Gibsea 352 - Thoughts?

Tintin

Tintin

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Damn kids keep growing so a twin aft cabin boat beckons.

I've been looking at various models.

Anyone got any thoughts on the Gibsea 352?

The draft seems very shallow (1.25m) - even less than my old Leisure 27 (1.5m) and substantially less than my Benny first 325 (1.8m) so I am wondering about leeway and pointing.

In all other respects not a lot different to my Benny First other than that is a fast boat.

Gibsea 352 Benn first 325
LOA 34'2" same
LWL 27'10" same
Displ 9700 lbs same
Ballast 2500 lbs 3700 lbs
Sail area 652sq ft 625 sq ft
 
Comrade Red said:
Damn kids keep growing so a twin aft cabin boat beckons.

I've been looking at various models.

Anyone got any thoughts on the Gibsea 352?

The draft seems very shallow (1.25m) - even less than my old Leisure 27 (1.5m) and substantially less than my Benny first 325 (1.8m) so I am wondering about leeway and pointing.

In all other respects not a lot different to my Benny First other than that is a fast boat.

Gibsea 352 Benn first 325
LOA 34'2" same
LWL 27'10" same
Displ 9700 lbs same
Ballast 2500 lbs 3700 lbs
Sail area 652sq ft 625 sq ft
Click to expand...

It's a development I believe of the Gibsea 105/106

Good solid no frills boats with good sailing performance although I cannot say for the shallow keel version.

Some French opinions :

http://bateau.ouest-atlantis.com/gib-sea-352.html
 
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My Gibsea 352 came with the original brochure. The ballast for my shoal draft version is 4,056 lbs compared to the deeper keel version's 3,439 lbs.

Of course what you really want to know are the stiffness and leeway qualities. The wide beam gives form stability, assisting the righting moment gained from the Scheel bulb keel. The shoal draft keel is longer IMHO than the standard fin keel meaning that she's not going to do sharp tacks around race buoys. However, leeway is moderate and upwind pointing is nearly as good as that of my previous deep fin cruiser.

The Gibsea 352 seems more comfortable when sailed flat, with little loss of speed after early reefing. The cockpit is wide, so I am adding a fore-aft foot brace down the centre, Beneteau style
 
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Tony D said:
My Gibsea 352 came with the original brochure. The ballast for my shoal draft version is 4,056 lbs compared to the deeper keel version's 3,439 lbs.

Of course what you really want to know are the stiffness and leeway qualities. The wide beam gives form stability, assisting the righting moment gained from the Scheel bulb keel. The shoal draft keel is longer IMHO than the standard fin keel meaning that she's not going to do sharp tacks around race buoys. However, leeway is moderate and upwind pointing is nearly as good as that of my previous deep fin cruiser.

The Gibsea 352 seems more comfortable when sailed flat, with little loss of speed after early reefing. The cockpit is wide, so I am adding a fore-aft foot brace down the centre, Beneteau style
Click to expand...

Olivier Gibert was Jeanneau's son in law. The two companies shared certain models with different brand names.
 
Tony D said:
My Gibsea 352 came with the original brochure. The ballast for my shoal draft version is 4,056 lbs compared to the deeper keel version's 3,439 lbs.

Of course what you really want to know are the stiffness and leeway qualities. The wide beam gives form stability, assisting the righting moment gained from the Scheel bulb keel. The shoal draft keel is longer IMHO than the standard fin keel meaning that she's not going to do sharp tacks around race buoys. However, leeway is moderate and upwind pointing is nearly as good as that of my previous deep fin cruiser.

The Gibsea 352 seems more comfortable when sailed flat, with little loss of speed after early reefing. The cockpit is wide, so I am adding a fore-aft foot brace down the centre, Beneteau style
Click to expand...

We have the Gib'sea Master 35. Very similar to the 352 but ours has one aft cabin (small double) and a large forward cabin. As well as the twin aft cabins I think the 352 has a slightly different layout around the chart table. Not sure what else differs; we have a Wheel but sure there are Master 35's with a tiller.

Ours has a shallow draft and longer keel as Tony D says is on the 352, I am pretty sure it is the same but would have to check our brochure. We chose the shoal draft keel (1.25m) as we sail out of Cardiff (Bristol Channel) and it gives more flexibility with lock in and out times. We also have considered getting legs and this keel is ideally suited. I am pretty sure both models are exactly the same apart from a slightly different layout inside.

The design of the keel and the rudder is such that in quite steep following seas has never threatened a broach. She responds very well to sail tweaking, and we find she points fairly well. She sails well in light and heavier winds but we always reef early to avoid too much heel due to small dogs on board.

Last summer Paul and our lads were out in lovely weather; a sudden squall then appeared from nowhere, very strong winds, creating quite a challenge for them. Apart from a small amount of damage to the UV strip on the head sail there were no problems at all and she handled extremely well.
 
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Hello KathyD

Yes we have the same keel at 1.25m, longer than the deep fin (I think) to compensate for the shoal draft. The 352 comes with one or two aft cabins. The two aft cabin version places the heads forward, meaning the fore-cabin loses the portside locker and perhaps a little of the portside berth. It is still a good cabin that I use myself when cruising.

Regards
Tony
 
Hi KathyD

Your shoal draft will be very useful if you venture towards Sussex harbours. Don't believe the almanacs! Brighton and elsewhere silt up all the time. In Brighton it has been known for visiting crews to go ashore, then return to find their deep fin yachts aground!

Best wishes
Tony
 
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