Grand Banks or Marlow?

[speciald@ocens.]

I looked at Circe. There is a reason the price is low. There is no inside steering station, only controls on the fly bridge.

[speciald@ocens.]

Too much brightwork on both the Marlow and Grand Banks. There are two Symbol classics with Portugese bridges on the market (about 64ft LOA); one a new spec boat, the other about three years old, both for less than 1.5m asking; fully equiped and ready to go.

[royboats]

Originally Posted by Herewegoagain

One thing to consider if you will be offshore much is the weight difference between the boats. the Marlow is much lighter than the GB.
Bob

True the marlow is lighter, however, that is less wieght you have to push through the water. More speed and less fuel, more milage,less money.As far as the ride goes. Our boat is fairly heavy ( 60 tons ) so it rides heavy and I am satisfied. One thing about a composite hull is the noise factor. They definitely tramsmit more noise through the hull.

Royboats

[speciald@ocens.]

Fleming is not a good off-shore boat. You will need stabilizers for any smallish off-shore powerboat.

[zshipley]

I myself am currently considering a Marlow 57E. At the Miami Boat Show I looked closely at the Marlow and also at the GB 54EU. This model of GB is not in the running for me--not right for the long-range, bluewater mission. I did note that the two boats are nominally about the same price. The quality of rigging and the thoughfulness of the design of the Marlow topped the GB in my book. I have not yet looked closely at the Aleutian. (I have looked at Fleming 55's by the way, several used ones; I agree with the earleir comment that the Fleming is a quality vessel like the Marlow.)

Besides the organized layout of the Marlow 57E's engine room, I note that Marlow has made some unusual design choices, which seem to me to say something positive about Marlow's approach.

Besides the skeg for each prop, mentioned in an earlier post, the Marlow has oil-filled shaft logs, not cutlass bearings on struts. This is a more sophisticated approach to positioning the prop shafts (more expensive I assume); it means the shaft can be secured by a ball bearing just foreward of the prop and herefore less prop vibration.

The 57E I saw also had two tender cranes; you have to pay for the extra crane, but what a great idea; no one else ever even suggested such a thing to me. Besides being able to lift the tender on either side, you can use the to hang passive stabilizers at anchor.

The anchor locker is not the triangular compartment in the bow, but under the floor of the forepeak stateroom; the chain gets there via a large diameter tube; this is not the low-cost or obvious place for the chain, but it is a much better place than in the bow, because the weight of the chain is significant and affects how the boat trims, how she rides and what stresses are placed on her as she pitches under way.

These are not the most important features of any boat. I recite them only because they convince me that Marlow is most thoughtful about design details in a long-range cruiser.

That said, I haven't yet decided Marlow vs. Fleming vs. Aleutian, nor even used vs. new.

My previous boat was a 78-foot aluminum motoryacht built in the Jongert yard in Holland in 1987. I am now between boats. We have cruised extensively in the Bahamas, mainly in the Exuma Cays and the Out Islands south and east of the Exumas, and seek a boat for that mission.

[twistedtree]

I've got a 47' GB currently and moving up in size I'd get an Aleutian if I planned to Coastal Cruise. Personally I like the solid glass below the waterline, and the extra weight for better sea keeping. The GBs are very well made, and have a subtle elegance, in my opinion. All systems are top notch quality. I looked at Marlows too and prefer the GB. On either boat I highly recommend stabilizers. Once you've had them, you'll never turn back.

We want to travel the world, so are going with a Nordhavn.

[Stumble]

If I was looking at a large LRC the Dashew FBP 64 would be at the very top of my list. But they do require you to trade high top end speed for high average speeds.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, zshipley.