JENNEAU 42ds,vs Catalina 42,vs Benneteu423,vsBavaria42

[MDRSAILMAN]

I am in the process of looking at all these boats(new only). Looking to compare price,quality,resale value, sailing abilitites

[MDRSAILMAN]

[MDRSAILMAN]

Any opinions

[genethompson]

I THINK what you are saying is "I have $300k to spend and want a new 42 foot sailboat, what should I buy?" At least that is what it sounds like. These are all coastal production cruisers and I think are quite different. The Jeanneau DS42 is a new design and the Cat 42 is a very old design. The new Jeanneaus are simmilar in build quality to the Benneteau because they are owned by the same company. The Bennes are built in the US however as is the Cat. Bavaria is rather odd to me, sail drive (which I don''t really like) and a unique hull construction. i don''t see much difference in reasale vallue except the Jeanneau would probably be best if fitted out properly. The problem with Jeanneau and Benneteau are they tend to be fitted toward the charter trade, simple to sail but not very good at it. i.e. furling main sail and shoal draft. My impression of Catalina is that they fit out the boats nicely but are poorly built in other areas. Have you looked at Elan or Dufour?

It might help if you let us know what your experience is, why you want a 42 footer and how you intend to use the boat.

[sailortjk1]

Everybody has their own opinion and nobodies opinion is the wrong one.

The reason I say this is that for me, cruising short handed, I have absolutley no problem sacrificing sail shape for ease of sailing. I sail a boat with a furling mainsail and the ease of shorthanded sailing is worth the compromise. I find that if I move the traveler to windward and adjust the leach line I have nice sail shape. I love my set up. I don''t have a five man crew to help raise and trim sails.

Also, depending on the waters where the boat will be used, shoal draft may be a very important concideration. Not everybody sails in deep waters, secluded anchorages may require a shallow draft boat.

How the boat is to be used? That is the key.

These boats are all cruisers, thats what they were built for, not to set speed records.

On onother note: my philosophy was to find a slightly used boat. Me personaly, I would not buy new boat. (Thats just my opinion)

I found a slightly used boat and saved thousands of dollars versus buying new. All the electronics were already installed and the boat is broken in, no new boat surprises.

[MDRSAILMAN]

Thanks for the comments. The boat willl be used for weekend and weeklong sailing. I believe that the Jenneau DS will have a better resale than the CATALINA (15) year old model! Also the Jenneau has very good headroom in rear cabin . I will not be competing with 4000 boats when and if I sell the Jenneau! As far as new I have had enough with used boats that are loaded with electronics that are worth nothing if the boat is over three years old. Also new allows me to do it my way! Mabe not the best for saving money but it is just my own thing . So the new vs Old is not really part of my decision

[MDRSAILMAN]

Can anybody give suggestions on battery and amp miminmum for a 42

[Columnist]

Let''s see if responded to the right posting this time...

If you are serious about the boats you listed, then you definitely owe it to yourself to have a real close look at the Dufour 40.

I fell in love with this boat and hope to own one some day. It has the build quality, design, construction technique, interior layout (which is beautifully finished), safety and performance all in one nice package. There are also several layout options enabling you to semi-customize the boat.

All lines on this boat don’t just go to the cockpit; they go to about a half arms reach of the helm. Look up single handed sailing in the dictionary and you should find this boat.

There was one at the Chicago Sail show last week priced under 300K. They build a 44 as well that looks very attractive.

Cheers,
Steve

[h20ski]

be careful with the Jeanneau 42DS- they charge extra for things like the spring cleats, etc... (stuff you would normally have standard on other boats). Also the tankage seems very small and there is hardly any ease to "customize" your boat. I would indeed look closely at the Bavaria or the Elan- great boats. The Elan 434 and 384 seem particularly well built and loaded- very good value.

[paulk]

Bavaria seems to have had some problems recently with keels dropping off. You may want to drop them from your list.