Buying a 32 ft cruiser - Advice please!

[doris]

Bav 32

There's an older Bav 32 next to me called Shropshire Lady that was featured a few months ago in YM's 'One man and his boat'. The older Bavs were, as has been pointed out, a different and some might say better build concept/quality than those of today. I remember sailing them and I thought they were v. competent. Certainly you should look up that article, by JJ I think, and consider it.

 

[Slow_boat]

There are a few nice looking and well equiped Barbican 33 on boatsandoutboards for around £35k

 

[photodog]

Great boat, I think that I saw "The Last Barbican" for sale recently,,, she looked stunning.

A totally different kettle of fish to a dufour though! One of the reasons that he should sail more boats..

When I do my cross atlantic/med extended break at some indeterminate time in the future,, itll either be a barbican 33 or a Vancouver 32! (Or if I win the lottery, a Oyster 55!)

Goes to show how much of a great boat that you can buy for not much £££

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[Seven Spades]

I have a Bavaria 36 and went for it for two reasons, I was less money than a Dufour 36 classic and I couldn't find a Dufour 36 with two stern cabins. I was determined not to have anyone sleeping in the saloon as it really interfers with the use of the boat at night if you want to have a drink and chat etc.

The main problem with my boat is that the heads are right next to the main cabin and with three sons need I say more.... we don't need an alarm clock. Having said that the 36 is a very good boat Lewmar winches, selden masts etc. I cannot complain about the build quality, but if I was buying again I would definetly buy one with the lead keel. Again you would struggle withthe budget, but buying a boat is a bit like buying a house, you always spend more than your budget. The 36 is far more slender then the newer and will sail very happily at 6.5knts.

Happy hunting.

 

[ozcruiser]

Ask any professional delivery or charter skipper what they think of Bavarias. I have heard some horror stories. The only difference between a second hand bavaria and syphllis is that you can get rid of syphllis. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[photodog]

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So help the guy out and use your experience to recommend something suitable, or pass comment on his choice.

Remember, he wants a modernish production cruiser that will be easy to sail for his family, and be less than £50k.

So no Najads, Rassys, Oysters, Basket case wooden boats, Ferro boats, etal.

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[Bav34]

Oh, really well informed advice. We can't even see if you OWN a boat let alone know what you are talking about!

You write cr*p. Please give me just ONE name /contact of a so-called professional delivery/charter skipper. I will take it upon myself to contact them and find out exactly what you are implying.

Can't 'get rid' of a Bav??? Do you understand ''contradiction''? You are posting on a thread which includes people who have bought the marque second hand ... but your ill informed posting is too clouded to understand that.

 

[Koeketiene]

[ QUOTE ]
Please give me just ONE name /contact of a so-called professional delivery/charter skipper. I will take it upon myself to contact them and find out exactly what you are implying.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm not a profssional, but I've skippered on two Bav delivery cruises (a 36 and a 38) and I can tell you horror stories. (flexing deck, joinery coming apart...)

To be fair, none of the cruises to place in ideal circumstances - but Cat A boats should be able to handle the Channel/North Sea in November & March respectively.

I'm sure that they're fine boats within their limits. A VW Polo's a good car, but no-one expects it to win an F1 race or do the Camel Trophy.

 

[Bav34]

I stand corrected then.

For sale: Bav 34. Fast, spacious, safe, high original spec. ,no faults in keel,hull, deck,interior ,mast, steering, electronics, etc.

Oh, sorry, wasting my time. they must be cr*p ...the Forum has spoken.

/forums/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

 

[Twister_Ken]

You'd have to get very lucky to find a Vancouver 32 at that price! And no bathing platform either.

Note to Scopas - a bathing platform type often generates lots of wave-slap noise when parked in non-smooth water, which can make aft cabins noisy (not to mention claustrophobic) places to sleep. Are you SURE one is obligatory?

 

[moondancer]

I don't think Bavarias are all bad. A Bavaria 38 nearly kept up with a Sadler 34 at this year's Burnham Week.

