Merry Fisher Help

[MotaBota]

Hi everyone, I'm in the market for a first boat and could use some advice please!

I work in Gloucestershire during the week and the Isle of Wight at the weekends and want a smallish boat (up to 8m) for gneral cruising/pottering about mainly around the solent with occassional longer trips and must be usable all year round, but usually as a dayboat - not much overnighting.

I have done my Powerboat level 2 and have lots of experience of the Norfolk Broads and have driven a few RIBs etc but I think a Merry Fisher style boat will suit my use and my £40k-ish budget. The diesel inboard ones I've tried seem a bit slow and noisy and struggle to cruise at 18 knots. I tried a Jeanneau MF 625 with an outboard and it went much better and more quietly with an easy 22knot cruise which is about what I want, but it was a tad small so I'm looking at the MF725 outboard with a 150hp engine which seems to fit the bill.

Am I missing any obvious alternatives? I know petrol will cost more to run, but I want the extra speed and less noise and can't seem to find many other boats that fit my bill. I prefer new or nearly new with a warranty as me and spanners don't get on.

Thanks for any advice, help or other boats to consider! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[pissativlypossed]

Hi Mota, Think you might be a little conservative on the performance of the inboard Merry Fishers, we had an 805 with a 200hp Nanni and that would cruise at 20knt and top out at 24, that's with 3 people, full tanks, tender on the back, etc, etc. Not sure about economy, because this was 4 years ago when red was about 30p/lt but I guess it will consume only half the amount of fuel that an outboard one will.

You would probably find one for around your budget and the 805 is definately a grown up version of the 725. We only sold ours because we traded up to A Prestige 36.

Try both before you spend your cash.

 

[Canopy Locked]

Hi Mota, welcome to the forum.

In my hunt for a larger boat last year (sub 8m) I looked at the Jeaneau & benateau boats. They're pretty much alike in terms of build & space, but they differ in some aspects (eg: cabin layout) Fibresport (from division yachts) looked pretty good and then there are Arvors (more fishing), Quicksilvers and loads more.

I would really suggest that you get yourself to Soton and go to the boat show where you will be able to compare a wide range of boats of the type you're after. Then at least you'll have a better idea of the pro's & con's of each when starting to look at the 2nd hand market.

I would also add a word of caution about your requirement for speed. Small boats tend to be light boats and although when it's calm you can bat along at whatever top speed she'll do, when it gets lumpy you will find yourself having to slow down for comfort. My 1st boat would do 26kts but if it was at all rough I had to back down to 8-10knts as she slammed like mad. With the benefit of hindsight my 2nd boat is much more comfortable and will cruise at a steady 16 kts all day, but I often run at displacement speed as it's just so much more relaxing. I much prefer the diesel option as it's safer than petrol and the engines (IMHO) are usually more robust.

I wish you good luck with your 1st boat. When you buy it, it will be one of the two happiest days of your life...... the 2nd happiest day will be when you sell it! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[me2]

We have a MF 655 and after petrol outboards I would go for the diesel inboard everytime. We are on our 2nd 655 the first we dont talk about (D3 engine not the boat) that boat got changed after 8 months and we now have one with the Yanmar engine and its great, fuel wise we put about 40l in a month ( its 4 months old and we have 55 hours on it) alot less then the outboard in fact I would say thats about half of what we use to use. Speed wise we have had 22 knots out of it on the GPS (that was down hill with the wind and tide behind us) but it cruisers at 14 knots but that is through everything. Noise wise its not that bad we can talk and dont have to shout!

 

[MotaBota]

Thanks for all the advice everyone - I'll revisit the diesel option as I'm trying to keep an open mind, I just have an irrational like of outboards keeping everything mechanical outside in one unit rather than tucked down in a GRP coffin if it leaks! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I'm not looking for high performance all the time, but after many years of Norfolk Broads, a brisk squirt every so often would be nice!

Cheers all.

 

[me2]

with the inboard the engine is near the middle so alot of the weight is near centre and down low so makes for a better ride it does not rock around like the outboard Quicksilver did. You do get alot of water over the windscreen but that does not matter as you will be inside when driving. We have slept on ours with the kids on the sunbed on the back under rear enclosure and us inside there is a fair bit of room inside.

 

[whisper]

I've tried Jeanneau,Beneteau,Arvor,Quicksilver, Ocqueteau and may be some other small "fishers".
Two things stood out - the diesel versions were bl**din noisy especially in comparison with outboard versions. This led to one lowering the cruising speed which obviously helped with the boat's economy.

The outboard versions were so much easier to service, dried out more easily had better under cockpit storeage and were a lot cheaper.

Obviously once you go up the size range to above about 7.5m it's hard to find outboard boats of the "fisher" type.

Have you considered the Scandinavian designs, like Aquador,Bella, Finnmaster and Yamarin to name but four? Practical and fun.

 

[Seadee]

Hiya - I started my MF life with a 625. Dogs nads and definitely one for the speed merchant. My one had the Suzuki 90 on the back and I had 29 knots out of her with the tide. That was one day .... the rest of the time it was 15-20 knots as she slammed and over here on the East Coast it can be a nasty short chop. Either way it was a nice boat. I now have a MF805 with the Nanni 200. It's f'in noisy at 3,300rpm and delivering about 20 knots. Wouldn't like to do too long with it at that but at 3,000rpm she's crusing nicely at about 16-17 knots and you can hold a conversation in the cabin. My 4 year old still moans that it's too loud though. Despite this the boat is bigger dogs nads than the 625 and the 3 of us have successfully spent long weekends on it and not fallen over each other. It's very good in a big sea and the diesel engine is a sinch to work on. I'm using about 20 L per hour at 15 knots so it's reasonably economical too. There's lots of guys on here with MFs so they'll all be along soon.

