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Freedom 36/38

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I'm wondering if I can get some quick feedback from folks on the Freedom 36/38 line. I have picked over most of the threads that have discussed the somewhat unusual freestanding rig design, and that is mostly what people seem to talk about when they talk about these boats. I think I have made my peace with that aspect of the design. What I am really curious about now is overall safety and stability. When I look at the stats and plug numbers into some of the publicly available sailing calculators, the boats come back with some disquieting numbers... high frequency roll period, high g acceleration, low comfort factor, a capsize screen over 2. I have tried to find more commentary on how these things sail and people generally say that they sail well, but I haven't been able to find anything about how comfortable they are. I found one comment from one owner that suggested his was a little rolly, but that's it. My wife is super susceptible to getting seasick, so it's a real concern for us. My question is, are these as uncomfortable as the numbers suggest, or is there something about the design that makes the formulas less useful with freestanding carbon fiber masts? Can anyone comment on how rough they ride in heavy seas? Thanks!  

Welcome to Freedom ! I am the very happy owner of a Freedom 33 Cat Kethch with the Deep fin keel and Tall rig. I can't comment specifically on the Freedom 36 but in general, they are very well built and excellent sea boats. In my opinion, numbers are helpful but do not only not tell the whole story, they can also be misleading. So I would not put all my faith in them. What I can can tell you is that you can probably get alot of your questions answered at the Freedom Yachts owner website at FreedomYachts .org There are a bunch of really knowledgeable and very helpful folks there that can give you information on your particular yacht. Good luck and enjoy your new Freedom. Rick  

Thanks... I will check that out! Just to be clear, we haven't bought it yet, I'm still poking around trying to clarify this stuff first.  

I have never sailed any of the Freedom designs, so I can't comment on the rig or the numbers. The one Freedom 36 I did briefly check out had wet hull core around the aft thru-hulls. I mention this not to say wet core is a problem specific to Freedom yachts, but rather to make sure you're aware that at least the Freedom 36 had a cored hull. Obviously this isn't necessarily a bad trait, but different than many other production sailboats.  

Thanks for the heads-up. I actually asked the broker about the hull coring, and she said she didn't believe it was cored. I did a little more digging and found something in another forum saying that some of them were and some weren't, depending on the year, but I don't know how much faith to put in that. At any rate, it would be something to confirm at survey, if it gets that far.  

Mull designed Freedom36/38 is the best boat out of all Freedom line, IMHO. It does everything well. I have a friend with one and he is extremely happy. All Freedom yachts are balsa cored. They need strong hull structure to support freestanding mast. I don't know which calculator you used. I remember running F36 numbers a while ago and she looked good on papers too. Practical Sailor reviewed F36 very favorably.  

I am specifically looking at the numbers here: The Freedom 36 - information for cruising sailors And the plots found here: Sailboat Characteristics I double-checked and verified those calculations from the listed specifications using the always excellent Carl's Sailing Calculator . Specifically, looking at the plots on the breakaway site, the 36/38 shows up as a real outlier versus the general constellation of boats there. The things that concern me most are the high frequency roll period and the high G acceleration rate... both things that are often nausea-inducing. She also fares poorly in the comfort factor but I have heard a lot of debate over that particular calculation so I'm prepared to discard it out of hand. Now, I know calculations aren't sailing, but since I don't have the opportunity to go out on one in dicey conditions, the numbers are the most objective thing I have to go on at the moment. I'm thinking it could be possible that the unusual design blows the formulas, but I don't really know enough about them to figure that out on my own. So, I was hoping to get enough feedback from folks who have actually been out on them in a variety of conditions to comment. As I said, I did find at least one owner who thought his 36 was a little rolly in chop, which would seem to reinforce the numbers. People say they are great boats and I totally believe it, but every boat has certain characteristics that can be problems for certain people. I just want to figure out if the Freedoms are more likely than average to send my wife chucking over the lee rail. Oh, and I did get a follow-up from the broker today and they confirmed the balsa coring. So I'll have to get the surveyor to take a close look around the thru-hulls.  

You might want to find a copy of World's Best Sailboats by Ferenc Mate. He included a Freedom in the book. Full disclosure, own a F38. Have never run numbers on it but find it a very comfortable boat with regard to its motion on the water and we sail in some real chop in Buzzards Bay. I believe that my boat is solid below the waterline and then goes to a cored system, but only dealing with my geriatric memory at this moment. Best of luck.  

Thanks, Ed. That's exactly what I was hoping to hear. I'll take a look around for that book today, too.  

