Looking for some advice - New yacht

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Markjgodley

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Hi, apologies for joining the forum and jumping straight in for some advice.

I‘m a keen novice to yachting but last year decided to order a new Beneteau Oceanis for delivery 2023. I chose to go factory fit on all key items, AC, Generator, Navigation System, Full Teak Deck Etc.

In the last month Ive been informed that these Items are now all permanently off the Beneteau Price List. This has led to discussions over retro-fitting and part factory fitting of some wiring and ducting. I’m starting to feel that im making a big investment in a botched yacht...

I would like to gain a general view on this position please. Thank you in advance. Mark Godley
 
Teak decks look nice, but that is all they do. Be aware that within a few seasons, they will require huge maintenance. If you're Caribbean bound, teak decks are too hot to walk on with bare feet.
 
No expert, but ISTM that if you ordered factory fitted kit and they now can't supply what you ordered, I reckon that should be grounds for cancelling and going somewhere who can do it.

OTOH, having everything factory fitted may lead to headaches over accessibility for maintenance/upgrades. There may be advantages to having stuff added to a finished boat rather than , for example, having the genny fitted and the deck dropped on top
 
Welcome to the forum. When asking a question, it is always best to include some basic information like the boat type, length, where you intend to keep her and your sailing intensions. This way you will always get better and more specific answers to help you.

At the moment mass production yacht builders are working with long delivery dates, so stopping factory fit options is one way to produce boats quicker. This is probably behind the cancellation of your factory fit options.

Factory fit sounds like an easy solution, but frequently is more expensive than later fit. Most new boats either have cabling or ducting for cabling already in place to fit additional equipment. In most marinas there are people who will be able to do all the work for you fairly quickly after delivery, provided it is pre-booked and the equipment is ready waiting to fit. Even your agent who sold you the boat should be able to assist in all the work you require.

Teak decks can be made in a variety of ways. Solid teak over the whole deck looks great but will require the removal of all deck fittings and is very expensive and time consuming to do. The next method is solid teak panels that are fitted into recesses in the moulded deck. These recesses are usually only 6mm deep, so in reality you will get about 4mm of usable teak before replacement. The final method is the cheapest method and has panels of plywood with 2mm thick teak veneer. Do you know which teak deck was going to be fitted? I would not be at all surprised if it was the last one as it looks good new but stores up an expensive replacement in about 10 years. The final option would be synthetic teak. Some people love it, others think it looks like a cheap substitute. Personally I would avoid a complete teak deck, just have some solid 9mm teak fitted in the cockpit. J.K. Howells will be able to supply what you need and probably advise on someone to fit it. Homepage - K J Howells & Son When teak decks do get worn out they are a massive problem that is expensive to solve or radically reduces the secondhand value of the boat if selling.

Hope this helps you stop worrying about the delivery of your yacht. Being a novice, you will have plenty of challenges ahead whether your sailing is local cruising or sailing over the horizon.
 
im talking about a yacht a few years older than brand new, the majority will have been fixed. and for a novice at least it wont be as costly if its already used and banged about while they get used to yachting, than losing thousands as soon as it leaves the factory due to depreciation
 
In support of UK-WOOZY, it's unwise for a novice to buy a new boat. Ever. Well maybe a sailing dinghy would be OK. A new boat is not like a car. You can't just turn the key and drive it out of the showroom. There is a lot of setting up and tuning to be done and it has to be done by the owner or a boatman paid by them to do it and hopefully explain the process. Once afloat you can start the snagging, where again you'll need to know what is right before you can see what is wrong.

When I bought my current boat I was fortunate that the previous owner came from Yorkshire to the Clyde for a few days to help me rig the mast and get the sails on. Without his help I would have taken a long time working with what was a system that was new to me.
 
geem said:
Where do you intend to sail said yacht and how large is it?
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Hi Geem, Thanks for your reply, initially the Solent, then years 2-6 my plan is Norway, back down to La Rochelle, Into the Med, work my way to Greece then Miami, Panama Canal and up to Vancouver by 2034. I may consider selling and buying another boat during this time. It’s 51 foot . Lots of people think I’m crazy and I suppose I am…
 
Not a lot to be honest. I have my day skippers plus crew a bit for a friend. My plan is to fit around 2000 miles in over the next year so also actively looking for deck hand work unpaid at the moment...?Ive sailed and windsurfed for 20 years. Will use my first 5-7 years to build experience through employing a skipper etc.
 
