What Should We Look At?

[RichandHelen]

Sail. Newer. Price to $500,000. Intracoastal mast height. Keys keel depth. Luxurious wood interior. Seaworthy enough to transat. Bigger the better but couple-crewed. Ideas???

[Capt.Alex]

Check out the Hylas 46 or 49. Both ICW capable and ocean crossing capable. I am partial to Hylas as I am a happy owner.

[RichandHelen]

The 49 is fabulous! We are thinking it might be a perfect fit for us!

[RichandHelen]

We're back in Ft Lauderdale. Going to look at two Hylas 49's today. One has under 2000 hours on the engine but lacks a bow thruster and washer/dryer. The other has higher engine (recently serviced) time (3500 hours) plus the washer/dryer and bow thruster but has only one zone of a/c ( but is plumbed/wired to add the two other zones). Both are on Yachtworld and lie in Ft Lauderdale. Opinions?

[Kenomac]

A 50ft Trawler.

[RichandHelen]

Too rolly...

[tropicalescape]

Cherubini has a used 44 and can build a new one if interested or a 48...856-764-5319

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by RichandHelen

We're back in Ft Lauderdale. Going to look at two Hylas 49's today. One has under 2000 hours on the engine but lacks a bow thruster and washer/dryer. The other has higher engine (recently serviced) time (3500 hours) plus the washer/dryer and bow thruster but has only one zone of a/c ( but is plumbed/wired to add the two other zones). Both are on Yachtworld and lie in Ft Lauderdale. Opinions?

Do not choose a boat based on the washer and dryer. If you can afford this boat, you can afford to choose your own washer/dryer and get exactly what you want. I'm no expert on Air conditioning, but if you're going to hang around southeast Florida, you will need it all year -- maybe not 100% of the time, but there will certainly be times when you need it. That's a much bigger thing than moving a washer-dryer on. I would want to make sure the AC is adequate for the size of the boat. Also find out how it's powered. If it's solar make sure the solar system is designed to support it well along with the AC. You can choose more when to run the washer/dryer.

[JPA Cate]

Do not let the bow-thruster lack bother you. There are many tricks of the trade involving seamanly use of lines to help you dock and leave. You should not have to give up all the space that bow thruster represents, the boat should turn well enough without it. IMO.

Ann

[Kenomac]

Originally Posted by Rakuflames

I would want to make sure the AC is adequate for the size of the boat. Also find out how it's powered. If it's solar make sure the solar system is designed to support it well along with the AC. You can choose more when to run the washer/dryer.

Solar powered A/C?

[MARC D]

Check this one: Swiftsure Yachts (Seattle, WA)

You can't go wrong with a HR43. Ask for Pete McGonagle. A great guy!

[Gerrycooper56]

If a washer/drier is a concern I presume it's not for use on the dock so either the boat should have reasonable water tankage or a water maker. If AC powered then likely to need a generator both of which aren't mentioned. I could see the need for a bow thruster on a high wind age boat but not the Hylas. We have a Tayana 52 sans bow thruster

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Solar powered A/C?

AKA, a fan

[RichandHelen]

Interesting day. We looked at four boats. We started with the Hylas 49's - two of them. We thought they were beautiful, quality-built boats but felt tight for us to live aboard. So we went to see a Hylas 54 deck salon. Wow. What a spacious, gracious-feeling vessel. We would have to give up the idea of doing very much on the intracoastal re. Height and draft but hey, it's sailing we want.

We also went onto the Stevens 53. Whoever said it was meant to be a charter boat was certainly correct. It has a giant, very very deep ladder-accessed bow "locker" with two pipe-berths, a head and a sink. I don't think it was intended as a place to park your kids. Also, while the cockpit is HUGE, there is minimal locker space - literally nowhere for fenders, dock lines, buckets etc. the interior is also huge. No wonder - this boat has the freeboard of a much MUCH larger boat. All-in-all interesting but too strange ( and homely) for us. And has to be a coastal boat with the 80' rig, shallow draft, self-tacking jib, high freeboard etc.

We thank you for you insights and look forward to more suggestions. R & H

[sailr69]

I have the boat but you may not now about it, good luck In your hunting