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When she decided she wanted to sail around the world, she chose Tethys and three friends joined her as financial owners of the boat. As captain, Nancy completed her US Coast Guard 50-ton Master of Oceans & 100-ton Master Near Coastal licenses, Advanced Ham radio license Ki7dp, ISPA Instructor Evaluator Ocean and PADI advanced SCUBA. After the first circumnavigation in 1995 Nancy bought Tethys from the other owners and started teaching women full-time. For nearly 40 years, she has shared her love of boats and sailing with other women- as teacher, advocate and international public speaker.

Nancy Erley led two voyages from Seattle around the world aboard her Orca 38 sailboat, Tethys. “As the skipper of an all-woman crew, Nancy fashioned a circumnavigation that should go down in the record books as one of the soundest, most seamanlike journeys in the modern cruising era. Like all competent voyages, Tethys circumnavigation was notable for its lack of disasters.” George Day, publisher Blue Water Sailing magazine.

In 2006 Nancy was presented with the Leadership in Women’s Sailing Award sponsored by BoatUS and the National Women’s Sailing Association. The award honors a male or female who has built a record of achievement in inspiring, educating and enriching the lives of women through sailing.

In addition to teaching women sailing aboard Tethys, Nancy holds a yacht salesperson license and acts as a buyer’s representative to find the right boat for each individual. “The truth is that I just love boats,” admits Nancy Erley. And if you stand within earshot or her sea stories, you will begin to believe you love boats.

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Orca Challenge

Bavaria yachts are designed by the J and J design office.  Orca Challenge is a great family cruising yacht with many features to ensure your comfort and safety while on charter with BYC. On deck, a  comfortable and sociable cockpit with the main controls easily accessible mean that even a short handed crew can easily and safely sail the boat. Down below, sturdy fiddles on the galley provide secure handholds for someone descending the companionway in a seaway. A  forward-facing nav desk that’s large enough to take paper charts is another offshore-friendly feature as are the saloon settees that are parallel to the centerline and are long enough to stretch out on.  

Features Overview

• Architect: J & J Design
• Year Built: 2008
• Length Overall: 12.3m (40.35ft)
• Length Waterline: 10.26 m (33.67 ft)
• Max Beam: 3.86 m (12.67 ft)
• Draft: 1.70 m (5.58 ft)
• Displacement: 6,985 kg
• Sail Area: 83.4m2
• Hull Construction: GRP
• Engine Type: Volvo Penta MD D2-55
• Engine Power: 55HP
• Fuel Tank Capacity: 151L
• Water Tank Capacity: 303L
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Orca Challenge BAVARIA 38

Orca Challenge is a fast, comfortable and practical family cruiser. With an updated Navigation suite with Raymarine Axiom 9 Chartplotter at the helm. With 3 double cabins and 2 heads. She has private bunks for 6 people and the possibility of another 2 in the saloon. The galley is well laid out and efficient.

The saloon is inviting and is a comfortable place to gather and relax. The level of interior finish is first class with plenty of solid teak trim and teak veneers.

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The Immortal Ohlson 38

The cover shot is my old Seafarer 31-1 yawl, a classic in her way. My new ride is an Ohlson 38 , one of the best-looking boats ever built.

The Ohlson brothers of Denmark drew the O38 after establishing a reputation for designing Olympic winners in the 5.5 meter keelboat class. She has a sleek shark fin keel typical of the racing yachts of the 1960s, a stout fiberglass hull constructed by Tyler Boat Company of England and woodwork by skilled Swedish joiners. My hull was one of the first constructed and has been maintained in Bristol fashion. The immediate previous owner upgraded the sail inventory and added a removable carbon-fiber sprit, or prod, to carry asymmetrical spinnakers for sailing downwind. The installation of the wheel in the cockpit has inspired much controversy in O38 circles; the boat is extremely sensitive to fore-and-aft weight balance and moving a 180-pound helmsman two or three feet back might adversely affect performance. Having sailed the boat many hours now, I can state that being able to steer from the leeward side with a clear view of the sails upwind is worth any sacrifice in optimum weight distribution.

The Ohlson 38 is a physical boat to race, requiring a crew of at least six and in any kind of breeze the trimmer had better be below the age of 30 or in extremely good shape. The No. 1 genoa is a big sail and grinding it in the last three or four feet quickly becomes a fight against muscle fatigue and lactic-acid crapout. For cruising, however, she’s a comfortable, thoroughly seaworthy boat with elegant accommodations.

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Morgan 38/382

Charlie morgan's hurrah becomes ted brewer's success story becomes today's pseudo-classic..

We receive many requests from readers to review certain boats. Almost without exception, the requests come from owners of the boat suggested. Few boats have been the object of more requests than the venerable Morgan 38. At first blush, it is difficult to determine which Morgan 38 we ought to address, as two distinct designs were built since the first one appeared 22 years ago. After some thought, we decided to trace the history of both as best we could, including also the Morgan 382, 383 and 384.

