Finally we have decided on the boat that we want...!

[Sy-Revolution]

We have a '79 Comar Comet 11. When we set out we were novices too. Within two days of leaving our home port of Ipswich we were hit by a 60ft Ovni (his bow to our starboard quarter) that had come into Brighton Marina in a force six with no fenders or lines rigged. There was an almighty bang, and I feared that we'd been holed. Luckily the old girl is well laid-up and the damage was cosmetic. A younger boat may not have faired so well.

Living on board and sailing constantly will increase the chances of damage. The first dinks on anything new are the most painful.

Some friends we met along the way were delayed for two weeks once because the catch on the bog door had failed. The boat was a brand new HR. The parts were hard to come by and you cant just screw any old replacement into the loo door of a brand new boat. So they couldn't go to sea for the sake of a brass bolt.

We had a look around a Hanse at the london boat show, not long before we set off. I was left with the feeling that I'd just spent time in a B&Q kitchen showroom. Where was all the wood?

I think what I'm trying to say is that you can take some of the pain out of boat ownership by buying used....

Good luck with your plans!

C.

 

[AndrewB]

It all depends on the kind of liveaboarding you plan.

For a marina based existence, either in the UK or Med, from where you take the boat out for short excursions and can avoid bad conditions, the Hanse 385 looks ideal.

For long-distance blue water cruising there may be better options. However, although we all have our opinions of what a blue-water cruiser should be like, in practice all types of yacht are doing it.

 

[Wansworth]

Mrs Cakes If I recall has been asking for a while about the right boat to get,now they have short listed it seems either they have not taken onboard the panels suggestions or the panel has not made it clear the right type of boat needed.Could be they didnt explain what type of world cruisin they hoped to do.There are all types of boats that have girdeled the world from boats bristling with spare anchours and bikes to ultra sleek whizzers.Before settleing on "THE BOAT" it looks like what it will actually be used for needs to be established.

 

[Orla]

When we decided that we wanted to buy a boat instead of a house to live in with no fall back to land, e.g. no house.
We also decided where and what we wanted to do with this boat.
This would be our first boat, my Wife no experience, me very little.

This was not going to be a 1 or 2 year trip then back to a house and what some call a normal life. This was going to be for as long as we could manage it with no time schedules, as long as our health stays with us we will continue.

We also ruled out the med and other popular boating destinations.
So for us it was going to be at first, the west coast of Scotland as our training ground, and then North, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, Newfoundland, Baffin, Labrador and who knows where else.

So with all this in mind we started looking for the right boat. We read many reports of people buying a boat to live on then within a year or so they discovered it was the wrong boat for what they wanted to do.
We could not afford to make that mistake.
So over a five year period we searched, looked, asked, and our knowledge increased.
We made a list of what the boat must have, and for me that was, Aft cockpit deep and safe, Mast head cutter, long fin keel, skeg supported rudder and strongly built. Everything else would be compromise.
One of the first boats we found that fitted that bill was Orla, but she was well out our price range so we kept looking, but nothing ever came up to the standard of Orla. So long story short we saved more, took a small marine mortgage out and the previous owners reduced the price (they wanted us to have her) we were very very lucky.
We have now owned her for over five years and have no doubt what so ever that we have the right boat for what we want to do.
She was built to cover big distances in relative safety.
We saw many boats we could have bought and we are very glad we didn't.
A good starting place for suitable boats of superior build quality is www.bluewaterboats.org
There are many others.
One thing we realised early on was the popular boats which fill every marina were not suitable for us. Another observation is the further North and more remote we go the less we see the likes of Bavaria’s, Jeanneau, Hanse, Beneteau, Elans and so on, you get the idea.

So i guess what im trying to say is do the research and decide what types of boats are suitable for what you want to do. Its a huge subject,hope this helps
Dougie

 

[orion50]

Bits on boat break - that is a fact of life. As you are a novice i suggest that you learn basic boat maintenance skills, particularly in relation to your inboard engine. I consider that essential preparation. To set off wherever, without those skills is foolhardy in my opinion irrespective of the choice of boat. In many situations it is the capability of the crew rather than that of the boat which is the limiting factor.
You might also consider a season of local cruising post purchase, to get yourself acquainted with your new pride and joy and make whatever modifications need to be made.

Good luck!

 

[Sy-Revolution]

Bits on boat break - that is a fact of life. As you are a novice i suggest that you learn basic boat maintenance skills, particularly in relation to your inboard engine. I consider that essential preparation. To set off wherever, without those skills is foolhardy in my opinion irrespective of the choice of boat. In many situations it is the capability of the crew rather than that of the boat which is the limiting factor.
You might also consider a season of local cruising post purchase, to get yourself acquainted with your new pride and joy and make whatever modifications need to be made.

