Fitting out a bare hull

[adrianm]

I am having a 16m steel hull built in Holland at the moment and I'm having real problems finding someone in this coutry to fit it out for me.

The Dutch yard don't like to do the interiors unless the owner is on hand as there are lots of decisions to make as things go along. So I decided to have the painted hull shipped over here for completion.

The problem is no-one who can be bothered to return my calls (by the way, why do some many British businesses complain about lack of business and then treat new customers like dirt?) can handle a boat of its size/weight.

The best estimate is that it will weigh about 25 tons. It will have a length of about 55', a beam of 17' and a keel to flybridge height of about 22' in a cradle.

Does anyone know of a yard that can handle the interior fit out of such a vessel and is actually interested in doing it!

Thanks for any help.

 

[jfm]

Re: Lymington any good?

Berthon in Lymington can handle this size. They build 60foot lifeboats for RNLI. They have a building to do this size of fitting out plus another massive building with heating/atmosphere control for doing massive paint jobs. Their work is excellent, but not cheap. 01590 673312 ask for Dave Street. Sounds a fab project BTW, any pics or drawings you can post url to on here?

JFM

 

[adrianm]

Re: Lymington any good?

It's an updated version of the Bruce Roberts Euro 16.

Bruce has changed his webpage to reflect the changes that have been made for my boat,

http://www.bruce-roberts.com/public/HTML/EURO16.htm

Ignore the photos of the white boat, that's a customised one. Mine will look like the blue artists impression picture. The four cabin layout with the double at the front is the interior layout that Bruces' wife and my wife designed.

By the way I can thoroughly recommend Bruce Roberts to anyone who is planning on having a boat designed and built to their specs.

I'll give Lymington a buzz.

 

[jfm]

Re: Fab boat!

Wow that's a fab looking boat. A bit Moonen-esque?

I think this kind of project would need a yard like Berthon Lymington, or Elephant or maybe some on Cowes. They could handle the size/weight and do a top spec fitout, and they understand marine engineering. There a few examples on various brokers books of one-offs by these yards, so you could see samples of the qwality. I think Fly (the aerorig 70 footer) for sale in Berthon was fitted by Elephant? Not sure, need to check, Matts may know.

You will presumably get it shipped just in primer paint so transit scratches dont matter (maybe that's what you meant anyway?) then get a proper climate-controlled paint job here. Hope you're having navy blue paint!

There would be plenty of places in Italy that could do it too, but praps big waitlists?

What engines are you having? Is yours the planing hull or semiplane? What else? It does look fantastic.

JFM

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

There's an outfit called Beaux Bateaux in Oundle, Northamptonshire (right next to part of the Fairline factory) who do a very stylish job of fitting out the Atlantic range of cruisers sold thru' Holland Boat. I believe they do custom fit-outs as well. Contact 01832 274199

 

[adrianm]

Re: Fab boat!

It will be primer only as you say. Navy blue hull and cream upperworks.

I'm having a single 450hp(Iveco-Aifo 8210) engine with a much smaller "get you home" wing engine. There will be stern and bow thrusters to help with the handling.

I spent a long time looking into the single/twin engine question and came to the conclusion that the single was best for me.

The version I'm having is the semi-displacement which will cruise at about 13 knots and, with my engine choice, top out at about 15 knots. This suits my sort of boating perfectly.

 

[jfm]

Re: Vicarious fitting out of Fab boat!

Thanks for info. For that sort of bboating I wd completely agree that your engine choice makes sense. Good colour choice! Plse keep us posted on fit out etc. Will keep us busy (er ... and load you up with useless info)

JFM

 

[Will_M]

Try B A Peters, based in Chichester. Contact a chap called Ray Jay tel. 01243 512831.

Their the crowd who built 5/6 of the last Westerly yachts on behalf of the owners when Westerly shut its doors for the last time.

 

[longjohnsilver]

You might also want to give Devonport dockyard in Plymouth a ring. I always thought they were purely a Naval dockyard but a few years ago had an appointment with one of the senior managers there and he showed me a large private yacht which they were refitting. The work they were doing looked to be excellent.

There is another yard in Falmouth which would probably also be up to the job, I met the owner on his own boat in the Scillies a few years back, again fitted at his yard. Unfortunately I cant remember the name of the yard but I'm sure that you can find out by making phone calls to, say, the BMIF.