The Morgan 38 was designed in 1969 by Charlie Morgan. He had founded Morgan Yacht Company in St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1965. The Morgan 34 was his first production model. A hometown boy, he had made a name for himself in the 1960 and 1961 Southern Ocean Racing Conference (SORC), winning with a boat of his own design called Paper Tiger . While not a formally trained naval architect, Morgan demonstrated his skill with a variety of designs. Many of these were keel/centerboard models, owing to the shoalness of Florida waters. Seventy-nine were built before production halted in 1971.

In 1977, the Morgan 382 was introduced, designed by Ted Brewer, Jack Corey and the Morgan Design Team. According to Brewer, the boat was loosely based on the Nelson/Marek-designed Morgan 36 IOR One Ton. The most obvious difference between the 38 and 382 was the elimination of the centerboard and the addition of a cruising fin keel (NACA 64 012 foil) with skeg-mounted rudder. They are two completely different designs from two different eras in yacht design.

In 1980, the 382 was given a taller rig and called the 383. About 1983 the boat underwent other subtle changes, now called the Morgan 384. The rudder was enlarged and the interior modified. In its three versions, the Brewer model registered about 500 sales.

The company changed ownership several times during this period. It went public in 1968, was later bought by Beatrice Foods and then Thor Industries. Presently it is owned by Catalina Yachts, who built just 24 38s (three were kits) before discontinuing production in 1986.

The first Morgan 38 was a development of the highly successful 34, which Morgan called a “beamy, keelcenterboard, CCA (Cruising Club of America)-style of yacht. We had a good thing going and didn’t want to deviate; we found little interest in those days in keel boats. Centerboards have their own sorts of problems, but there’s an awful lot of thin water in the world, and safe refuge and quiet anchorages are mostly in shoal water.”

The boat has a long, shoal keel drawing just 3′ 9″ with the board up. The rudder is attached and there is an aperture for the propeller. “Beamy,” in 1969, meant 11 feet. The waterline was fairly short at 28 feet, but the overhangs give the hull a very balanced and pleasing profile. The stern is pure Charlie Morgan—a finely proportioned shape that is neither too big nor too small. In profile, the angle between the stern (which interestingly is a continuation of the line of the backstay) and the counter is nearly 90 degrees. It’s a trademark look.

Sloop and yawl rigs were offered, which was typical of CCA designs. The rig has a lower aspect ratio (the proportion of the hoist to the foot of the mainsail) than later designs, including the Brewer-designed 382. Yet this is a very wholesome rig for cruising. Owners responding to our questionnaire said the boat balances very well.

Owners of the 382 and subsequent permutations seemed less pleased. They didn’t rate balance as highly, noting most frequently the difficulty in tracking (keeping the boat on a straight course) when sailing off the wind (not uncommon with beamy fin keel designs; it’s a trade-off with speed, pointing ability and maneuverability). Others said that they raked their masts forward to improve balance. One thought the problem was caused because the rudder was slightly undersized. Still, these owners liked the way their boats sail.

The rig, of course, isn’t the only difference between the Morgan and Brewer designs. The latter has a foot wider beam—12 feet—and a longer waterline. Two keels were offered, the standard five-foot draft and an optional deep keel of six feet. Displacement jumped a thousand pounds to 17,000 despite a reduction in ballast from 7,500 pounds to 6,600 pounds. Centerboard boats, naturally, require more ballast because it isn’t placed as low as it is in a deep fin keel boat.

The look of the 382 is much more contemporary. The rake of the bow is straighter, as is the counter, which is shorter than the original 38 as well. Freeboard is higher and the windows in the main cabin are squared off for a crisper appearance.

Construction

The hulls of the early 38s were built of solid fiberglass and the decks of sandwich construction. Some 382 hulls were cored, others not. A variety of core materials were used, mostly Airex foam. The lamination schedule was your basic mat and woven roving, with Coremat added as a veil cloth to prevent printthrough.

Both designs have internal lead ballast, sealed on top with fiberglass.

The early 382s did not have the aft bulkhead in the head fiberglassed to the hull, which resulted in the mast pushing the keel down. All boats “work” under load, and bulkheads bonded to the hull are essential to a stiff structure. Anyone who has a boat in which major load-bearing bulkheads are not attached to the hull should do so before going offshore. To its credit, the company launched a major recall program.

The owners of all Morgan 38s, as a group, note the strength of the boat. One said he hit a rock at 6 ½ knots and suffered only minor damage. Very few problems were mentioned. The owner of a 1981 model, however, said he “drilled through hull at waterline and was surprised at thinness of glass on either side of the Airex: 1/8” inside, 1/16″ outside.” With the stiffness that sandwich construction provides, not as much glass is required; still, protection from collision and abrasion would recommend greater thickness outside. Brewer, incidentally, discounted the report.

