Bigger boat - Hanse, X-332, what else?

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brownsox

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We have a (lovely) 28ft Trapper 500 now in Corsica. We're in our 60's and spend 4 months aboard every year. We're dinghy sailors.
We'd now like a slightly bigger and newer boat. 32-35ft. Criteria: looks good and sails well. Tiller steering, holding tank, 2 private double cabins, not teak decks. And I do like the idea of a cockpit shower/ easy access to swimming and dinghy, so probably a small sugar scoop. We looked at the Hanse 341 (there's one in a good location for us, with a bimini already) but we don't like the idea of the self tacker or the mainsheet traveller on the cabin roof. Any comments?
So the X-332 is current favourite, but I (SWMBO) am a bit concerned that it may be TOO frisky for us. Cap'n thinks not. We avoid bad weather and long passages mostly but weather gets up quickly in the Med. We know X332s are raced a lot - how comfortable are they for cruising 2 handed, by wrinklies?
 
I'd add the Elan 333, Dufour 34, And any Beneteau First that fists your price bracket!

With the Elan probably the fastest, the X with the "Kudos" and the Dufour 34 probably the most comfortable, although not available with tiller steering. (Think the Elan was, though most examples will have a wheel)


Can't really comment on the suitably of this type of boat for two handed cruising by wrinklies, as I am pleasingly wrinkle free, but the Dufour will almost certainly not have been raced, so you're more likely to find one with all the "making life easier" cruising gear already added. An X332 might well swallow a bit more of your cash adding this stuff, whilst giving you a bunch of exotic sails that you might not want.
 
Hayling Yacht Co did have a Comet 36 for sale, it is unusual to find cruising boats of this size with tiller steering, this Comet does, but I dont know about a holding tank, this is something you may need to add. Of the boats you list, I would favour the X332. Having had some experience of the Hanse as a product, IMO I would not get excited. say no more.

Dont forget that Etap made a 34S which is tiller steered, but may be a little short on space compared to a beamy 'modern' boat. But you would have the foam filling which helps with temperature control in sunnier climes.
 
Too frisky?

As someone once said "You can always make a fast boat go slow, but you can't make a slow boat go fast."

A bimini and a cockpit main traveller are difficult things to combine unless you go for something like a Hunter Legend with a stainless arch for the mainsheet, or you want to fiddle with a 2-part bimini.

Shame you want a tiller, or I'd have suggested something like mine.
 
Yes, there are plenty of boats that you could choose from, except for the tiller bit. I've sailed with both and I don't know why you're holding out for a tiller really, as there's not a lot of difference. Still it depends what your own particular prioritys are.
 
Probably your biggest problem will be finding the boat(s) of your choice for sale in the Med. There is always plenty of choice of modern 34 footers from the major producers because that is what sells in volume. You might be better off doing searches to find out what is available in the locations where you want to buy rather than worrying about narrowing your choice down and then finding nothing for sale. As others have noted, you will almost certainly have to compromise on a wheel in this size range.

Try the advanced search on www.yachtworld.com for an initial scan.
 
I would not be too quick to dismiss the Hanse 341. The coachroof mounted traveller is common to most modern cruising yachts, and it avoids the problems that cockpit systems cause with fitting a bimini. As for the self tacker you may actually find it advantageous as it is a labour saver. The disadvantages of self tacking headsails tend to be exaggerated because they are sometimes retrofitted to boats designed to be rigged with an overlapping headsail. Sail balance suffers, and the boat may be underpowered in light winds. The Hanse was designed to be driven by its big mainsail plus the smaller self tacking jib. Add a cruising chute on a furler and you probably have the best of both worlds with a choice of easy sailing or extra power in light winds.

I am in your age group, and there I times I would like a self tacker instead of having to grind in a big genoa.
 
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The X332 is a lovely boat. Yes, she will be a bit frisky, but if you know how to trim sails on a fractional rigged boat you can handle it. If you don't want to use the outhaul/backstay/cunningham then maybe get a less sporty boat (you need these to depower the boat to keep her manageable).

You can always put a jib in the furler rather than a genny to make tacking easier and to make the sail plan slightly less powerful. The downside is that you'd not be able to keep up with the racers in a F1, but as a cruiser you're allowed to use the engine.

I was disappointed with the Hanse 341 I chartered. Maybe a slightly better sailer than the usual Bavaria or Beneteau Oceanis but definitely not sporty. Maybe my expectations had been raised by the yachting press. It had a real mainsheet with traveller in the cockpit - on the coachroof would probably be worse.

The Hanse 341 had a wheel. I've also been on an X332 with a wheel, but it is the sort of boat best suited to a tiller and all the others I've been on have had that.



You should be able to find examples of either available for charter if you want to try them out before you look seriously at buying one.
 
