Could a Jeanneau 42DS take you round the world safely?

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nickfabbri

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As much as I love my current boat, I am looking at upscaling. Just out of curiosity I have found a Jeanneau 42 DS 2008 and a 1990 ish Halberg Rassey at about the same price. Now I know that the Rassey is bomb proof and the better boat of the two by a country mile. However SWMBO doesnt like the interior ( nor do I for that matter). She does like the Jeanneau and the double aft berth as well as many of the other modern features.
However, how good would this be in a gale ? Are they well built? Would this make a good liveaboard?
 
Well built, maybe, but ... they are way to high from the waterline to make me feel safe. No, I would not feel safe in one of them venturing further than a decent weather forecast allows.
 
Not sure where going round the world comes in.

If that is what you really want to do then I think it has to be the HR - Ignoring any real difference the fact that you have to ask about the Jeanneau while being confident in the HR speaks for itself.

If you want to enjoy cruising with your wife then get the Jeanneau - If she's happy you will be. If comfort and modern features are important then why not get the Jeanneau and cruise Europe, Med, even Baltic.

Just a thought
 
Yes it could sail round the world with little effort and probably be a joy to sail and live on.
 
Please please please accept that I know hands down the HR is a better boat. I would expect to be keel hauled for suggesting otherwise.

I am just enquiring about the 42DS. I know its like comparing a Rolls Royce to a Citroen , however I would just like to know if she is up to heavy weather sailing, will take being pooped, knocked down etc.
I really don't intend to do this type of sailing, however I notice that the 42DS does have 2 mast tracks for a try sail so I was guessing that It should be able to cope.
 
Are you really going to sail round the world? If you not, then the Jeanneau is a perfectly good boat, quite capable of doing the North Atlantic circuit (I believe some have) but more at home in coastal cruising. Almost any HR is going to be a capable boat with a "go anywhere" pedigree, but if you don't like the layout you wont like it as a live-aboard yacht. For live-aboards space, and particularly storage space, is king. Now any deck saloon yacht should have plenty of deep bilge storage space under that raised saloon. If the 42DS is as well made as my older 45.2 it will be OK as far as construction goes.

If I really wanted to sail round the world I would be looking for a heavyweight steel built yacht with a long keel and a fairly conservative sail area to displacement ratio, big tanks (both water and diesel) a watertight bulkhead, a small self draining cockpit, probably a doghouse over the companionway, wind-vane self steering, good sea berths and plenty of stowage space.
Edit: I would probably go for a ketch rig, with two forestays to carry different sized headsails, and not a sloop rig.
 
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it'll be alright....won't it?

Lots of jeaneau yachts out there doing the tradewind route - they all seem pretty happy to me. I feel more comfortable with something a little more substantial.

Have you sailed this sort of boat before? If not, why not get some miles in one - should be easy as they are popular charter boats - and then see how you feel. Lots of space inside and will go well in the light wind conditions that you will have most of the time. I guess that you just need to be happy that you are happy to handlw her when the wind gets up. I would have no real concerns, but it is very subjective.

They do seem to have less tolerance in their design / build so you will have to be diligent on preventative maintenance...
 
Norman_E said:
If I really wanted to sail round the world I would be looking for a heavyweight steel built yacht with a long keel and a fairly conservative sail area to displacement ratio, big tanks (both water and diesel) a watertight bulkhead, a small self draining cockpit, probably a doghouse over the companionway, wind-vane self steering, good sea berths and plenty of stowage space.
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Went round in the wrong boat again :(:D

If you're going to do the 'coconut' run (as we & loads others have done), rather than the high latitudes, I believe you can do it in more or less anything.

One guy did it solo in a light, plastic, Fortuna 30, another in a home-made steel boat sub 25ft.

It's all a question of what you feel comfortable with.

For me, it was a beautiful (but MAB) grp Nic39, for others it might be steel, others a more modern AWB. But the chief constituent is YOU & your ability to deal with the situations with which you will be confronted.
 
Tradewinds said:
Went round in the wrong boat again :(:D

If you're going to do the 'coconut' run (as we & loads others have done), rather than the high latitudes, I believe you can do it in more or less anything.

One guy did it solo in a light, plastic, Fortuna 30, another in a home-made steel boat sub 25ft.

It's all a question of what you feel comfortable with.