Good luck!

Seconded.

 

[Chris_Robb]

First of congratulations on the main thing, and that is the decision to go

That is the most important thing. Have a click on my sig and a dig around and you will find our blog and stories.

I was once told that cruising is fixing boats in exotic places and that is very true. New or old. It will happen, but you will learn to deal with it and that is all part of the trip.

A brand new boat can sometimes be problematic as the snagging takes a while. The best boats for long distance are sometimes a three to five year old that has been bedded in and well tested.

Warranty is a consideration but its usually the hull that is warranted for five years and the engine, instruments and equipment will be for between one and two years. New boats tend to lose the VAT value almost immediately so weigh up whether the money you could save by buying older can offset the warranty and also get you a better boat.

It is not an exact science, there are no right answers and all boats are a compromise.

There is nothing wrong with your choice of boat, but as others are gently saying for the plans you have, there may be better choices.

Where are you going and how many in the family?

Many very useful points made here. We were next to a Hanse in the Cyclades this year, and they were having a constant problem with the saloon windows leaking - apparently the boat twists slightly, hence the ongoing problem. Not sure if this was a one off problem or not.

HOWEVER my main worry about a brand new boat is one of the security of your money before you purchase. Does any one know how strong a balance sheet Hanse has? I would make some serious enquiries as you could loose the lot if your timing is wrong; and not just the builders going under, but the agent in this country. - Again someone may have some answers on how to make this safer - a bank bond for instance, but it may cost you.

 

[Tranona]

HOWEVER my main worry about a brand new boat is one of the security of your money before you purchase. Does any one know how strong a balance sheet Hanse has? I would make some serious enquiries as you could loose the lot if your timing is wrong; and not just the builders going under, but the agent in this country. - Again someone may have some answers on how to make this safer - a bank bond for instance, but it may cost you.

There is always some risk with buying a boat where you have to put up some money before you get the boat. Buying from a dealer (which is what you will have to do with a Hanse) is, or can be risky because the dealer has to make payments to the builder in advance of completion. This is often done through a finance house which takes a charge over the boat. The dealer will try to minimise his exposure by using the deposit from the customer. This can be avoided by the customer insisting that the deposit is held in a client account.

There have been cases of customers losing deposits when they have been placed in a dealer's trading account and the dealer has gone bust, leaving the customer as an unsecured creditor. However there are literally hundreds of boats of boats bought through dealers each year and most transactions go smoothly, so it is up to the customer to be clear about who his contract is with and the security of his deposit. There are other mechanisms than client accounts - for example some dealers are actually agents and the contract is with the factory, some of which offer bank guarantees.

Losing a deposit is not normally a big risk, or rather there are ways of mitigating the risk - otherwise nobody would buy a new boat. Perhaps the greater risk overall is problems with the boat itself, as suggested by others, particularly if the plan is to immediately go off on a voyage of a lifetime. Having been through the new boat sorting process, I am with those who suggest a season shakedown to get to know the boat and get its problems if there are any, sorted while close to the dealer's base. As it happens there was little wrong with my boat, but it was relatively simple compared with some, particularly on the domestic systems front.

 

[Bav34]

We were next to a Hanse in the Cyclades this year, and they were having a constant problem with the saloon windows leaking - apparently the boat twists slightly, hence the ongoing problem. Not sure if this was a one off problem or not.

LOTSA HANSE WINDOWS LEAKING

 

[JustinC]

Definitely agree on buying second-hand, so the wrinkles have been sorted out by someone else.

And a shake-down season where you get to know the boat will also help give you confidence to fix and maintain the basics (electrics, electronics and engine seem to need the most tlc)

Warranties are often not worth the paper they´re written on, and a good survey will show up far more that will indicate the state of the boat.

Good luck, though, and stick with it - you´ll get there in the end!

 

[Niall1975]

We have a German couple living aboard a Hanse 45 across from us in Gouvia. Nice looking boat and they really like it. I think it depends on e=what you are doing and what you want. No matter what you do though someone else will have a better idea or opinion. Only thing i can think of is the YBW seacock safety campaign raised some question about the quality of seacocks used by Hanse in their new boats.

Niall

 

[Alfajiri]

I've got a Hanse and l love it. I sail with pals but mostly with SWMBO and we have spent the last three summers aboard for extended cruising including Ireland (South and South west), Brittany, Atlantic France, Spanish north coast and rias, Portugal, Algarve and finally this summer the east coast of Spain now over wintering in the north near Perpignan.

Highly recommend Hanse dealer (Inspiration Marine) in Hamble (Peter Thomas and Phil Dollin).