If you want any more, PM me

CD ;-)

 

[me2]

The servicing was one reason we changed to inboard as the boat is kept in the water all year and we do alot of hours the sevice was coming up very fast 2 even 3 times a year, with the outboard the boat had to come out the water to change the gearbox oil and engine oil so we had to pay for lifts so this knocked the cost up. The inboard is shaft drive so all the servicing can be done in the water, so if you are going to keep the boat in the water with no trailer this needs to be considered.

 

[wp1234]

Inboard every time, no doubt about it unless it’s a budget restriction.
My MF 805 (Volvo engine) cruises at about 16 kts and tops I get around the 22- 23 kts .
Might be a little louder in the cabin than the outboard type but IMHO I would rather have the much much better sea keeping qualities that the extra weight midships gives an IB boat.
Also call me old fashion but in my opinion the sophisticated nature of new outboards makes them far more prone to catastrophic failure. I’ve had two outboard electronic system melt downs happen to me on outboards … so never again.

 

[me2]

That's what we find, the ride is so much better with the inboard than it was with the outboard as the weight is in the boat and not hanging off the back.

 

[rubberduck]

Have you looked at Arvor. I know several bods with them & have heard good reports, apart from one which was vandalised. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
http://www.essexboatyards.com/newboats/arvor/

 

[MotaBota]

Once again guys, thanks for the input. I'll consider it all and have a look at the other boats suggested.

I have had a look at the Arvors but they are a bit basic. I'mm looking at 100% cruising, 0% fishing so I'm looking for a nice fitout and comfy seats in the cockpit and so on.

 

[SnaxMuppet]

We wanted an outboard too and went for the MF625. We dry berth so servicing isn't an issue and we liked the idea that everything was outside the boat.

In hindsight I think that this "irrational" like of outboards as you put it, which we most definitely have too, is a little misguided. OK, the outboard does have some advantages in that it and it's workings are all easily accessable but look at the disadvantanges...

The weight is high up and hanging over the back of the transom... can't do anything for boat handling or stability! The engine is exposed to sea and weather.

I think that these disadvantages far outweigh the advantages IMO and our next boat will be a diesel inboard... pity the diesel prices are going up but even with the anticipated £1.50pl diesel the fact that the inboard diesel boat will use much less fuel it will probably still be cheaper to run than the outboard even then.

It used to be that diesels were much more reliable than petrol outboards but with the new technology nowadays I am not sure that still is quite so true. In fact, with the new ECS controlled common-rail diesels that are now often used for smaller boats I am not sure which is the more reliable now. I believe that if you want reliability then go for an older, non-electronic diesel... simple technology that everyone understands and it goes on forever if properly looked after.

The safety issue with petrol/diesel is very much a matter of opinion. Obviously petrol is more dangerous as a substance but, with proper storage and handling precautions, does having a petrol boat make it more likely you will have a fire on board? Not sure about that... so I am yet to be convinced that petrol boats are less safe than diesel from the fire perspective.

I love my MF625 but if I were to do it again I would be looking at an older MF695... solid boat but no speed merchant as it is semi-displacement. Going for an older one it wouldn't cost a great deal more than a new MF625 either... I might even consider upgrading next year...

Anyone want a MF625 Legende... low mileage, never raced or rallied, one careful lady owner but has a few stickers stuck on it?

/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[MVP]

We were looking at the same segment last year and ended up with a quicksilver 640 weekender with 115hp outboard.
Very quick, comfortable, and on the water with electronics etc for £28k through Boatingmania (excellent service)
Have a look at one, we think they're in a different class to the MF boats and a lot cheaper

MVP

 

[wp1234]

[ QUOTE ]

Very quick, comfortable, and on the water with electronics etc for £28k through <span style="color:red"> Boating Mania (excellent service)</span>
Have a look at one, we think they're in a different class to the MF boats and a lot cheaper
MVP

[/ QUOTE ]

Been with them long then ??? /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[MVP]

No, just a satisfied customer /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[whisper]

We have a drying mooring which allows the servicing to be done in-situ or else the engine supplier will pull the boat out on their trailer FOC in order to do the work.
The fact that the engine/shaft can be tilted above the level of the keel is also an advantage over our present sterndrive set-up. We have to dig a hole in the mud for the skeg and prop to sit in as at max. tilt they still protrude below the hull.

In the unthinkable event of us having to sell our current boat and downsizing, we'd seriously consider reverting back to outboard power. A nice Grady White could fit the bill /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

All the shaft driven "sportsfishers" that we tried were frankly non starters due to the racket they made when trying to reach just 20kts. Sterndrive versions were considerably quieter, because the engines didn't sit with you in, or almost in, the wheelhouse!! They were also considerably faster.
Unfortunately there only seem to be a couple of companies making them.

A friend of mine has an 805 and I can't stand it at above about half throttle. Plus, only then, it has to be on flat seas, because of the slamming in short chops and upwards. HOWEVER, it's an awful lot of boat for the money, has decent accomodation and is considerably more economical than the boat that we have. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

So it's horses for courses and every boat ever made needs one to compromise about something - unfortunately.

PS. We also found that wheelhouses that were not separated from forward sleeping quarters by a bulkhead and door were far more prone to the considerable noise of waves hitting the bows.