Southerly 42 - any opinions?

Here's another one; a YBW report available for sale as a download of this very site;


Lifting keel pivot wears and shears
Jul 1999 p106-107 (1.50 pages)
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Category: Practical, maintenance & repair
Author: Stuart Tann
Description: Boat Craft
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The stuff's out there if you look - unless you don't want to know that is . . .
 
I saw a couple recently ashore in Holland. I expressed interest and was told they perform poorly under sail. I don't think that was 1st hand info so anyone with direct experience care to comment?
 
The Southerly is a quirky boat, I have been on a few and my impression is that Southerly sells it's boats to the wives. Don't get me wrong I quite like them, but I am not sure I could live with one. A lot of them have self tacking jibs, and while I do think the swing keel is a bonus, I don't think it is made of lead.

The main thing I don't like is the glitz over function. I want lockers and lot of them, I like to keep a tidy boat and if there aren't enough lockers the place becomes a mess. There are some nice big windows in the saloon, but few lockers and it is not much better in the cabins.

With the budget you have there are quite a few options, but the Southerly is probably still going to be one of the faster boats in the list (Except the CR400). Other deck saloons I would consider are CR Yachts CR400DS, Regina 38 Sunbeam 42DS.
 
snowleopard said:
I saw a couple recently ashore in Holland. I expressed interest and was told they perform poorly under sail. I don't think that was 1st hand info so anyone with direct experience care to comment?
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I think there is a big difference between old southerlies (which I've also heard as not being great sailers) and the new ones that have been designed by either Humphreys or Jones. The exception is the 46 which is a Ker design and going on numbers alone meets all the criteria for a very fast boat indeed.
 
snowleopard said:
I saw a couple recently ashore in Holland. I expressed interest and was told they perform poorly under sail. I don't think that was 1st hand info so anyone with direct experience care to comment?
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Yes Snowy. I can. I have sailed one and my mate used to have one. They sail very well indeed and the windward performance is as good as most fin keel cruising boats. You will always get outright racers that do better but they are infinitely better than the only other viable shallow draught alternatives, namely cats and bilge keelers, to windward.
I have also helped refurbish several and would answer Searush as follows.

Anything mechanical needs maintainance. The Southerly swing keel is simply the most robust design I know of, but you can't possibly have any form of lifting keel without some periodic maintenance. With any lift or swing keel the lifting, sliding, swivelling (whatever) parts will wear. This is not helped by gravel, mud, or other **** getting in the slot. With the Southerly it is impossible to wreck it by hitting anything head on or grounding unintentionally. It simply swings up. The cast iron casing is massive and not only a very robust casing, but a huge iron grounding plate. If you don't need or want shoal draft don't buy one, but if you do (I have already mentioned that I looked seriously at one for more european canal work recently) they are simply the best engineered lifting keel I have ever seen.
 
Have you considered a Malo 40 Classic - the big cockpit with its Targa arch and glass windscreens makes it almost like a deck saloon. We live and sail in Scotland and do 90% of our eating up in the cockpit - can even keep it warm with the central heating! Also when sailing your are really well protected from the elements.

We did not buy it for this reason, but has turned out to be a real bonus. Just back home from a night on it and eating dinner in the cockpit - a sunny, but cool and windy evening, and we were as snug as being inside a deck saloon.
 
They are also great for the Caribean and East Coast of the USA. The quoted comments from the USA sounds like his yard either didn't know what they were doing or were taking him for a ride. I know several Southerly owners who have had their boats a long time and haven't had any hassles like that. Several of them are now in the process, or have just got their second southerly. As someone said before, owners tend to hang onto them for a long time.
I cant comment on the older generation boats, but the current generation sail well and the 36, 42 and 49 all have plenty of stowage for the size of boat.
Go to www.distantshores.ca and start reading from the Feb 2007 newsletter/blog archive and you'll find that the 42 is a great passage maker and long term liveaboard.
 
Seven Spades said:
The Southerly is a quirky boat, I have been on a few and my impression is that Southerly sells it's boats to the wives. Don't get me wrong I quite like them, but I am not sure I could live with one. A lot of them have self tacking jibs, and while I do think the swing keel is a bonus, I don't think it is made of lead.

The main thing I don't like is the glitz over function. I want lockers and lot of them, I like to keep a tidy boat and if there aren't enough lockers the place becomes a mess. There are some nice big windows in the saloon, but few lockers and it is not much better in the cabins.

With the budget you have there are quite a few options, but the Southerly is probably still going to be one of the faster boats in the list (Except the CR400). Other deck saloons I would consider are CR Yachts CR400DS, Regina 38 Sunbeam 42DS.
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I tend to agree with the above. The current s Southerlys are very nice boats but to my eye have gone for looks and the US market, rather than practicality. The older versions such as the Southerly 135 are in my mind more seamanlike and practical, with a proper forward conning ability below decks. This has been lost on the recent models. Regina, CR, Nordship and poss Nauticat (although some of their cockpits are rather high up) would be preferable for my money.

One pays ones money and makes the choice!
 
Again - many thanks to you all for your comments and suggestions.

As a mobo man for most of my life - (despite starting dinghy sailing at school and some recent flotilla sailing holidays) it is the accomodation/ cheaper fuel/ and the ability to keep SWMBO happy in the manner of comfort that she has come to expect from motor boating that matter. ;)

The nearing prospect of retirement will give us the time and the opportunity to spend longer getting to places and enjoying the time there as opposed to what is now happening - dash over to France/CI etc. quick break - dash back to work on the Monday morning.

Bring it on.
 
We've made the change from power to sail.........

and after much deliberation we went with Nauticat. The pilot house was loved by my wife and offered some of the good qualities of our mobo. The quality is lovely, its an understated design and feels immensely safe. One of the things which concerned me with the change from 25kts to 6kts was the increased potential to be caught out in bad weather. We used to do 150miles in 7 hours no problem - no longer! So if you are out there when it all goes to rats I wanted a boat that was offering better than average odds of being able to withstand the onslaught in some security and (relative) comfort. My experience after five years of Nauticat ownership supports this quality in spades. I did see a Southerly at the Earls Court show a few years ago and yes its nice but I don't think its quite Nauticat. Well at least we wouldn't change but we are horribly biased!

rob
 
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