Jeanneau and Beneteau

[robert sailor]

Oyster is a good example of what happens to a company that was purchased as an investment and lost their way because they lacked dedicated and highly experienced leadership.

[goboatingnow]

Well zillions of liner boats sailing all over the planet can’t be wrong

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

One of the interesting things about the CE approval ratings is that they were written by the high production sailboat industry and adopted by the government. So the manufacturers wrote their own rule book.

That allowed them to control costs. It also allowed them not to be sued as all they have to do is show that the vessel was built to the CE ratings and they are protected. Lawyers go after anyone that's involved, has a few bucks and might be liable. I don't think you will see a list of any length of boat manufacturers that have been successfully sued for negligence in the EU.

That aside an independent group studied other Beneteau 40 sailboats of the same design and found a half dozen or so other boats that had the floor grid supporting the keel with structural defects that would likely over time have failed so it was not a one off, it was a design that was not adequate however it met the CE ratings when it was manufactured and therefore the builder was off the hook. The CE was modified after this accident and the floor grids were built stronger on future boats.

I'm not into bad mouthing other peoples boats and there are some of these new high production boats that are drop dead gorgeous and they sail like witches and I could easily see owning one myself.....however there is nothing wrong with educated yourself.

I presume you are referring to the RCD , the CE is merely an indication of conformity

Actually the origin of the RCD is largely as a result of British lobbying to create a unified boat market in Europe so that they could avoid country specific build laws which largely insulated those countries builders from outside competition.

The irony is strong

[robert sailor]

Your the man that knows lots about this subject (CE) standards. What are the number of cycles that determine the designed normal lifespan of one of these boats?

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

Your the man that knows lots about this subject (CE) standards. What are the number of cycles that determine the designed normal lifespan of one of these boats?

I seriously doubt that you are going to get an answer to this question. In the first place how could one define a "cycle" for a sailboat and then measure them? Further, I doubt that any manufacturer would admit to designing boat with a planned failure date.

Originally Posted by robert sailor

One of the interesting things about the CE approval ratings is that they were written by the high production sailboat industry and adopted by the government. So the manufacturers wrote their own rule book.

That allowed them to control costs. It also allowed them not to be sued as all they have to do is show that the vessel was built to the CE ratings and they are protected. Lawyers go after anyone that's involved, has a few bucks and might be liable. I don't think you will see a list of any length of boat manufacturers that have been successfully sued for negligence in the EU.

That aside an independent group studied other Beneteau 40 sailboats of the same design and found a half dozen or so other boats that had the floor grid supporting the keel with structural defects that would likely over time have failed so it was not a one off, it was a design that was not adequate however it met the CE ratings when it was manufactured and therefore the builder was off the hook. The CE was modified after this accident and the floor grids were built stronger on future boats.

I'm not into bad mouthing other peoples boats and there are some of these new high production boats that are drop dead gorgeous and they sail like witches and I could easily see owning one myself.....however there is nothing wrong with educated yourself.

Reading this, if it is true, it occurs to me that if the manufacturers changed the standards upon realization that they were insufficient, that sort of redeems them. I mean, if they are cynical and created weak standards which could be easily met, why change them? I suspect that the standards were originally created in good faith, and subsequently found to be inadequate, so they were changed.

[mglonnro]

Here are a few hundred pages of guidelines and references regarding the implementation of the recreational craft directive:

https://www.imci.org/site/document/d...3_EU_21012.pdf

I think it's important to note that the directive addresses issues mostly related to the construction of the boat. Failing to regularly inspect and maintain it, will obviously have some impact on the end results...

[Deanosc]

Originally Posted by carstenb

We have a 2006 Jeanneau Sun Fast 40.3. Bought it iin 2012 and have been deep water sailing for the past 5 yhears - currently 30,000nm into our (maybe) circumnavigation.

The boat has stood ujp to everything that could be thrown against her - she is tough, sails more than well and is very comfortable.

I can't say anything about newer boats - but we've never regretted sailing her on a long blue water cruise.

We have actually singled this model out since your post and have been keeping an eye on them as we want to do something similar and they look beautiful so thank you for your help.

[Peeew]

I do believe that there are plus and minus issues with both production and stick built boats. Obviously both types have kept owners happy on long and short cruises in just about every part of the world. Just as due diligence is important when buying a boat it is equally important before buying into some of the comments made on these forums. Not all production boats are held together with glue and self tapping screws. Not all stick built boats have good systems access. Quality of build, access, price, sailing plans etc all play a role in what will work best for a particular goal. Before writing off a particular boat of course research the details. Even for one manufacturer the techniques used vary with size of the boat etc.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

Your the man that knows lots about this subject (CE) standards. What are the number of cycles that determine the designed normal lifespan of one of these boats?

There is no such metric. With care and due maintenance , lifespan is decades and decades