Westerly - Berwick or Longbow?

Same boat. Longbow is fin keeled, Berwick is twin keeled. Renown and Pentland are the aft cabin versions. All came as sloop or ketch.

Ketches and aft aft cabin versions have wheel steering.

Different interior layouts were available.

The Berwick was the most poular I think but the vital statistics including numbers made are in the list of models on the Westerly owners association website

The WOA forum is available to nonmembers as well as members.

There is also a WOA Yahoo discussion group

Either of thse two will get you answers to specific questions but opinions will of course be biassed in favour of Westerlies
 
The differences are pretty minor, bilge keel has less draft & dries out easily, but may not point quite so well.

I have a Pentland - they seldom change hands tho'. I have had mine for about 20 years & she still fits my needs perfectly. Not bad accom ( 6 berths in 3 cabins with centre-cockpit/ aft cabin version) sails well enough for my needs (& often surprises other cuisers) Ok for a crew of 3-4, or can be singlehanded easily enough.

Oh, & she has appreciated over the years I have owned her. Just replaced the 35year old Volvo MD2B after a couple of rebuilds. Any of the Laurent-Giles designs will make a sound cruising boat.
 
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I have a Pentland

[/ QUOTE ] Is the main cabin a bit shorter in the aft cabin versions?
 
The Berwick is often said to be slower to windward than the Longbow, as is also the Pentland supposed to be slower than the Renown. Whether these statements are true or not I have no idea! I suspect that they are the result of prejudice against bilge keels. Any the ketches are slower than sloops but have more string to play with. And a bowsprit, which is good when at anchor.

I have a Renown and am very happy with it. This does not stop me looking at other boats however. Every boat is a compromise and I have not yet found one that suits me better. The only thing I would change however is the rig. The ketch rig is fun to play with but makes for a crowded cockpit and makes rigging a cockpit tent difficult on the after cabin versions. The after cabin is seldom used for accommodation (judging from my contacts with other owners) but is a great gear store. Mine holds not only the Avon and outboard, spinnaker and rigging, extra fuel in cans, a second loo and also a workbench and piles of bits of wood for all the wee jobs I did not get done when fitting out.

Go for either Berwick or Longbow or even Pentland or Renown. You won't regret it.

(Wight Dawn is not for sale by the way!)
 
Over 2 ft shorter...

[ QUOTE ]
Is the main cabin a bit shorter in the aft cabin versions?

[/ QUOTE ]It's over 2ft shorter. The aft cabin versions are quite convenient for occasional guests, but the space usually gets used for storage! I bought a new Pentland ketch in 78 and it was £19500. Simultaneously, I bought a new detached 4-bedroom house in Essex for £23000. Don't times change!
 
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[ QUOTE ]
I have a Pentland

[/ QUOTE ] Is the main cabin a bit shorter in the aft cabin versions?

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, just as the boom is shorter on the ketches. Loadsa room tho' nonetheless. Aft cabin doesn't have much headroom but makes a great pilot berth on passage. Helmsman can call you without leaving the helm & you can stand alongside him without getting out of your sleeping bag!
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What I dont like about the ketches is the bowsprit.. The Berwick I sailed for many years had the ketch type bowsprit for unknown reasons. It was a Westerly demonstrator originally.

The forestay went to the stemhead not to the end of the bowsprit like the ketches (and there was no bobstay fitted) but the anchor roller was at the end of the bowsprit. The problem was that the pulpit rail sailed out away from the side of the boat to go to the end of the bowsprit which meant that while lifting the anchor, which we stowed on the deck, onto the roller one was liable to step into thin air and fall off the bow, accompanied by the anchor. The position of the forestay on the stemhead made it even more difficult as one had to step round it. Apart from the fact that the forestay is not in the way the situation on the ketches must be very similar.

Another point to remember is that the bowsprit makes the boat longer and it may just go over 10m LOA (certainly will with a boarding ladder on the stern) which can make it a whole lot more expensive in a marina. More than £1k extra in the one I checked out about a year ago
 
Never had any problem with my standard bowsprit/ anchor arrangement. The bowsprits are so d@mn short as to be irelevant anyway - but do add a little style to the design. Mind you they are a bit "Boxy", but the extra length seems to hide that better than on the Pageant or Centaur. The 33' & 36' models look even better but were beyond my price range at the time & I can't be bothered upgrading now for the minimal benefits.
 
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