I would appreciate some advice about the Fairey Fisherman 27

[OliverdelaRosa]

Hello!

I'm considering the purchase of a Fairey Fisherman 27 sailboat, apparently it's made from plywood but I can't find opinions or reference on the Internet. Maybe someone has experience with this model of boat? What are the things that I can or can't do with a boat like that? Any piece of advice would be very much appreciated, thank you very much!

Best regards

[Muaddib1116]

https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/fairey-fisherman-27


Looks like it's based on a lifeboat hull design. I doubt it sails very well, and with such a low draft and ballast ratio, it's probably can't take much wind. It seems like it might be nice as a canal or river boat, or maybe a tiny motorsailor for lake use.

[HellBentSailing]

Ballast/displacement ratio is very low, but so is the sail area. Doesn't look like a hull originally designed for a sailboat and appears to be more or less symmetrical stem to stern which could make for some... interesting sea keeping characteristics. It also has a very shallow draft and doesn't appear to have a centreboard or any other kind of apparatus below the water to help with pointing upwind, so it probably won't tack up very well, if at all. There it also a complete lack of resistance to leeward slippage and a lot of windage up top with that big pilothouse. As stated above would probably make a great canal boat or motor sailor, just don't try sailing up a river or really anywhere except downwind. Lots of space inside though and would be very comfortable in the marina which depending on your priorities could make up for all of this.

Cheers

Edit: Took the time to read a bit further down on the SBD page provided and it is actually based off of a lifeboat that was not designed to operate under sail. This will make it a good motor sailor and it will likely take some **** on open waters (it does have a smaller steadying sail for heavy weather), but that depends on how the "conversion" from LB to sail was done. Personally I wouldn't touch it with a 27 foot pole, but my priorities are likely very different from yours and if the price is right it could make you very happy.

[OliverdelaRosa]

Originally Posted by Muaddib1116

https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/fairey-fisherman-27


Looks like it's based on a lifeboat hull design. I doubt it sails very well, and with such a low draft and ballast ratio, it's probably can't take much wind. It seems like it might be nice as a canal or river boat, or maybe a tiny motorsailor for lake use.

Thank you for answer me so fast! So you wouldn't recommend this boat for the ocean? I live in the Canary Islands and the boat is in Scotland, I would need to eventually sail from there to the Canaries. I don't need to do it very fast (as the boat have plenty living space, apparently, for a 27 feet). But I would need that the boat can handle that kind of navigation.

Originally Posted by HellBentSailing

Ballast/displacement ratio is very low, but so is the sail area. Doesn't look like a hull originally designed for a sailboat and appears to be more or less symmetrical stem to stern which could make for some... interesting sea keeping characteristics. It also has a very shallow draft and doesn't appear to have a centreboard or any other kind of apparatus below the water to help with pointing upwind, so it probably won't tack up very well, if at all. There it also a complete lack of resistance to leeward slippage and a lot of windage up top with that big pilothouse. As stated above would probably make a great canal boat or motor sailor, just don't try sailing up a river or really anywhere except downwind. Lots of space inside though and would be very comfortable in the marina which depending on your priorities could make up for all of this.

Cheers

Edit: Took the time to read a bit further down on the SBD page provided and it is actually based off of a lifeboat that was not designed to operate under sail. This will make it a good motor sailor and it will likely take some **** on open waters (it does have a smaller steadying sail for heavy weather), but that depends on how the "conversion" from LB to sail was done. Personally I wouldn't touch it with a 27 foot pole, but my priorities are likely very different from yours and if the price is right it could make you very happy.

Thank you for your detailed analysis! Let me explain a bit what kind of boat I'm looking for, that way maybe you can advise me about if this one can fit what I need. I'm looking for a cruiser sailboat (I don't intend to participate in races) that doesn't need to be very fast, but I need to be able to travel many places. (I live in the Canary Islands, as reference). What catched my eye especially in this model (apart for the price) is the amount of living space. It looks confortable. I'm moving around the 8 meters (something between 26 to 30 feet).

However, my sailing experience is in other kind of sailboats, more... "typical ones" and I couldn't find much information about this model in particular almost anywhere. Apparently they didn't made much boats of this model. I give you two more links with some information:

- https://sites.google.com/site/scottp...e/fisherman-27
- https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&p...g2NWM4ZjJkMGZk

I also just could find just one video of the boat "sailing":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPA1u5YZFZ4

but without the sails open so it isn't very helpful.

If the boat is oceanworthly but doesn't have much sails, would it be crazy to install an spinaker or something? On the other hand, I have seen some other wooden boats where people extend the bow with a kind of stick, in which they install some sails, such as genoa, jibs, storms ... Would it be very crazy to adapt the structure of the boat in this way? Is the keel type a problem? Can it be corrected? It's wood ...

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by OliverdelaRosa

Would it be very crazy to adapt the structure of the boat in this way? Is the keel type a problem? Can it be corrected? It's wood ...

Yes, ignore that and find a nice GRP yacht. You haven't given us a budget but something like this would be much better:


https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...0631919296617/

[nuvaslacker]

Fairey marine made some interesting boats, including the quite revolutionary Atalanta from the pen of Uffa Fox. They had the advantage of a huge autoclave (oven), so the boats' hulls were hot moulded from mahogany veneers under vacuum.

The Fisherman was designed on the lines of a lifeboat, and many actual lifeboat conversions were enjoyed around the UK coast after the war. Coastal fun rather than ocean going, though oceans have been crossed in stranger craft.

[boatclassic]

Originally Posted by OliverdelaRosa

Hello!

I'm considering the purchase of a Fairey Fisherman 27 sailboat, apparently it's made from plywood but I can't find opinions or reference on the Internet. Maybe someone has experience with this model of boat? What are the things that I can or can't do with a boat like that? Any piece of advice would be very much appreciated, thank you very much!

Best regards

You should contact the Atalanta Owners Association https://atalantaowners.org/ They have extensive knowledge of all the boats fro Fairey Marine