Markjgodley said:
In the last month Ive been informed that these Items are now all permanently off the Beneteau Price List. This has led to discussions over retro-fitting and part factory fitting of some wiring and ducting. I’m starting to feel that im making a big investment in a botched yacht...
Click to expand...

I'm waiting for my new boat to be completed. It's late, because the boat builder has the same problems affecting all boat builders - they can't get stuff, and they can't get staff. If some items are not fitted when the boat is delivered but done at a later date I don't think the boat will be botched. Boats are not like commodity items that are complete or not, but more like houses - work in progress throughout their life, even when new.

You have to compromise somewhat and work with the builder to overcome the problems at the moment, because that's the new state of the world now. If when buying a new house the builder said we can't fit your en-suite bathroom for handover because we can't get the supplies, you'd think it a nuisance, but one fitted later will be just as good. If you cancel your build or sell the part built boat you will then go to the back of a long queue to get another one, and if the lights start going out in mainland Europe, it's going to get much worse.
 
Markjgodley said:
Hi Geem, Thanks for your reply, initially the Solent, then years 2-6 my plan is Norway, back down to La Rochelle, Into the Med, work my way to Greece then Miami, Panama Canal and up to Vancouver by 2034. I may consider selling and buying another boat during this time. It’s 51 foot . Lots of people think I’m crazy and I suppose I am…
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I wouldn't want teak deck in your position.

Generator, AC and electronics can all be fitted later - I'd guess 95% or more of these installations were not factory fitted; when the boat is 10 years old and you need to upgrade the chartplotter, that's what you're doing.

If they're putting in the conduits and wiring so that the other parts can be dropped into place, then that's the hard part done (guess how I know!). IMO NMEA 2000 network from bow to plotter is desirable.

Having said that, I bought a 40' boat with more experience than you, and it is a big handful. If you start out on a 40' boat then there's a good chance you'll put dents in it and in other peoples' boats - I certainly did. It's a big handful in marinas, and it's also a big handful in a different way when you're offshore and there's no-one else around. 50' is going to be worse from this view than 40' - the loads are exponentially higher.

I'm doing similar stuff to you - started learning to sail 4 years ago, and crossed Biscay in September 2020 - and IMO you need to be able to singlehand your boat. You can't rely on people being ready to come out sailing with you, because most people have jobs and commitments. I have learned that I like taking randoms off crewing sites as crew, but you need the experience and confidence to be able to skipper for them - I don't see how you can do that if you're inexperienced. So you need to be able to take this flipping big boat out on your own, dodge through the obstacles of marina and harbour, and finally get the sails up - it is a real relief when you're underway and you can pass control to the autopilot.

Have you ever crawled up the sidedecks in a gale to take in sail, because for some reason you can't see the furler isn't working, and the stray gib sheet is flapping about and it knocks your glasses off your face? Yeah, you have to be prepared for stuff like that.

If I were you I'd just buy a 20' or 30' boat for your first two years, as you don't need bigger if you're not leaving the Solent, and sail the arse off it. Then charter a 40' boat and singlehand or skipper it for a week or two. You could buy a nice 20' - 30' boat and literally throw it away at the end of the two years, and it would still have cost you less than the depreciation on a 50' boat. I thought about doing this myself, and the only reason I can justify the bigger boat is that I started living on it immediately and I did leave the solent immediately (and the UK within a few months). Lots of the things you think you need now, you'll realise in the future you don't actually need. You can do cross-channels easy in a 30' boat (the limitation is you, not the boat) and I now realise I was kidding myself when I believed that gadgets like AIS are necessary for such trips.

But being a skipper is mad different from being a crew - when you get out there on your own (or with junior crew) there's no-one else to rely on. You will get a whole different perspective on your needs after you singlehand a couple of decent passages (no mention of autopilot anywhere else on this page!).
 
Markjgodley said:
Hi Geem, Thanks for your reply, initially the Solent, then years 2-6 my plan is Norway, back down to La Rochelle, Into the Med, work my way to Greece then Miami, Panama Canal and up to Vancouver by 2034. I may consider selling and buying another boat during this time. It’s 51 foot . Lots of people think I’m crazy and I suppose I am…
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I would certainly not fit the teak decks. You are unlikely to need A/C until you get to the Med, if ever. We don't have it. It would be a nice to have in the Caribbean summer when in the boatyard in Curacao but we never crave for it otherwise. I assume you have a European passport as Greece may be a little tricky post Brexit.
 
You ordered a yacht with a selection of options agreed at the time by the builder. They now say they can't fit them. Cancel and full refund. Call your solicitor.
 
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