S23; S25 what went wrong

Why not? People bought a S24 for £50k 20 years ago (not me).
That must be not far off £100k now - in real terms.

This is what you get nearly new for £100k and 25ft? How about this.........
http://www.newark-marina.co.uk/used-boats/four-winns-v255/
I don't find it very attractive. Comparing that to a S23 or S25 for £30k ish and even if adding for refurb such as a new canopy and upholstery the older boat makes more sense.

Why not? Because it's hideous.
 
The post I tried to edit and deleted..

Fairey Spearfish. Cummins QSB550. Konrad leg. Couchette under the fwd cockpit to make a 2+2 weekender Get it to the boat show for £100k and the builder wouldn't keep up with demand. Fairey Owners Club sees constant demand for Spearfish.
 
The post I tried to edit and deleted..

Fairey Spearfish. Cummins QSB550. Konrad leg. Couchette under the fwd cockpit to make a 2+2 weekender Get it to the boat show for £100k and the builder wouldn't keep up with demand. Fairey Owners Club sees constant demand for Spearfish.

I don't think its a valid comparison to a Sealine S23/25 or that style of boat, and the fact that second hand Spearfish are in demand, doesn't mean that there is a huge market for new ones - just that there is a limited supply.

You could always set up a kickstarter and get it into production yourself.
 
Problem is that I don't think the S23/S25 is a popular form factor these days. The critics always described these as rather tippy boats which was of course the compromise that resulted from the decent headroom and the aft cabin. The market seems to prefer the Axopar type design with more than a 1000 of these being sold.

Still, all is not lost, Cranchi have a new 26 footer coming out that might appeal to the market that the S23 one occupied.

http://www.cranchi.com/it/ranges/e26-classic-2/
 
Many thanks for the link!
Boat aside (which is indeed nice), there are some beautiful pics of "my" lake, and of some lovely spots guilty of having made us fall in love with this boating madness, back in the days.
In one of them, even our home is visible, in the very distant background.
Besides, some pics taken in Piona bay bring back very old memories, when some friends as mad as a box of frogs introduced me to barefoot waterski.
That was before the whole bay became a strictly no wake zone, following a nasty accident where a skier was run over by a boating mate who was following him at close distance to take some pics.
And as often happens, instead of accepting that there's no way to ban stupidity, they threw out the baby with the bath water - but that's another matter altogether... :ambivalence:
 
Many thanks for the link!
Boat aside (which is indeed nice), there are some beautiful pics of "my" lake, and of some lovely spots guilty of having made us fall in love with this boating madness, back in the days.
In one of them, even our home is visible, in the very distant background.
Besides, some pics taken in Piona bay bring back very old memories, when some friends as mad as a box of frogs introduced me to barefoot waterski.
That was before the whole bay became a strictly no wake zone, following a nasty accident where a skier was run over by a boating mate who was following him at close distance to take some pics.
And as often happens, instead of accepting that there's no way to ban stupidity, they threw out the baby with the bath water - but that's another matter altogether... :ambivalence:

It's a nice looking boat and a beautiful part of the world (not that's I've been I'm ashamed to say). I see that the little Cranchi has a choice of petrol or diesel sterndrives. I'd prefer an outboard but suspect that a petrol engine sterndrive would be a nicer boat than a diesel one. If you had a villa by the sea (or lake) then I think this would be a fun and relatively cheap boat. It's a sector of the market that particularly interests me in my retirement planning.

Incidentally, it seems to have rather a flat hull. I wonder how it handles?
 
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Problem is that I don't think the S23/S25 is a popular form factor these days. The critics always described these as rather tippy boats which was of course the compromise that resulted from the decent headroom and the aft cabin. The market seems to prefer the Axopar type design with more than a 1000 of these being sold.

Still, all is not lost, Cranchi have a new 26 footer coming out that might appeal to the market that the S23 one occupied.

http://www.cranchi.com/it/ranges/e26-classic-2/

Are the Axopars popular because of the concept (dayboat) or the price I wonder?

That Cranchi looks fantastic but is nothing like the S23/S25, it's a cuddy cabin sportsboat, low cockpit floor so a big sunpad over the engine and no double berth beneath the cockpit. It almost certainly won't have standing headroom and it looks like the loo is in the cuddy too rather than seperate (although hard to tell in the photos).

The point of the S23/S25 (and boats of that type) was a high cockpit above the engine so cockpit seating went right to the back and there was space ahead of the engine but below the cockpit floor for a mid cabin. That height also gave standing headroom inside and space for a proper loo and a galley so it created a 'pocket cruiser'. However, as you point out, the result was a high centre of gravity, which on that boat did make it rather reliant on the trim tabs!

