Beneteau 42/44CC vs 473/423

[drewm3i]

For those with the 423/473 and Catalina 470:

-how do these boats perform offshore or in rough seas?

-how do they perform in light wind?

-what is a realistic top cruising speed under sail?

-do the bolt on keels and spade rudder cause problems?

[breezydays]

We have a 2005 423 in the two cabin configuration which we bought in early 2015 and are very happy with the choice. We sail as a couple mostly with the occasional family or friends and the two cabin is fantastic with a huge locker on the starboard side. Our boat is extremely well made and in our opinion much better quality than the later Beneteaus (and indeed a lot of other production boats produced after the economic crash. ) we also think that it sails very well in most conditions . We tend to reef early and don't try to be heroes in heavy weather but when the weather does pick up we have always felt safe. I also think that the tankage is plenty big enough for a sailing couple. I recommend a feathering prop which tames the port kick and gives extra speed under sail. We like the 473 but the costs go up significantly and the 423 is a perfect size for a couple .

[daletournier]

Originally Posted by drewm3i

For those with the 423/473 and Catalina 470:

-how do these boats perform offshore or in rough seas?

-how do they perform in light wind?

-what is a realistic top cruising speed under sail?

-do the bolt on keels and spade rudder cause problems?

I crossed the Indian ocean with mine this year, it performed very well. We had a gale that lasted 14hrs and topped out at 47knots. With no sails up we were sailing at aprrox 7knots for the duration, and surfed once at 16.3 knots. For most of the gale we were downstairs with companion way closed, autopilot doing the work, and keeping watch with radar and Ais, there was very little visibility outside. The boat performed brilliantly, at no time was there any "moments", in fact it was quite comfortable.

After the gale I had four days of light Sw-Nw winds, I was heading west grrrrrrrr... My boat will point 30°of the apparent and we were close hauled regularly sailing above 5k in approx 6-7k true, (if memory serves me well) this is fully loaded, 800 liters of water, 400 liters of fuel and several mths of provisions. She sailed well but frustrating VMG when you still have over 1000nm to go.

You talked about a cutter type set up. Another option which is the way I've gone is to have a smaller one jib and add a code zero on a furler.

Something I don't like about some of the beneteau's, Jeanneu's etc is that they have quite a flat fore foot, thus they will slam abit going to wind. This is another reason I chose the Catalina 470,the hull is a little more friendly in this area. I'm also not a huge fan of the liner construction, although in reality there are many thousands of boats that are successfully cruising with this type of construction, it definitely would not stop me buying a particular boat.

You will hear alot of rubbish regarding not suitable for "Blue water" etc, I suggest you have a look at the Arc and see how many of the boats crossing the Atlantic are modern designed production boats.

[daletournier]

For some reason I wasn't able to type more in my post above, phone decided I'd said enough.

In regards to speed. I sailed 7200nm this year. In total motored approx 150 hrs, we averaged 6.2k for the trip. I sail VERY conservatively on passage stressing the boat as little as possible and are often under canvassed. A more aggressive Sailor would get alot more out of my boat BUT my only breakage was my telescopic whisker pole, my autopilot also started grinding a little on the last day into Mahe. Hull speed is approximately 8.6k.

When coastal sailing on the qld coast where I pushed her abit more an 80+nm in day light wasn't difficult.

[ReneJK]

As a B473 owner I would recommend one (of course , everyone recommends their own boats :-)

Originally Posted by drewm3i

For those with the 423/473 and Catalina 470:

-how do these boats perform offshore or in rough seas?

Handle great , we've had a few times on the Med and around Gibraltar where we had up to 42kts of wind with seas that were 12-16 feet and I have never felt unsafe or uncomfortable

Originally Posted by drewm3i

-how do they perform in light wind?

Hoist the gennaker and with 6-7kts of wind I saw 4-5 kts through the water

Originally Posted by drewm3i

-what is a realistic top cruising speed under sail?

once I saw 14 kts , reefed twice in a 37-40kts blow , 7-8Kts in a 20kts wind is easily achieved and we are a family with 2 young kids and absolutely not performance or racing sailers , comfort above anything else

Originally Posted by drewm3i

-do the bolt on keels and spade rudder cause problems?

cause problems ?, well, I am sure if they go wrong they cause all sorts of problems , get them checked and monitor them



the rudder bearing is a point of attention I heard from some owners , ours was replaced as well

[breezydays]

Just a couple of other points. Regardless of what people say, many 423 have very successfully done circumnavigations and I would undertake one in ours if we had the time. It is more about your own skill level and how you set things up and maintain things. In tough sailing conditions it's usually the crew that give up before the boat.
Incidentally there is a great 423 forum on Yahoo. There is a big 423 community on the W coast of the US and the forum is a fantastic resource of information.

[Suijin]

Both the 473 and the 42cc are good boats for what you want to do. Could not go wrong if you found a well cared for one in good shape.

I’d add the Lagoon 380 to your list. Older ones are affordable and you get the livability of a cat.