 

[jfm]

Re: Devonport......

Yes indeed, and devonport also built all the 16 or so BT challenge yachts (although the fit out was pragmatic rahter than luxury, though they were steel hulls).

JFM

 

[Guest]

Re: Fab boat! but...

I am not expert at all regarding boatyards which don't start and finish a boat.

Is this for a Grand Tour to somewhere? Or gentle channel exploring? 'Tis indeed fab. And massive. Very Berthon, very Lymington.

 

[adrianm]

Re: Fab boat! but...

It's maiden long voyage will be a four week cruise up and down the Portugese coast next summer.

I'll soon be in the position where I can take six weeks off every summer and I wanted a boat that would be comfortable for that amount of time and not cost a fortune to maintain.

I'm actually in the process of setting up a website that will show the progress of the build and how I came to choose each of the components. I'll post a new thread when it's ready.

ps Anyone fancy buying the old boat so I've got room to berth the new one!!

 

[longjohnsilver]

Old boat, what is it? NM

/

 

[adrianm]

Re: Old boat, what is it? NM

It's a charter spec Sealine S37

 

[Guest]

Looks a super boat. V envious. Looking through their kits gives me half a mind to buy one and DIY. Prices for the kit seem quite good. $50K (say £35K), plus 1,000 hours for assy @ £20\hr gives a build cost of £55K, seems reasonable for an awful lot of boat. Hmm tempting. Mind you I reckon that building the boat is only half of it. Fitting out must be at least twice as long and the same cost again? Good value.

You're buying it already built in Holland is that right and having it shipped\trucked over? How do they do that, isn't it too big for road transport?

The yard in Devonport is I think called Appledore, but may be too far for "oh could you pop in and tell us what you want to do about this" type of question that you're bound to get all through the fit out.

Have you tried talking with Haines or Val Wyatts on the Thames? They build from scratch I think in the Thames area and might be interesting to talk with? And there must be places in Norfolk who can do this. Or Bookers in Sheffield?

Keep us all informed as to progress though. Looks a fabulous project. Praps IPC could do a feature on the construction?

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by colin_maslen on Sat Oct 6 10:56:50 2001 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[adrianm]

Colin,

The budget I went to Bruce with was £200k, with the changes I have made and the level of fit out that I want I expect it will be near £250k, but still great value for a boat of that size.

I did toy with the idea of building it myself (I'm a trained welder, long time ago though) but it worked out cheaper to for me to work and pay someone else rather than take three months off unpaid.

Obviously there is a lot more work involved than if I had ordered my original choice, a Sealine T51, but this way I'm going to know every square inch of the boat and know exactly how all the various bits-and-bobs work.

It's not too big for road transport but the size has ruled out a couple of yards who are river rather than coastal based because they can't lift 25 tons.

Apart from sorting out an interior fitter I'm currently studying all the various types of navigation equipment, electronic throttles, LCD tv systems, etc etc.

It's not until you get into a project like this that you realise hw much actually goes into a boat. Still I'm loving every minute of it and I won't get the normal winter withdrawal problems!

 

[longjohnsilver]

Colin Appledore boatyard is in N Devon just outside bideford, and they certainly would be able to fit out this craft, but as you say they may be too far away.

Devonport is in Plymouth.

 

[Guest]

Thanks John for putting my geography right, just goes to show when you're trying to be a "know all", some clever b****rd who really does know it all, can show you up something rotten.

 

[longjohnsilver]

I'm certainly not clever but most of my friends do sometimes call me a b#####d.
How's the search for the Turbo 36 going. There is one advertised which I think is in Brixham which has been re-engined with Yanmar 350's. I also seem to recall an article in either MBM or MBY about a T36 being re-engined with Y350's, maybe the same one.

 

[Guest]

With friiends like that who needs enemas eh?

Well we've seen three T36's I like but WE'VE also been rather taken with a F36 Sedan (know what I mean?). All have the 306 engines. the 36S has a gennie, autopilot and a reasonable 600 hours on it. There's pluses and minuses with both layouts, but basically the boats are the same hull and engines just one's aft cabin.

Dunno yet, still gotta sell the Mirage first.

Interesting re the one in Brixham with the Yanmars. where can I find info on it? wouldn't mind a weekend down for a looksee. And why would someone spend all that dosh on re-engining a boat in the first place and then flog it? Dodgy conversion?