Interestingly, Hetron-brand fire-retardant resin was used for a time, prior to 1984; if you recall, this was blamed for the many cases of reported blistering on the early Valiant 40s. About half of the 382 owners responding to our surveys reported some blistering, none serious.

The attached rudder of the early 38 is stronger than the skeg-mounted rudder of later models. But we do prefer the skeg configuration to a spade rudder, at least for cruising. A problem with skegs, however, is the difficulty in attaching them strongly to the hull. One owner said his was damaged in a collision with a humpback whale, but that is hardly normal usage!

Several owners of later models commented that the mast was a “utility pole,” recommending a custom tapered spar for those inclined to bear the expense.

Other problems reported in our survey were only minor and were corrected by the company. In fact, owners were nearly unanimous in their praise for Morgan Yachts’ customer service.

The layout of the Morgan 38 is quite conventional and workable. In both incarnations there are Vberths forward, private head with shower (separate enclosure in the 382), dinette in main cabin with settee, galley aft in the port quarter area and nav station with quarter berth opposite to starboard. Specifications for the first 38s included “attractive wood-grained mica bulkhead paneling, with oiled American walnut trim.” This was a popular treatment in the 1960s, and practical, but often done to excess. By the 1980s, fake teak didn’t play so well. Owners wanted real wood, and that’s what they got in the 382.

Owners of early 38s complained of poor ventilation (“I added six opening ports, and would like an additional center cabin hatch,” wrote one), short Vberths (“Could be 4″ longer, but I’m 6′ 2.””), and more closet space (from a live-aboard).

Owners of later models mentioned the need for a larger forward hatch to get sails through, a hatch over the galley, larger cockpit scuppers, and Dorade vents.

(Teak Dorade boxes were added on the 384.) They complained of not enough footroom in the V-berths and poor location of the main traveler in the cockpit. (The traveler was moved to the cabinhouse top on the 384.)

Despite these minuses, most owners cite the volume of the interior and many stowage compartments as major reasons for their satisfaction with the boat.

Performance Under Sail

As implied in our comments on balance in the “Design” section of this review, the centerboard 38 sailed beautifully. She is dry and seakindly, stable and relatively fast for her generation. Its PHRF rating ranges from 145 to about 150. The yawl rig is probably not as fast as the sloop, but for the cruising couple, the mizzen sail gives the skipper another means of balancing the boat, as well as a means to fly more sail when reaching if he’s prepared to fuss with a staysail.

The 382 rates between 128 and 150, about 137 on average. The Morgan 383 and 384, which are grouped together, rate a mite lower at 135, on average.

It is not surprising that Brewer’s redesign is faster, even though it’s 1,000-2,000 pounds heavier. This is due to it’s deeper fin and higher aspect rig with the ability to carry larger headsails. There is also less wetted surface. Performance Under Power

The centerboard 38 was powered by the seemingly ageless Atomic Four gasoline engine, though a Perkins 4-107 or Westerbeke 4-107 was available at extra cost ($1,940 in 1969). The early 38s cruise at about 6 ½ knots.

A first-generation Yanmar—the 3QM30—was used on some 382s, and as owners of those engines know, they tend to be noisy and vibrate a great deal. Yanmar engines improved a great deal after the manufacturer redesigned and retooled the entire line. But the most common powerplant was the magnificent 50-horsepower Perkins 4-108. If we were looking for a Morgan 38 to purchase, we’d certainly lean toward one with this engine.

Both designs handle reasonably well under power, as well as most sailboats do, meaning that backing down with a two-blade prop is a necessarily cautious procedure.

A number of owners recommend changing to a three-blade prop, but that will affect sailing performance. One should examine his sailing style closely before making the move.

The Morgan 38, in any incarnation, is a handsome boat that sails well and is built strong enough for most people’s purposes. Some may pause before taking a centerboard boat far offshore, but it has certainly been done—recall, if you will, Carleton Mitchell’s hugely successful racer Finnisterre .

Both centerboard and fin keel versions seem to us to have advantages and disadvantages that are essentially tradeoffs.

On the one hand, we like an attached rudder for cruising, as it provides the best protection from collision with logs and other hard objects. On the other, we recognize the importance of placing ballast low, as in the fin keel version, and we appreciate

Brewer for giving a nice slope to its leading edge so that damage from hitting logs will be minimized. Brewer said that a 382 that passes survey is capable of cruising just about anywhere. “They’ve crossed oceans,” he said.

To our eye, we admit to being fond of the CCA designs with low freeboard and graceful sheer lines. The yawl is a versatile rig that is especially attractive, though it does require more in the way of tuning and maintenance.

An early Morgan 38, in good condition, should sell in the high 20s. Expect to pay a thousand or so more for the yawl. For sellers, considering that in 1969 the base price of the boat was $22,995, that’s not a bad return on investment.

