On the market but unsure which one

[Bulawayo]

Agreed .......from a dyed in the wool cat sailor I have to concede that Amels are great boats. Have you watched any of the You Tube series, S/V Delos?

[Vancouver Pete]

Originally Posted by Bulawayo

Agreed .......from a dyed in the wool cat sailor I have to concede that Amels are great boats. Have you watched any of the You Tube series, S/V Delos?

The Amels just don't do it for me, I understand they are well thought out have a great world wide cruising pedigree but the just don't strike that chord with me. Strange as I am a naturalised Frenchman Brit ex pat

[brightontrader]

Originally Posted by Mike57

I want to upgrade to a larger boat. I currently have a trusty Oceana 38 which has been good to me. I am considering one of the following – Hanse 575 / Discovery 57 / Oyster 575 / Amel 55 / Gunfleet 58 / Halberg-Rassy 55. I would prefer something safe and solid, great interior and quality, comfort with control – particularly in conditions over 20 knots, ideal for a couple, live aboard for ocean crossings and very easy to control from the helm station. I would appreciate words from some wise old salts please.

Its a big jump, 38' to 57'. I was looking to do something similar last year; going from 40' to 55-63'. When I looked at various boats I realised I really would need 2 crew for much over 50.....I looked at a Choey Lee 63 and a 55, plus some older Oyster 55s. The sheer cost of maintenance also was off-putting although I am relatively well off but recently retired.

Since then i bought a 46' (on deck) Dutch built custom pilothouse and even the 6' extra makes a huge difference handling in marinas, bow thrusters and all. but now I am worried that I didn't go large enough as I get used to handling her. (I single hand quite a bit but not exclusively.)

Another poster suggests a custom dutch built yacht, if you have the time to wait, and money, then you will get a quality build not (generally) found in production boats, and have a unique boat albeit at >$1.5M ish for 57'+

Just remember, adding length adds cubed everything else! (or maybe more/less but definately more!) What fun though, shopping for a large yacht is almost better than ...)

[Eleuthera 2014]

Hello Brightontrader,

I agree about the costs but size does not matter much as you already point out... at least not with sailboats.

My 1st boat was a 46 footer... this one is 53 and it is already limiting. SWMBO keeps buying "stuff" much of which will have limited functionality during a RTW... Oh well. :-)

[Tortuga's Lie]

I would also caution against going too big, especially when you age. I friend of mine loved to sail and would do the Caribbean 1500 a fair number of times on his Hylas 56 but the trouble was that he always needed crew, even for island hopping. His wife really didn't care for ocean passages and would meet him at the destination, but as he aged, he finally came to the realization that the boat was just too much to handle and that he needed something smaller and more manageable. If I were to move up to a larger boat for a crew of two, i would set my limit at around 45 feet. Why go larger for just two people? My 37 can be a tad small at times, but the cockpit is very comfortable, secure and that is where we spend most of the time anyway.

[Steamer]

Originally Posted by brightontrader

Another poster suggests a custom dutch built yacht, if you have the time to wait, and money, then you will get a quality build not (generally) found in production boats, and have a unique boat albeit at >$1.5M ish for 57'+

Just a word: I personally would feel fooled paying in excess of 1mio $/Eur for medium (to my personal opinion just poor) quality plastic hull.

"Bold name" production plastic boat claiming to deliver absolute safety in crossing oceans just because of a magic letters, like "A-category" one can read on a tin rag glued on hull? , No, "not always" true!

[Vancouver Pete]

Originally Posted by Steamer

Just a word: I personally would feel fooled paying in excess of 1mio $/Eur for medium (to my personal opinion just poor) quality plastic hull.

"Bold name" production plastic boat claiming to deliver absolute safety in crossing oceans just because of a magic letters, like "A-category" one can read on a tin rag glued on hull? , No, "not always" true!

I think you will find at that sort of price you are not looking at a plastic fantastic but a real boat, say something like this:

2003 Bestevaer 65S Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

[barnakiel]

I think any of the boats you named will do the trick. There is plenty of safety and comfort margin when buying big.

