Talk Me Out of an Amel

[ausnp84]

It's a rainy day here in Portugal so after a bit of you-tub'ing, I found this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqonNcACzDQ

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[johnjuliano]

SV Delos out of Seattle is an Amel, much like what I think you are looking for.

The Youtube channel and website have many followers. They sail with as few as two crew for long distances to a crew of seven.

Watching the channel and corresponding with them directly may be worth your time.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvL...11EIF1lEo0VmuQ

Delos Sailing Crew | We just wanna make you smile!

[rognvald]

Scott,
You haven't mentioned what kind of boat you own now. Do you have experience in sailboat maintenance? Do you understand boat systems? Have you sailed a 50 foot plus boat? Will the boat suit your immediate and long-term needs and do you have the time to maintain a boat of this size? These are the most important questions you must ask before choosing any type of boat. However, the Amels I have been aboard are well-constructed with good attention to detail. There are some specific and generic negatives you might want to consider:
1.) ketch rig--two masts, twice the rigging, twice the maintenance, twice
the cost when hauling
2.) the offset helm is odd at best. On a starboard tack you will have
restricted visibility to starboard as you are sitting in a "hole"
3.) deep draft has its limitations in the tropics. Are you doing mostly
deep water sailing?
4.) Do you plan to maintain everything on the boat or will you have
to pay for services? If the latter, you better have deep pockets.
5.) Can you live with the boat if it has been wired for Europe?
If not, are you willing to pay for the re-fit?
6.) Where will you keep the boat in North Florida? What will it cost?
Are there local marinas that can haul the boat based upon size
and displacement?
To me, the question is not really about an Amel, which most would agree is a well-built boat, but rather are you prepared to purchase a boat that you might not be capable of handling or maintaining to proper standards or be a good fit for your present and future cruising plans? If this is not a problem, then I would not hesitate to buy an Amel. Good luck and safe sailing.

[Imprezza72]

And if Delos wasn't enough for your appetite you can check out John's videos.
https://www.youtube.com/user/alaskawings/videos

[SaltyMonkey]

Interesting deck space and hw. √
Give me a real pilot house. X
Lousy galley. No storage. X
Hate the latches on the cabinets. Fingerprints everywhere X
Nice Nav √
Nice deep head sinks √√
Shiny varnished walls everywhere make me want to barf from seasikkness. XXX

I enjoy these YM videos.

[daletournier]

The SM Amel has heaps of storage, im really not sure how some can conclude they don't. They sail well, there's no doubt. Heaps of headroom. Yes big draft, but these things travel the world with few Draft issues. The galley isn't just functional, its very good.
It really comes down to personnel taste, once you've got a boat like an Amel its really diminishing returns after that. They have also come down in price on sh market, there's some great value out there.
Other than there looks there's not much not to like as far as a world cruiser goes.

Sent from my GT-N7105T using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[AiniA]

I can't talk you out of an Amel. I like them and the Admiral loves them. If money was not an object then I suspect we would have one. Something I found very instructive is that when you get a long way from home the number of Amels you see, as a proportion of how many were made, is huge. When we were in Darwin, Oz waiting for the Sail Indonesia rally to start there were three Amels within 50 feet of our boat. I don't think any other manufacturer had more than two (and we are talking huge manufacturers like Beneteau having two). In the vast majority of cases each manufacturer was represented by one example.

Not a huge fan of ketches, I can see their advantages and disadvantages. Once you are over 50' might be a good idea though. The fake teak on the older boats is horrible, less of a problem with newer ones.

[Nadezhda]

The Amel are great boats and worth every penny. The downside is colour. If you don't go for the custom job then what are those blue floors below deck? Also the topsides just look a bit 1970's and like you want to polish out the stain. Otherwise....please see first sentence.

[duefocena]

Found a Super Marabu for a friend this year for "bargain" price of $75k. Water intrusion and electrolysis made it worth less than zero IMHO. Seems it had problems from the start according to the log and I'm sure it isn't indicative of most Amel's. Ketch rig seems "old school" these days and advantages can be duplicated with a cutter reducing rig/sails/use of space.
There is one a few slips down from me that is Bristol but seldom goes out. When it does it seems exceeding slow for her length. While I am in double digits in 18kts/20kts it seems to hang in the 7kt category in full sail on same point. Captain of her said she "wallows" in a seaway more than others he skippers. I remember one in the roadsted in front of Lahaina Maui, we would use his mast light to find our boat as it would roll more than the other surrounding boats.Pretty though..... French.

[sailorboy1]

I wouldn't get one of the Amels that have a rounded settee in the salon. While it looks large the comfortable sitting arrangement don't appear to be there.

[reed1v]

They have a very good reputation. Personally do not like the lines, but otherwise am impressed with their construction from the one we saw several years ago. You might also check out the Oyster, about in the same class.

[Eleuthera 2014]

Originally Posted by Nadezhda

The Amel are great boats and worth every penny. The downside is colour. If you don't go for the custom job then what are those blue floors below deck? Also the topsides just look a bit 1970's and like you want to polish out the stain. Otherwise....please see first sentence.

The colour is a personal choice... it came in one color just like Model T's

We painted the "caulking lines" white. Reduces heat down below too

[Eleuthera 2014]

Originally Posted by duefocena

Found a Super Marabu for a friend this year for "bargain" price of $75k. Water intrusion and electrolysis made it worth less than zero IMHO. Seems it had problems from the start according to the log and I'm sure it isn't indicative of most Amel's. Ketch rig seems "old school" these days and advantages can be duplicated with a cutter reducing rig/sails/use of space.
There is one a few slips down from me that is Bristol but seldom goes out. When it does it seems exceeding slow for her length. While I am in double digits in 18kts/20kts it seems to hang in the 7kt category in full sail on same point. Captain of her said she "wallows" in a seaway more than others he skippers. I remember one in the roadsted in front of Lahaina Maui, we would use his mast light to find our boat as it would roll more than the other surrounding boats.Pretty though..... French.

I completely disagree; the grounds are very well thought out and electrolysis is a continuing maintenance problem due to no knowledge of how to ground the systems.

A junk SM can exist.. but not likely if maintained correctly. They can also wallow at anchor as the hull is rounded but if you use the boom and a flopper stopper, then nix sweat!

[accomplice]

Originally Posted by Eleuthera 2014

We painted the "caulking lines" white. Reduces heat down below too

Looks nice

[northwestsailor]

The advice you get on this forum is worth exactly what you pay for it. If Amels were that useless they would not still be in business after all these years. Every boat has issues and their pluses. One man's poison is....

I happen to like French boats but obviously other's on this forum think otherwise. My advice is to go see one and decide for yourself.