Venezia 42: In General

[RunningFish]

IMHO you made a wise choice in Steve Uhthoff. I met him when I purchased my boat - he knows his stuff and he's a great guy too.

[petert]

We haven't had much trouble finding getting a haul out. At least in the Florida area, there are plenty of choices.

There are times when we are charged more for moorage, but generally we ask for an outside slip where the width has little impact.

Be sure to check the saildrives and their fluids well. It's a high maintenance item and you don't want to be surprised.

Now that you are looking at a specific boat I would check:

• Check the escape hatch seals. Ours seem to be loose and not well adhered to the molded frame. Not a big deal, but if they are loose it may take on some water in a seaway (leaking around the hatch as at times they are under considerable water). Which leads to:
• Look for any signs of mold on the underside of the floor boards amid ships (next to the heads and at the bottom of the stairs).
• Have the rigging closely inspected
• Check for signs of mold along the floor of the forward compartments. These are generally used for storage and the hatch is left open when it rains or underway, the compartment gets wet and takes effort to get dry.
• Don't be afraid to completely pull off the matresses to be able to see into those deep corners. No monsters I am aware of, but it helps a lot.
• Check for signs of water entry below the mast step. This seems to be a leaky area, although I am not 100% convince it isn't something that happened last october.
• Take a shower in it if you can.
• We have had issues with the shower drain pump switch choking on us.
• Check for a propane shutoff celenoid. They weren't standard, we had to add one. (although the surveyor will should call your attention to it if missing).

I am sure there is more that is slipping the mind at the moment.

[petert]

Basketcase, in terms of a hardtop, this is the best image I could find on short notice. Note the rope lighting. Makes a great dining ambiance in the evenings.



This type of project probably isn't a great fit for most boatyards, thus the cool response.

This is really a specialized metal fabrication job, and so consider pursuing it that way. A marine focused fabrication shop, not right on the water, but back somewhere in a low rent industrial park, would do a better job for much less money. Ask around, they exist in most port cities, particularly ones with a fishing fleet (and the fishing guys know who they are).

The aluminum hardtop of Manta 42's built in Florida are the finest I have ever seen. See if you can find one walking the docks. Pure art. They cost $13,500 to produce a couple of years ago when I researched it. I think you could probably get something less than that, but probably not a whole lot less if the quality is good, I would guess at least $8k.

Design points to consider:

• Aluminum, hard top panels are the best, but more money. Have them painted white, to keep things cooler and run wires inside the supporting pipes for solar panels, speakers and lighting before you mount the top to the frame or the frame to the boat.
  
• Consider rolldown awnings on the two sides and aft (aft awning also visible in the picture). These make a huge difference in livability, particularly with kids.
  
• Have an outer edge included that acts like a gutter and directs all run off to two spouts in the forward corners, or four spouts, one in each corner. (in the photo above, I have circled the two barely visible spouts in red) Fit these with a 3/4 Female slip on and clamp type plumbing nipple. Have hose cut to the appropriate length and stored so you can catch and divert rain water directly to your water tank. (you'll need some Y type fittings to collect from more than one spout at a time)
  
  It's amazing how much you can collect in a passing squall (after allowing the first minute or two to run off and clean things) or better yet in a real down pour. We have timed it at a 2 gallons a minute, plus, and that's just using the forward two spouts, so theoretically, it's 4 gallons a minute if you wanted to work at it.
  
• It's ideal place for solar panels. There is room for 4 full size solar panels on ours, but the walking room is a little tight. Size your's accordingly if solar is in the plan.
  
• Also, notice the hatch over the helm station that is just barely visible. Obviously, this is absolutely essential. Our is 22" x 24" as I recall, and that's about right. You need to be able to peek out on both sides of the boom when it's directly overhead.

Don't get too spooked by the cost. It's a high value, high visibility addition that will make your boat more attractive when it comes time to sell. No guarantees, but you should get a fair amount of it's cost back.

[ireaney]

Hi, As a matter of interest do you know how many Venezia 42's were built as the Maestro model ie Starboard hull dedicated solely for the owner, I know this was an option, but have never seen one.
Also can you tell me how she performs in say 15-18 knots of wind with and without a gennaker in a slight sea state.

[petert]

Sorry, I don't have any ideas on the production count of the Maestro version.

In 15-18 knots of wind, I sail with a single reef in main (because it's a family trip) and the headsail completely unfurled.

In a straight beam reach (90 degrees to the wind) we make 8.2 - 9k with occasional bumps to 9.5 on a gust. I remember a particularly ideal day with exactly those conditions where I kept nursing the helm and traveler, trying to touch 10k on a gust. I think 9.8 was the best it got.

