From Sail to Power - Nimbus 365

[Geoff.rogers1@gmail.com]

I have recently sold my Southerly 110 yacht and research against my personal criteria has drawn me to a twin engined Nimbus 365 Coupe. I like the quality and simplicity of the design.
I would be interested to hear the experience of existing or former owners who have on longer offshore passages and weather conditions - I will be aiming to use it locally in the Solent/South Coast but also on longer 2/3 weeks trips to the Channel Islands/West Country. I appreciate that it’s is not on all weather boat like a Nelson/Dale/Hardy/Aquastar

 

[GEM43]

Nimbus are well built, well designed, tough and capable boats. As you say they’re perhaps not in the Nelson/Dale all-weather category but the latter have come from a pilot boat ancestry where seaworthiness is everything, the balance falls to function not form whereas Nimbus has the balance a little different.

Crucially the Nimbus will take much more punishment than the crew will want to endure. We punched through a very nasty channel chop with a F5/6 over the tide past Dover in our Nimbus, the boat was very very wet indeed but handled it very well, the boat was fine but I was seriously sea sick! We’ve since changed to sail.

As ever with marine diesels you need a continuous supply of clean fuel - clean tanks and well setup filtration is essential.

 

[Geoff.rogers1@gmail.com]

Thanks for the reference and feedback on the quality of a Nimbus in rougher weather.
As a long term sailor I do appreciate that no motor boat of a similar size will handle a rough seaway nearly as well as a sailing yacht with a keel.

 

[jbweston]

Thanks for the reference and feedback on the quality of a Nimbus in rougher weather.
As a long term sailor I do appreciate that no motor boat of a similar size will handle a rough seaway nearly as well as a sailing yacht with a keel.

I'm having to learn this. After 20 years under sail I've got used to boats that laugh at my unwillingness to accompany them into conditions they think nothing of but I find uncomfortable. Now the boot's on the other foot, and I look at the sea conditions and think it's a little loppy but my (motor) boat acts like a big girl's blouse and whines that I should have waited for a calmer day before opening the throttles.

We'll get used to each other I imagine.

 

[ss2016]

I have recently sold my Southerly 110 yacht and research against my personal criteria has drawn me to a twin engined Nimbus 365 Coupe. I like the quality and simplicity of the design.
I would be interested to hear the experience of existing or former owners who have on longer offshore passages and weather conditions - I will be aiming to use it locally in the Solent/South Coast but also on longer 2/3 weeks trips to the Channel Islands/West Country. I appreciate that it’s is not on all weather boat like a Nelson/Dale/Hardy/Aquastar

I and my wife went to the dark side about 4 years ago with a Sargo31. We both had extensive sailing experience but age is catching up with us, We are based in the Fal and each summer have made it to Brittany and the C.I. and several times to Scilly.
You just have to watch the forecast like a hawk and only go when the sea conditions are appropriate, and then use the speed to get you there. We have only been caught once, returning from Scilly, the weather came in 12 hours ahead of forecast. A 3hr trip became 10. We did not feel unsafe, the boat can handle it, just uncomfortable.
Be ready to cancel and modify your plans if the weather is not appropriate. For this reason we have not been past Ushent YET.
Hope this helps.

 

[jbweston]

I and my wife went to the dark side about 4 years ago with a Sargo31. We both had extensive sailing experience but age is catching up with us, We are based in the Fal and each summer have made it to Brittany and the C.I. and several times to Scilly.
You just have to watch the forecast like a hawk and only go when the sea conditions are appropriate, and then use the speed to get you there. We have only been caught once, returning from Scilly, the weather came in 12 hours ahead of forecast. A 3hr trip became 10. We did not feel unsafe, the boat can handle it, just uncomfortable.
Be ready to cancel and modify your plans if the weather is not appropriate. For this reason we have not been past Ushent YET.
Hope this helps.

My boat is a Sargo 31 too. At low speed she seems perfectly happy in the sort of conditions we're likely to meet with normal precautions and planning.

What I'm finding novel in planning longer passages is the big difference between anticipated comfortable cruising speed in calm conditions and moderate ones - so the plan has to cater for 'it might be 6 knots, it might be 20', so we could be at sea for three hours or 10 or anything in between, depending on how the conditions work out. Under sail it was 'it might be 5 knots, it might be 7' and that didn't make a lot of difference.