For me, it was a beautiful (but MAB) grp Nic39, for others it might be steel, others a more modern AWB. But the chief constituent is YOU & your ability to deal with the situations with which you will be confronted.
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This is true. The thing to remember is that most large yachts are capable, but the further up the scale you go the more capable (and comfortable) they become.

I have seen HRs come back from distance cruising that are literally unmarked, less expensive production boats on the other hand tend to look as if they have been well used.

What about this as an interesting concept. Powerful and fast but designed to still be capable of short or even single handed distance cruising.
 
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The 1990 ish HR is now over 20 years old would you feel confident in it's engine, have the sails or standing rigging been replaced recently? Those teak decks are expensive;) On the Jeanneau it will be a while before any bits need replacing not so on the HR. It could end up costing quite a bit more.
I read on here about many old boats "that will get you home in a blow". Are there many people who haven't gotten home in a blow in a modern AWB?
 
I've done a few miles a 42DS and the things I didn't like about it included:exposed helm positions, accentuated by autopilot which would easily give up when the going got rough; lack of handholds down below; high and shallow cockpit lacks security; quite a slammy motion in heavy weather.

On the other hand it seemed quite well bolted together and I didn't feel that it would fall apart. Once tied up to a pontoon the accomodation was very nice, if a little extravagant in its use of space and lacking in storage. For example I ended up storing my dinghy oars in the aft cabin (in my own 27ft boat I can fit them in a cockpit locker)
 
What a load of tosh.

There are very few designs that couldn't safely circumnavigate - treated appropriately.

Given free reign I'd choose something with the best balance between sail area/displacement and ballast ratio. Going upwind is inevitable.

As far as production builders are concerned, I'd choose something from X-Yachts (had one, no relationship etc..). money not unlimited, but to do the job well.

Looking elsewhere, for less money, the French ranges look good in their sportier guises, as do some of the rest of Europe. Hanse, Dehler. Elan etc.. All well-intended designs, but I would be checking some of the specs before casting off on an adventure. Just as one (well-publicised) example, sea-cock metal. A builder confirms that they are happy with brass. Won't name them, but they make an attractive and cheap boat, which if you spent a few hundred upgrading it, would deliver you home quickly and safely.

A simple check. Has it got a relatively expensive keel? Lead - good. Cast iron / lead bulb - pretty good. Cast iron - not trying too hard are we?

Or. Can I break something with the backstay tensioner / primary winches? No? You don't really think that you can trust me with this boat, do you?
 
I'm not sure I'd agree with the Rolls Royce/Citroen analogy but I would be happy with a Mercedes, BMW or Audi v Renault analogy. The reality is that both an HR and/or a Jeaneau will both go round and both probably do quite nicely but the HR will have less creaks and rattles when it gets home than the J.

Having given serious consideration to buying a Hanse in recent times I must say I found them to be overall quite disappointing in fit and finish. Same could be said for other similarly priced production boats I guess.

HRs otoh are built like the proverbial brick outhouse but I'd have to agree with previous post that their very high freeboard is a concern. Newer models with coachroof are more appealing to me.

Questions is do want a twenty year old BMW or a near new Renault ?
 
haydude said:
If the weather is good. And what if it turnes bad? What should he do? Call for help?
Not a very good advice yours.
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Sorry but you are wrong, very wrong. It is my experience that light weight boats go through serious weather with confidence. I reckon I have over 30 odd models of yacht under my belt, the majority fin keels and some high floating corks.

The ability to handle heavy weather is rarely down to the boat and more to do with the skipper.

Haul your paradigm anchor, before you drag to irrelevancy.
 
nickfabbri said:
As much as I love my current boat, I am looking at upscaling. Just out of curiosity I have found a Jeanneau 42 DS 2008 and a 1990 ish Halberg Rassey at about the same price. Now I know that the Rassey is bomb proof and the better boat of the two by a country mile. However SWMBO doesnt like the interior ( nor do I for that matter). She does like the Jeanneau and the double aft berth as well as many of the other modern features.
However, how good would this be in a gale ? Are they well built? Would this make a good liveaboard?
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Many couples have sailed around the World & encountered no more than F5.

The major obvious 'safety' factor with any type of DS, would be windows stoving in, so some panels to cover in heavy weather would be good, + good external washboards. Internal washboards to stop any water ingress flooding down to a lower level should there be stepped 'floors', might be a consideration - sort of partial bulkheads.
 
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