Sailboat Reviews

We spoke with several owners of Cheoy Lee 42s and 36s for this article, and among the most seasoned was Kieron OConnell, a two-time owner of Cheoy Lee boats-first an Offshore 31, now a Cheoy Lee Clipper 42. OConnell sailed the 42 from California to Australia. He had this to say about the Cheoy Lee Clipper 42.

In the January 2013 issue of Practical Sailor, we took a close look at the bow and noted the trend toward plumb stems, multiple furlers, and a longer resting waterline. We also recognized the tradeoffs involved, such as the need to perch the anchor further forward on a mini sprit or small strut in order to keep the flukes from chewing away at the topsides. When it comes to ground-tackle handling, its clear that for decades, cruisers have understood and retained a commitment to anchor deployment and retrieval-and designers and builders have responded appropriately. However, an even bigger shift in yacht design has overtaken the aft end of the modern production sailboat-and the implications are hard to miss.

Practical Sailor reader Allen Taylor so loved his Cabo Rico 38 that he eventually started working for the company as the marketing director. Now, with his stint at Cabo Rico far behind him, the former marketing director offered this insightful view of the Crealock 38, which he lived on and cruised for several years. Although he still holds the boat in high esteem, he offered this list of potential trouble spots.

Nearly every owner we spoke to about their Alberg 35 had small gripes about the boats performance, cosmetic defects, and outdated equipment. Nevertheless, it was clear that each had great confidence in the hull design and construction, and took pride in the boats enduring classic aesthetics.

Practical Sailor is working on updating some used boat reviews and adding some new ones to our online library, and we need your help. Were looking for opinions (and photos) from current or former owners of the following boats: Cabo Rico 38, Com-Pac 35, Cheoy Lee Clipper 42, Stuart Knockabout, Express 37, and CSY 37.

Wed tucked into Hatchet Bay, Eleuthera, when the pretty green sloop sailed through the narrow slot into the basin. A ballsy kid, he didnt even furl the jib. I can't recall his name. He was in his 20s-handy with tools and a brush. The boats coamings gleamed with nine layers of varnish. The boat, I remember well. It was the first time I got a really close look at an Alberg 30. She was, in many ways, the sort of sailboat an elementary school artist might render, if you asked him to draw a sailboat. Deceptively simple. Elegant and well-balanced.

Hobie asked: Are you near Norfolk or New York?, and I said no to both. He then paused and said: I could sell you one, but if you buy three boats you can be our dealer in that area. . . . My wife was not too pleased with 140 cardboard boxes (each box holding a hull) in our backyard. She had just given birth to our first child three months earlier!

As is typical of C&Cs, owners give the boat high marks for quality of construction, and in general, their enthusiasm is justified. The boat does, however, have a potential weak point. Hull: Like most C&Cs, the 40 was built with a balsa-cored hull. The result is a hull that is extremely stiff for its weight, but balsa coring is not without its potential for problems. In the event of delamination or rupture of the hull skin, the balsa coring can absorb moisture. Moisture penetration of the outer laminate could ultimately reach the balsa coring. It is imperative that a balsa-cored hull be carefully examined by a knowledgeable surveyor before purchasing a used boat.

The fiber-to-resin ratio was increased through a vacuum-assisted resin infusion, a process that better wets out the laminate and simultaneously squeezes out all the excess resin. The mechanical properties and blister resistance of vinylester resin are better than its polyester cousin, and this uptick in materials and laminating process dovetailed with the use of Divinycell foam to deliver a strong, stiff, one-piece hull with a an inward-turning flange. The BJ40 hull carries a 10-year warranty against osmotic blistering.

Danish company LM (Lunderskov Mbelfabrik) began as a wood furniture maker in 1940. In the 1950s, the company incorporated the newfangled fiberglass into their furniture, and in 1972, the company built its first fiberglass sailboat, the LM27. Over the next 20 years, it built 3,000 boats in five models, ranging from 24 to 32 feet. All LM models share a similar look-canoe-stern hulls with a pilothouse ahead of a sizable cockpit. All are mast-head rigged sloops, and every owner we talked to said that the boats sailed better than they expected-an experience that we shared on our test sail of the LM32.