hatteras liveaboard??

A current model Hatteras 60 with twin 1135 CAT's, uses around 12 gph at 10 knots. Now there are some 7 knot trawlers that will get much better fuel mileage at 7 knots. The Hatteras theoretically will only use 6 gph at 7 knots but it's not realistic to expect to run it at 600 rpm. So, these numbers are right in line with what Capt J experienced.

The old 2 stroke Detroit Diesels in most of the yachts the OP is looking at, use about 1/2 as much fuel at 1000 rpms or below than 4 cycle diesels and new electronic diesels (similar size), now past 1000 rpms the pendulum swings in the other direction.

It depends on where you are and your comfort level.

Older hatteras have pretty good ventilation in th saloon so usually just a 10 kt breeze will keep things cool during the day. On the other hand nearly all modern boats have very few opening and you will have to run the Genset for air con almost all the time.

With an inverter and additional batteries, you can usually turn off the Genset during the day and only run it in th evening to charge battteries, cook, make water etc. Again it depends on th boat layout. On my 53 hatt, even anchored on biscayne bay we don't really need to run the AC during the day even in th summer. At night, Ac is needed in the staterooms except from nov thru April.

On the other hand, on the modern 70 footer I run with no openings, we need to run one of the Genset almost year round

I hate camping, but if you spend a lot of time on the hook it s nice to cut generator hours, fuel burn and noise.

Another issue is whether the boat is wide body / extended house or if it has side decks and wing doors to the aft deck. Believe it or not those wing doors make a huge diffence in keepign the aft deck cool. I ve been on a 58 hatt MY without side decks and wing doors and most of th time the aft deck is way to hot compared to the hatts with side decks.

Useful factoid; did not know that.

-Chris

For me, it's the noise more than anything.

Or find a way to cut the noise without cutting the generator. That's our choice.

Hi, cutting the noise would mean a new genny, most probably, the 7.5 Onan is a little noisy even with the sound shield. maybe re-routing the exhaust ........ Since most of my cruising is near populated areas, if it's too hot, we find a marina. This time of year is really the best, for me anyway, to hang on the hook in a secluded cove and stare at the stars at night. Thankfully, my wife is pretty low maintenance and I'm easily amused so a couple hrs. of genny time a day is all we really need.

Real yachts would require more, I'm sure. We are really just " luxury camping " when anchored out.

Sometimes you can add more sound insulation in areas and make a significant difference. Now, doesn't sound like yours is really a problem to you.

I learned a lot reading this thread... thank you to all contributors...

Rookie

You guys are a wealth of information and each of your answers brings to mind another 6 questions that I would like to pose. My wife and I hope to get back to the boating lifestyle in the next couple years. We had cruised Florida to New England for about eight years until the recession hit hard and owning a boat on the coast while living in the Midwest just would not work. During those years cruising, we set up a 1981 49' Albin Tri-Cabin and a 1989 43' Tradewinds to cruise the coast. We loved both of those boats because that is what we could afford and they allowed us to enjoy the water and create so many great memories.

This time we are able to step up a level or two regarding quality and size and somewhat like WI3175 above, are starting to look at larger yachts in the 54' - 65', $450k to $650k range. Fuel costs won't be the main consideration We plan to follow the seasons each year (for a couple years at least), between New England and Georgia or SC. They say: "You don't know what you are missing ......" and we really don't because we have absolutely no experience in a seaway on anything like a 70,000 to 100,000 lb displacement motor yacht. Obviously, there is no comparison with seaworthiness between the boats on which we have experience, but ......

Let me start by asking: What is your tolerance for comfort in a seaway in something like a 56' to 65' Hatt? If you know that you will be facing into 3-5 ft seas for the day, I assume that isn't too much of a consideration? What about going into 4-6' for 4-5 hours? We have never had the benefit of stabilizers on our boats. I realize everyone has their own tolerance, but in what we have owned, a 3-5 head sea was not a fun day. Poking our nose out of Barnegat Bay one day we ran into 4-6' head seas on our way south to Atlantic City and instead of fighting through them, they chased us back up the coast three hours. Can I assume the 56' - 63' Hatt with stabilizers would have no problem that day?

