Opinions on the Fountaine-Pajot Lucia 40

[Snore]

To the OP. I do deliveries and frequently do charters on FPs from 40-44’.

The things I see break on the boats is from wear. The more a boat is run, the more wear and the more maintenance- such is the life of a charter boat.

Issues with the FPs? Port side job sheet should have a pad eye midships from the helm to keep it from running off. Add one more pad eye to boom so the main sheet does not sag and get snagged on the helm Bimini. And —- big pet peeve—- all the sheets are black!!! Especially at night, some different colors would be nice.

I have taught prospective purchasers how to dock even 44’s short and single handed. Just requires planning. Under sail all the FPs are easy to single hand if you plan and use the autopilot.

The hardest thing to do is set reefs. Most have the first reef setup as a single line. But reefs 2&3 can be a challenge.

Feel free to PM

[kjbas123]

Thanks Snore that is very helpful ��

[Thalas]

Originally Posted by contrail

She keeps up to date, but little things AREN'T always breaking, although the routine maintenance on a very well equipped boat is certainly demanding.

I would definitely defer to your experience across the board, but my point wasn't about "maintenance" which I consider to be things like routine oil changes, but more like a broken impeller which needs to be replaced which I consider "breaking." All the vlogs I listed have very new boats and by my definition, things are breaking constantly. Even with Outremer on speed dial, La Vagabonde has had multiple significant issues in a short time. Out Chasing Stars which has been on the water a bit longer covers a true repair at least once every 4th episode. Everyone has a windlass story.

Again, I'm not saying this to knock the builders, but rather to reiterate the notion that marine environments are harsh for equipment, more features means more things to go wrong, and repairs are an inherent part of the cruising experience.

[contrail]

Originally Posted by Thalas

I would definitely defer to your experience across the board, but my point wasn't about "maintenance" which I consider to be things like routine oil changes, but more like a broken impeller which needs to be replaced which I consider "breaking." All the vlogs I listed have very new boats and by my definition, things are breaking constantly. Even with Outremer on speed dial, La Vagabonde has had multiple significant issues in a short time. Out Chasing Stars which has been on the water a bit longer covers a true repair at least once every 4th episode. Everyone has a windlass story.

Again, I'm not saying this to knock the builders, but rather to reiterate the notion that marine environments are harsh for equipment, more features means more things to go wrong, and repairs are an inherent part of the cruising experience.

Well, yes, more features mean more gear means more breakage. But I will get back to two things: quality of build.....I see lots of gear that is ill suited or poorly installed. And lots of breakages are due to poor maintenance or improper use. Lots of people break windlasses by either overloading them (pulling the boat forward with them rather than using the catenary or engines, and failing to use a stopper, thus transferring surge loads to the windlass itself.) You will remember that I stated that lots of retirement cat owners and also the vloggers are newbies, and they make many newbie mistakes. There was a time when people worked up to larger and more complicated boats. Now, many just go to a Show and pick the fanciest thing they can afford, only to find out that the learning curve is way too steep for them to handle or they can't do the maintenance without assistance. So, your statistics are likely coming from the very steep part of the learning curve.



Let's use your impeller example. For an impeller to break, it's usually an installation that, for whatever reason, gives insufficient flow, or a seacock that was accidentally closed, or a clogged intake or intake strainer. (Or an Onan, which, for some reason, in a huge number of cases, eat impellers......see "ill suited or poorly installed", above.) I would suggest that the most frequent cause would be the clogged intake, BUT poor or non-existent raw water flow changes the sound of the exhaust sufficiently that an attentive and experienced boater will instantly recognize it and turn off the gen set. A newbie almost certainly would not.



Which gets back to the demographic used in your statistics. And on which generalizations are being made. It's often the blind leading the blind.

[letsdance]

Originally Posted by kjbas123

We are looking at one of these for our first catamaran. Hopefully one that is a year or two old and that has had equipment added for cruising. Would love to hear if anyone has had one and what they think.

Thanks

We have a 2016 Lucia 40 owner’s version, which we’ve lived aboard for the past two years, and love her. We’ve done approx 7000 NM in a range of conditions, mostly in the Med, and in our opinion FP has achieved the perfect balance between performance and comfort. Many sailors have come aboard our Lucia and they are always impressed with the layout, space and headroom. And she sails very well for a cruising cat, with everything accessible from the helm for single handed sailing. In short, we think the Lucia is a fantastic boat. Yes, things break as per all boats but that’s all part of the adventure. We have a YouTube channel where you can see our Lucia in action and see some of her features in more detail - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTL...iHKIQMgVr9QZkw
By the way, our beloved Lucia, fully optioned for cruising, is for private sale. Other ventures await. Our contact details are on our YouTube channel if you are interested. Timing for a handover is fairly flexible.

