Considering new Seawind 1260

[3cdad]

Originally Posted by dwh61

Have you considered the Xquisite 50? There are used options available (for the first time that i am aware of).

Yes, I did. I toured one at Annapolis last year. Beautiful boat, and the pride of the builder is apparent. They really put a lot of thought into the design. But the new ones were heading towards $1.5M and, since it was a relatively new boat, the few used ones that existed were still north of $1M, and they were the earliest builds when the factory was still in a mode of developing better design decisions.

Beyond the price though, the thing that concerned me the most was all of the automation, amenities, electronics, etc... Just so much "stuff" to repair/replace/maintain. The builder seems to really stand behind their boats but you'd still be dealing with downtime and the hassles of getting stuff fixed. That's one of the things that appealed to me about the 1260 - relative simplicity in terms of systems. Hopefully, the 1370 will be similar.

[CaptainMarkS]

Originally Posted by sailjumanji

Mark, we all want to find a two year old boat, that has depreciated significantly. The problem currently is lack of supply. And note, the 1260 has only been in production for two years. Right now there is one 2018 model Seawind 1260 in North America listed on Yachtworld, at $585k. As the alternative is at least a two year wait for a new build, they might get close to asking. Not a significant depreciation. And only one used available in the US.

We ran into the same issue in 2018, when we decided to make the jump from a Seawind 1000 to a Seawind 1160 Lite. Although the Lite had been in production since 2014, there was not a single used one for sale in the US at that time. Furthermore, I know of only one used Lite sale in the US since the boat was even released - and that was an auction sale of one that had been stripped and was in very bad shape. So we had to make the choice of either continuing to look for a depreciated used boat, or build new to our specs. We chose to build. And I have friends that are still boatless, waiting for the last three years for a "deal" on a Seawind 1160 Deluxe or Lite model. All the time while we have been sailing.

Ok, you've talked me into speaking with a Seawind rep to discuss delivery windows / options for a 1370. Did you get the Ruby Rose configuration? Are you taking delivery in Vietnam?

[CaptainMarkS]

Originally Posted by 3cdad

Northern California

Dave, are you taking delivery of your 1370 in N Ca? Did you get the Ruby Rose configuration?

[CaptainMarkS]

Originally Posted by Mark Selawry

Ok, you've talked me into speaking with a Seawind rep to discuss delivery windows / options for a 1370. Did you get the Ruby Rose configuration? Are you taking delivery in Vietnam?

Whoops, sorry, wrong reference to the 1370.

[sailjumanji]

Originally Posted by Mark Selawry

Whoops, sorry, wrong reference to the 1370.

No problem. Yeah, we took delivery of a new 1160 Lite in 2019.

[3cdad]

Originally Posted by Mark Selawry

Dave, are you taking delivery of your 1370 in N Ca? Did you get the Ruby Rose configuration?

Our current plan is to take delivery in Vietnam. Saves us about $50k, and we can just start our adventure there. I'm hoping to find a reasonable way to get to the South Pacific from there. The, over the course of who-knows-how-long, get to the Med, cross the Atlantic, and eventually end up in the Caribbean.

I placed our order within a few hours of the official release, and it was not necessary to specify exact options or configurations. A deposit gets you a build slot. For us, that will start in 2022, although they are talking about expanding production to shorten wait times. We don't need to make final decisions on options until the boat goes into production.

At the time we placed the order (early July) the RR configuration was in flux and, quite honestly, had some inconsistencies and non-sensical choices. I haven't checked the configuration page lately - maybe they've sorted out the issues by now. Having them (RR) publicly going through the configuration decisions will be a big help. In general though, we hope to eliminate the genset via the robust solar/lithium/alternator options that Seawind is offering on the 1370.

[sailjumanji]

Taking possession in Vietnam saves shipping cost, plus $3800 shipping cradle cost. But Vietnam commissioning is $20,000.

I dont understand the Ruby Rose following when it comes to spec"ing out my new cat. I think this is their first cat. Ive never met or heard from a Seawind owner that wanted a galley up. There are a lot of options. What we chose on our Lite was different than others, and they work well for us, but probably not for everyone.

[3cdad]

Originally Posted by sailjumanji

Taking possession in Vietnam saves shipping cost, plus $3800 shipping cradle cost. But Vietnam commissioning is $20,000.

I dont understand the Ruby Rose following when it comes to spec"ing out my new cat. I think this is their first cat. Ive never met or heard from a Seawind owner that wanted a galley up. There are a lot of options. What we chose on our Lite was different than others, and they work well for us, but probably not for everyone.

I'm not "following" RR's option choices, but it is helpful to hear an experienced sailing couple discuss their decision process on each option, especially when the boat is a new model.

[3cdad]

Also, yes, the Vietnam commissioning is $20,000 but I would have to pay for commissioning in the US if I took delivery here. Based on the quotes I received, the shipping + stateside commissioning would be in the $70k range. Vietnam delivery saves me $50k plus another $60k in California sales tax by keeping the boat out of California for the first year.

[Wrtaylormd]

We went thru almost an identical list and choose the Seawind 1260. Why? For us it was just the right amount of sailing and comfort. Very well built and we couldn't be happier, the pandemic slowed us down quite a bit as you might expect. The Galley down is fine as it gives so much space with the trifold doors with great airflow, indoor/outdoor living as you stated. Besides the people at SEawind are first class.

