We are considering buying a Gulfstar 47 Sailmaster and are interested in your comments concerning the Sailmaster 50. I.E. that it was never intended for world cruising and its lack of performance. Friends that own these 47’s claim the boat sails great (at least the sloop rig) and it does quite well in heavy weather. Any comments regarding sloop versus ketch rigs? Please be specific about why you feel this way as I’m very interested in this boat – as you said, there is massive space and livability.
Hi Gordon: Tough question. Without seeing a stability curve for the Sailmasters I’d be hard pressed to comment on their suitability. And then there is the whole question of what is your definition of heavy weather? I would guess that as long as you had no structural or systems problem, i.e., the boat was under control and sound, that you could deal with moderate heavy weather. But I suspect that the range of positive stability might not be as great as might be ideal for severe conditions. There’s a lot of boat up high and not a huge amount of draft or ballast to offset it.
On the performance front, the boat will be slow to weather, and sluggish in light airs. But that definition fits a lot of cruising boats. So it’s a question of if you want to trade the space for the performance. For local sailing, maybe doing the East Coast, and working your way down island this is not going to be a huge problem.
One of my concerns would be the basic structure, keel, steering, and rig integrity. As you pointed out, these boats are typically not thought of in context of thousands of blue water miles. A good survey, and a check of the history of the boats will shed some light on this subject.
Of course you can motor in the light winds and to weather.
To get the same interior space and good heavy weather ability plus boat speed you would need to go longer. So there are some benefits to the configuration. It is just a question to how you weigh the pros and cons. Good Luck! – Steve
Posted by Steve Dashew (November 30, 1999)
October 11th, 2009 at 1:02 am
Hi, I am very interested in purchasing a gulfstar motor yacht sailor ketch year 79 to be based in the Dominican Republic in the near future. But I will want to sail her eventually around the Horn to head towards Asia where I am at the moment living and if I visit SA then a trip around the Hope happen. I have been persuaded to steer clear of the production caravans afloat. And so there comfort and style aboard the gulfstar which would be my a home for much of the time.So would she handle okay crossing from the horn across to the the Pacific islands and beyond.Its my idea to cruise in comfort, so being banged about in a sardine can size yacht is not my idea of fun so that is why I am not looking at a narrow yacht not at 60.
October 11th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
Tony:
First, the part of the world to which you are referring can be exceptionally rough. Some of the Gulstars, like the 50,have made good temperate and tropical cruising boats. Cape Horn is another matter. Whatever you decide, make sure to have a thorough survey done and make sure the surveyor knows your plans. You might also want to take a look at our book Surviving the Storm elsewhere on this website, which goes into some of the design characteristics which are good for heavy weather.
November 29th, 2010 at 1:02 pm
[…] I stumbled across a nice explanation of how the 47 performs by Steve Dashew. On his setsail blog, a reader asks about his opinion of the 47 Sailmaster in heavy weather. Steve responds: There’s a […]