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Identical hulls on Nordhavn and Ocean Alexander 120's?

Discussion in 'General Trawler Discussion' started by vlafrank, May 22, 2010.

  1. vlafrank, May 22, 2010
    #1
    vlafrank

    vlafrank Senior Member

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    OK good people, I need your expert counsel here. Pls bear with me while I walk you through this, to wit:

    1) Google Nordhavn, then click on their "120' " marker, and check out their proposed 120' yacht, due in 2012. Take a good look.

    2) Then google Ocean Alexander and click on their "megayacht" marker, and check out their 120' megayacht.

    Now tell me those two aren't the exact same hull, with minor detail changes!

    Is it just me? Am I being unduly cynical? I mean, I'm as pro-Nordhavn as the next trawler yacht afficionado, but exactly what is the purchaser of a Nordhavn 120 buying? From here, it looks like somebody on mainland China is building that 120' hull and selling it to both Nordhavn and Ocean Alexander. So who's next? Grand Banks? I shudder to think.

    Your expertise, insights and opinions (pretty much in that order) are anxiously sought.
  2. Ward, May 22, 2010
    #2
    Ward

    Ward Senior Member

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    Sorry, all I've got is opinion...

    I can see some overall similarity and some design details are clearly the same, but it doesn't jump out at me that they're the same hull.
  3. Fishtigua, May 22, 2010
    #3
    Fishtigua

    Fishtigua Senior Member

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    Thats been going on for years. One yard in Italy makes all the hulls for 4 or 5 boatbuilders based in and around Viareggio.

    Fairline in the UK sells one of their yachts even though its never been anywhere near Fairline's yard.

    While cruising Thailand we kept on seeing one Asian built yacht that looked just like a small Swan yacht. As you know, they sell those dodgy knock-off watches over there; "Wanna-buy-a-Bolex, mister?".

    Everytime we saw one of those knock-off yachts we used say to each other; "Wanna-buy-a-Copy Yacht, mister?" :)
  4. bstet, May 22, 2010
    #4
    bstet

    bstet New Member

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    Close, but not identical. Overall length may be very close and similar appearance, but LWL, beam, draft, and displacement are not close at all. For example, the Ocean Alexander draft is alot less than the 9'-0" draft of the Nordhaven, and the beam and displacement are not close either. IMHO the molds are different, without seeing the underbody.
    Brian
  5. vlafrank, May 23, 2010
    #5
    vlafrank

    vlafrank Senior Member

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    Not the same

    Well I'm hugely relieved to hear it - seriously - and I thank you for that studied input.
  6. Dstreech, May 23, 2010
    #6
    Dstreech

    Dstreech Guest

    At first glance of the renderings, there is a similarity in style, but that is where it ends. The Ocean Alexander 120 and the Nordhavn 120 are two very different boats- and do not share a hull. The Ocean Alexander is a smaller lighter boat as evidenced by the specifications.

    Displacement: OA120- 395,000 lbs; Nordhavn 120- 849,000 lbs
    Fuel: OA120- 6,000 gallons; Nordhavn 120- 17,500 gallons
    Draft: OA120-6’3”; Nordhavn 120- 9’

    All Nordhavns are designed by Jeff Leishman. The tooling and molds of all Nordhavn models are owned and controlled by PAE/Nordhavn and are used only for the production of Nordhavns. PAE/Nordhavn has never sold bare hulls to other builders or individuals. When a Nordhavn model ceases production, the molds and tooling are destroyed. To date, the molds for the N35, N46, N50 and N57 have been destroyed.

    Thank you,

    Dan Streech
  7. AMG, May 23, 2010
    #7
    AMG

    AMG YF Moderator

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    So this means that when an owner of an older boat get some structural damage, from grounding, collision or hurricanes, there are no molds to produce "spare pieces" from? Perhaps not a big problem, but I like when molds are stored for future repair works instead of having to make new molds on existing boats...
  8. Fishtigua, May 23, 2010
    #8
    Fishtigua

    Fishtigua Senior Member

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    Well said Lars.

    Our neighbour's Beneteau 42 race boat was badly holed in Hurricane Hugo. The cheapest and strongest repair was a molding shipped over from France and faired in. Trying to replicate such a shape in the yard would have taken ages.

    'Hugo' as the yacht is called, is still racing on the Caribbean circuit today with Hugh Bailey at the helm.