Is there a modern equivalant to the Nicholson 32

[SailBobSquarePants]

...When I started sailing 40 years ago, something like a Nic 32 would be seen as the pinnacle of cruising yachts - because it was compared with what else was on offer - just as an Alvis TD21 was the pinnacle (or one of them) of gentleman's sporting saloons. But the world moves on and although the Alvis has a cetain amount of charm, who would buy one for everyday functional use - even if they were 25% price of a new Audi A5?

Because you DON'T use your boat as an everyday functional item, unless you liveaboard. And admittedly, living on a Nic 32 is nuts - DOABLE, but nuts.

But owning a well-restored Nic 32 is like owning a well-restored 1960s Jag, or Alvis. A modern Honda Accord is a faster, better handling car than a 60's Jag E-type (as tested on Top Gear). But which would you rather pull up to the country club in, as long as you can get your clubs in them both?

 

[Ubergeekian]

But the world moves on and although the Alvis has a cetain amount of charm, who would buy one for everyday functional use - even if they were 25% price of a new Audi A5?

My daily driver in the summer is a Citroen DS23. It's probably worth about 1/3 as much as a new A5 would cost to buy, but I wouldn't take a new A5 in a straight swap.

But owning a well-restored Nic 32 is like owning a well-restored 1960s Jag, or Alvis. A modern Honda Accord is a faster, better handling car than a 60's Jag E-type (as tested on Top Gear). But which would you rather pull up to the country club in, as long as you can get your clubs in them both?

Well exactly. One has to have a certain amount of style.

 

[Tranona]

Because you DON'T use your boat as an everyday functional item, unless you liveaboard. And admittedly, living on a Nic 32 is nuts - DOABLE, but nuts.

But owning a well-restored Nic 32 is like owning a well-restored 1960s Jag, or Alvis. A modern Honda Accord is a faster, better handling car than a 60's Jag E-type (as tested on Top Gear). But which would you rather pull up to the country club in, as long as you can get your clubs in them both?

I am not talking about using your boat every day, but about what you use it for. So, my Bavaria was perfect for swanning around the eastern Med, tolerable for Channel crossing etc, but would not be my choice for exploring the more exciting parts of our oceans.

Solved your second problem as noted elsewhere by buying a new Morgan - best of both worlds. Costs the same to run in both money and effort as my boring Ford diesel but you can imagine yourself in a 1930's novel of cads and dashing gals if you want to. Only drawback is the amount of time you have to spend in Tesco car parks explaining to passersby what it is.

Anyway, how could you find the time to waste on golf if you had a Nic 32 and an E type?

 

[Slowtack]

Scanmar 35, also other mid 80s scandinavian designs -Contrast, Granada Comfortina

 

[LittleWings]

Keel stepped masts are a bit of a pain and I don't think they can be justified for the sort of coastal pottering that most of us go in for. ... If I were planning to cross the Atlantic I might feel differently.

Why is that, please?

They are also not efficient shapes, just containers of ballast.

Why, please? Castings come in ¨any¨ shape nowadays...
Thanks, cheers

 

[Robin]

yet another ancient thread re-surfaces!!! From 5 years ago and the answer is commonsense, sure you could glass over a decent shaped fin keel after bolting it in place, but that would not make it 'encapsulated', just 'glassed over'. encapsulated means the hull was moulded with a keel shape below the waterline that was filled with ballast, the limitation is in the hull moulding process not the keel casting process because the hull has to be removed from it's mould. You can mould a hull in two halves to overcome some of the mould release problems but then you still have to put the two bits together and make a good join and then add the ballast. How would you post the casting into the void?? We have a wing keel on our current boat, that would be fun to make encapsulated!

 

[LittleWings]

...thanks for the reply, i see i have misunderstood your posting.
I am not a native speaker,sorry for the inconvenience!

yet another ancient thread re-surfaces!!! From 5 years ago

It saves double posting. But if, in this forum, using the search function is not apreceated, i will be quite happy to adapt

 

[Sybarite]

. The later Sun Fizz 40s are better with a nice teak interior, early ones had some formica that was a Marmite (like it or hate it) finish. There are plenty about but many were chartered and the better ones will like our friend's have been fitted with extra stowage lockers below to replace the pilot berths. We just missed one when we were looking that had done the Atlantic circuit and had all the gear, as did our Sun Legende but that would be out of your price range.

!

I nearly had one. Deal broke down at the last minute because the person taking my boat dropped out. It's worth noting that SF's from 1985 had kevlar reinforced hulls and replaced mahogany with teak in the interior. IIRC.

 

[johnalison]

In my experience, non-native speakers can usually hold their own against the products of Britain's education system, though they don't carry any immunity against abuse. It's not a bad idea to give away something of your origins in your profile/location, since opinions from abroad are actually much valued.

 

[doug748]

Why is that, please?
.....
Thanks, cheers

This is jolly, seems like yesterday.


A mast supported along it's length is stiffer so you can have a stronger mast. Instead, if you wish, you can reduce the section of the mast to reduce the weight of the rig. It seems to me either thing is a useful improvement a long way offshore.

