Cheoy Lee Clipper Ketch 33

[TSteele65]

Originally Posted by Bardo

That cockpit does not look like a '58 design.

I found a few photos of her sister ships, and the design seems consistent. The only thing missing from Maia's cockpit seems to be some teak cap rails.

[Bardo]

That may be whats throwing me off.

[Valiente]

Originally Posted by TSteele65

Beautiful boat, but the formica bulkheads really take it down a peg.

It's possible the same will be said of some of the trend-setting boats of today. I certainly like the appointments and the vastness of the saloons in a lot of cruisers I see, until I think of going into more than a two-foot chop with them. But I'm probably not the target market anyway.

I wonder why that "classic plastic" Maia is as cheap as it is if it's been that extensively redone. Like most 40 footers of that type, it probably has the interior volume of a Catalina 30 at best, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't make an excellent daysailer you could keep on a mooring to avoid dock length costs. It could be the fairly obvious use of massive water ballasting or the Atomic 4 (sure hope it's FWC!), but I've seen far worse "character" boats. This looks on deck like an Alberg 30 crossed with an eight metre with glassed over coamings.

[TSteele65]

Originally Posted by Valiente

It's possible the same will be said of some of the trend-setting boats of today. I certainly like the appointments and the vastness of the saloons in a lot of cruisers I see, until I think of going into more than a two-foot chop with them. But I'm probably not the target market anyway.

I wonder why that "classic plastic" Maia is as cheap as it is if it's been that extensively redone. Like most 40 footers of that type, it probably has the interior volume of a Catalina 30 at best, but that doesn't mean it wouldn't make an excellent daysailer you could keep on a mooring to avoid dock length costs. It could be the fairly obvious use of massive water ballasting or the Atomic 4 (sure hope it's FWC!), but I've seen far worse "character" boats. This looks on deck like an Alberg 30 crossed with an eight metre with glassed over coamings.

Apparently, the owner was originally asking $90K for Maia. Something isn't adding up there.

[doctom]

I have a 33 ft Cheoy Lee Offshore. I have been very pleased with her. There is a lot of work, but I still get to choose whether to spend a day on her sailing or working. There are a few leaks from the windows but I am in the process of replacing the large fixed windows with smaller oval portlights. The original teak deck had been removed, but there are no soft spots on the deck or in her hull. Her bilge stays dry. Her teak garners alot of attention from me and compliments from others. Maybe the reason I got her as cheaply as I did is in part due to all this negative publicity that Cheoy Lees receive.

I will race her in a 150 mile offshore race at the end of this month and she is taking my brother to Panama next June. My opinion is that you buy the boat for your own reasons then you have only yourself to thank or blame as the situation demands.

mike

[Valiente]

Originally Posted by TSteele65

Apparently, the owner was originally asking $90K for Maia. Something isn't adding up there.

Oh, probably. Caveat emptor and all that. But occasionally it has been known that some old guy with hermit tendencies works on a boat for years to a high degree of fit and finish, and then gets sick and/or dies, leaving the "project" to non-sailing kin. Were this to happen when the old guy originally decided to sell, and continued when the heirs were calling the shots, I can easily see the price falling like a stone just to avoid paying the coming winter's yard fees.

Or it's a piece of crap.

[Valiente]

Originally Posted by doctom

I will race her in a 150 mile offshore race at the end of this month and she is taking my brother to Panama next June. My opinion is that you buy the boat for your own reasons then you have only yourself to thank or blame as the situation demands.

I agree entirely with you. The fellow next to me at the club a couple of years ago had a 33 foot ChrisCraft sloop from '65 (yes, they made sailboats for a few years). The boat was seven inches shorter than my '73 racer/cruiser and TEN THOUSAND POUNDS heavier, but he had equal parts of work and fun, even if the thing sailed like a UPS van with two flats.

If you had the skills and expectations usual to having owned a couple of boats previously, there's no reason why an old Cheoy Lee with a minimum of defects wouldn't be a fine choice. But I would hesitate to argue it would make a good first boat for someone who didn't have the skill set or the time to keep it in good order.

