Sealine F33/330

[Guest]

Am thinking of replacing my 27ft sports cruiser with a boat with a bit more accommodation.

What is the Sealine F33 like as a family cruiser for short trips away (long weekends)? Are the 170hp engines adequate or does one really need the 200s? Does she give a reasonably soft ride?

Any views appreciated.

 

[Guest]

If you are going bigger, get a boat with shafts not outdrives. Depending on your budget consider 33/35 ft Princess/Fairline/Birchwood on shafts. Better balanced, nicer handling boats and much smaller maintenance bills. Do not go American except maybe Grand Banks and view continentals with suspicion. Upmarket look at Broom

Nick

 

[Guest]

"do not go American" Why? I've had American boats for 4 years now and all in all they have been far superior to the British built one I had before them.If you have a reasoned argument-give it, don't make general sweeping statements. Having had my rant, Sealine S34 and f33 are on my possible list for my next boat, along with an Italian and a Canadian but no Americans!!

 

[Guest]

American boats in my marina (Kip on the Clyde) are largely 20 - 30 ft sports boats which are inherently unsuitable for the Clyde and, I would argue, the UK. They almost exclusively have outdrives which, having been boating for around thirty years, I consider much less reliable than shaft drive as well as less easy to handle (especially single engined varieties).

As to makes, I did qualify it a bit. Grandbanks are fine and built like the proverbial brick lavatory. Maxum (larger ones) seem OK. Carvers in our marina all suffer from rusting brightwork and none have been able to take davits without some form of strengthening. Bayliner, to be fair, I have not seen a larger Bayliner but the smaller ones seem to focus more on the stereo and paint job rather than things like access to foredeck, ground tackle, etc. The only other ones I have seen are basically speedboats and I would not attempt to rate them against other speedboats through ignorance - they may be fine. However, the question was about 33 foot flybridge cruisers and, fundamentally, in terms of whats in our marina, most American boats do not stack up either in build quality or as a financial investment against the homegrown equivalents.

I hope that is specific enough!

Nick

 

[Guest]

Have just replaced a Sealine 310 (forerunner of 330/33)with a 365 sportsbridge because I find smaller flybridge boats (I've had two) a little unsociable with me 'driving' up on the flybridge and everyone else in the cockpit drinking wine and having a good old chat - there is only limited room for socialising up top. Apart from that I found the 310 a good boat for two and occassionally four for up to two weeks at a time - however the side cabin was not really suitable for adults and lacked stowage - I'm not sure about the 330/33 in this rspect but its worth noting. I'm not afraid of outdrives (had three outdrive boats and two shaft drive) and had virtually no problems. So far as the ride is concerned the 310 was a competent enough sea boat but fairly light with a large 'windage' and thus could be a handful in a stiff breeze, I expect the 330/33 would be similar.

 

[Guest]

We currently own a yr 2000 S34,which is the same hull as the F33, and has various other simularities. We have the KAD 32's, and I feel that while they are reliable and fuel effiecient engines, I do feel that they are not really up to the preformance that the hull is capable of delivering. Sealine says she will cruise at 30knts, but we have never gotten more that 27-28 out of her flat out. With more weight in the F33 I would recomend the bigger engines, Though this will detract from what is excellent access to the engines that I enjoy with the S34. I would skip the 200hp engines, as these are not supercharged and do not have much of a advantage over the KAD 32's with their low torque, go for the 230hps if you can stretch. Saying that if you are not to fussed about mid 20's knts preformance, and want good economy, excellent access, then the 32's are probably OK. I havnt seena ny evidence that the bigger engines attract better resale. As for handling, I have been very pleased with the S34, though she can be a handfull in a following sea. Get a bowthruster, and any disadvantage from the outdrives will be overcome at low speeds. She will spin on the throttles, though you need to apply a lot more power. Have you looked at the S34? We went from a Fairline 36 Sedan and found that the accomodation is excellent with two good cabins, and great deck space. The canopy system is excellent as well, and no social problems from driving up top while everyone is having fun down below. Shafts are goood and stable, but at this size of boat you lose a lot of space, (unless you go v drive) and I have a sneaking suspicion that you are looking at a 2 or 3 year old boat versus 10 years which you would need to get if you were looking Princess 35 or 330 or Corsica.

We have spent weeks on board our S34 as a couple, and often have 4 people on board for weekends, space is no problem, (but the kitchens a bit small!)Compare this to the F33 and I dont think that a small family would have any problems with extensive cruises on this boat.

Get a good survey, including a engine survey and oil analysis. Have fun

 

[Guest]

Given a likely budget of 90-100K you could consider 3-4 year Sealine or an older shaftdrive boat. A good choice would be the Princess 388, Fairline Corsica, or maybe even a Turbo 36.

Doug A

 

[Guest]

Thanks, Doug that's really helpful.

You're right, I am after a boat thats a couple of years old. Fairline/Princess don't go as small as I need now (I think my current Fairline is great). Personally, I like the sportscruiser layout but the family like the idea of a warm centrally heated cabin for the early morning/late evening passages one tends to do when escaping for the weekend.

Sounds like the bigger engines are the solution - trouble is if a boat's underpowered, there's nought to be done about it. At least if they're too big, one can throttle back! My ideal cruis is 25 knts so I'll heed you advice.

Many thanks again.

John Rob

 

[Guest]

I know this is a matter of personal choice but I owned a Sealine 305 (forerunner of F33/330/310) many moons ago and I would strongly reccomend that you look at a shaftdrive flybridge boat, older if you have to. As a floating cottage the F33 is fine but the combination of outdrives and flybridge on a relatively short and light hull makes the boat a bit of a handful in the marina in windy conditions ( even with a bowthruster) and less comfortable in boisterous sea conditions

I dont know your budget but take a look at the Sealine 360/F36 (MBM took one of these around Britain), Princess 35 or 360, or Fairline 36 Turbo or Sedan. But, if you're still smitten by the F33, make sure you have a good long test run on a windy day

 

[Guest]

We spent 6 months trying to decide between an F33 and an S34. The final decision was to to go for the S34 due to better second cabin (2 singles rather than a double for the kids), more sociable cockpit and a better ride. Shorter flybridges tend to roll a little too much for some people. On a recent trip we were in convoy with several boats including an F33, just watching it in the water confimred we had made the right decision.

Originally I ordered the 41's but after talking to several people (including volvo at the London boat show)changed to KAD32s (better low end performance) and added a whole lot of extras including a bow thruster. After the last few weeks weather (we took delivery in early March) the heating has also been well used. Would never have a boat without a bow thruster or heating now!

Get 30 knots with the KAD32's, cruises comforatbly at 24 knots. Low end performance is good, a few more knots at the top end would be nice if rarely used. You really need to go for the 44's if you want the performance. However 20K is a lot extra to pay for the improvement.

Hope this helps.

 

[Guest]

Youve managed to get 30knts out of yours with the Kad 32's? Any tips as to how? I just cant get ours above 28knts, maybe she isnt broken in yet properly, how much gear etc are you carrying? The frustrating thing is that she is really just starting to feel comfy at about 27 knts, so you know that if we could get her above 30 she would be a great drive. We do tend to have quite a bit of stuff on board, but not that much really!

 

[Guest]

Doug, 30.2 knots to be precise. Have to say it is slowing down a bit now as we load her up and accumulate marine growth. Got 29 and a bit last weekend.

Forgot to add the number one most important thing to do with a new S34 - replace the matress in the forward cabin with something softer!

Mark