I am interested in possibly ordering a new one for my wife and I, as we are close to retirement and plan more cruising along the West Coast, most of it within So Cal. Our budget, and slip availability in our area puts us in the 40 to 45 boat size class. http://www.marlow-pilot.com/marlow-pilot-37/ We have owned EC's in the past which don't carry much fuel, and are quite rolly in the chop. It appears Marlow bought the company from Mainship a few years ago and are introducing more features and nicer amenities. But they are not at the level of a Sabre and related boats so the prices are less and would allow us to buy new. I have not seen one yet, and I don't think there are many around since this particular model was introduced in 2015. A few questions; What is the general consensus regarding the Marlo line of boats? Does anyone have any experience with the 37 and how did it handle? Input on these 250HP Yanmars would be appreciated. Anything else folks have, I am all ears.
There is a lot of bad will when it comes to Marlow......build quality, ethics, how reputable the company is, handling. Do a search on here and the web and grab some popcorn. I'd be a lot more comfortable buying a used Mainship of that model before Marlow got involved. The Yanmars are very good motors, but my preference would be cummins over them. Grand Banks made a 42' trawler with Zues pods that cruised at 20 knots, had great maneuverability and was efficient, that would be my preference. The 43'/44' lagoon is another very good, very economical boat if cats are your thing with a fast cruise of 16.5 knots, 2nmpg at 12 knots, 3 nmpg at 10 knots with the large engines.
Thanks for the feedback. I will check out the past postings. Agree, my preference would also be Cummins, and the 425s in particular. That Lagoon looks nice, but too beamy for the limited slips here. I really like the Sabre 42, although probably out of our budget. Also, I believe they only do pods. I know many on here like pods, but I want to avoid them and go shafts for various reasons.
A used Sabre or BackCove is a better/safer bet. Has anyone ever complained about those brands? A used, well cared for, quality boat is a great place to start from and save money to make it your own. If you haven't yet, go to a brokerage show and walk a 3 year old Marlow Pilot/Prowler and a 3 year old Sabre. How they hold up over times will show itself. A very close friend of mine had a 57' Marlow, one of the "good ones" and while it was what marketing sells it as mostly...I would shop elsewhere. As said above, search of this website and google lays it out pretty accurately.
Agree, I have been eyeing Sabres for awhile. The re-sell on these is amazing, for them, not me as a buyer. The Back Coves are also solid, but I am reluctant on the single engine. If I do go the single engine route, it will be a Helmsman Trawler 43 Pilot house http://www.helmsmantrawlers.com/ built in Taiwan. New, they run low $500'sK with some upgrades. However, I am still trying to get my head around the single engine life. I was on TF this morning asking about single engine handling. Everyone there appears to have their docking, anchoring, etc down, but its still a concern for me because I love the benefits of 2 engines.
Fletcher500 I'm a twin guy. No thrusters on my 58 x 18 Bert MY. No problems. I also run boats around Jax and the Florida east coast. Some singles with a wimpy bow thruster (sometimes with a wimpy stern thruster) just prove the rest of the boat,,, wimpy and cheap. The better ships have better single engines, clutch and wheel and a well matched bow thruster. I have no problems handling them around the docks no matter the weather. These are not the cheap boats and I enjoy operating them. Mainships and American Tugs (IMHO) are wimpy. I ran an old GB a few ago with a single 3208N, What a dream with her PTO thruster. It's another world for me operating a single screw but on better designed boats that don't go as fast, it's a pretty good time that is easy to handle. Don't be scared of a better single engine ship.
No rebadged Mainship. Used 40' Cabo Express because what you really want in that size is a runner, something that feels good underway.
That Helmsman 43 trawler is a nice rig. Never seen one...looks like a quality build. Twins would be my choice, only because have always owned twins. With a single engine would want to have some type of get home setup... and hydraulic bow thruster. Would not deal with Marlow based personal experience and post's here by experienced captains.
I prefer a flybridge boat in the 40 - 45' range. The Silverton 45 has a Donald Blount hull design that gives you the pedigree for a great ride and the molded in staircase to the bridge is appreciated by most: http://www.**************/boats/200...Fort-Lauderdale/FL/United-States#.WYyg1HKWyUk
I suspect Blount designed the hulls on all of the Silverton staircase/bridge convertibles: 42, 34/36, 38, 45, 48/50... -Chris
Yes, although I am not so sure of the under 42' range, but that's what gives them added value in my opinion.
IIRC, the 42 was the first of that series (but I'm not sure about the intro date for the 34/36)... so my guess just assumes Silverton wouldn't have changed to another NA afterwards. Maybe that could have carried over to the motor yachts and sport bridges, too... if any of those were brought out after the 42. Seem to remember Cherubini did the early Mainships (at least the original 34), but I don't know what might have happened during their non-trawler years and than as they returned to trawlers in the late '90s... -Chris
We are biased toward Sabre's and Back Coves, but we did look a lot at Mainships when we bought our first powerboat. The quality difference, particularly as others have stated when you look at 3 or 4 year old boats, is amazing. So much of the value shows over time. And while we have twin engine boats now, the reliability of the engines and the maneuverability with thrusters and controls means you might really want to take a look at a Back Cove or similar.