[kjbas123]

Hi Let’s Dance I have seen your YouTube channel and I am enjoying it. I have actually messaged you and you have kindly replied �� If we were ready to we would definitely jump at the chance to get your boat but next year my hubby still has work and we have a six week holiday in Croatia where we have chartered a mono hull for 2 weeks and then Greece so 2020 it is for us. Not sure to buy new or see what used boats are around. We will use Multihull Solutions like you did ��

[letsdance]

Originally Posted by kjbas123

Hi Let’s Dance I have seen your YouTube channel and I am enjoying it. I have actually messaged you and you have kindly replied �� If we were ready to we would definitely jump at the chance to get your boat but next year my hubby still has work and we have a six week holiday in Croatia where we have chartered a mono hull for 2 weeks and then Greece so 2020 it is for us. Not sure to buy new or see what used boats are around. We will use Multihull Solutions like you did ��

Cheers guys, all the best with your plans. If you’re considering buying a new Lucia 40 we understand there’s about a 20 month waiting list at the moment. Something to keep in mind...
And we can highly recommend the Multihull Solutions team; good people.

[scuba0_1]

No this doesn’t get confusing multiple captains many many years of experience with catamarans totally different opinions same boats no problem.

Take everyone’s advice then go charter one and then trying sailing one and then get one of these captains above or another one that knows how to sail one to take you out and show you how to sail on one then you’ll know if you like it. I had someone take me out on a catamaran that knew how to sail a catamaran and I was impressed. For sure they do not sail like monos.

I agree with one thing for sure I also drink beer and rum....

[kjbas123]

Great idea thanks

[Judyfood]

I just delivered a 2018 Lucia from NE to the BVI. A few things I liked and didn't like..
Too many sharp corners!
Crappy hardware especially the locker closures which on this barely used boat were already failing.
To open any floorboard there was a large suction cup supplied, no finger hole. Sometimes the suction cup worked, sometimes it didn't. Inevitably you would forget to take it with you when you needed it!
We had issues with the onboard heat because whoever did the commissioning crammed all of the extra tubing into a space where it wasn't designed to fit and kinked the hose so no water flow and malfunctioning heater.
The frig and freezer worked great however they sit atop each other and there is really not much holding the freezer in which is on top. Another delivery skipper had the whole thing come out of its cubby hole.
The ac/heat vent is behind the freezer with no way to access
The helm area is small and overcrowded. I am not a very tall person and had a hard time reaching the winches which are behind the wheel and throttle controls. It's a big pain trying to get to lines/winches without bumping into either the helm or throttles. The whole place is a spaghetti mess of lines.
It's difficult to have more than one person tending to lines as there isn't much room.
The engine on/off panel is behind the wheel and difficult to get at.
Not one winch or cleat at the mast so reefing can be special fun as is making any adjustments to the topping lift without any way to have any mechanical advantage to do so.
The main sail is quite large and heavy with the square cut top, only way to get the halyard attached or detached is to climb up the mast which is extremely difficult at sea bouncin g around. We used a piece of dyneema line on the head of the main sail and top car so it would actually drop enough to fall into the sail bag....several suggestions on a forum topic here covering that issue. Without our piece of $3.49 dyneema a $1000 hook type option is offered as an aftermarket device for this purpose.
The Lucia pointed a bit higher than expected, around 45-50 deg but in more mellow seas, doubtful in a seaway.
IMHO the FP is pretty cheesily built, corners seem to be cut and for the price tag one would expect a lot more.
Hey, it has a salt water faucet in the galley...kudos for that!
If you are thinking of buying one, go sailing for more than a test sail...maybe a week in different conditions...then decide especially after you check out the bruises from those sharp corners!

[kjbas123]

Oh dear so many negatives �� We also have looked at Lagoon and they too seem to have many sharp corners and cheap cabinetry.

[ShellBack89]

Leopard 40
https://youtu.be/u4oN-tiMkKk


Astrea 42
https://youtu.be/ZNLzk47EMlI


Lucia 40

https://youtu.be/ejxafmKSa6g


Lagoon 42
https://youtu.be/bPWHsrbyw38


Lagoon 40
https://youtu.be/BRRF0-cw5aI


Courtesy of Sailing Off Duty - Check Craig out. He's got some more reviews of other boats. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Q...rC2Xn1Q/videos

[kjbas123]

Yes I watch their channel

[SV Tigger]

We've had two seasons on our 2017 Lucia. 9 months living onboard and 5,000nM from La Rochelle France into the Med. Currently west of Marseille.

We love it. Very few problems.

We live on a 2014 Dehler 41 mono in Auckland, NZ the other half of the year.
They sail very differently as has been covered by others.

For 2-4 people the Lucia is spacious and luxurious.
Is it perfect? No. If you want perfect spend US$1.5- 2.0 on something fancy.
You get what you pay for.

But don't expect a second hand Lucia to be cheap. At the moment 2 - 2.5 year old boats are selling for E5,000 less than the new price we paid.
Between Irma and the demand for cats they're holding up very nicely.

[kjbas123]

Yes it’s true I believe that you get what you pay for. It sounds like an ideal life . We would like to do something similar but live in our home in Australia for the other six months. Can I ask if you have found the boat big enough in terms of space and comfort when in big swell. Also wondering roughly how much to take it out of the water for 6 months? Thanks for your input.