I think that if you want to race your boat and win big, shiny trophies, walk away from the Barbican 33. If you're looking for a beautifully designed, comfortable, safe, sea kindly yacht that will take you efficiently pretty much wherever you want to go, then take a second look at the Barbican 33.
Turn right keep going
New member
Hi Guys,
I have my first 33 and have a question, has anyone installed a traveler at the companionway to move the main sail block forward? I am considering installing a track, any feedback welcome.
Cheers
M
I have my first 33 and have a question, has anyone installed a traveler at the companionway to move the main sail block forward? I am considering installing a track, any feedback welcome.
Cheers
M
Crowblack
Active member
Bit more than 4ft draft but nicely made with good accomm, decent stability and some have completed decent passages, not particularly cheap though.
Henrietta - Ancasta
Supine Being
Well-known member
I see that a Barbican 33 has been entered into the Golden Globe by Arnaud Gaist. It'll be interesting to see how it does.
Arnaud Gaist
Arnaud Gaist
LadyInBed
Well-known member
Yes - Start a new thread rather than resurrect one from the turn of the Century! ?
Tranona
Well-known member
Welcome.
They vary according to who fitted them out and whether they had wheel or tiller steering. This one 1991 Barbican 33 MK 11 Bangor, Gwynedd, United Kingdom - Dickies Marine Services ha tiller steering and a traveller across the bridgedeck. Wheel steering often had the mainsheet to a fixed point in front of the wheel but others had a bridgedeck traveller
Steve l
New member
Does anyone know the air draft of a Barbican 33?
Thanks
Thanks