In general, I find that slightly half of windspeed is typically the top with a loaded boat. In 8-9 knots, you can touch 4. In 10, 5 and so on.

Another nice scenario I recall distinctly was motor sailing dead down wind in about a 12 knot breeze and quartering seas from the aft starboard. Motoring at about 2100, we averaged 9.5 - 10.5 for 53 miles to our destination. The apparent wind was nearly zero for much of the trip, with the main at times luffing and the boom wanting to meander around. Think preventer. But that little extra kick from the wind and waves made a huge difference as normal motoring is about 7.8 and motoring into a 10-12 knot headwind means about 5.8. When you multiply that by 6 hours, it makes a big difference.

Been said before be it's really true, gentlemen never sail to windward. Or put differently, dad's who want to fulfill their dream within a family context never sail into the prevailing seas, or even close. A few hours of pounding and you'll hear mutinous talk bouncing off the walls for days.

That's why I belive pointing ability is a much less important issue than the hard core sailing set understands. With kiddies and the wife, going much more than 40 degrees to windward is a deal breaker anyway.

You can have the best boat in the world, but if you screw up the family fun coefficient, you may as well have spent your money feeding horses.

[Therapy]

Wonderful insights.
Nice Pics too!
Thanks.

[ireaney]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Wonderful insights.
Nice Pics too!
Thanks.

Ditto and thanks for your reply Petert. Ian

[Wellington]

Thanks for your posts Petert. They make me consider the Venezia, which I had not included in my shortlist until now because of its "older design".

[petert]

Wellington - we just got back from another month aboard and while the pet peeves mentioned above still apply (headroom mainly) it's a great boat.

I am convinced the most dangerous element of sailing is Airplanes, or airline tickets more precisely. Time and again we had to move on days when we should have been hunkered down with a good book because there was a plane to catch. Either guests arriving, or departing or our own departure.

It had been blowing 25-30 for three straight days when we had to make the final leg to meet our plane. 10-12 foot seas, many larger breakers and 30 knots of breeze. We reached about 45 degrees off the wind in open water. We averaged about 9-9.5 SOG. It was a ride.

Double reefed main, reefed headsail. Other than flying off some waves and making mess of anything left unsecured in the salon, it was a great trip. The boat did wonderfully, no twisting or groaning etc. Like a rock. The wide hulls have tons of reserve buoyancy and it really showed.

Sadly, we have decided to sell our share of the Venezia, not because we don't like it, but because I got the green light from the lady in charge to sell our boat share and buy something of our own.

I've thought long and hard about getting our own Venezia, and haven't ruled it out. It's got some great pluses. But being able to stand up straight and cook a meal is something I don't want to give up on quite yet.

If you don't like to cook, or are 5'11" or less, in my opinion the Venezia is a great value.

[Cat_A_Tonic]

Interestingly enough one of the big florida cat brokers I talk to regularly says there never was a venezia meastro version built. That didn't come along until the Belize. I am not sure if this is true but I've looked at a lot of venezia's and have never seen a factory owners side. Were planning on converting ours actually, as many others have done, but doing it on the port side rather than the starboard side. We figured the stateroom has the nice extra storage since the batteries aren't there, plus is seems simpler to not have to navigate all the galley fiberglass when removing the center head. Otherwise it's probably the same.

To echo some of the comments above, were very happy with ours, it's a rock solid boat and a great value. Not a screamer on performance, but I always wave to the monohulls as I pass them up.

Any other FP owners on the great lakes? I think were the only ones in Chicago for sure.

-Chris

[Hyprdrv]

Hi BasketCase,
I recently purchased a cat and found Calvert Marina in Solomons a VERY cat friendly Marina and the prices are less than 1/2 of Annapolis. Zenhisers (sp) is across the creek and can haul you out for service. There are 4 cats in Calverts at this time. Bare bones but a nice place and easy to get on the Bay.

Steve

[ggray]

Get a copy of Skipper Bob's "Marinas..." for info on wide haulouts. Several places in Nofolk area, for example, that can handle you.
I'm thinking I paid about $4 k for a 60 hard/40 soft bimini (alum frame) on our Norseman 430. No spray screen, yet.

[multihull1]

what are anyones opinions on no watertight bulkheads in the bows please

[multihull1]

I just looked at a Venezia and didnt see any crash bulkheads in the bows. where are yours??

[Cat_A_Tonic]

The venezia has them in the bow and the stern. In the bow they are under the very forward single bunk. They are sealed and also foam filled. In the stern from the steps back are foam filled, not completely sealed though, a little open on the top inside the engine room. But foam filled so not much water could get in there. In addition, above the waterline is foam core which provides quite a bit of buoyancy as well. Attached is a great cad drawing of the boat from FP. Dark shaded areas are the watertight bulkheads.