If you were to have the misfortune of breaking the mast the keel stepped item is likely to retain the bottom section in the boat, to form the basis of a jury rig. The lighter upper section is less liable to do serious damage to the boat before it is cut away

 

[Seven Spades]

Why do you need such tough boat are you going globe trotting? There are tons of good comfortable safe boats that do not meet your specs that are probably better suited to your requirements. I would seriously think about what you intend to do with your boat. The type of boat you crave has lots of drawbacks in terms of comfort and dryness, speed (daily range) that you might find you enjoy your sailing a lot more in a faster more comfortable boat.

 

[Matelot Joe]

Tradewind 35 ? one on at £45,000.

 

[doug748]

Why do you need such tough boat are you going globe trotting? There are tons of good comfortable safe boats that do not meet your specs that are probably better suited to your requirements. I would seriously think about what you intend to do with your boat. The type of boat you crave has lots of drawbacks in terms of comfort and dryness, speed (daily range) that you might find you enjoy your sailing a lot more in a faster more comfortable boat.

Maybe, taking it in the round, bearing in mind the strengths and weaknesses of both types, the cost considerations, his projected use ,his crew size, his own size and his views on sailing performance. Maybe, bearing this in mind he thought; "This is the sort of boat that would make me happy."

Anyway it was a long time ago.

I see the OP posted yesterday (no profile) so we may yet find out.

 

[James_Calvert]

Anyway it was a long time ago.

I see the OP posted yesterday (no profile) so we may yet find out.

Apparently he has a Moody 346 in the Ionian, perhaps he'd care to explain that away!

 

[BurnitBlue]

Apparently he has a Moody 346 in the Ionian, perhaps he'd care to explain that away!

I have just noticed a few minutes ago that this thread has been made active again. I will read the thread from page one before I give my reasons for buying a Moody 346 the year after the advice from this thread eroded my brain.

I am very interested myself in understanding why I eventually ended up with a boat I hate.

It may take some time because I have a bone to pick with some folk.

 

[flaming]

I am very interested myself in understanding why I eventually ended up with a boat I hate.

It may take some time because I have a bone to pick with some folk.

Uh oh...

 

[charles_reed]

Does'nt fit your criteria because they have deckstepped masts and non encapsulated lead keels but the Centurion 32 is a fine well built vessel with slightly more room inside than a Nic 32 or Contessa 32.

+1

 

[KellysEye]

Teadewind 32 or 35, Vancouver 32 or 36.

 

[Matelot Joe]

Teadewind 32 or 35, Vancouver 32 or 36.

At last, Someone has the right idea.

 

[BurnitBlue]

Uh oh...

Sorry for the delay, I had to swap my Tablet for a Laptop because I needed a keyboard. I am glad I re-read the whole thread before replying because I had always blamed the advice I got on this thread for why I ended up with a boat I hated, and this would have coloured my response. I did see that there was no bad advice given by individual posters. It was more a general “overtone” of all the advice that affected my subsequent choice. One piece of advice given by doug748 was a warning to keep to my checklist because he could see that I was slipping. I should have paid more attention to what he could see and I couldn't.

Each piece of advice stood up as a standalone post. They were all correct in themselves and were absolutely logical and unnassailable. However they were focussed on each posters individual goals and together formed a composite boat that actually did not exist. Of course I knew this but my situation at the time was approaching panic. The pound was tanking, QE was either in or coming in, emails from Ancasta were arriving saying that buyers from Euroland were soaking up good boats … buy now before it's too late, I needed a boat denominated in pounds sterling because the Euro was up and rising. My choice of available good boats I could afford was shrinking fast (in 2011 that was a fact). At least three boats two Nichs and a Vancouver 32 were snatched from under my nose because of the time for me to access from Sweden.

Then came a piece of bad luck, I extended my search to Greece and flew down there. Due to winter strikes and connections it took me three days to get to Nidri in the Ionian I was exhausted.

Living in Sweden and used to pristine boats I was appalled at the condition of most of the boats. The broker dragged me around for three days and each evening in the hotel room I examined the specs. Non of them ticked the boxes. On the third evening I made the worse decision I had ever made in my life. I decided to choose the best example. It boiled down to a Twister, the only longkeeled boat down there, and the Moody346. The Twister was too small and close in size to the Marieholm I already owned in Sweden. So I chose the Moody.

Obviously I should have gone to another broker to view his selection but it was Christmas time and most folk were back in UK. So there you have it. This thread did influence me in my ideal boat as I laid out on post one. The arguments against keel stepped masts, and encapsulated keels and lots of accomadation crept under my defences. If you read those arguments (2010) you will agree that they were well informed and technically correct.

However, as I found out later they were not MY arguments and did not address my own entrenched hopes and more important any TRUST I place in my personal feeling of security in a construction I had come to believe was intergral to safety and seaworthiness. In short I felt insecure in the boat.

It was my fault and I pay the price. Two weeks ago I was exchanging posts on the liveaboard forum with tcm about his super fast RTW so I could attempt the same with no maintenance and virtually wreck this boat I hate so much. Get some tiny sort of value from it then dump it.

Then this post was reborn. I could go on and on about the pitfalls of advice but it would appear that I am being ungrateful. I am not, the advice was good, it was my fault because the Moody is my fourth ot fifth boat and I should have known better. The Phrase “ The right key, but the wrong keyhole” is apt.