There are many, many people who wouldn't be on the water if it wasn't for the likes of Bavaria, Legend etc.

Agree about the bathing platform. Seems like one of those strange requirements that people get fixated about, removes a huge amount of choice then you wonder why you wanted one in the first place. An open stern is a good alternative.

 

[flaming]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Please give me just ONE name /contact of a so-called professional delivery/charter skipper. I will take it upon myself to contact them and find out exactly what you are implying.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm not a profssional, but I've skippered on two Bav delivery cruises (a 36 and a 38) and I can tell you horror stories. (flexing deck, joinery coming apart...)

To be fair, none of the cruises to place in ideal circumstances - but Cat A boats should be able to handle the Channel/North Sea in November & March respectively.

I'm sure that they're fine boats within their limits. A VW Polo's a good car, but no-one expects it to win an F1 race or do the Camel Trophy.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is the point that most people overlook. By far the majority of bavaria owners would have no plans to go out punching into a F7, but would instead be safely tucked up in a nice harbour enjoying the lovely relaxing space that their boat affords them.
For the vast majority of sailing done by people with young families (as the original request was about!) a bavaria would more than cope, and represent tremendous value.

There is a reason that not everyone owns the same boat, and it is very simply that every design of boat fulfills a slightly different need. Don't knock someone for making a different choice to you, as the likelyhood is his needs are very different.

Fact of the matter is, the original poster wants to know if a Dufour 32 is a good boat for family cruising. The answer to that is clearly yes, I've never sailed the 32, but I've sailed others of the same age and brand and never heard any horror stories about the 32.

So remember whenever anyone says "you don't want one of those flimsy brand x boats, you want a real solid boat like a brand y" ask yourself if the type of sailing you do is the same as the type of sailing they do.

 

[Whitelighter]

Just my two pence worth, but I would seriously look at a Moody S31. Should be within budget for a 98 or 99 model (one here).

My family have had a lot of Moody's and they have always been great for the family, the S31 was better than the old M31 Mk II is the sailing stakes, and had a fresher more modern design to boot.

Moody are well established, and boats form this eara have a great reputation, are solidly made and should retain their value well. Really good owners association is a big plus IMHO.

 

[Salty]

All boat owning is a compromise. I used to have a French production cruiser/racer and 'in-harbour accomodation' was important as the boat was bought in the expectation that I would sail it with wife and very young family (toddlers). Given this it was unlikely that I would go looking for bad weather, or do serious blue water cruising, her likely performance beating into a storm was relatively unimportant.

Having said that, I've done some sailing recently on a 20 year-old design from the same firm and have been astonished by its performance, solidity, and general competence and sea-worthiness. If I was buying again I would buy the 20 year-old one, because it was built like a brick-outhouse. Yes, it did have osmosis when my friend bought it, but this was known about, in the price, and easily remedied by a yard. Having sailed both boats in a gale, I know which one I'd rather be in if it happened again, and it isn't my new one! As I discovered, with a young family this is very important, as if you get much use out of it you will run into bad weather sooner or later, and the last thing you want to worry about is how the boat will stand up to it.

I'd maybe persuade the missus to think again. You could either save a lot of money, or if you went up in size to keep the standard of accomodation similar to a newer boat, the increase in length would potentially give you a useful increase in upwind speed and sea-kindliness (if you can afford the marina fees!).

Failing that, I've always thought the build qualities of the Hanse look pretty good compared to its peers and I'd make sure I'd had a good look at one before finally deciding on the Dufour.

 

[ditchcrawler]

I went through the same process last year when I decided to upgrade to a 31/32 footer.I had the same budget as you but i have sailed,owned & chartered various boats up to 45 footers.Try as many boats as you can & don't dismiss the older ones.Many of the older recognised names eg Westerly/Moody built good solid boats with GRP thicker than current lighter boats.I looked at Bavs,Bens,Jens etc but ended up with a 1984 Moody 31 which the previous owners had spent a considerable amount of money on.I have now added a chart plotter & new sails & a few other bits & she suits my own needs.I can understand people going for newer boats which also appeal to better halves.
Interestingly for the poster re MoodyS31 re older Moody 31 I looked at both boats & according to the handicaps published by Byronsoftware The handicaps are Moody S31 1003,Moody 31 996(both fin keel) showing the older 31 a tad faster,but nothing between them in reality.Good hunting.