Fifteen years later the price had jumped to $84,995 (1984 model). Those boats today are advertised in the mid to high 60s, and occasionally the low 70s. (What anyone is actually getting for these days is another matter entirely).

Considering the changes in the economy, that’s still not bad performance. What it means most to the prospective buyer is that the Morgan 38 and 382 are popular, much admired boats that should, we expect, hold their value as well as or better than most others.

RELATED ARTICLES MORE FROM AUTHOR

My husband & I bought a 382 Morgan in 1980. Named her Galewynd. We enjoyed her til we sold in 2000

My husband & I bought a 382 in 1980. We named her Galewynd. We enjoyed her til we sold in 2000

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Hanse 388 review: a comfortable and elegantly styled yacht

• David Harding
• February 13, 2023

Largely because she’s not the most trendy boat of her size, a new Hanse 388 was the clear choice for an owner moving up from a 32-footer. David Harding finds out why

Product Overview

Price as reviewed:.

When buying a new boat, it might be tempting to choose the most up-to-date model you can find within your size and price range. Why not take advantage of the latest in design and styling and, at the same time, give yourself the maximum future-proofing?

That’s not how everyone sees it. There’s a good range of boats in the more traditional or conservative style that most of us would recognise as distinct from the products of the (arguably more fashion-conscious) mainstream production builders. Boats such as Arconas and Rustlers, for example – though hardly comparable with each other in many ways – are from builders who cater for owners with a different set of priorities from those homing in on a Beneteau or a Dufour.

Even within the mainstream builders there are different approaches. While some have embraced chines, twin rudders, ultra-wide sterns and open-plan interiors, others have kept things a tad more traditional.

Take Hanse, for example. The German giant has never been one to stand still and has continually updated its models. I tested the new Hanse 460 in the October 22 issue of Yachting Monthly and there’s no doubt that it’s as up-to-the-minute as a cruising boat designed for popular appeal could possibly be.

Further down the size range, the Hanse 388 is based on a hull that was designed for the 385 back in 2012. The deck, cockpit, keel and accommodation underwent changes when the Hanse 385 became the Hanse 388 a few years ago, but the hull worked so well that it was left alone.

The 388’s hull is the same as the 385’s, but it has large hullside windows and a deeper keel. Photo: David Harding

This is the boat that appealed to the owner when he was looking to move up from the Dufour 325 he had owned for 10 years. ‘I wanted something between the racy racers and the heavy cruisers,’ he explained.

‘I looked at a Hallberg-Rassy and would have loved an Arcona because they sail beautifully, but I don’t do enough serious sailing and couldn’t justify the money for the amount of use I would give it.’

Lines from the mast are led aft under mouldings along the outsides of the coachroof. Photo: David Harding

Choosing a compromise

Having sailed since childhood and spent his life as a naval architect working principally on the design of superyachts, the owner knows a thing or two about boats. He’s well aware of the fundamental differences between boats from the smaller, more expensive yards and the ‘general production builders’ and was prepared to accept them. At the same time, he also knew what he was and wasn’t prepared to accept in a boat (‘and this will be my swansong boat’) from one of the latter.

A large cockpit with twin helms and a central table provides plenty of seating and space to move around. Photo: David Harding

As an existing Dufour owner, he naturally looked at the Dufour 390 as well as the equivalent Beneteaus, Jeanneaus and Bavarias, among others. What put him off in many cases were the twin rudders. ‘They’re good if you’re doing lots of long, windy reaching legs,’ says Tony, ‘but much harder work for manoeuvring in marinas, even with a bow-thruster. I prefer a deep single rudder.’

Open-plan or semi open-plan interiors were something else he didn’t like. He regularly sails with members of his sailing club on short trips around the Solent, so privacy and separate cabins are essential. That’s one reason why he chose the three-cabin version of the Hanse even though, in a boat with a hull length of 11m (36ft), it entails compromises elsewhere.

Sail controls are handled by a bank of clutches and a self-tailing winch each side by the helm stations. Photo: David Harding

Some sportier alternatives were rejected because they didn’t provide enough living space for his crew, and his choice was further narrowed by the build quality. ‘It was a matter of finding a boat that had good performance combined with the space and the volume downstairs. I like the better quality of the German boats; the joinery and the fittings. All the deck gear is hefty. If you look at some others, it’s much smaller, and so are things like the boom. The Selden rigs are better finished with nicer fittings.’

Flexiteek is an option on the decks. Large hatches and windows let light down below. Photo: David Harding

More than skin deep

Skin fittings in composite polymer also appealed to Tony, as did the chunky boarding ladder, among other features.

