39: Lagoon 39 Experiences?

[Bunt]

Hi Tony great list, a lot of what you wrote looks familiar to me. I had to laugh at removing the starboard stairwell handrail, we tried moving it back a few inches but still no good, everyone catches themselves on it. You've got a ton of coolers about, you must carry a lot of cans & bottles!

Originally Posted by Mardi Gras

Hello, we own Mardi Gras, a 2014 Lagoon 39 located in the BVI, hull number 27. For mods, I've done the following after taking delivery:

1. Installed 3 air con units, 2 ea 12k btu/hr units under the forward bunks, ducted to the aft cabin, forward cabin and fore peak berth. 1 ea 16 k btu/her unit in the salon.
2. Installed Northern Lights 9 KW gen set in port forward deck locker. Had to remove the 2 NDE factory potable water tank.
3. Installed 2 custom built 40 gallon potable water tanks under the forward berths. to restore my water capacity.
4. Magnum 2800 watt pure sine wave inverter.
5 replaced the house factory installed truck batteries with Lifeline AGM's
6. Extended the davits by 2 foot to be able to hoist a longer dinghy, installed a pair of wire stays to support the increased bending moment due to the extended length. dinghy does not scratch gel coat on insides of hulls now.
7. Doyle lazy bag
8. Eva Kool 120 liter cooler mounted behind helm
9. Magna SUP/Kayak bracket mounted to stantions
10. 12 inch Samsung tablet mounted to Nav table area, with Navionics boating, serves as second chart plotter along with android apps.
11. Modified jib sheet traveler block sheave to prevent it from hitting deck when sheet is loose or flogs.
12. Dometic Col freeze CF 50 place on shelf next to salon table
13 removed hand rail on starboard stairwell to allow better access to salon table seating.
14. Custom fitted quiet waterproof mattress covers.


Cheers,

Tony

[mikall63]

I did forget about one mod we made. When you talk about the starboard hand rail, this is what we had done.

Makes it very easy to get in and out of the seating area.

[mikall63]

Oops - attached at the wrong spot!

[mikall63]

One more time - sorry!

[Bunt]

Excellent @mikall63 I'd be surprised if they don't do that in the factory from now on.

[jbpatents]

Anyone still around? I'm considering buying L39, but two dealers are trying to persuade me otherwise. Saying it's a big flop. I like the boat but both say it would be very difficult to sell later if I decided to sell it. Comments?

[Mardi Gras]

We have owned our L-39, Mardi Gras for 2.5 years, still love it! We have her in charter in the BVI, to date we have had more than 40 charters on her from 5 nights to 14 nights. I have received numerous favorable responses from the charter guests. The sail plan on the new 42 has some of the same design features as our 39 as well as the 52; it appears this is Lagoon's direction. You should consider chartering a 39 before you make your decision, I think you will be pleased.

Tony

[jbpatents]

Thank you Tony. Some of their negatives: too difficult to get to the mainsail clew, too much pitching motion, too many sharp ages.

[Mardi Gras]

I don't understand the concern of getting to the mainsail's clew. Our mainsail is in a Doyle Stack Pack. I can stand on top of the hard bimini and reach the zipper to close up the stack pack. I'm a bit less than 6 ft tall. If there concerns was about the main's tack- it too is accessible from the top of the hard bimini/coach roof. It's a bit of a stretch to reach it. There is a collapsable mast step to get a little more height if needed.

Too much pitching- all boats in waves experience pitch, it's hard for me to judge if our's pitches more than other designs. I suspect the hull shape in cruising cats near this length are very similar and you would get similar reaction to waves. I have heard concerns of other designs about squeaking when in seas, our's is very quiet. I think this is due to the extra reinforcement in the structure to support the aft places mast.

Sharp angles- yes there are some sharp angles in the cabinetry, it's a visual thing. We have not had any injuries.

You might take a look at Bernard and Sandra's blog. They have been aboard their L-39 for about 2 years now.

Le Journal de bord de Ti'Amaraa

Tony

[PaulinOz]

What are they trying to sell you instead.

[arsenelupiga]

L39 is fine sail boat.

you need code 0. White sail are effectively first reef.

learn to trim sail will not be 1 day affair. One needs to practice and try long time.

When I purchased L400, first sail I managed 4.9 kn n 20 kn apparent beam reaching. Thought it is a bit condomaranish.

These days I push it to 10kn with screecher and around 9 white sail. Still more to go with my trimming skills.

L39 should do well against wind.

[Bunt]

Still have my L-39, after 2+ years no regrets on hull 64. Great bloody boat. Doesn't especially pitch vs. other catamarans that I've noticed. Mainsail clew is a bit of a stretch, they could have used a few more inches back on the bimini. There are a lot of sharp corners inside, downside is you're more likely to cruise in big seas but cats don't move around as much as monos. Benefit is more modern style and slightly better (rectangular) storage. Good boat but then the new Leopard 40' also a good boat. Lots of good boats. Suggest ignore the dealers (if no-one else ignore the dealers!) and make your own decision based on what's important for you. Good luck and have fun with it.

[Tweedledum]

I'm very happy with my L39 which I bought in July 2014.
There has been some negative sentiment towards this model on this forum and elsewhere - unfounded, in my opinion.
The negativity centres mainly around her perceived sedate performance. In common with other Lagoons the L39 is not a performance catamaran by any stretch of the imagination so it depends on your requirements and expectations. If you want fast, buy an Outremer....
There is no doubt that this boat is heavy for her size and under canvassed (white sails already reefed as mentioned above). However, you can add a Code Zero and/or Parasailor to improve things.
On the upside, the L39 is strongly built and comfortable. With her displacement, plumb bows and plenty of buoyancy forward I find her motion much easier than other cats I have been on. She feels very safe in high winds and rough seas. Also, the L39 is probably the easiest boat ever to sail singlehanded with self-tacking jib, and reefing lines falling easily to hand and main halyard managed with an electric winch.
As for the angular cabinetry in the interior - it's down to personal taste. Some people don't like it, I do.
If I were to start over would I buy a L39 again - YES I would.

John

[mikall63]

I agree with what has been said. We've had our 39 for almost a year now and absolutely love it. With that said, I have no other experiences, as this is our first boat. The edges have not caused us any concerns and I am only 5'5" and can reach things just fine. I agree, the cabintop a little further back would make it a bit easier.

[fabgo]

Lots of replies from owners. FWIW, I'm in the market for a catamaran and would pick the L400 over the L39 any day, even if I could get the 39 at a discount.

If brokers are advising you NOT to buy a particular boat, I think it's worth considering.