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I am old and wrinkly and sail two handed with my wife who would not admit to either adjective.
We were trading down from a Sigma 38 which we had cruised for 12 years to something a bit 'handier' for two with a preference for tiller steering and handling like our old Sigma 33 and we looked seriously at most of the boats listed above. These included a rare Dufour 34 with tiller steering which had had three owners in just two years; the cockpit just did not work, the tiller was too far forward and the mainsheet too far aft. The Elans we looked at looked as if there might be long term durability issues. Another serious contender was a Maxi 1050 but it was wheel steered, overpriced and there were aspects of its layout I did not favour.
The combination of tiller steering and a proper mainsheet track is very rare these days and I was not prepared to have the mainsheet on the coachroof. The only one that we finished up seriously considering was the X332 which has a proper sailing cockpit arrangement. In the end we were seduced by a Finngulf 33 which though wheel steered has a 5' dia. wheel with less than a turn from lock to lock, so feels as direct as a tiller to steer and you can get very comfortable on the coaming with proper footrests like a proper tiller steered performance yacht.
We however did not achieve all our objectives, the Finngulf has a taller mast and bigger sails than the Sigma 38; but she does go well though and is really exciting to helm in medium winds. At last years WHYW we were well beaten by a tiller steered X332 so perhaps we might have been better keeping some of our money in our pocket.
If you enjoy performance, the X332 would be my recommendation there are a reasonable number about so you should be able to find a good one.
 
Tiller?

As a dinghy sailor for many years I thought I would always want a tiller but when we tried our Elan 333 it was a very quick conversion to wheel preference, not least because my wife found it so much less of a struggle compared with our old Fulmar which had enough weather helm to make a long beat an endurance. Guests on board find the amount of feel still available through the wheel very surprising, much better than some I won't name. The Elan is pretty lively but only scarey if you drive it that way. Really good about a performance cruiser is that she is fun to sail in light winds while others are wallowing or turning on the engine. Dont bother with the newer 340 or 35 as they are not fitted out to the standard of the older boats and have gone much further down the racing boat route. I too hankered after an X332 but only saw a knocked about one before we found the Elan. No regrets about the choice.
 
I sailed a X332 from Fort William to Plymouth several years ago, and I have to say it was not anywhere near as racy as you might think, yes, put a set of laminate sails on, dont reef but put a load of ballast on the rail and I'm sure it would be a different story, but reefed down it is quite tame, I hand steered down the St Georges channel for several hours with the rest of the crew doing sea sickness and it was very manageable.

On the point of wheel steering, if you are a helmsman who likes the feel of the rudder, then you will need a wheel with rod linkage, because IMO cable linkage is dull, with little or no feed back.
 
Hanse 341 :-)

God luck with the boat hunt,
The X is a nice boat but i can highly recommend the Hanse 341, i have been living on my 341 2002 since September, so i´m probably a bit biased ;-)
Regarding the coach roof traveller it can "easy" be converted to a cockpit one, mine was born with that option together with wheel steering.
Self tacker is only a problem in winds below @ 8knots as the mast is real tall aka big main sail, in light air i normally use my 84 sq meters spinnaker, if beating and not too lazy i change to the 150% genoa and speed woosh it goes ;-)
Interior not qiuet the high standard of X yachts but its a real good layout for living aboard.

Best regards
Sparky
Overwintering in a Hanse 341 i chilly Denmark
 
johnphilip said:
Dont bother with the newer 340 or 35 as they are not fitted out to the standard of the older boats and have gone much further down the racing boat route.
Click to expand...

Ironic, as the 333 is easily the most sucessful racing Elan, with IRC national titles amongst its reccord. The 340 has no race record worth mentioning that I know of.

I think the fit out of the interior comes down to personal choice. I know of a couple of the newer Elans that have stood up to some pretty serious abuse from full racing crews very well.

The 350 is a very different style of boat, and a very interesting one at that, but I suspect it will be something of a marmite boat, and wouldn't be many people's choice for a liveaboard.
 
Have you considered a Dehler 35?
I know its wheel steered but it is the only wheel I have used that has genuine feel to it. You also get the traveller at the back and powered winched which make life superbly easy.
Good performance and set up for short handed sailing.
Typical German build quality too.
 
I have an X-302, just 3ft shorter than the X-332. She is a joy to sail, and with just a pull on the backstay you can depower the main in seconds, it is like putting in a reef.

As others have said with racing rags and 8 guys on the rail she will truck along, but in a 10 to 15 knts breeze she will out perform most 36fts. with no effort. Build quality is excellent and no problems with the keel, as it is bolted to an internal metal frame, like a rig cage, supporting the keel & mast & shrouds.

With the sail drive system you can reverse with out any prop walk.

I have only saild one Hansa, 34ft and it was a dog, downwind the self tacking jib was a pain. Inside you could see all the ply edges, no nice hard wood caping. Although I did like the interior lay out, acheived due to greater beam and higher sheer line.
 
Thanks

Thanks for all those replies.
We're now favouring an Elan 333 but just missed one with a tiller (very rare). Now contemplating one with a wheel after all ...
Amazed at how few quite recent boats have holding tanks even in the Med - we always thought we were unusual in our small old boat not to have one, but apparently not so.
 
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