Depending on how many crew you expect to be sailing the boat, look at cockpit layout and hardware layout - these are definitely the limiting factors (if sailing short handed).

E.g. An Amel 55/54 etc is probably the easiest to sail for a small crew.

b.

[Sailing Mermaid]

Britonontrader:

Your ideas sound similar to those shared by my husband and I when we were ready to upsize. We went from 31' Cal to a 50' Taswell. Have you considered the Taswells? We shopped actively for four years finally eliminating the Oyster and ordering a Taswel. We have never regretted our decision. She has been perfect for the two of us. She's been trustworthy, safe, comfortable, reliable and is fun to sail. Our boat is heavy and sails steady in heavy winds.

Just the two us on onboard 95% of time thus safety was/is paramount. Unfortunately, the TaShing shipyard no longer builds the Taswell, so used is all that's available (to my knowledge).

Good luck in your search. You listed several great boats. We did fine going from 30's to 50 foot boat. You'll have a vivid appreciation for the space, storage, convenience, and ..... especially enjoy the walk in showers with seats.

Best wishes,
Sailing Mermaid n her Booty Pirate

[barnakiel]

575 is the pretty one and I think I like its salon best. A huge improvement on older Oysters. But a teak deck will not last so allow for that in your financing/buy/resell plans.

Amel 55 is also very pretty. I like its interior layout very much. It has amazingly safe and easy deck. No teak, no trouble, either.

The Amel will be easier to drive short-handed and has better offshore cockpit. The Oyster may catch more eyes and has better Med style cockpit.

If I only had this kind of problems choosing our next toy ... ;-)

You need a skipper perhaps?

b.

[brightontrader]

Originally Posted by Vancouver Pete

I think you will find at that sort of price you are not looking at a plastic fantastic but a real boat, say something like this:

2003 Bestevaer 65S Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Totally agree, beautiful yacht. There are a few, not many, of this type of yacht for sale. The only problem with them is the crowds standing around them on the dock wanting to come on board for a gander.....I think though for world cruising the panels, bimini,davits etc spoil the looks of these types.

PS: I was thinking Dutch and steel or aluminium too, not GRP, pretty much all their custom boats are metal..(mine is steel..so I am biaissed, its my second steel boat)

[EST128]

Originally Posted by brightontrader

I was thinking Dutch and steel or aluminium too, not GRP, pretty much all their custom boats are metal..

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[Svanen]

Originally Posted by Mike57

I am considering one of the following – Hanse 575 / Discovery 57 / Oyster 575 / Amel 55 / Gunfleet 58 / Halberg-Rassy 55. I would prefer something safe and solid, great interior and quality, comfort with control – particularly in conditions over 20 knots, ideal for a couple, live aboard for ocean crossings and very easy to control from the helm station.

Discovery, HR and Oyster will all meet your criteria. I can't comment on the others because I have no personal experience.

Originally Posted by Eleuthera 2014

They are good boats for the Med... I would not go into iffy weather with them. Hull shape makes them slam in rough sea conditions.

YMMV but that certainly has not been my experience. The above three makes are good sea boats and comfortable rides in heavy weather.

[brightontrader]

I know this is going to annoy Amel owners but IMHO, Amels are ugly...There is something missing in the lines.

Sure they are good sea boats, easy to handle, sail well, safe centre cockpits, built well, not cheap bla di bla, but where is the beauty, where is the love you must feel for your chariot home. (I also feel this about Prouts and Privileges, 60% of all other Cats and Westerlies built before 2000.)

Because I am bored and not going away on my newly acquired yacht this season, hence being on this forum, I think I am going to post a contentious new post about beauty and what is it that gets you with yacht lines.

I will have to register under a new name after this post or leave the board altogether if the abuse is too strong my thin skin can handle it no more, but what the hell..

[MIRELOS]

Aesthetics are very important to most of us, they are arguable though