I am looking to buy a boat around 38 feet with good offshore capabilities but reasonably fast and elegant.
I love the Sabre 38 mkll, well built and extremely beautiful but found storage a little limited as we would be spending 1 month to 6 weeks cruising at a stretch. The one I looked at was a cb so no bilge space and lockers taken up with tanks, calorifiers and pumps.
I am also cosidering looking at the Wauquiez 38's both Hood mkll and Centurion as they seem to be very well built and good sailing boats. The 2 private sleeping cabins are a must.
I have been on a Centurion 40 and was very impressed by the internal volume of the hull but as yet have never seen a 38.
Does anyone have any views or perhaps may have sailed on a Sabre and a Wauquiez.The Tartan 372 also looks a stunning boat but I need some opinions as I am on the wrong side of the pond to view any!
Any help appreciated.

Andrew.

Your personal profile is blank... Any particular "pond?"

L

His mention of a 'calorifier' makes me think Europe....

Olson34-

The pond is British euphemism for the Atlantic ocean. Calorifiers are the British way of saying WATER HEATER... Though it should be STOWAGE on a boat, not STORAGE.... STORAGE is for landlubbers.

I bet he learned his lesson. How dare he come on here and ask sensible questions ?

I suspect that Faster has it pegged. Sailingdog, otoh, has his caps key stuck again....

Main point is that a lot of new posters (and some not so new) log into boards like these with zero info in their bio. Then they ask questions that are actually vessel or location specific.
It helps a lot when they fill in the basics of where they sail or live and what sort of boat they have - if they have one.

Regards,
L

NO, THE CAPS LOCK ISN'T STUCK.

That's why I wrote the post that I link to in my signature, since it helps people hit the ground running with hints like how to make a good OP in a thread and such. (see, told ya it wasn't stuck...almost no caps here... )

For what its worth I crewed on a Tartan 40 and had some friends that had a Tartan 372. The 372 was a lot like the 40 on deck, but I liked the below deck layout of the 40 much better than the 372. I even prefered the layout of the older Tartan 37 better than the 372, but still probably would have chosen a 372 over the 37 assuming that is you could find one for sale. It seems they didn't build a whole lot of either of those boats and there generally aren't a bunch on the market even over here on the East Coast of the US. That said, I'd suggest you at least see what Tartan 40's might be available. (Its got the Scheel Keel like the 372.)

The Sabre 38 is a beautiful boat but as you say, perhaps better suited to coastal crusing due to limited storage and tankage.

I was advised to take a look at the Hood's, but none were on the market in my area when I was last shopping for a boat.

I did look at a couple of Wauquiez Pretorian 35's but alas, the one that was in good enough condition and well equipped enough to have overruled my spouses objections, proved beyond my financial reach. The ones in my price range were too hard a sale to get past the financial review of my wife. If you can get by with a slightly smaller boat, this might be a good one to consider.

My god you're a touchy bunch!
Just filled in my profile so sorry for my lack of experience on the forum. ....At least your detective work was good and guessed the correct continent!
I am currently between boats having just sold my Tayana 37.
Thanks midlifesailor for the views on the 372. The tartan 40 looks a beautiful boat and I quite like the unusual layout of the nav station aft of the galley.
Andrew.

I sailed on a Hood Little Harbor 38 for a number of years, although I don't think it was a Wauquiez. It was an extremely well built boat, and a very strong performer with a 126 rating that it sailed to. There was not a stern cabin on that boat, only a quarterberth, and I believe this boat had lockers rather than pilot berths.