PDQ 36 LRC

[Philip R. McGovern]

My first mate and I are very close to buying a PDQ 36 LRC and plan to live aboard and do most of our cruising along the ICW and throughout the Bahamas. We recently chartered a PDQ 36 in the Abacos and fell in love with the boat and the area.

We are recently retired and new to sailing and would very much appreciate hearing from any current or former PDQ owners regarding your likes or dislikes? Did you have any problems? Any suggestions or warnings? Many thanks!

CPT McG

[R&B]

I dont know if this helps you but we looked at the pdq and did alot of research and there was nothing but good reviews and feedback....The reason we did not go with the pdq is due to the size of our crew(a total of 4 and 2 dogs living aboard).....but if it wasnt for that we would have without a doubt went with the PDQ

[Jeff]

You could contact the folks and ferrets on Dream Catcher. See: Dream Catcher - Welcome!

[SeaKing]

the owners association board is here

PDQ Forum :: Index

[Philip R. McGovern]

Thanks for the input. I am familiar with the PDQ owners' forum. What a great group! I'm still looking for someone to say something negative about the PDQ. Are they really that perfect?

If anyone is aware of a picky surveyor or good Yanmar mechanic in the Melbourne, FL area, please let me know. Thanks again!

[Intentional Drifter]

You want to hear something negative about the PDQ's? OK.

1) The 44 Antares is too expensive. (Otherwise, I'd buy one.)
2) The 42/44 has high freeboard. (On the other hand, it also has a lot of bridgedeck clearance.)
3) They are made in E. Canada (No, that's not criticism of Canada!), and getting one delivered to the US W. Coast is a PITA. (But, this is no different from almost any other production cat.)

That's about where my personal criticisms stop. PDQ makes an excellent cruising cat. Depending on how well a previous owner took care of it, you can probably find faults on a specific boat to varying degrees. People love their 36s for good reasons.

ID

[GordMay]

Phil:
Try
Atlantic Marine Diesel Repair Inc.
2166 New York St., West Melbourne, FL 32904
Tel: 321-302-5176
Fax: 321-951-8796
Email: dihicks@cfl.rr.com

And if they can’t help, goto: http://www.owenscenter.com/

[Philip R. McGovern]

Many thanks to GordMay and Drifter for their advice.

We will continue with our plans to buy "used" (Ha!) and we'll definitely contact Atlantic Marine Diesel Repair. Frankly, I'm almost as concerned about the condition of those super expensive diesels as I am about the boat itself. Although they have low hours (about 1,250 each), I would HATE to start out by having to replace one of them.

Thanks again and fair winds!

Phil McGovern

[monaco]

This is a solid boat. They build them well. Just know what the boat is meant to do. It is meant to have two 9.9 Yamaha outboards. The LRC is a compromise to this. You get diesel reliability, charging etc., but you added a lot of weight to a boat not ready to fully deal with it.

They will sit too low in the water. These really were semi-performance boats to begin with. You will have to be very careful of weight being added, especially in the sterns.

Sail the 9.9 then the LRC and you will see what I mean. Still, it is a very well constructed boat.

[Philip R. McGovern]

Thanks, monaco. You make a good point. I read/heard somewhere that only 21 of the LRC's were built by PDQ, so I'm sure the hull was really designed for the 9.9 outboards. Still, I feel that, in our particular case, the plusses of the diesels outweigh the negatives. We do intend to watch our weight as you suggest. We did sail the 9.9 version on a charter in the Abacos and it will be interesting to compare that "feel" when we do the sea trials on the diesel version. BTW, everyone we have talked to agrees that the PDQ is a well built boat and that counts for a lot with us. Flimsy boats suck!

Thanks again for your input.