Seaworthiness of Maxi 77

[Yiannis79]

Hello friends. I'm considering buying my very first boat, after a decade of sail racing and as skipper on charteted boats. There was a long initial list and after sailing some of the candidates and reading about them all, it's come down to two. They're both Swedish but I have found ample information on the Alvin Vega and much much less on the Maxi 77. I'm hoping to use it for offshore cruising in the Med, with its short wave and often choppy seas thus the thread title. Any views from experience with this sailboat are very welcome. Thank you.

[SoundOfSilence]

Hi Yiannis, we raced it once from Åsgårstrand in Norway to Skagen in Denmark. We were the smallest sailboat participating. The wind came up during the evening, blowing full gale from Skagen all night. Obviously it was a bumpy ride but we where at no point thinking about cancelling the race. Big was our surprise when we entered the harbour in Skagen and there was a line of people wanting to congratulate us that we where still alive. It appeared that 1/3 of the fleet had cancelled and either sailed back to Norway or found shelter in Sweden, included one which was more than 50 feet (don't remember the brand). One of the big racing boats told that the Owner had been floating around in the bilge all night and it had been a near death experience for him. In the bar in the evening, I heard somebody talking about us, he had bet some money that he would never see us again, haha!

Well anyway, we thought it was a good race. We were 4 young guys, well prepared with sailing experience and good sailing gear. The boat was completely dry inside and felt very safe.

But please note that this was not a full storm. A full storm in the Med can be a bit nasty and the best is to seek shelter with a small boat like that.

[Yiannis79]

Hi SoundOfSilince!
This is the kind of info I'm after in this thread and it definitely helps. Especially the bit about the boat being dry inside sailing upwind and of course being a boat you guys could depend on.
Thank you!

[SoundOfSilence]

By the way, there is a nice book about three guys sailing cross the Atlantic in a Maxi 68, not sure if it was published in English. Use google translate for this:

"Vinteren 1979 seilte tre unge nordmenn fra Lisboa over Madeira til De vestindiske øyer i en 22-fot stor (!) seilbåt, «Ormen Stutte». Etter et par måneders seilas rundt i Det karibiske hav dro skippern, Fredrik E. Lange-Nielsen alene hjem over Atlanteren. Han har skrevet en både festlig og interessant beretning om turen, og boken inneholder mange opplysninger som viser hvor langt man kan komme med en liten båt i den store verden."

Med "Ormen Stutte" dit pepper'n gror by Fredrik E. Lange-Nielsen | LibraryThing

My friend who owned the Maxi 77 lived in it for three years while we where studying.

[barnakiel]

It is just about what you can guess from looking at her: a small boat designed for protected waters (which can be somewhat lumpy in Scandinavia, even in the summer). And so you should be quite happy sailing one in the summer, in the Med.

Note all 77 are old boats and you will want to check all relevant areas and replace all critical elements before heading into any serious blow, esp. so if the boat spent any extended time in any marina in the Med.

Our friend four boats away is living aboard exactly this. So if you need any more detailed data, ask and I will try to look at the details.

PS They have pretty nice interiors but you will likely start with new windows - on his boat they are old lexan ;-(

Cheers,
b.

[Yiannis79]

Hi barnakiel.
The ones I have found up for sale in Greece or Croatia will have definitely spent quite some time in marinas. I can do most of the rigging work myself but it's the hull and especially the hull-keel joint that worries me most and which I am getting a surveyor for.
Interior-wise, I could do with unblocked passage to the forward cabin, but not at the expense of insufficient mast support. I suppose living with permanent pole-dancing infrastructure, is something one can get used to.☺
Thank you!

[masthugg]

Originally Posted by Yiannis79

Hi barnakiel.
The ones I have found up for sale in Greece or Croatia will have definitely spent quite some time in marinas. I can do most of the rigging work myself but it's the hull and especially the hull-keel joint that worries me most and which I am getting a surveyor for.
Interior-wise, I could do with unblocked passage to the forward cabin, but not at the expense of insufficient mast support. I suppose living with permanent pole-dancing infrastructure, is something one can get used to.☺
Thank you!

The keel-hull joint is strengthened from boat number 700 or so, some time in 1975.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Yiannis79

Hi barnakiel.
The ones I have found up for sale in Greece or Croatia will have definitely spent quite some time in marinas. I can do most of the rigging work myself but it's the hull and especially the hull-keel joint that worries me most and which I am getting a surveyor for.
Interior-wise, I could do with unblocked passage to the forward cabin, but not at the expense of insufficient mast support. I suppose living with permanent pole-dancing infrastructure, is something one can get used to.☺
Thank you!

OK. So you are a rigger. Make sure you replace the mast tangs as well then. And check the deck (chain-) plates. Mast tangs get often forgotten (?) and deck plates are hard to pull out at times; but it is silly not to inspect them every 10 years or so.