Having now sailed the boat for a couple of seasons – recording the trips on his phone via the My Hanse software – he is happy with his choice. As you would expect, the extra size makes a big difference compared with the smaller Dufour. ‘The old boat was 10m long and this one is 11m’, he says. ‘It gives a lot more space – the cockpit is huge’.

He particularly likes the twin wheels, which make it easier to walk around and give a greater choice of seating positions. ‘It’s much more sociable when you’re sailing downwind, having two people sitting by the wheels rather than one at the helm and one forward,’ he says.

A wide range of colours for the upholstery, veneer and sole boards can be combined to create the desired ambience. Photo: David Harding

Such are the benefits of a bigger, more modern design with a wider stern and more space all round. More speed is another benefit – a result of a waterline that’s also 1m longer than he had before. The owner can see that his average speed on passages has increased from five knots to six.

When we went for a sail from Lymington, we had enough wind – a good 14-18 knots and occasionally more – to make sure we clocked well over 6 knots most of the time. Being from the northwest it gave us nice flat water too. Not so nice were the torrential downpours, which encouraged us to put the sprayhood up again once I had taken the photos and video from the RIB.

The self-tacking jib is an important feature for Tony, as is the large sprayhood. ‘In the Solent you do a lot of tacking. I can just sit in the shelter back here and tack so easily.’

The master cabin is in the bow, complete with hull ports and a large deck hatch. Photo: David Harding

When winching is called for, the electric primaries – among the upgrades on Scribble – also help to make sailing easy. The two Lewmar self-tailers handle all the lines, including the split mainsheet and the jib sheet, that are led to a bank of clutches just forward of the wheels. The arrangement perhaps works less well if you have an active crew, but it’s designed for short-handing and in that context it makes sense.

One way in which the Hanse 388 stands out is in making you reluctant to give up the helm. It makes a world of difference if the feel is precise and direct, if the boat and the rudder are both nicely balanced and if the boat responds to what you do.

The Hanse 388 continued to respond even when asked, most unfairly, to bear away from hard on the wind, fully powered up with the sheets pinned in. That’s one of my standard tests and a big ‘ask’ for any boat. The single deep blade does its job very well.

At the helm you have a good perch outboard on the side deck or, if you choose to sit inboard, on a hinge-up seat. Instruments can be mounted in a swivelling pod on the aft end of the cockpit table.

The mainsheet is anchored to strong-points on the coachroof, forward of which is aqspace to stow an inflatable dinghy. Photo: David Harding

Performance plus

In terms of performance, the Hanse leaves little to complain about for a cruising boat. We clocked between 6.3 and 6.6 knots on the wind and tacked through 80° in the flat water.

The log climbed to over 7 knots when we cracked off a few degrees, though self-tacking jibs instantly twist out too far. Unless you rig up barber-haulers or have the cruising equivalent of a Code 0 ready to go, that’s a compromise you have to accept.

The Quantum tri-radial laminate sails on Scribble were ordered as upgrades from Hanse. Combined with the clean bottom and folding prop (the owner changed the supplied two-blade folder for a three-blader), they let the boat show what she could do. That said, with simple sail controls and no mainsheet traveller, scope for tweaking is limited.

The hull of the 388 is balsa cored, with an inner subframe moulding. Photo: David Harding

It would have been more limited with in-mast reefing. While the owner has sailed on a lot of in-mast boats and accepts that Selden has some good systems now, he still prefers a conventional mainsail – fully battened in this case. He has marked the halyard and reefing pennants to make reefing as slick as possible.

Stowing the sail as it comes down is a bigger challenge, largely because of the large sprayhood, long boom and absence of a traveller to move the boom across to one side. Two crew plus a helmsman liberated by an autopilot can usually manage; otherwise tidying it up can be done in the berth.

With a mainsail contained by lazyjacks, opening the clutch and letting the halyard run is normally an option if you’re in a hurry. The problem is that some of the Dyneema halyards, once compressed on initial use, became too small in diameter for the clutches to grip, so they were changed from 10mm to 12mm and no longer run as freely as they did. It’s hard to find the perfect answer, but the owner has been very happy with the support and after-sales service he has had from the Hanse dealers, Inspiration Marine.

Stowage space is a bit limited. Photo: David Harding

Below decks

Accommodation was an important consideration in the purchase of Scribble . The owner spends a lot of time aboard and sails at least once a week, often more.

Choosing the second double cabin in the stern, to starboard, means trading the full-depth cockpit locker for one of half-depth. It’s supplemented by two under-sole lockers aft, one for a liferaft.

In the Hanse style, the interior is light and airy. The Hanse 388 has many more deck hatches than the Hanse 385, and ports in the hullsides too.