For a modern version, probably closest is the Bayliner Ciera 8. Have a look at the layout, you'll see what I mean.

https://global.bayliner.com/models/overnighter-series/ciera-8/

Regal also do the 28 Express which is a little larger of course, although much of the extra is bathing platform.

https://www.regalboats.com/model/28ex-express-cruiser/
 
Something secondhand. A very nice S25 or a S28 (with two engines) can be had for a fraction of the new cost, with plenty of cash left over to overhaul the outdrives, replace the upholstery, polish the gel coat, update the electronics etc etc.

I was meaning for folk who want new. Obviously there has always been second hand boats.

I do not believe I will ever buy new, have toyed with the idea but think I have come to realise that the old boat I have has a lovability factor which you don't get with anything new in the budget I have set myself.... so along with my collection of old cars I have found myself just looking at old stuff now and rather pleased at the £500K that has saved me...
 
I was meaning for folk who want new. Obviously there has always been second hand boats.

I do not believe I will ever buy new, have toyed with the idea but think I have come to realise that the old boat I have has a lovability factor which you don't get with anything new in the budget I have set myself.... so along with my collection of old cars I have found myself just looking at old stuff now and rather pleased at the £500K that has saved me...

As we discussed, your boat is going to be a hard act to follow, there's just nothing with that ruggedness now.
 
Ray Hankey has us both beaten. I think he had thirteen before eventually succumbing to the charms of a Broome but that was long after Tom had sold out.

All our boats looked after us well. We took the larger ones as far north as Bergen, as far south as Santander, as far west as Fastnet and as far east as Fyn in Denmark. Our favourite was the T47, mainly because of its size and sea keeping. It was run very close by the F42 with the clever extending cockpit. It was good to pay marina charges for a 42 footer with the facilities of a 45 footer! All were new boats except for the last. Sealine always made an offer we couldn't refuse when it came to time to change. returning all or most of the cost of the trade in. The cost to change for new was just too much when it came to the T47, which was our first second hand boat

His Broom 415 is for sale at Hamble Point
 
I was meaning for folk who want new. Obviously there has always been second hand boats.

I do not believe I will ever buy new, have toyed with the idea but think I have come to realise that the old boat I have has a lovability factor which you don't get with anything new in the budget I have set myself.... so along with my collection of old cars I have found myself just looking at old stuff now and rather pleased at the £500K that has saved me...

If someone wants new, there are American options, such as the Sea Ray Sundancer 260. Slightly longer and wider but with a similar layout downstairs and available with bigger engines than the Sealine came with, but a huge price tag compared to a 10 year old boat.

Its a shame Doral went out of business, because the 250 Monticello was, in my opinion, a much nicer option than the Sealine (better layout upstairs, bigger engine options) and if I was in the market for this size boat, I would be seriously looking at one of those secondhand.

Of course if you don't need the coffin cabin, but still want new, you could go for a Fribrafort Focker 265

305b827298975.560d84c7e87cc.jpg
 
Downside with American boats, most don't have sidedecks and have a walk through windscreen, which in my opinion is not as good option compared with Sealine and European boats in general.
 
I agree entirely about the side decks, but that said, they do limit the cockpit size of the Sealine by 'squeezing' it.

Can't find a way of displaying this image, but click the link - https://goo.gl/images/d5f6Zv

You've basically got seating for four rubbing elbows at rest, and that's about it unless someone wants to sit at the helm facing the other way. No 'chaise longue' next to the helm as most boats of this type have either.

They're all a compromise though, especially at this size and trying to pack so much in.
 
I would take the bigger cockpit and the walk through windscreen any day - some of the American boats have proper steps to get up, built into the door.

The S25 just doesn't have the lounging space that things like the earlier Sea Ray 245 has. It depends what you plan to do with the boat and where you are going to be using it.
 
My first boat was a searay with a walk through windscreen, thought it was brilliant, felt much safer than walking around side decks, especially on a small boat that will lean out when you walk there. Could have done with some better steps up to it, but wasn't an issue for me.
 
My first boat was a searay with a walk through windscreen, thought it was brilliant, felt much safer than walking around side decks, especially on a small boat that will lean out when you walk there. Could have done with some better steps up to it, but wasn't an issue for me.

Yep,on a small boat I'd much rather have more cockpit space and a walk through window, versus side decks and less cockpit space.

Current boat has walkthrough screen it works well.

Once you get over a certain size, side decks are better,but at the small end of the market I much prefer a walkthrough screen
 
My point with side decks, is it is much better access even on a smaller boat. The walk through windscreen tend to be a weak point for water ingress. At the end of the day we all are different and have different requirements, for me side decks on a small boat works well and doesn't feel unsafe.
 
anybody else think that BBQ looks impractical,daft, dangerous, select your own adjective................. the wash from a duck in a hurry is going to have the entire grill contents either over the side or over the crew.Photo possibly from the same outfit that gave us the "Carry On up the MDL" video.
 
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