[daletournier]

Originally Posted by breezydays

Just a couple of other points. Regardless of what people say, many 423 have very successfully done circumnavigations and I would undertake one in ours if we had the time. It is more about your own skill level and how you set things up and maintain things. In tough sailing conditions it's usually the crew that give up before the boat.
Incidentally there is a great 423 forum on Yahoo. There is a big 423 community on the W coast of the US and the forum is a fantastic resource of information.

I met a couple that circumnavigated in their 423 via south Africa and the north Atlantic, they had no problems other than the normal cruising stuff, they liked their boat.

[jibstay]

This couple on YouTube are sailing their 473 from the USA to Australia:

https://youtu.be/2WDwUvRPrKI

[IntoMyHealth]

Originally Posted by drewm3i

I like both the 423 and the 473. How is the galley and master shower compared to the 423? A lot bigger I would imagine? I've looked at a 423 in person and was impressed. It was the first boat I would own in our search.

I don’t recall the master show in the 423 but the 473 is more than adequate. I’m 6’3” and the forward berth is right for me. Not so much on the 423 where the master head door would hit my feet which hung over. Did I mention the cockpit??

Oh yes, the galley on our two cabin version is starboard and well laid out with plenty of space and good to brace. That space shrinks quite a bit on the three cabin version and gets funky on the port side galley version which I believe was reserved for charter fleets. For your future plans I’d highly recommend two cabin version on both the 423 and the 473.

[IntoMyHealth]

Originally Posted by drewm3i

For those with the 423/473 and Catalina 470:

-how do these boats perform offshore or in rough seas?
Can’t say. Not enough direct experience. But will say that Long Island Sound can get surprisingly snotty with short wave distances and the 473 takes it like a champ with a reef...or two. (In mast..love it)

-how do they perform in light wind?
Great! Six knots of breeze and we’re moving

-what is a realistic top cruising speed under sail?
Easy 8. (We see 9 often enough)

-do the bolt on keels and spade rudder cause problems?
Not for us and don’t have any knowledge direct or indirect.

See answers above

[breezydays]

One of the reasons we chose the 423 was because of the size of the forward cabin. Not sure about earlier 423's but on our 2005 the bed in the forepeak was one of the longest we had seen and there is plenty of space between the bed and the door to the large owners heads/ shower compartment. I am 6' and the previous owner (who bought from new) was 6'4" and chose the boat because it gave him the headroom and space he needed. It did come in many configurations in the charter market with up to 4 cabins and 3 heads. As previously said I think the 2 cabin / 2 heads is the best configuration.

[Skeet]

In 1995 I purchased a new Beneteau 44 CC. For many of the reasons you mentioned, I have thoroughly enjoyed the boat over the last 20+ years. I am currently sitting in Port Canaveral heading to Eleuthera and then the Turks and Caicos. I must say, for the time that I have owned the boat and given the amount of attention and detail that I have contributed to the boat, I couldn’t have been happier with my choice. From the Yanmar to the center cockpit to the aft cabin and the tub shower (your wife will love it) to the Fischer Panda 6kW generator that I have installed, the Cruisair air conditioning, etc., etc., etc., it’s an absolute choice you should consider. She has been from the Carolinas (my home base) to the BVI and points near over the last 20 years. Although I am probably nearing the end of my sailing career, I am excited every time I take her out. She has been upgraded with radar over the last five years, new chart plotter, etc., and I will say that if you find an older boat like this and take care of it, it will provide you many years of cruising and sailing pleasure.

Skeet

[drewm3i]

Wow I appreciate the overwhelming feedback! It seems to me that all of the boats I am considering are adequate and able to accomplish what we want.

The 44cc as skeet mentions is probably the most seaworthy boat of the Beneteaus, though the 423, 473, and Catalina 470 all sound like good choices. To me it seems configuration, condition, layout, and deal should dictate what boat we buy.

I would probably prefer 3 cabin with one owners, but in this size range I think two is more realistic. Do you really lose the forward cabin on passages, or can it be doable for some people?

[RickG]

We have a 2003 Beneteau 423 2-cabin that we purchased in December 2016. We did a winter refit and replaced all of the below water thru-hulls. We are liveaboard now.

We moved the boat up the Chesapeake in April and saw frisky winds over 25kts and close period swells in the 5-6' range. As always, she handled the weather better than her crew. It felt like a January blow in the Caribbean, without the warmer weather. We'll be doing some passages outside the ICW at the end of November. Our smaller/lighter Beneteau 40 was capable offshore.

We see a lot of light wind in the summer. The 140% genoa gets her moving well between a beam reach and upwind. Downwind the asymmetrical is easy enough, but you can't be in a rush. In August we motored more than we like. Our next sail purchase will be a 110% genoa for bigger winds. We see better than 7kts on a beam reach to 40-45-degrees, then she slows a but to 30-degrees.

Bolt-on keels and spade runners are known entities. As someone else mentioned, the relatively flat bottom causes some slamming when headed into larger seas.

We love the liveability of the B423. The salon is very liveable, the forward bunk is roomy, cockpit lockers store a ton. The older B423s have very nice wood interiors.

Cheers, RickG