The owner chose the colours of the veneer, the sole boards and the upholstery to create a modern feel, and the grey upholstery is not a world away from the grey/blue of the gelcoat (‘I went against all my better instincts and got a coloured hull’). Whatever Tony’s misgivings might have been at the time, the result is rather elegant.

Features that he likes include the rounded forward end of the heads compartment. Finished in vinyl rather than veneer, it’s inconspicuous compared with many. As he says, ‘On a lot of boats you have a big, blocky, square-cornered toilet box sitting right in the middle of the saloon.’

Also on the list of positives are the big fridge (with front and top access), the drawers (even though they’re plastic), the size of the saloon (‘we can accommodate the crews from another couple of boats’), the accessible seacocks, which pass through solid laminate where the balsa core is ramped down to a single skin, the good lighting and the hinge-down touch-panel at the chart table for the lights and systems. ‘Everything is coded and labelled,’ says Tony, ‘but it’s still not easy for DIY. The wiring on modern boats is getting quite complicated. I would need help if anything goes wrong.’

His relatively small number of niggles include the lack of provision to keep the heads door open (you can’t leave the window open when it’s raining), a chart table with no fiddles, joinery with un-sealed end-grain, and the fact that all the interior joinery is veneered. ‘There are no solid edges. If you knock something, you can’t sand it out – you have to buy a whole new section. It’s just as with new cars: don’t repair – replace.’

Domestic batteries and the electrics are neatly laid out forward of the chart table. Photo: David Harding

The expert view

Ben Sutcliffe-Davies, Marine Surveyor and full member of the Yacht Brokers Designers & Surveyors Association (YDSA) www.bensutcliffemarine.co.uk

The Hanse 388 is a relatively new vessel and because of that, not many have come on to the used boat market until now.

I’ve looked at several Hanse 388s, usually while carrying out damage inspections abroad and for yards. Matching some of the gelcoat pigment colours can be a challenge.

Looking carefully around the topsides in good daylight is a prudent move and will show up any previous damage.

When buying any newish second-hand boat, it is worth approaching the original dealer and asking what, if any, model callbacks or modifications have been suggested since the model was launched. From asking one of the UK dealers, he wasn’t aware of any for the Hanse 388.

It is always important to check deck fittings, especially any retro fittings which have been fitted by an owner. Take a good look at the gas hoses for signs of wear and pay careful attention to the seacocks, especially if the boat is over five years old.

The Hanse 388 came with a Yanmar SD25 saildrive, the smallest of the Yanmar sail drive range. It requires a service every 100 hours, compared to the bigger units that do 200 hours.

If you are a sailor who tends to clock up a lot of hours in a season, then you need to be very aware of the service criteria, as it will mean the boat will probably have to come out of the water so oil can be drained from the lower leg drain plug fitting. The sail drive seal should also be replaced every seven years.

Thanks to Tim Stickley of West Solent Sea School for providing a RIB for the photography westsolentseaschool.co.uk

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Boats tend to become a major part of any owner’s life, and it’s easy to understand why that has happened with the owner and Scribble. A great deal of thought and experience went into all of Tony’s choices, from the boat itself to every aspect of the specification and colour scheme. The result is a comfortable, elegantly styled and lovingly maintained boat that covers the ground swiftly and without much effort on the part of the crew. As the owner says, ‘You have to find the right compromise. This really fitted – it did most of the things I wanted. There’s not a lot I would change.’

Yachting World

• Digital Edition

WATCH: Orca yacht sinking – Sailor shares details of two-hour orca encounter which sank his yacht off Spain

• Katy Stickland
• July 30, 2024

Robert Powell and his crew were five miles off the Spanish coast in 40m of water when orcas disabled the yacht's rudder before ramming the hull, causing it to crack; the boat sank shortly afterwards

Robert Powell, the skipper of the Beneteau 393 Clipper, Bonhomme William , had researched details of any orca encounter in the Strait of Gibraltar before leaving Vilamoura in the Algarve bound for the Greek islands.

After checking the numerous orca Facebook groups, such as Orca Attack Reports, and believing the orcas were now heading north, following the migrating tuna, he felt now would be a good time to sail his yacht to the Greek islands with crew.

“I’d looked at all of the orca sites and there hadn’t been any sightings, but there are so many sites now that do orca alerts, but I looked at the ones I follow and there seemed to be no sightings of orcas in the area where I was due to sail. I felt it was safe to sail the route I had chosen, which was in around 40m of water.

“I know the advice is to hug the coast in around 20m of water but that would have added days to the journey. I assessed the risk, and I had sailed across the Bay of Cadiz at this time of year before and I thought it was worth the risk,” said Powell.

Bonhomme William left Portugal on 23 July 2024,

Bonhomme William tooks 30 minutes to sink following the orca encounter. Credit: Robert Powell

By the following evening, the yacht was off Punta Camarinal in the Strait of Gibraltar.