All the comments about sturdy liveaboards are true but there is something special about a new boat and these are fun and fast passage-makers and good value. 'Sunboy', a 470 left UK in 2009 and is now "home" in Australia. Read his blogs on myhanse website. Many others too on long distance passages.

Issues with windows and new design should have resolved this. Hanse's have a galvanised steel chassis and epoxy hull which makes them very stiff.

Highly recommend 12 months close to Hamble for warranty and getting "stuff" but support from Inspiration Marine has seen warranty work done well beyond 2 years.

I've no regrets and wish you well in your adventures.

 

[tennisgirl1]

Yes, I do think that you have made very valid points. We have decided on this particular boat for several reasons. One thing that is quite important to know about us... we are novices

1. The 385 is very easy to sail short handed & has a self tacking foresail
2. They appear to be good value for money (for a new boat)
3. Rightly or wrongly we are taking any warranty a new boat will have into account
4. We hoped that buying new there would be less chance of things breaking/general repairs that we may not know how to fix.....

Do you know of a better boat to look after a family on year (minimum) long trip ?

Advice welcome

For various reasons we wanted to get sailing in the Med as quickly as possible, and one second-hand deal having fallen through, we bought a new Jeanneau SO35 in 2007. We bought the boat via a large dealer in the south of France.
We would not buy new again. Not because the boat is a disappointment, but because we had no end of trouble getting the initial faults fixed:

You need to stay several months close to the place you take delivery of the boat. Ours had some minor and some major problems to put right and the warranty is more or less invalid if you have gone off cruising far away -you can't keep returning to base. We could not get our Raymarine plotter fixed by the dealer and eventually left France - we were lucky when we were helped by a dealer in La Spezia, Italy, who got us a replacement.
Similarly, we had to more or less beg a boatyard in Elba to do a 50 hour service of our Yanmar, otherwise we would have invalidated the original warranty as the first one had to be done by a dealer. No-one was interested in doing the job as they knew we were cruising and that we would not be return customers.

We also hadn't realized it takes weeks (months, years, forever? ) to get the boat into a comfortable living and sailing state). You only need to read this forum for a few weeks to realize the time that goes into installing solar panels, water-makers, sun-shades etc.
Five years on we now feel the boat is comfortable to spend two or three months aboard, but I would not want to live on it all year round.
See 2007 http://yachtvigdis.wordpress.com

 

[cakeslovesbaking]

I've got a Hanse and l love it. I sail with pals but mostly with SWMBO and we have spent the last three summers aboard for extended cruising including Ireland (South and South west), Brittany, Atlantic France, Spanish north coast and rias, Portugal, Algarve and finally this summer the east coast of Spain now over wintering in the north near Perpignan.

Highly recommend Hanse dealer (Inspiration Marine) in Hamble (Peter Thomas and Phil Dollin).

All the comments about sturdy liveaboards are true but there is something special about a new boat and these are fun and fast passage-makers and good value. 'Sunboy', a 470 left UK in 2009 and is now "home" in Australia. Read his blogs on myhanse website. Many others too on long distance passages.

Issues with windows and new design should have resolved this. Hanse's have a galvanised steel chassis and epoxy hull which makes them very stiff.

Highly recommend 12 months close to Hamble for warranty and getting "stuff" but support from Inspiration Marine has seen warranty work done well beyond 2 years.

I've no regrets and wish you well in your adventures.

Brilliant, thank you. Nice to hear something positve.

Happy Sailing

 

[Swagman]

I would raise a slight eyebrow too, there may well be better choices for long term liveaaboard.

You need storage (lots of it) and durability on the inside finish. (We lived aboard for eight years as a family, initially on a Westerly Corsair and then a Moody 38).

For that money you could get a well bedded in and equipped older and bigger Moody.

Err...but equally you'd spend most of your time plodding around wondering when you'll ever going to arrive, happy knowing that maintenance on an older boat is always going to be hard to quantify, and much less sure of what you might get back when you eventually (as you will), want to sell.

Cakes, I would not worry. Your Hanse is a great choice. I even suspect it has more storage than many a bigger Westerly or Moody. We all know it will cost less to berth, and I've no doubts a joy to sail.

We cruised our Hanse 46 for 5 years and despite similar nersayers when we got it, we found it to be a fast, stiff, roomy, comfortable and very low maintenance boat. Al and Debs on Sunboy who we sailed in company with for the start of their maiden trip from UK to Australia felt exactly the same about their 470. Theres a solid French couple at the monemt who've just rounded Cape Horn in their Hanse 40. As with most sailing issues everyone going to have opinions, but not everyone has the advantage of practical experience but on this subject - we have.