 

[Whitelighter]

Ok, I was comparing the sailing performance to our M31 MkII - but I had fordotton she was a bilge keeler /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[Sailfree]

As another contributor has said the older classic range of 32/36/38/41/43 are different and more sturdily built boats than the newer Dufour 34/40/44.

The newer Dufours have an economy version for cruising with a 5 at the end eg 385 or they are performance orientated range 34/40/44. They are in a very competitive price market and I think it reflects in the finish but they are probably no worse than similar priced equivalents.

I have said before if you want to know about any boat find a company that charters them as they will discover any weakness long before the average owner.

I have owned a Dufour Classic 36 & a 38. The 36 I put with Hamble School of Yachting some 9 years ago and while it has had a hard life its still going stong (now called Classic Dream). The Dufour 38 I put with Hamble Point Yacht Charters and it is still with them after 6 years and gets many repeat bookings. Keen sailers who have the choice of Bavaria or Dufour classics tend to prefer the Dufour classic. In the case of the 38 (now called Osprey) it was considerably improved after a series of Volvo engine/gearbox/clutch/saildrive leg problems when the current owner bit the bullet and fitted a complete Yanmar Saildrive unit. I had nothing but problems and prevarication with Volvo in the first 3 years and he has had no problems at all with the Yanmar in the last 3 yrs!.

Having had a Yanmar unit in my current boat for 3 yrs and no probs I obviously have a strong preference for Yanmar engine/gearbox units.

All boats are a compromise but suggest you also compare the 32 Dufour with a Jeanneau 32 but ultimately I would buy either if it had been carefully looked after.

When I owned the Dufour Classic 36 it regularly took off on Sunday night for Yachtmaster prep weeks to Belgium (in all weathers) as this also built up the candidates mileage for the exam (min 2500Nm) so ignore the bullsh*t often spoken on here by people with prejudices against AWB's. I sailed the 38 to Spain and back in 2004 which was a crap year for storms and strong winds. I sailed back from Spain single handed.

Sorry I have no personal experience of the 32 but can see no reason why it should be drastically different from the rest of the classic range.

For your price range I would have thought you might even get an older 35 or a 36 or a 32 in better condition.

Trust this helps. Please let us know of your choice and buying experience

 

[Duffer]

What was it you didn't like about the Dufour 34 fit out? The Neilsen charter boats have 3 cabins making them rather cramped I would think. They also have the mainsheet on the cabin roof unlike the standard boat - very odd for a performance boat.

As pointed out the older Dufours tend to be more cruisy and Scopas you should certainly get a good 32 for your budget. A well-speced 34 will cost around £90k second hand so getting on for twice as much. You can contact the owners association at secretary@dufour.org.uk

A friend has a Jeanneau SO 35 and is very happy with it - it has more space especially in the heads and galley than a Dufour 34 but it does not have as much performance: horses for courses.

 

[Duffer]

I certainly wouldn't buy a new Bav until the current problem with the importer is sorted out and NO customers are left out of pocket. Bavaria and their new owners Bain (who paid 9 billion for them) should have stepped in by now to pick up the pieces.

 

[Whitelighter]

[ QUOTE ]
Bavaria and their new owners Bain (who paid 9 billion for them) should have stepped in by now to pick up the pieces.

[/ QUOTE ]

Why? The whole point of having a distributor for a reagion is you as the builder can get on and do what you do best - build boats. It is not Bavaria's fault that PetersOpal went bust, and from a business point of view they would have had one hell of a job trying to work out the position was re: SIBS. There is only so much you can do in two weeks.