[rogern]

Has anyone posting replies to this ever actually owned a Cheoy Lee Clipper, or crewed extensively on one, or even spent an overnight aboard? Or are you just parroting rumors and derogatory comments you've heard from others?

We bought our '72 Clipper 42 schooner Izurde in June of '06, and have taken her from St. Petersburg, FL, offshore to the Chesapeake (where she spent a year at Herrington Harbour Marina in Deale, MD) and from there, offshore again, to southern Massachusetts and then to Down East Maine, where she's wintering on the hard at the Hinkley yard in Southwest Harbor. In addition, I've delivered a '74 Clipper 42 ketch from Miami to Norfolk, also offshore.

Believe me, I'll take Izurde over a Morgan (??) any day, or over any modern condo-on-a-keel. She is well built, (heavily overbuilt in her lay-up above and below the waterline, by modern standards), excellently finished in beautiful wood below decks, and well equipped. Bill Luders did an excellent job in designing the Clipper series, just as Bob Perry and Phillip Rhodes did with the yachts they designed for CL. She is a real CCA-style yacht, with a contained, manageable interior that won't leave you rattling around in a blow, lots of manageable stowage, and a high "survivability factor." Most yachts of her vintage have been extensively re-fit, be they Morgans, Pearsons, Cheoy Lees or Hinkleys, and so will not suffer from any original weaknesses in metallurgy or construction. NO 30 year old teak deck that hasn't been repaired replaced or removed is likely to be leak free, but at least on Izurde the deck was cored with solid mahogany, so that where she did leak, the water penetration was contained and the damage limited. What do you think Morgan cored their decks with?

While the comments about potential problems with rigging, decks and wiring have weight, not all of these problems were experienced in all boats of this ilk, i.e. Asian built boats from the '60s and '70s. The Cheoy Lee shipyard has been in operation for almost a hundred years, and builds both commercial and pleasure craft to hundreds of feet in length. Their expertise and competence is widely acknowledged even today, when companies like Morgan Yachts have ceased to exist or are merely brands of other builders.

Here are a couple of thoughts cribbed from Practical Sailor: "Back in the late 1960s and 1970s, Cheoy Lee enjoyed an enviable reputation for classic design and superior workmanship, even if some of the boats suffered from a few problems endemic to Asia, such as inappropriate use of plywood and poor electrical wiring practices." "Like most boats of this vintage, the Clipper 36 and 42 have a solid fiberglass hull. According to company literature, its thickness ranges from about 7/16" at the sheer to 1" at the keel. This is hefty." And finally, "There’s no denying that the 'classic' look of the Cheoy Lee Clipper series is enough to make your heart flutter: 'That’s what a boat is supposed to look like!' Indeed, some well-known personalities such as singer Jimmy Buffet have succumbed to the Clipper’s Siren song." "Construction certainly was above average, with heavily laid hulls and fairly sound joinerwork. Prices for early models represent a good value in today’s market..." "You don't buy a Cheoy Lee Clipper for performance or ease of maintenance. The 36 and 42 appeal to certain types of sailors, and you know who you are. Go in with your eyes open, ready to work (or pay), and you’ll have a boat to be proud of for many years to come."

To those of you who think you know better, I say, come sail with me on my boat before you claim to know she's "inferior".

See you on the water,
Roger Noble
"Amazing Grace" Catalina 30 #3725
Lake Travis, Austin, Texas
"Izurde" Cheoy Lee Clipper 42
Seal Cove, Maine

[tenuki]

Originally Posted by Ishmael

To date my largest boat has been a San Juan 21. Not classic I know, but a lovely boat and served us well.

Hey, that's a nice little boat.

[kwaltersmi]

I was under the impression that the Cheoy Lee Luders 36 was a respected and affordable boat worthy of offshore work for the budget-minded. Granted, I have no experience on Cheoy Lee's, so correct me if I'm wrong.