I have just looked up my neighbour's boat and the mast tangs look plain Hasselfors (now Selden) tangs and tees. The deck level gets somewhat complicated with eye fittings that may be custom made. If you pull them, should any be bad, you will have to think about what substitutes there are. You may be into manufacturing too.

The hull to keel joint is just that. If it looks wobbly, you simply do not buy the boat. If it looks perfect, it may be fine. Inspect in and out (on dry). Clean bolts, no rust and no wet line as the boat is drying are all good indicators. With the boat still in the sling come very close up and look from all angles - there should be zero deflection in the area.

Pole dancing is the preferred method and any new partner you may have will have to get used to. It is better than so many other small Scandinavian boats that are known for soggy decks and open center. Keep the pole, get good stereo for the pole dancing parties ;-)

BTW With the rudder designed as is, make sure you make a very very thorough check of the rudder and the adjacent fittings. I have seen a H26 going out to Madeira and returning back home (Canary Islands) once theirs developed an issue half way into the passage. Probably something one can avoid with timely inspection (-s).

And the last thing is the saildrive. I am not sure they all have saildrives but I think my neighbour does. These are best serviced on dry, so whatever goes it goes, replace anything iffy and make sure the drive is perfect before you go sailing. Otherwise people at times run into situations that a boat has to be lifted while not every harbour has a lift and a hardstand. So avoid any possible trouble there by making the saildrive like new before you go sailing.

Have fun,
b.

[masthugg]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

OK. So you are a rigger. Make sure you replace the mast tangs as well then. And check the deck (chain-) plates. Mast tangs get often forgotten (?) and deck plates are hard to pull out at times; but it is silly not to inspect them every 10 years or so.

I have just looked up my neighbour's boat and the mast tangs look plain Hasselfors (now Selden) tangs and tees. The deck level gets somewhat complicated with eye fittings that may be custom made. If you pull them, should any be bad, you will have to think about what substitutes there are. You may be into manufacturing too.

The hull to keel joint is just that. If it looks wobbly, you simply do not buy the boat. If it looks perfect, it may be fine. Inspect in and out (on dry). Clean bolts, no rust and no wet line as the boat is drying are all good indicators. With the boat still in the sling come very close up and look from all angles - there should be zero deflection in the area.

Pole dancing is the preferred method and any new partner you may have will have to get used to. It is better than so many other small Scandinavian boats that are known for soggy decks and open center. Keep the pole, get good stereo for the pole dancing parties ;-)

BTW With the rudder designed as is, make sure you make a very very thorough check of the rudder and the adjacent fittings. I have seen a H26 going out to Madeira and returning back home (Canary Islands) once theirs developed an issue half way into the passage. Probably something one can avoid with timely inspection (-s).

And the last thing is the saildrive. I am not sure they all have saildrives but I think my neighbour does. These are best serviced on dry, so whatever goes it goes, replace anything iffy and make sure the drive is perfect before you go sailing. Otherwise people at times run into situations that a boat has to be lifted while not every harbour has a lift and a hardstand. So avoid any possible trouble there by making the saildrive like new before you go sailing.

Have fun,
b.

...or go the other way and use an outboard. With an outboard you may actually have zero through-hulls on this boat below the water line ( ther kitchen zink exits just above the waterline, port side.

[barnakiel]

Yep.

I have seen a Maxi 77 with an outboard while in Sweden. I think maybe it was an option like with early Marieholm 26.

Flat transom, good access, very easy to fit and use an outboard.

b.

[masthugg]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Yep.

I have seen a Maxi 77 with an outboard while in Sweden. I think maybe it was an option like with early Marieholm 26.

Flat transom, good access, very easy to fit and use an outboard.

b.

It's quite cumbersome with the high transom, but it works except for in high seas. I am looking to find a Tohatsu sailpro for mine, with ultra-long shaft (25 inch).

But, look at the transom of a Maxi 77 with an inboard and compare to one with an outboard. With an inboard, the boat sits on its ass. On mine, the transom stays above water with like 2-3 inch margin.

The maxi 77 is known to splash quite a bit when going against the waves (it lands on its flat hull quite hard, which excerts stress on the rig)

[cbreeze42]

I had a Maxi 77 for several years sailing it on Penobscot Bay. It was a fantastic boat and I miss it sometimes. Not sure what it'
s like on the Med but it can get pretty blustery here in Maine and the boat handled it with no problems. Love the Scandanavian boats. Now sailing a Danish Grinde.

[barnakiel]

Grinde is one of the most interesting boats out there. It is a fin keel, spade rudder double-ender.

The same designer created two or three similar boats:

Peter Bruun BÃ¥debyggeri

I have seen a Kaskelot up close. C R E A M

I have seen a Grinde go out to the West Indies too.

Cheers,
b.

[Yiannis79]

Great tip masthugg!
Thank you!

[Yiannis79]

The outboard always appealed to me as an option. Easier to maintain and service. The weight issue and the way it affects how the boat sits compared to an inboard is a good point. Maybe install a tank in its place to compensate? Just thinking...
Thanks for the input guys.