What boat can replace ex-hire Ocean 30? Ideas wanted!

[Cliveshep]

We wanted to replace our ex-hire Ocean 30 with a boat with equal or more beam and space, a larger cockpit, twin engines, but not massivly expensive-to-run ones, and capable of going down Thames to the Medway at around 10kts.

It should have an air draft not exceeding 7ft with windscreen/wheelhouse/pram hood/canopy easily folding down to make cruising the River Wey still practical as well as getting above the low Oxford bridges. We love our boating around in muck as well!

Has anyone here got any ideas? By the kindness of Dave Seager here on the Forum we have looked over his Princess 32 (which was our first thought) but the cabin with the narrower beam is a little cramped, so presumably the Project/RLM 31's would be the same. We're (I mean me actually) stumped! We cannot afford a new or even nearly new boat so it'll have to be an older one again. We usually cruise with minimum of 5, sometimes 6 or 7, and with visitors (all her friends!) get up to 12 aboard regularly so the stability of the Ocean is also important for any replacement.

 

[pheran]

How about a Birchwood 33? Nice beamy boat, roomy and stable with large aft-cabin with ensuite. Plenty of sitting about space in the wheel-house and up on the aft-deck. Air draft might be a bit of a problem for, say, Osney but there are a number of height-reduced or soft-tops around. Most are twin-engined and that hull makes for an excellent sea boat.

ps just remembered, a member of our club has converted his hard-top version so it can fit under Osney. Well worth doing.

 

[Cliveshep]

We looked at Birchwood 33's - nice looking boats. We haven't ever been aboard one though. I saw one up the top of the river last year, asked the lockkeeper just down from it and he thougfht they'd dismantled the wheelhouse to get it up there although a local averred they half flooded it and had loads of bodies to keep it low in the water. It still had a hard top. (it also had what looked like a patio deck on the rear cabin roof!)

A soft top one might be an option though. Thanks for that idea. Any ideas what power plant they have? They look fast which usually mean gas guzzlers.

 

[pheran]

I've heard of 33s with all sorts of engines, from a couple of smallish, normally aspirated Perkins up to turbo charged and intercooled 185s. The 120hp Fords were very popular and at river speeds, these aren't likely to bankrupt you. I had a Viceroy for 8 years, same hull but a flybridge and different interior fit-out. I re-engined that myself with 95hp non-turbo Ivecos. That gave me 12-13 knots at sea and on our cross-channel trips the fuel consumption was around 4.5 gallons/hour. On the river, they just sipped the stuff.
The guy in our club modified his boat by fitting arms that swung the wheel-house roof forward on to the cabin top and hinged the windscreen to allow it to fold. Took a bit of time (altho' a lot of that was working out how to do it) but I don't think a lot of loot was involved. I'm sure he would be more than willing to pass on his experiences if you were interested.

 

[Cliveshep]

Re: What boat can replace ex-hire Ocean 30 - Pheran

Many thanks for that little snippet and yes, I'd love to see what he did. Smaller engines do sound suitable, I guess it all depends on what's available.

From what I've briefly seen on Boats and Outboards there are not too many older Birchwoods about, in fact only one at present at £36k. The others are way out of our price range.

Thanks again.

 

[Cliveshep]

Re: What boat can replace ex-hire Ocean 30 - Pheran

As an afterthought, the Seamaster 30 (I saw one on Boats for Sale) seems to have loads of berths, either 6 or 7 with twin engines. Does anyone know if the wheelhouse can be converted on those? (They're also about £15 k less than the cheapest Birchwood!)

 

[Nautorius]

What about a NImbus 3000, or if you fancy a rear cabin a Nimbus 2700. Both Great boats. Some with twins but most with large singles capable of 20knots.

Cheers

Paul /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[pheran]

Re: What boat can replace ex-hire Ocean 30 - Pheran

The Seamaster 30 was avilable in (at least) three versions, the standard hard-top, the Lowline with much lower wheelhouse and windscreen and a soft-top. Either of these last two might meet your needs. All the 30s had modest non-turbo engines which wouldn't give much above 9 knots when new. But you're right - a lot of room inside.

 

[Sammo]

I used to have a seamaster 30 in the early eighties, it`s 11 foot beam made it a very roomy boat and the twin thornycroft 2.5 BMC units (as fitted to black taxis) easily attained the hull speed of about 7/8 knots. It was ok at sea in fact I kept it at Poole at the last and when I sold it we took it by sea to Bray on the Thames where it sold within hours.
The mouldings are perhaps a little flimsey with a reasonable thickness on the hull but the superstructure rather than having a balsa core has a single f/glass skin with battens set in.

A lot of boat for the money though.
….

 

[Chris_d]

Obvious choice by the sound of it must be a twin engined Ocean 30 surely!
I think most of the none hire versions have twin merc's which give 10kts, lots of them on the River Ouse.

 

[Cliveshep]

Re: What boat can replace ex-hire Ocean 30? Chris_D

Ocean 30 is good in twin version and you're right, lots on the Ouse where we used to be. However, they won't go across the Middle Levels because of that wheelhouse, whereas our ex-hire will.

Unfortunately, ours, along with a full canopy and folding screen has also got a cokpit cluttered with a single berth aft cabin, (total waste of cockpit space which could have made a double under the canopy) and only a single 1.8 Thorneycroft.

 

[ms1]

Re: What boat can replace ex-hire Ocean 30? Chris_D

sounds like the big challenge is Osney Bridge at Oxford at 7 foot 6 it does leave you many choices, whatever you go for will need to be a soft top of some kind of fold down which not awfully common in Birchwood 33 or Seamaster 30. On the ex rental market (eg The Broads are) you are more likely to get the air draft .. but not the power you want. There are some twin engined Freeman 30 softops on the Thames I dont know if that matches up to your criteria. With your regular crew numbers it does seem to point towards an aft cabin config. Its a tough one ..

 

[miket]

The boat that Chris refers to was the subject of an article in MBM, either current or last issue, written by the owner.
Cost of conversion was minimal but the owner is a practical chap.
Beauty of it is that with the wheelhouse up it is almost impossible to distinguish from standard.
In my view a realistic selling price for a standard B'wood 33 "Classic" (full width rear cabin) is £35k, in good order, and with narurally aspirated Ford 120 hp twin engines.