Quote:
Originally Posted by Jim Meeks
Hooked on the idea of a Hinckley 40-50 for cruising around for a few years, any for good ones for sale at a reasonable price or talk me out of it? Jim |
Twenty years ago my answer would have been much more positive, but now I guess I'd probably try to talk you out of it, especially if you intend to live aboard comfortably. In addition to all the other
boat chores, there will be lots of exterior
teak to care for...forever. You will pay much more for a comparably sized and equipped one than you will for many other high quality boats. The Hinckley Company hasn't built a
cruising sailboat in years and may well never build one again. A very high percentage of the skilled workers who crafted the boats Hinckley built its name on are loooong gone and with them went their corporate knowledge. Many of the real craftsmen from Hinckleys (and Lyman Morse) have moved on to building wooden boats for Steve White in Brooklin or for JB Turner who has moved from Lyman Morse to the Front Street Shipyard in Belfast. Southwest Harbor is now a
service yard, with the production of motorboats about 20 miles away in Trenton. The owners, the managers, and the workers are almost all different people from back when the company was building very high quality and highly priced sailboats. Only the name and the physical facility remain the same.
I'm not sure what your price point is, but all except the older generation 35', 38', 40', 41', 43', 48', 49', and 50' boats are still quite expensive. The older generation ones look nice but only the little 35 Pilot and the 41 sail very well and none of them even have things like a separate
shower stall so you can take a real
shower without making a mess of the whole
head. Surprising in such a civilized 'looking' boat! A while back there was a 51, which is a later generation
boat from the ones I mentioned above, that was reasonably priced, and even that one had surprisingly little room for a cruiser. The Southwester 42's are very nice looking boats but with lots of
teak to care for and the roominess of most 36 or 38 foot boats and the price of a decent 50 footer. The
centerboard versions perform OK if you don't mind a
centerboard, and the deep keel/spade
rudder version performs much better but IMHO aren't too practical for serious cruising, especially in shallow waters.
Most Hinckleys were bought and gently used by aging, wealthy people who would only stay aboard for a few days or maybe a week at a time and that's what they were designed and built for. A large percentage of them were very lightly used and were stored and maintained at the Hinckley yard. Each year around Thanksgiving, each owner would receive a list of "recommended" upgrades and a surprising number would say OK to the whole list, or whoever handled their finances would say OK to the whole list. Things like radars or
depth finders or plotters that were only 4 or 5 years old were replaced just because something new came out that the owner could be talked into. Awlgrip was redone every few years just to avoid any chance that the boat might look a little dull. Exterior
varnish was stripped down and built up again to the tune of 6 or 7 coats
charging boatyard price$!
For years I used to keep my boat in SW Harbor and had many friends who worked there including a
service manager so I saw it over and over. So, huge amounts of
money were paid for these boat initially, and then even more
money was lavished on them, but you have to ask how much of that money was spent on things that will benefit you 10 years after the fact? I love the
classic good looks of almost all Hinckleys but I just don't think they're very practical for
extended cruising. But, if you're in love with the image and just have to have one, then go for it, but I'd be very careful about how much you pay because their reputation that once commanded such a premium has faded significantly, and with good reason.
Linear Mode
Recent Discussions