For someone looking for an affordable yacht with stunning looks and good performance

My opinion
(Everyone has one ?)
That’s a fair enough intro price
Then you start doing the resto work on the satin wood finish ( not so easy actually to do it well)
And keep on top of the teak deck/cores..
And I’d want to know how much gel coat is left on the topsides
And sight along them past the bonded bulkheads in all sorts of light
And that engine is a good un but , ya know, getting up there in age now and eco fuels and old seals ?
And on an original ally mast, what slop play and rattle on all the mast fittings and rollers and winches
and and and ..
It’s a very nice sailing boat
Yeah I’d have it too ??
 
Fr J Hackett said:
The Dawn 39 was a development of the Contessa 38 the extra foot going into the stern but whilst sharing much of the hull but the internal fit out seems much better and the extension of the stern makes for a better (larger) aft cabin as well as giving the yacht a better appearance.
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Quite, they were Contessa 38s. Here is the one in Greece, still for sale:

Contessa 38 Used Boat for Sale 1982

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Fr J Hackett said:
https://www.berthoninternational.com/yacht-for-sale-specs/dawn-39-stroma-of-findhorn.pdf

I have always liked them but never found one for sale when I was actively looking, I am almost tempted. It looks like there may be a little cosmetic work below decks, it needs a holding tank fitting and the galley could probably do with a bit of a refit but it's perfectly serviceable
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TBH, the 38 was one of my least favourite boats from the Contessa stable. I always found it pretty dreary when new, with fairly mediocre performance by Rogers standards. It was derivative of the 32, but lacking the charm of the original ; already outdated when it was first launched. Without the sale of a fleet of the things to the MOD it would have been a commercial failure.

But hey! A chacun son goût.
 
Affordable?

A subjective term.

Bit more than a Twister, Poignard, but the Good Father was in the lounge recently wondering what to do with 300k he had in his back pocket.
 
Clancy Moped said:
I don't wish to be rude, but at your time of life isn't that going to be a bit of a handful?
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Yes. Needs at least one electric winch, probably more. And that teak deck ... Good looking classic boat but you need a crew for it, not just the wife.
 
mjcoon said:
I don't know how they do it, but there are domestic devices which detect damp. Some use conduction via contacts which might not be so useful, but a variation of metal detection technology might detect water at a distance. www.moisttech.com/non-contact-moisture-sensor
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You can also walk on the deck and bounce on it on your heels, if the balsa core is rotting you will feel those patches give as you bounce. You mayalso hear a bot of a crackle when you walk over the deck, indicating delamination.
 
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