Sun odyssey or fast 37?

[deviation]

Hello all, 

We currently have a Westerly Griffon (26ft) and are looking to upgrade to our 'big boat' that we will use for a few years around the UK (Portsmouth etc) and then when we retire (4-5 years possibly) use it to sail round the world.

We have been looking at numerous options, including Bavarias and Beneteau, however another option is something like a Sun Odyssey or Sun Fast 37, so the questions are:

• What are the main differences between the Odyssey and fast?
• Would either be suited for a trans globe voyage?
• Or should we be looking at something larger, however aware that we still want to visit Bembridge etc until we go

Many thanks


Lee

[MalcolmP]

Hi Lee

welcome to our forum

They are both well proven, there is even a SF37 currently sailing in Northern Norway looking for whales - so they can go anywhere. the limiting factor is nearly always the crew. 

See: jeanneau.proboards.com/thread/4310/northern-norway-winter-jeanneau-sf37

The SF will have a keel stepped mast, good for fine tuning the rig, but you can expect to have manage water ingress both from the boot and coming down the internal halyards, maybe not so good for cruising. they will also have flasher rigs - with dyform or maybe rod rigging - could be quite a cost, you should budget for insurers wanting the standing rigging to be certified or renewed every 10 years or so, 

The SF had a higher mast and typically deeper keels, but there were options, even a few lead keels - if depth is an issue you might be better with the SO version

The SF may have had a harder life if they have been club raced, and I am not sure but possibly may have a smaller engine option

Sure there will be plenty of other comments, but you can go anywhere - a lady in her 70's has just crossed the Atlantic in her 21 foot plywood Muscadet

Keeping the length below 12m will help your cruising budget enormously - equipment and berthing tend to go up exponentially, but depends what comfort you are looking for, the SO/SF37 will have acres more space than the Griffon, but if you want to fit water makers, generators etc you may need to think beyond 11/12m

[gui]

I have a SO 37. After look for a lot of boats this was my choice. I look SF37 as well but the SF37 that I saw were very hard raced.



In our first trip moving the boat from the seller mooring to ours, we had 33 knots of wind and the boat gave us a very good feeling.

This is a web about 19000 nm in a SO37 www.geocities.ws/haffiman37/

[On y va]

Why go for a SF if you have world cruising plans? I wouldn´t. Go for a little more traditional, a little less draft, a stronger rudder and a sensible and better rigged mast.... so the SO.

[so36idavid]

Sun Fast is made to go ... fast! Well fast-ish. It's not a stripped down race boat but it's more of a racer-cruiser than the SO. That's the whole point of Jeanneau having two lines of boats. You'll find that the SF boats are made with fewer comforts and amenities and more performance gear than a similar sized SO. They will definitely have less storage, tankage etc., and are more sensitive to added weight i.e. the things that make life comfortable on an extended cruise.

What should you buy? It depends on what kind of sailor you are. If you're the kind of guy who likes to get the boat surfing, to tweak out every 10th of a knot then maybe a SF is for you. But if you're more interested in getting there comfortably and safely then a SO is probably more your style. Of course there's the performance option to some of the SO models which may be a good compromise.  

Rather than think about brands I would look at specific boats. if you're buying used then by far the most important factor is how the boat has been maintained. I would take a well-maintained Beneteau over a poorly maintained Jeanneau and vice-versa.
 
When you get out there you'll find people out cruising on every kind of boat imaginable, they all have an idea of what their next boat should be, but in the mean time they seem to have about the same amount of fun. 

David

[petermc]

Hi Lee

I have a SF37 (01 build) and can provide some observations based on the SF and SO 37 models made up to about 2005.

Firstly the SO37 and SF37 have identical interior fit outs, same hull (bar a couple of extra stringers around the keel on the SF37), same water and fuel tankage as they came out of the factory so there is nothing really between them in that regard.  There were two different size engines offered but they were offered on each version so you just need to check, I have a 29hp 3 cyl Yanmar that has been the most reliable engine I have ever owned (well that has probably just set me up for a fall)

The differences are all in the rig and the keel.

The keel is approx 14cm deeper on the SF37 over the standard SO37 keel (the shoal draft version would be different) so in my view its not likely to make that much difference to your cruising plans.  Mine is lead as opposed to the cast iron ones usually found on SO37's but maybe thats because lead is still permissible in keels in Australia!  The real difference comes in pointing to windward where the I can usually get 5 deg+ higher than a standard SO37. 

