Opinions on Bruce Roberts designs

[Psy at SEA]

Originally Posted by Steve Pope

If you buy a yacht based on what you hope to receive when you come to sell, you will most probably be disappointed, The saying " a boat is a hole in the water through which you pour money" was well put! Some may make a margin, most won't. Buy a boat that will do most of the things that you hope it will do. Fast passages and comfort, once you get there rarely go together. Every design is a compromise. Every bell and whistle - you need an engineering / electrical degree to maintain it. the KISS principle is a good start. Remember you may have a fast boat but if the wind doesn't perform, you have a slow boat. A passage is just that, 10 day passage on a fast boat, 15 days on a slower boat, 3 months island hopping I think you will find the comfort of the "slower one" outweighs the speed of the faster one. my 3 cents worth

Thats kinda why i bought the boat I did.

[RaymondR]

From a maintenance viewpoint the biggest flaw in Bruce Roberts steel boats is that they have longitudinal stringers in them.

[Psy at SEA]

Originally Posted by RaymondR

From a maintenance viewpoint the biggest flaw in Bruce Roberts steel boats is that they have longitudinal stringers in them.

Why do you say so Raymond?

Are they angle iron?

Difficult to access to paint?

No weep holes? ~ boats rot within...no weep holes in stringers

[RaymondR]

Originally Posted by Psy at SEA

Why do you say so Raymond?

Are they angle iron?

Difficult to access to paint?

No weep holes? ~ boats rot within...no weep holes in stringers

They form water traps.

Having battled corrosion in a Roberts steel boat for about 28 years I am firmly of the opinion that there should be no stringers and the frames should be stood off the hull plating so that all areas of plate are accessible for painting purposes. I eventually removed all the stringers and stiffened the bottom plates by installing keel cooling tubes on the outside of the hull.

[charliehows]

Originally Posted by James174

I have a Roberts 38 sloop, aft cockpit and have had for the past 20+ years. She's now on her 3rd refit. Years ago I lost the plans and am struggling to find original sail areas. I've had an MPS made but I'm contemplating twin genoas as I've just fitted a Fleming wind vane. Can anyone help with original sail areas.

I've added 500k to the keel in a sort of shoe arrangement to stiffen her up and would be interested to hear from any other owners who may have found them tender.

I had some repair work done by Sydney Sailmakers in Drummoyne a while ago - those guys knew exactly what the sail plan of my roberts 38 was based on - bit out of the way from Tas but you could try contacting them via email.
I'm pretty happy with my 40 yr old handlaid f/glass 38 ketch - it was in pretty poor condition when I got it 10 years ago but the more I work on it, the more impressed I am with the design. One definite advantage over steel - I have had periods of time where I havent been able to keep up to date with hull maintenance, this can be catastrophic on a steel hull but f/glass is pretty forgiving.