At anchor we have been very comfortable and my wife and I can handle her very easily on passages. We sailed a Seawind 1000 w family of 6 from San Diego to Panama thru Sea Of Cortez about 15 years ago also , so I may be biased.

Vietnam delivery worked very well and we will now ship to MED after 2 years in SE Asia. Happy to talk with you and would get in touch w Bill Robinson
for any delivery help in SE Asia

[Mark424]

Originally Posted by Alistair242

The idea of lack of storage on the 1260 is interesting. Of course there is not as much storage as on the Lagoons, FPs and Leopards of 40’ and up but this is a different type of boat, falling much closer to the performance side of the scale. How much storage do you need?
There have been multiple owners of the 1160s that have cruised extensively and/or circumnavigated and declared the storage as being extensive and much more than they have needed. I have never seen a comment from a Seawind owner declaring that their boat lacked storage. I guess a boat is like a house in certain respects. The more square footage/storage you have the more “stuff” you will fill it with.
Having carefully gone over every inch of the 1260(several times) I find that there is a lot more than enough storage for our particular needs, including ample amounts of water and fuel giving the boat a very generous range. Throw in a watermaker, solar, large lithium battery bank and take into consideration the light air sailing capability and the range becomes enormous.
The galley down layout provides you with both a very big galley comparatively with excellent storage and a saloon area only found on other much larger cats.
Every boat is a compromise and the Seawinds to date appear to have offered excellent balance and innovative design. It all comes down to personal preference and what ones priorities are.

I have to agree the 1260 is a nice sweet spot. I remember coming back from a charter of a Catana 50 and for the first time thought to myself that boat is just too big (I've chartered mid 40's FP, Catana, Lagoons, and crewed on mid 60's Monos and Cats crossing oceans). Yes, you can handle it, but all the lines, winches, gear is just so much bigger and when you get into a blow there are massive forces involved. Not to mention the costs of maintenance.

I ran across a great book called Sensible Cruising: The Thoreau Approach which makes a compelling case for "going smaller". Not that the 1260 is by any means a small boat compared to the mid-30 foot monos that were common amongst world voyagers 20-30 years ago.

I was very close to pulling the trigger on a 1260 when the 1370 was announced. Since I have a couple years before setting off and wanted more time to find a home for my current 38, decided for the 1370, but would have been completely happy with the 1260 for all the reasons Alistair242 mentioned.

[deminimis]

This is a great thread. Read through it several times. However, I had to visit it again today to lift "analysis paralysis" for use in a completely different discussion.

[Alistair242]

Originally Posted by Wrtaylormd

We went thru almost an identical list and choose the Seawind 1260. Why? For us it was just the right amount of sailing and comfort. Very well built and we couldn't be happier, the pandemic slowed us down quite a bit as you might expect. The Galley down is fine as it gives so much space with the trifold doors with great airflow, indoor/outdoor living as you stated. Besides the people at SEawind are first class.

At anchor we have been very comfortable and my wife and I can handle her very easily on passages. We sailed a Seawind 1000 w family of 6 from San Diego to Panama thru Sea Of Cortez about 15 years ago also , so I may be biased.

Vietnam delivery worked very well and we will now ship to MED after 2 years in SE Asia. Happy to talk with you and would get in touch w Bill Robinson
for any delivery help in SE Asia

Where are you shipping from and to and how long does it take? Also, do you have to drop the rig?
Cheers

[Yihang]

One thing that bothers me on the 1160/1260 and is fixed on the 1370 is the extended couch roof so you can stand on it and reach the luff of the main when reefing or taking down the sail.

Maybe the 1160 guys can chime in. If you are trying to pull the luff down by hand in a blow is there someway to reach it? Is the boom low enough for you to reach the luff, because it doesn't look like you can reach it standing on the coach roof.

Also, are there reefing hooks for the tack? so you can have the reef properly secured. Would these be easily reachable?

Using flip out mast steps for these things is not ideal. Always get sore calves after struggling tip toed on those things.

[sailjumanji]

Originally Posted by Yihang

One thing that bothers me on the 1160/1260 and is fixed on the 1370 is the extended couch roof so you can stand on it and reach the luff of the main when reefing or taking down the sail.

Maybe the 1160 guys can chime in. If you are trying to pull the luff down by hand in a blow is there someway to reach it? Is the boom low enough for you to reach the luff, because it doesn't look like you can reach it standing on the coach roof.

Also, are there reefing hooks for the tack? so you can have the reef properly secured. Would these be easily reachable?

Using flip out mast steps for these things is not ideal. Always get sore calves after struggling tip toed on those things.

I can reach the luff of the sail easily on our Lite. You have to reach standing with feet on the hard top non skid, but its not an issue. I am 5 ft 10 inches tall. We have the flip out mast steps. Never used them.

Reef 1 is permanently rigged. Reef 2 has snap shackles for the luff and leach attachment. That single line reef system is easily moved up to the reef 3 attachment points, but not when the sh*t hits the fan. I understand from a friend that just ordered an 1190, that you can spec a dedicated line third reef. With our two-chice system, when we are crossing the Gulf, at night we pre-rig reef 1 and reef 3. Luckily we have not had to go to reef 3 yet. That said, with the electric winch and single reef line system, it is easy and controlled to reef either.

Some owners have added boom blocks to have dedicated lines for all three reefs. Its not a significant mod.