The mast is marginally taller on the SF37, around 50cms over the SO37 making the rig technically 7/8, but the real difference is in the "P" measurement which on the SF37 is 13.2m v the 11.9 on the SO37, this gives a mainsail that is slightly over 1m longer on the luff, this together with the boom and therefor mainsail foot) being 50cms longer produces significantly more mainsail area to use. The mast is also keel stepped which I personally prefer and maybe I have been lucky but I really don't notice too much rainwater egress, certainly less than the amount of water that is produced from the ice in the fridge keeping the crews' beer cold.

Headsails are essentially the same size on both boats as the forestay positioning is nearly identical.  People often comment on this forum about the SF's potentially being more of a handful to manage but I don't really agree, its more about setting the boat's trim up to suit your trip plans and crew situation. I can tell you with my no.3 headsail (100%) up and full main, I need 20+knts to get moving or its just boring!  Where the SF37's can be a little more aggressive is in the size of their no1 headsails, because we tend to do a number of around the cans and coastal races we have a deliberately oversize no 1 at 165% and when the breeze gets above 12knts that is a handful, again when I go cruising I have a no.2 on the furler that I use (about a 120%) and I can easily manage the boat by myself with that up.

As Malcolm pointed out the standing rigging, on my SF at least, is dyform which is about 50% more expensive to replace, i know from experience having replaced it all to satisfy the insurer.

The other obvious differences are a mainsheet and traveller in the cockpit on the SF37 which is great for racing but can be a pain for cruising.  Also the SF has its primary genoa winches o the cabin top, again great for racing and trimming but can be difficult to use with a dodger in place.  The SF rig comes standard with more halyards and pole topping lifts than on the standard SO which can be useful.

One thing the SF has that I think would benefit the SO is adjustable (from the cockpit) genoa tracks that make it easy to adjust trim on the headsail if you sail with it partially furled.

Again, echoing others comments, the boat in the best condition is usually the best bet.  As far as size goes I would be happy to take my SF37 on extended passages, but as a good friend of mine who has been circumnavigating for the past 5 years tells me -  its all about water line length and keel type that provides the best motion at sea - he opted for a Hylas 49 with centre cockpit and full keel and they have been very happy with that boat.

Hope this helps

Peter

[MartyB]

Glad someone pointed out the REAL differences in the older SF vs SO boats. Interior, nothing. Exterior, ie rig, keel, deck gear and a std folding prop. Not like the current differences between the SF and SO models.

Marty

[hoppy]

I think that the killer difference between the SF & SO is the mainsheet location. The mainsheet in the cockpit on the SF kills any chance to have a useful bimini, which to me is a very nice thing to have when cruising.

As petermc mentioned, the adjustable genoa track (from cockpit) that the SF has is something that would be definitely be useful on an SO. However that is very easy to fit if a previous owner hasn't already do the upgrade.

[petermc]

The mainsheet traveller in the cockpit can be relocated to the cabin rooftop as in the SO37 if needed, the mounting points are there on the SF37 as each model shares the same cabin top.  My local agent offered to do that when my wife complained about the traveller location once, but in the end we kept the traveller in the cockpit - the one and only argument I have ever won with my better half.

Bigger issue I think is the genoa primaries being on the cabin top, almost impossible to use with a dodger in place because you only get about 180deg swing on the winch handle before you connect with the dodger structure.  You can of course put two new primaries on the side cockpit mounts (the same ones that the SO37 has) to solve this problem.

[davideso37]

Hi Peter,

Good to see your comments on the SF37. Given the choice of two similar vintage boats I would recommend the SF37. As you know I have the SO37 with a lot of modifications to try to match the SF37 performance. The cabin top traveller and side coamings mounted winches are two of the best features of the SO 37 and as you noted these can be added to the SF37. A new boom would be needed as the section is designed for the take off point. The boom on my upgraded rig is quite a bit stronger than the original.

The best bit of the SF37 is that lead keel but ouch they are expensive.

See you at Port Stephens in April??

David Edmiston
Passion

[petermc]

Hi David

Lead is good but I remain jealous of that wing keel and how high you can point now though!
Yes we plan to do the Sail PortStephens race week, it was our first time last year and we really enjoyed it.

We will most likely also do the Newcastle to Port Stephens feeder race on the Sunday prior after overnighting at Newcastle Yacht Club on the way up from Sydney

Peter