Dufour 2800 - Are they OK in rough weather

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Peter Smith

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HI

As in my other post, I am looking into buying a Dufour 2800 with shallow fin keel. I wonder if anyone has experience of these yachts and what they are like in different sea / weather conditions. e.g. light air, rough seas, up and down wind sailing etc.
:confused:
 
There was a sail test review of the Dufour V Contessa 28 when they were both new, may have been 'Small Boat' magazine; have you seen that or shall I have a search in my garage ?!
 
I have a Dufour 27 and she handles really well in heavier weather - in fact better than in light weather.

I was out last weekend in a force 5 and didnt have to reef - a very stiff and dry boat.
 
Peter,

I've had a quick search with no luck; now I'll get to the serious piles of magazines !

Will let you know if I find anything; meanwhile may be worth asking the current magazines if they have any reviews, in a way a 'buying second-hand' review would be even better.

SJ
 
I've had one for fifteen years. Sold it only to upgrade to a 31 footer. The '2800' refers to the tonnage, she is in fact 27 feet. I've done maybe 30 channel crossings with her, and sailed 5000 miles between Normandy,IOW and Holland. She's a safe boat, most masts (there are about three different makes) are very sturdy. In bad weather, a sprayhood is no luxury, and she is a bit lively; but I've never have been in trouble in a force 7/8. I remember sailing from Portsmouth to Eastbourne together with two other sailboats of similar size in marginal weather. We arrived first, and the other two boats both had to throw away a bag of broken crockery. Not so much as a cup was chipped on ours, although we only have porcelain in the galley.
The 2800 is a bit undercanvassed, which contributes to the handling (the rare CS model has a taller mast). As always, reef early. If there is pressure on the tiller, you have to tweak the sails; sailed her with one (OK, small) reef in the mainsail most of the time. BTW, the hull shape is different from the 27, making comparison slightly difficult.
Very few negative points. The original engine is one of the tough Volvo MD series, and spares are getting rare and expensive ( check the exhaust elbow); the waterpump is a bit undersized. Check the deck for weak spots, a well known problem.
But generally, they are very well made; hundreds were sold in France and Holland. At the time of manufacture, the firm was partly owned by the French Governement, and they tended to subsidize the plant heavily as a means of stimulating employment.
 
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Thanks very much.

I really like the feel of the 2800 and the internal layout is ideal for me. The only problem with the one I am looking at is she has hull blisters. I don't know if I should buy her and pay for the treatment or keep looking for another one.
The thing with this one is that the rest of the boat is in good condition.

Pete
 
Peter Smith said:
Thanks very much.

I really like the feel of the 2800 and the internal layout is ideal for me. The only problem with the one I am looking at is she has hull blisters. I don't know if I should buy her and pay for the treatment or keep looking for another one.
The thing with this one is that the rest of the boat is in good condition.

Pete
Click to expand...

Dufour 2800's were built from 1978 till 1984. Many of the 1979 and 1979 models did suffer from osmosis, and many owners painted the topsides, as they would sometimes turn brownish yellow; treating with oxalic acid solution didn't achieve much. Knowing this - ours was 1980-, I took off all old hard AF (ouch), but the hull emerged pristine and shiny. We sold her in 2005, unpainted, with the original stickers still intact. My advice would be to look for a 1980 or later example. Not many were sold in Britain, as she was judged 'too angular' at the time. If it's worth your trouble, there are regularly good examples for sale in Holland (mainly Zeeland). Prices did stay stable for ages, but have dropped the last few years (surprise, surprise). At the bottom line, expect an asking price of 11000 EUR, with 18000 EUR for a well-maintained one.
 
Thanks Thalassa.

The one I am looking at is a 1982 vintage and in very good condition apart from the hull blisters. The problem with the blisters is I don't know how long before they become a strength issue or if delamination is going to occur.
Even if I purchase the yacht at a good price, the resale value is going to reduce as the frequency and size of the blisters increase.

Have you seen my other thread re drying in very soft mud. Did you ever let your 2800 dry in very soft mud and if so was the shallow bulb keel OK.
There are lots of yachts in Portsmouth harbour with fin keels that often dry in the soft mud. But I don't know if they have the Dufour type bulb.


Pete
 
Yes, have seen the thread, but I haven't replied since my boat was different: she had a broad cast iron box keel (ca 70 cm) with a lifting narrow centerplate inside (40 kg app.).
She was kept in the same drying harbour since new, 25 years without major problems. This was in soft mud; after dredging the marina, she would be about 15 degrees on her side for three tides or so, the ballast keel digging a hole in the mud. The box would sometimes fill up with mud, but leaving the centreplate a little down did solve that easily. I dried her out once on hard sand to change the propeller, and that was very uncomfortable. Still, because of her high topsides, there was no danger of filling up when the tide came in. Had she been a high fin keel, it might have been different.
Needless to say, the box keel configuration causes the boat to point less high compared to a fin keel.
 
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