drascombe lugger v swallowboats storm 17 ... or similar?

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awhitby

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I'm very old - approaching 40 in amonth - & I've decided low maintenance family day sailing is the future for me!! ( .. so the Laser's up for sale!)
Whilst I enjoy a bit of speed once in a while I think i've been deluding myself for a few years since taking up sailing. Neither my Enterprise nor my Laser addressed what I actually wanted from a sail ... which is :-

Exploring inshore coast & estuaries (mostly N. Wales) with wife & child - typically 4 or 5 of us in total armed with barbeque & nice bottle of wine, occasional swim, visits ashore for beachcombing etc.
Easyish launching for 2 adults - preferably 1.
Low maintenance with outdoor storage under some cover.
Budget £5000 ish...
Safety of a secondary power option ie/ outboard & preferably additional "rowability"! - not a great fan of noise!
Classic looks and performance - probably gaff rig although my only gaff experience was early on with a Character Boats Whammel on Ullswater which was underwhelming - poss. because I tried to sail as per Bermudan rig which I now know to be classic first mistake!!
Despite safety as primary parameter I don't want to be sailing the floating equivalent of an Austin Allegro .. I want at least something to tweak and a bit of ability when required - I'm not THAT old!!

Basically I'm looking at the obvious (?) typical choice of a Drascombe Lugger but i'm considering a new kit (ply) from SwallowBoats of a Storm 17 with it's canoe ended "rowability" & (apparent) better performance - although whilst it has a beautiful hull shape the sail plan looks decidedly un-classic to my eye. The Drascombe's the easy choice with a strong 2ndhand market & years of development behind it... but I sense that people think they're actually a bit ... well ..crap basically!
Is this the case? Are there other better choices out there?
Advice gratefully received...

Andy.
 
I know just what you mean. We get loads of home builds and kit boats on the lake and the rig always looks awful. Even Dracombes, which are very highly thought of, look a bit naff to me.
There is a boat at the top of the lake that I do like, although I've not seen it under sail. I don't know what it is (and someone will probably tell me it's a Drascombe)

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Boattype_3.jpg
 
Well I can't argue with that for a reply! - Thanks for the beautiful photographs & yes it is a lovely looking hull - much more shapely than the Lugger in fact though prob. a little small for my requirements...

Have you got pictures of all the boats on your local lake??

Andy
 
It is, one of these was my last boat and they sail like logs - great if you want to go with the tide, hopeless otherwise, they won't sail much upwind of about 40 degrees and they are surprisingly heavy to launch/recover single-handed. There is something about them, though......
 
Had a Drascombe Longboat Cruiser (early version of the Coaster)- one up from a lugger & with a cuddy/small cabin to sleep2. Very enjoyable; sailed quite well; loads of room in the huge cockpit; several bits of string to tweek; quite easy to trail (used an Escort I think).
One benefit of a Drascombe is that they are a well known make & have a good re-sale potentil if/when you move on.
Have a look here http://www.drascombe-association.org.uk/smallads.htm
 
What about the Tideway.
http://www.tidewaydinghies.co.uk/index.htm
I saw one recently and up close they are rather nice.
The sort of sailing you are planning sounds like a DCA style day out. The dinghy cruising association - basically old farts who like to mess about in small boats and go surprisingly far in them.
I'm a member myself at a youthful only 37.
They did a top ten boats in the last bulletin of what owners use to cruise in and I believe the Wayfarer is the perenial favourite, luggers are common. My boat - a Miracle (the two man mirror but pretty) is light, 59 kilos and very easy to put in and out, can take the kids at a squeeze, but sails well and is raced. It looks good, www.miracledinghy.org
 
One that you should definitely look for is Iain Oughtred's Caledonia Yawl, if you can find one. 19ft long, heaps of room, sails like a witch, double ended in the Viking / Shetland style. Drop-dead gorgeous! They should be better known than they are.
Peter.
 
DCA top ten sounds perfect - will look right away.. don't know why I didn't think of it myself. And yes I may even join one day yet... will look at Tideways too.
Thanks.
 
Thanks for posting those websites, Kilter. 'Crazybird' is the Caledonia that I know best, and the only boat that I might be tempted to buy when I can sell my Ketch 'Swallow'. On that website look at the story of Aegre; it's quite amazing. I know Nick fairly well, and he's a very unassuming chap who quietly goes out and sails around the world for a holiday.
Peter.
 
We had Lugger. A terrific boat with a versatile rig. They don't sail fast, but they certainly can take a sea, and you can lower the main and sail on jib and mizzen in heavy weather. They do need an outboard in my opinion - I only ever rowed ours in a marina. The lugger has a huge cockpit, so can take loads of kids, friends etc. I would have a another lugger as well as our current 31 footer at the drop of hat given adequate dosh. The Drascombe Association is brilliant, with rallies around the country, and is a great source of information. The guy who winters opposite me in the yard has a Lugger as well as his Nicholson 31, which says a lot for them. The Lugger is a much better sea boat than the Dabber. Time to stop this stream of consciousness and get back to work in case my client comes back in the room!

Little Knot (and by coincidence, "ex" Kilter)
 
ok - simple question. Caledonia Yawl vs Drascombe Lugger for speed alone? ... I ask because i reckon the Swallowboats Storm 17 borrows v. heavily from the Cal. Yawl & i sense similar sailing virtues will apply... doubt i can find (or afford) a Cal. Yawl.
www.swallowboats.com has plenty of info if you're wondering what i'm on about...
 
The Lugger's most likely at the moment. When you say not fast do you mean slow to respond because it's relatively heavy displacement boat or slow even when up to speed as it were?
 
Surely no boat's slow when its up to (hull) speed - its just a matter of how much wind it takes to get it there! As to whether she's sharp handling or a tad on the ponderous side, then I'd have to answer the latter. I guess that's normally the price of good seakeeping, unless you have a Contessa. She will heave-to properly, which is a great attribute.

The Lugger won't surprise you positively with its swift progress against the tide in a F2. I still think they are a fabulous family dayboat though. With a good sized sprayhood there's excellent shelter too. I used to be confident in F5 and not too nervous in F6 at sea in ours, and she successfully crossed the Deben Bar in the worst broken water conditions I have experienced there (from about 200 times).

A trial sail might well be the answer to check you're happy.

Little Knot
 
[ QUOTE ]
ok - simple question. Caledonia Yawl vs Drascombe Lugger for speed alone? ... I ask because i reckon the Swallowboats Storm 17 borrows v. heavily from the Cal. Yawl & i sense similar sailing virtues will apply... doubt i can find (or afford) a Cal. Yawl.

www.swallowboats.com has plenty of info if you're wondering what i'm on about...

[/ QUOTE ]

Simple answer. The cal yawl will absolutely trounce a lugger for speed. It is a much lighter boat. However if you want a stable platform for family enjoyment on the watter it is hard to beat the drascombe. Much more solid and stable, ideal for fishing or swimming or picnicing or taking ludicrously large numbers of people out on the water in. They really are quite different boats despite the superficial similarities.
 
Thanks Peter - look forward to seeing it in September's issue. Pics and price would be more useful than phone no. at this stage...
 
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