In our first years away we cruised alongside other equally new and bigger Hallbergs, Moodys, Discoverys, all much more expensive investments than ours. Not only was our Hanse quicker and definately easier to sail short handed, it appeared we also had had far fewer quality issues to deal with over those first months.

Don't mis-understand as it's likely all boat buyers (new and second hand) will find snagging issues to resolve, but we found Peter Thomas just brilliant on that. Going way beyond any normal call-of-duty and indeed withone issue, way after the warranty had expired. And in contrast to the other brand buyer telling you about his with lousy after sales, we got it from Hanse whilst we were well away on our crsuising. One time in the Balearics, and again way over in Turkey.

FWIW over the 30,000 miles we eventaully covered we gained a huge respect for the Hanse build standard and inside and out it looked just like new when we eventually sold it - which is maybe why it sold so quick when we moved on.

So yes, you can always get opinions from those who've not had one, but provided they still build them the same way, I'd not hesitate to head off on one all over again (if I was allowed to that is).

Good luck Cakes and enjoy your boat.

JOHN

 

[cakeslovesbaking]

Err...but equally you'd spend most of your time plodding around wondering when you'll ever going to arrive, happy knowing that maintenance on an older boat is always going to be hard to quantify, and much less sure of what you might get back when you eventually (as you will), want to sell.

Cakes, I would not worry. Your Hanse is a great choice. I even suspect it has more storage than many a bigger Westerly or Moody. We all know it will cost less to berth, and I've no doubts a joy to sail.

We cruised our Hanse 46 for 5 years and despite similar nersayers when we got it, we found it to be a fast, stiff, roomy, comfortable and very low maintenance boat. Al and Debs on Sunboy who we sailed in company with for the start of their maiden trip from UK to Australia felt exactly the same about their 470. Theres a solid French couple at the monemt who've just rounded Cape Horn in their Hanse 40. As with most sailing issues everyone going to have opinions, but not everyone has the advantage of practical experience but on this subject - we have.

In our first years away we cruised alongside other equally new and bigger Hallbergs, Moodys, Discoverys, all much more expensive investments than ours. Not only was our Hanse quicker and definately easier to sail short handed, it appeared we also had had far fewer quality issues to deal with over those first months.

Don't mis-understand as it's likely all boat buyers (new and second hand) will find snagging issues to resolve, but we found Peter Thomas just brilliant on that. Going way beyond any normal call-of-duty and indeed withone issue, way after the warranty had expired. And in contrast to the other brand buyer telling you about his with lousy after sales, we got it from Hanse whilst we were well away on our crsuising. One time in the Balearics, and again way over in Turkey.

FWIW over the 30,000 miles we eventaully covered we gained a huge respect for the Hanse build standard and inside and out it looked just like new when we eventually sold it - which is maybe why it sold so quick when we moved on.

So yes, you can always get opinions from those who've not had one, but provided they still build them the same way, I'd not hesitate to head off on one all over again (if I was allowed to that is).

Good luck Cakes and enjoy your boat.

JOHN

John

Thank you so much for your kind reply. It is great to hear from someone who has experience of these boats. I just hope cash pans out as well as we hope so that we can afford exactly what we want.

May the weather be with you

Cakes

 

[lenseman]

Brilliant, thank you. Nice to hear something positve.

Happy Sailing

If you Google "Hanse Yachts" or even "Hanse Yacht problems", you will get a very good insight into their boats in general.

As others have said, for RTW, blue-water cruising, walk away. For day-sailing out of a marina, good.

 

[wklein]

+1

 

[wklein]

Never Buy New

Its never worth buying a new boat, the always have a huge list of problems especially a light cruiser racer like the Hanse. I would definitely go with something reasonably simple for first livaboard. Having said that in your situation (which i am not) i would go for a 5 yo Ovni which is a designed long distance cruiser, lots of space hardwood interior and beaching capabilities rather than a cruiser racer with small tanks and lightweight interior.

 

[windpipe]

I am a fan of the Hanse styling and they certainly give you value for money. I have to agree with others in that this may not be the right boat if you are intending on Live aboard, although saying that it depends on what sailing you plan on doing. Hanse are very good at delivering a good looking boat, they are not however well known for their build quality though and as with any new boat there will always be problems, even with the more expensive brands like HR,Contest, Najad,Oyster. You should expect to have teething problems and it all boils down to how they sort these out. I have many friends in the sailing fraternity both on the cheaper production side and the more expensive end and that where some of the extra cost is buying the more exclusive brands comes into its own. Oyster and a few other a well known for outstanding After sales care whereas this fades away with the cheaper brands.

However saying all that, if this is your dream boat and you are light sailers then go for it, they are great sailing boats.

S