Glad to have found this site again and thank you in advance for any input as to what we could expect as far as seakeeping abilities on these larger boats

A 63' Hatteras MY with stabilizers (early 2000s) would be in your price range. It would do ok in 3-5' and be a little uncomfortable in 4-6', but nothing too uncomfortable. They should be in your price range. It's been a very long time since I ran a 63', but they rode pretty good although were a little wet.

It s hard to tell. It depends on what kind of 4 footers they are. I ve beaten into short steep 3 ' in the lower Delaware which made for an absolutely miserable ride.

Head on seas (reasonable) are not much of an issue in a hatt as the sharp entry will cut thru pretty well. Quartering or beam seas on the other hand will result in quite of bit of rolling on an unstabilized boat and a miserable ride.

The question becomes whether or not the cost and maintenance of stabilizers is worth it. For occasional offshore runs you may be better off waiting a day or two...

Well, this time I won't have a schedule aboard and I will consider that waiting a couple days for weather is just another two days in paradise to clean the boat. I'm sure a lot of you are thinking that washing the boat is not paradise, but when you live in Kentucky and have not been to the shore in 3 years, one has a different perspective.

Pascal, am I right in that your boat is a 58' Hatt? Do you have stabilizers? Knowing your current boating activities, and you were buying this same boat today, are they a must have for you?

I have traveled New England to Florida several times in my Taiwanese "yachts", but never really considered going "outside" except when I had to along the New Jersey coast. I'm assuming with a 56-65 foot motor yacht, those cruise patterns will change. When you get outside, anything can happen with the seas, no matter how closely one watches the weather patterns. I'm going to be buying a used MY around $500k and at this point I'm thinking stabilizers are a must have. I also understand that it is quite a project to fit an older boat with new stabilizers.

My old boat's (Marine Trader) displacement was around 30,000 lbs. It was top heavy. The larger Hatts are heavier of course, but still appear to be top heavy. I am surprised to not be hearing from Hatt owners that stabilizers are a must.

Whether seas of 3-5' or 4-6' are comfortable or not is going to be very dependent on the period. You'll need to learn to think not simply of the height but the timing.

We prefer to travel outside as much as we can while others prefer inside. You'll find what works best for you.

There are Hatteras owners who have been around for years with boats not stabilized and have been happy. However, that doesn't mean you'd be happy without them. With going outside being new to you, I'd then strongly recommend stabilizers to make things as enjoyable as possible.

Mine is a 1970 53 which I bought back in 2003. It has original 70s Vospers mini fins which don't work and for which you can't find parts anymore. They're coming off the boat soon. I m the process of a complete refit and repower (Cummins factory reman Cseries) which includes all new electrical plumbing and updated layout

To be honest I ve mostly used the boat around south Florida but once the work is done (about a year) we will be using it for trips to the Exumas. Having weighted the pros (comfort) and cons (price) of stabilizers I ve decided not to replace them. Cheaper to waiter a couple of days....

In the past 10 years I was running a Johnson 70 without stabilizers and have done numerous round trips to new England as well as as many as 6 trips to Exumas every year. With an enclosed sky lounge and tender / jet ski up top any seas on the beam would cause the boat to roll. So we picked our days... never missed a charter. Now I m running a stabilized 84 Lazzara and enjoy the comfort and the peace mind...

Btw the 70' Johnson (2003) is up for sale and in your budget ($599). Great layout. Owner wants it sold and it's a lot of boat for the money. But no stabilizers

Thank you for your insight on stabilizers Pascal. Checked out the Johnson. Great boat for someone, but out of my league and not really my style, even if I could afford to maintain her.