Quote:
Originally Posted by NYCSavage
Get there early, the "try me" boats booked out in no time
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The "try me" was cancelled due to the gales....
Quote:
Originally Posted by NYCSavage
And look for Andy who is trying to sell Dufour 325 in the marina. Really nice bloke.
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I spoke with him, but so did the missus and she did not like the Durfours. Compared to the other boats she had looked at she said that the Durfours seemed very unfinished and poorly thought out. She pointed out that other boats like Beneteaus had the floor opening sealed with clasps but on the Durfours you need a screwdriver. If you want under the floor in a hurry it five seconds in a
Beneteau and five to ten minutes in a Durfour.
She did not like the Southerleys (all lifting keels with a "tombstone" in the middle of the cabin) and they all had terribly uneven floors. The upholstery was like sandpaper. One for the "hair shirt" brigade IMO.
People on here bang on about Island Packets but for us it was the worst boat in the show. Very disappointing. We felt it had an incredibly poor layout, bad use of space, etc. The Hanses, Halberg-Rassys and some other swedish boats were ok but did not feel as comfortable as the french boats.
She loved the
Catalina 375, the
Hunter Legends, the Jenneaus, the
Beneteau Oceanis (but not the Beneteau Firsts) and the Moody 41. I found the Beneteaus quite impressive and the
Oceanis 34 felt roomier than the Jenneau 36. The Oceanis 37 was a great boat.
All in all we had a great time. Very informative and the sales people were very helpful, especially on the Jenneau, Moody and Legend stands. The guy on the Legend 31 (too small for us) was really nice and we had a good long chat with him.
In short all the boats we liked were similar in a lot of ways, but SWMBO liked clear unobstructed
flooring in the
saloon, in the
cockpit and on the
deck. She rejected boats with travellers on the
cockpit floor and preferred them in front of the
companionway hatch or the Legends with their arch. Ideally showers should be separate from the loo seat and the "owners stateroom" layout aft.
So, having been down there she and I are happy to continue with the next stage of the
project - and better informed as well.
I only snapped a few pictures, but they are in this album
Cruisers & Sailing Forums - mintyspilot's Album: Southampton boat show 2010