” I went up on deck, and all of a sudden, I heard a crunch, and it sounded like I’d hit a rock. It was like a really loud scraping noise and there was a real big shudder on the boat. I thought I’d hit a container or a fishing net or something submerged. I was probably about five miles out so it was unlikely to be a rock and there was nothing on the charts.

I took the boat off auto and just took the wheel for a sec. And as I took the wheel, I felt the rudder go, and I heard the noise again. I thought, Geez, that’s not a rock. I thought maybe a rope had wrapped around the prop, but then I looked off the back of the boat, and there were two fairly young orcas, not quite fully grown.”

Article continues below…

Why have Orcas been attacking yachts? A puzzling mystery

Late in November last year, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston’s Farr 65 pilothouse cutter, Sanjula, was being sailed 10 miles west of…

Orca attacks: Rudder losses and damage as incidents escalate

The first signs that something odd was taking place came in July 2020. After the strangest start to a summer…

This was the start of a two-and-a-half hour orca encounter which resulted in the sinking of Bonhomme William .

Powell said he followed the orca encounter advice: he let go of the wheel, tried to outrun the orcas and put the boat in reverse, all to no avail.

“They just didn’t let up. One of them had the rudder in its mouth, it was like it was trying to wrench it off, and then I spotted a third orca which came in and banged against the rudder as well. I know there is advice to completely stop the boat but I didn’t feel comfortable with that, although it wasn’t long before we couldn’t go anywhere because the rudder was broken.”

Orcas have been interacting with small yachts off the Iberian Peninsula since 2020. Photo: Martyn & Zoe Barlow

Powell said he threw pingers and firecrackers into the water.

“They took no notice whatsoever,” said Powell. “After 40 minutes of trying to outrun them, putting the boat in reverse, they had disabled the rudder. That is when I saw two very big orcas sitting off the boat, around 10-15m away from the other three. I decided to put out a Mayday because, at that moment, I felt I was in a bit of trouble.”

As he was trying to contact the Spanish Coastguard, one of the larger orcas crashed into the boat.

“There were five of them just slamming into the side of the boat and one of them was hitting the keel as well; I could feel the shudder through the boat. I was concerned about taking on water so I checked the bilges and the keel bolts; there was no sign of water. By now, we knew that a rescue vessel was being sent, but we had no ETA as to when it would arrive,” explained Powell.

The orcas continued to hit the boat’s hull until it cracked amidships.

“I saw water coming in from the starboard side of the boat, but I couldn’t pinpoint the source, which I believe was behind the cooking and fridge unit on the boat. From the photos I took, you can see the damage to the stern and around the rudder which is to be expected from where they were smashing it. I am no expert, but I think the orca just used their bulk to crack the hull.”

Rudders are often targeted by the orcas. Photo: Martyn & Zoe Barlow

Powell said he believes one of the large orcas was White Gladis, known locally for being involved in encounters with boats.

The crew of Bonhomme William had already deployed their liferaft , as well as the boat’s tender with its outboard engine; the Spanish Coastguard advised them not to get into either the liferaft or tender if orca were still in the area and to “stay on the boat for as long as possible”.

By the time the Spanish rescue boat had arrived, the yacht was already half-submerged.

“The captain of the boat asked permission to come onboard to see if he could save the boat, but he said there was just too much water to pump; she could not be saved. I saw the orca when I first spotted the rescue boat and then didn’t see them again. I can only assume the loud engine noise meant they cleared off.”

The crew were then safely transferred to Barbate.

Powell said he was surprised by the ferocity of the orca encounter, although he said the Coastguard were less surprised.

“ There are a lot of people who want to protect the killer whales and I understand that. I don’t want to hurt a killer whale; they are beautiful creatures. It’s just unfortunate that we’ve got this current battle between sailing boats and nature,” he said.

Robert Powell started sailing four years ago and spent much of the summer working on Bonhomme William before his planned voyage to Greece. Credit: Robert Powell

Powell says in hindsight he would not have done the voyage. He would also have stopped the boat immediately and turned everything off as soon as the orca encounter began.

“I am no longer convinced there is a so-called orca season. The information I got originally was the orcas sit in the Strait waiting for the tuna to run, which is normally in June. The orca then chase them north which is why you normally get sightings in middle and northern Spain, northern Portugal and southern France in mid-July.  When I spoke to the rescue boat crew, they said they did not think the orca even left the Strait anymore.”

He advises other sailors planning voyages in the area to follow the advice and hug the coastline in 20m of water.

“As far as I was concerned, it wasn’t tenable to hug a coastline in 20m and have 2-3 days added onto the journey. So I think now, sailors have to seriously think about if they really want to sail in that area, especially if orcas are always there. Until there is a solution it is just luck really.”

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