Walkaround Boats vs Traditional Small Cruisers.

Alistairr

Alistairr

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Typical Friday, and i have too much time on my hands, so too waste some of it, i'm been looking at boats, and in particular those boats Mr Banks is going to be dealing in.

From what i can see in the pics, the cabin looks quite compact, obviously as a result of having a walkaround, why do the likes of Westline, Aquador, Nimbus, Nova, Windy and other Scandinavian makes all compromise on interior space to have a big walk around, or does it make for better performance?
Is the hull design that different, too the likes of Sealine and the S25, which is of a similar size and price, but gives far more cabin space?
Most American and british boats are built with very small side deck areas if any, and bigger cabin, Can it be compared to one being like a sports car, and the other being like a camper van????

I have no interest with any of the companies mentioned apart from i own a Sealine and quite like the Westline W24.

Cheers

Al.
 
I think its very much a case of "what do you want" in your boat?

Having retired and reached the geriatric stage of life, I think the walkaround side decks on my boat are fantastic. Despite being the smallest boat I have owned - it is without a doubt the safest one for us.

Going to the foredeck to pull the anchor is as safe as houses.
We fish a bit and its a pleasant experience to walk to the foredeck and have a comfortable seat on the roof of the forecabin.

In our case, the side rails come up to my chest - so there is virtually no chance of an accident when moving around the boat.

I am prepared to sacrifice 2 feet of wheelhouse width - and slightly less from the forecabin to pay for this safety.
 
The other thing with the Scandi boats you mentioned is they are all performance orientated. Generally, they will have much deeper V hulls and be a bit narrower than the Sealine/Bayliner/Maxum/Bavaria type boats. While this does limit the amount of space down below, the boat performs better at speed and if much better in any kind of inclement sea.

You wouldn't expect to get 5 people and luggage in your car if you bought a sports car now would you...
 
I've been looking at a lot of walkaround boats lately and I think they suit my needs better than non-WA boats.

My usage will vary from single-handed to incompetant geriatric crew to experienced crew. In all cases I find the ease of walkaround and less cabin space to be the right compromise for me.
 
Ok, thanks guys so far.

So you're saying the deeper the V the safer and better performing boat? Is that performance as in speed, or performance as in rough water handling?

Just been looking on Sealines site, there is no mention of how deep the V is, what is the W24?

Cheers,

Al.
Have a good weekend all.
 
You see I'm still trying to talk my wife into moving too the Sea, she very worried about the safety aspect, and to be safer i think a walkaround might be better, but so far all the walkarounds we've looked at seem to be limited in its accomadation, which to a female seems to be ver important.
I need ammunition guys to go to SWMBO and say these boats are better because.....

Cheers

Al.
 
Being a walk round does not necessarily make it safer for the sea. You do not tend to walk around a WA at sea unless we are talking Fleming 55 etc!
We have traded down to a smaller boat ( Nimbus Nova 26 ) mainly because we are the stage where we wanted a day boat that was great for the dog and grand-children. Every one stays put when we are at sea, but the walk-round bit comes in when we are back on the river or safely moored up in Salcombe or a local cove.
The limited accomodation does not worry us as we never sleep on board.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Is that performance as in speed, or performance as in rough water handling?


[/ QUOTE ]

Performance as in rough water handling, at the expense of some top speed. I think Sealines are middling vee, and for UK conditions, a reasonable compromise. A deeper Vee will give better handling and a softer ride in rough conditions.

My boat is deepish vee (a bit of an oddity because it's also a mass production Yank tank) and there are days when I'm quite glad of that, even in the Solent. From the point of view of young kids , a walkaround probably gives more of a sense of security, though we've had our boat since my youngest was about 5 and I've never been too bothered. However, if he'd been a toddler, I might have felt differently.

I think the fact that Scandinavian boats tend to have this configuration reflects the fact that: (a) their climate don't generate as great a demand for sunbathing space as most US boats and, (b) they can face more challenging weather, more of the time and want the greater perception of security on deck that a walk around brings. The price you pay for this is less internal space. It's all a compromise, innit? /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Yes they did. The 850R from about 94 until the wing regulations changed in 96. Actually had a low drag coefficient than the salloon, but new regs meant you could have a monster rear wing so long as it didn't go hiher than the roof line, which meant the estates were redundant.

Don't see the relevance though...
 
I only bought the boat at the end of August last year. However it was based in Jersey and I had to wait 2 weeks before I could bring it back.
We went over from Poole on the Sea Cat and the trip over was a little bouncy to say the least!
We slept on board that night wondering what the morning would bring, we were up early and left St. Helier for St. Peter Port. The seas were BIG until we reached Corbiere and we were on the throttles constantly as we climbed and surfed the waves.
From Corbiere to St. Peter Port we opend up a bit and cruised at 20-25 knots. After breakfast we left for Dartmouth and started at 20-25 knots in a moderate beam sea. As we approached land we managed to run at 30 knots in the reducing conditions.
It was the first time I had driven the boat and was over the moon with the performance.
The chap who came with me owns a Seward 49 and he was very impressed by the handling.
 
Check out the Jeanneau leader 805, you'll be amazed at hom much cabin space there is compared to a sealine S25 and the leader has a proper separate mid cabin for only a foot longer and it has a walkaround deck..
 
Uhhh, you got that one wrong Jez, they have a seriously deep v!!! I've triend the Cap Camarats and the leaders and unlike the yank boats for their size you can take them out in the rough stuff.
 
Yes we really lilked the Leader 805, were on one a few years back. but couldn't afford it, loved the fact it had a seperate aft cabin.
Didn't like the fact i couldn't stand up in the cabin, and worst of all we thought the canopy system was dreadful, with too many gaps in it.

Cheers

Al.
 
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