Seaworthy Yacht (non-trawler/sportfish) under 65'

The 50 Viking Sport Cruiser I've been captaining just got sold. Loved the boat. Had it up to Maine,out to the Cape, up the Hudson, down to Lauderdale and back plus a ton of running in between. The worst seas I hit with it were 6 to 8 stacked straight up in LI Sound running with it on my quarter. It was of course uncomfortable, but she handled it fine. Even caught a 9'+ that day which made me glad to be at the lower station. Other than that I've had slightly gentler 8' running to Florida which were no sweat, and 10' rollers coming down from Boston, also no sweat. The normal 3' chop that the eastern LI Sound puts up is nothing. Very few problems with the boat. With the small Volvo's I cruised at 19-21 kts on the low side of 2300. The boss ran on the high side of 2300 at 21-23kts. Worst fuel burn was 37 gph, average was 27 to 33 gph.

Yes. Shallow draft, which I was thankful for recently while coming through Georgia at low tide. Viking takes a good boat and upgrades it. Things like adding a voltage isolator. What really sold myself and my employer on Viking over Princess and almost every comparable boat was that, If we have a question or need a part it's just a (609) call.

I've done quite a bit of looking and research for exactly what you're talking about. My own opinion is the Hatteras yachts are staid and overpriced, and in some of the new ones, I find their interior materials choices questionable for the price. I cared most about hull design, construction, and seaworthiness, and for me, it came down to Viking Sport Cruisers and Fairline's Squadron series. I had a strong preference for the Fairline designs and am trying to close on one now.

Best of luck in your search!

[Edited in after a little thought] P.S. I was less interested in my boat having a long range...if longer-range cruising had been a priority, I would have looked harder at 58' Westbay Sonship, Offshore yachts, and particularly, Ocean Alexander. I believe these three manufacturers make very good boats that might suit you well. They're solid and cruise around the high teens or lower 20's, depending on engine configs. I wanted a bit more speed (higher 20's or lower 30's) and a more sleek and beautiful design, while maintaining the characteristics I emphasized above. Also, I was a bit flexible on the exact boat - I was looking for a really good deal and it just so happened that the best deal I found was on my favorite boat of the bunch.

You could find a better comparison. One concern I'd have with Ferretti and several others is their current financial situation.

Did you have a "little person" along to do your engine room work/checks?

Or is there more room down there with the "small" Volvos?

What about an Offshore or a Marlow? I'd have to double check but I believe they can cruise in the 20s with the right engines.

I ran a 59' Feretti and was pretty impressed with it. It had 1050 mans and cruised at 28 knots. The 63 or 64' Hatteras is built a lot more solid and a better built boat, especially when it comes to the systems. I also ran a 60' Fairline, which was nice, never had it in a rough sea, but was a small 60' boat everywhere. The flybridge, salon, engine room, etc.

For the 3 kts you miss there is WAY more space. You can go between the motors and you can work on the outsides. For my 2 cents the big motors are a mistake on the 50.

We recently went through this same decision process looking for a 50 ft boat. We wanted something that was seaworthy to run up and down the coast and throughout the Bahamas that would be safe in weather conditions when one gets caught in seas beyond 2 to 4 feet. I was first and foremost concerned about hull design and construction. We bought a 50 ft Viking Sport Cruiser and have cruised the boat around 2000 miles so far this year in various conditions and the boat has been wonderful.

We chose the VSC because it has a nice deadrise and a fine entry near 50 degrees, with a deep forefoot similar to a sport fish. The boat does very well in head seas and following seas. The hull is a solid laminant with an impressive stringer system and massive engine bay stringers. The boat does not creak and make noises when in rougher conditions. We also looked at the Fairline which is also a very well made boat designed by the same hull designer, Olesinski. We preferred the layout and headroom in the VSC over the Fairline. The companies, Princess and Fairline have a history of joint ownership and there are several similarities in the hull design and construction.

We also evaluated buying a Princess versus Viking Sport Cruiser and without question you want to buy the Viking version. Aside from some upgrades, the boats are in fact very similar as Viking has provided design input to the basic boat over the last several years. The main reasons however to buy VSC are that a phone call gets immediate service and response. This should not be underestimated in importance for parts and technical support at several locations on the east coast. Also, when you go to sell, I am quite sure that it is much more difficult to sell a Princess or non-US version of the Fairline in the US market.

To appreciate the hull design you really need to look at the deadrise, forefoot, and entry out of the water. The other thing that I think really effects seaworthiness is the is the center of mass and I think you will find the VSC has comparably low total height and center of mass without compromising the internal headroom. This of course comes at a price in engine room height, but the salon floor is easily removed in sections when extensive engine room access is needed. I can do all standard engine room checks and simple service without removing any interior floor elements. Hope this gives you some useful input.

You'll find our burn with the 50 in post #2. Put another way we ran from Beaufort, NC to Charleston, SC with about 80 gallons left. I believe that's about 211nm, but check me on that.

I ran a 58' VSC with C18 CATS from Ft. Laud to DE, I remember it was light on fuel range also. I want to say it only held 700 gallons......We had 8hrs max (with about 100 gallons reserve) which would put us at 240nm........The boat cruised at 30 knots. The 58 Searay Sedan Bridges are even worse. I think I had a 210nm range on that maximum......

We have a similar fuel burn and range to NYCAP in our 50. Your range will depend on sea conditions, cruise speed, and engine package. At hull speed, 8 to 10 knts we get around 1.4 mpg and a range of over 500 miles. At cruise speed, 20 knts, we get a total range of 300 miles (which would be beyond your reserve envelope). I think Viking usually has a 300 mile range as their target but 250 miles with reserve is a more realistic number. This is for the 50 VSC, but I think the numbers are similar for the 58 and likewise for similar makes in this style of boat with a 20 knt plus cruise speed.

This range makes any standard run on the east coast or Bahamas within range. We have run 11 hours straight in moderate conditions which is a very long day on the ocean at cruise speed. We did Fernandina to Ft Pierce (around 250 miles) and had weather and rain for 1/3 of the trip with a reserve of 60 or 70 gallons. We usually run with the generator on all day, I am not sure what its hourly burn is, but I suspect we use around 25 gallons on a long days cruise included in the above numbers.

That would make no sense what so ever except possibly on the largest yachts. The gen only burns a couple of gph. What you may be referring to though is some boats may have gas motors and a diesel gen. In that case you need a separate tank for the diesel.

Are these figures statuate miles or nautical miles? My calculations on the 58'
are in Nautical Miles and the boat wouldn't have a nautical range of 300 miles if you ran it dead empty. And with 700 gallons, only about 650 gallons are usable, maybe even less. I figured a range of 240NM with 100 gallons left. The c18's burned 75gph at 30.3 knots. 8hours=600gallons= 240nm. Running another hour and 75 gallons would still only get you 270NM.

Sounds like SM. On the run to Charleston we were in reserve. My estimate would be about 230 to 250nm on usable fuel, possibly as much as 270 but I wouldn't try.