Potential new Jeanneau owner

[Valor323]

Hi all,

Quick intro, my name is Michael. I have been sailing for a while and have had a few boats. My main sailing area is LI sound. I have been looking to upgrade from my Pearson to a new to me Jeanneau. I have been looking at 409's, 419's and as of late DS models. Ideally I want a 410 but it's out of my league right now. This weekend I will be looking at a 2006 42DS and I am hoping some of you fine owners can possibly point out some of the hot spots to focus on. While this isn't going to be my first rodeo, I figured any inside knowledge would be helpful. I'm told its a 2 owner boat in orig condition. To me that means standing rigging, cutlass bearing and maybe even a rudder bearing. What is the the recaulk interval for that big side and coach roof glass? Are they prone to leaks? I was told the keel seam may need to be refaired. Are there keel or keel bolt issues? Any help would be much appreciated!

Cheers
Michael

[Don Reaves]

Hi Michael,

Welcome to the forum. I don't have the same model, so I can't comment on specifics for the 42DS, but I wonder whether the boat has spent its time in salt water. It would make a great deal of difference if it had, for instance, come from the great lakes.

Don

[Valor323]

Hi Don,

It has been a saltwater exclusive boat.

[eoin2020]

Hi Michael, 

Unfortunately, I can't comment on your chosen model either but welcome to the forum 👋. 

[Tafika II]

Hi Michael!
Welcome to the forum. There are also two Jeanneau groups on FB.
I own a 2008 SO42DS that we purchased new. Things that have failed and been fixed or replaced are as follows:
Battery charger – Replaced 2022
AGM Batteries – Replaced 2022
Running rigging – Replaced 2018
Factory Thru Hull Valves – All replaced with bronze or Marelon during commissioning. Factory valves are of poor quality and are a primary safety factor if they are still on board.
Raw water pump – Replaced in 2012 and had the old one rebuilt
Side and front bonded in windows – Yes, they can leak. Not easy to repair or replace by doable. I only had the one starboard side that needed to be re-bedded.
Lights (all), if they haven't been switched over to LED, they should be.
A proper survey & engine survey would be 100% in order, and that should show up any flaws in the hull, deck, rigging (hard & running)
Don't trust the Schreiber fuel, eater & battery levels. That gauge is also crap.

That's about all I can think of, but if you have any questions, please feel free to email me at [e-mail]

[Valor323]

Hi Brent,
 I'm happy to hear your so42ds is a relatively issue free model. Sounds like most of the issues you have had are just end of service life related for the particular part which is a good thing. Any sailing character issues? Are the rounding up issues real at or around 16knts? Sail trim or design? I single hand 90% of the time and rely heavily on an autopilot as a second crew member. Are secondary winches possible further back on this model? Thanks in advance.

Michael

[Tafika II]

Hi Michael!
No sailing issues. When we first got the boat, we rounded up a few times until we learned what to do, when to reef (16-17 knots), and what not to do. We also bought new triradial Dacron sails in 2019 from Precision Sails in Canada. The boat has electric winches about 2/3 way back in the cockpit that is very accessible to either helm. The only manual winch is on the starboard coach roof, so sailing single-handed (95% of the time) is easy. We also have a down-furl gennaker which can also be controlled from the cockpit. I only would go forward to set the whisker pole, watch dolphins on the bow or fix a problem. I’m always harnessed in.
Good luck with your hunting adventure!

[Valor323]

Thanks Brent,

Appreciate the response and well wishes.

[MalcolmP]

Hi Valor323



Welcome to tour forum too! Tafika has given you a good list of things to check on the 42DS. In regards rounding up, we have a shallow draft 39i, which was quite a pain in that regard, I suspect mostly because, in addition to the shallow keel, Jeanneau had lopped off the rudder...



I converted it to "German style" mainsheet several years ago and that has solved the issue entirely. Most of the newer Jeanneau's now have this as standard , not too complex to retrofit, as with anything to do with boating it is sim0ly the expense!



There are several retrofit options detailed in our Hints and Tips section: www.jeanneau-owners.com/hintsandtipsindexsails.html


Do let the forum know how you get on.

Cheers

Malcolm

[Meshuggana]

Hello Michael, I am selling my 2007 42DS because I upgraded to a 490. My 42DS has had just about everything replaced; rigging, sails, electronics and so much more. The boat is currently in the Bahamas but will return in April. Reach out to me if you are interested.

[franklin1]

Hi Michael

I've owned a 42DS since 2008 and a few comments.

- 2 of the side (eye) windows started to leak - probable cause was the boat has spent most of its time in the Med' sun which resulted in the black spray painted protection around the windows deteriorating and eventually washing / rubbing off in places. This expossed the windows sealant to UV which then gave up.

I had all windows removed (including the two forward coach roofwindows) and resprayed and reseated - a major and quite expensive job.

This job was carried out in Turkey and was done to a fantastic standard and has greatly improved the asthetics. - I shudder to think of what the cost might have been elsewhere!

- I had one of the below water skin fittings fail (cheap and nasty originals as previously noted - it literally just snapped off - ). Luckily I was on board at the time.

All below water fittings now replaced with composite TrueDesign fittings.

- The original genoa furler was a facnor180. Despite regularly washing out the red sand (several times a season) the bearings progressively deteriorated and became (clunky).

Eventually the forestay snapped at the top (disaster averted by the resilience of the genoa sheet).

All standing rigging was replaced - and destructively inspected.

No obvious corrosion was found in the standing rigging but a number of the nylatron bushes in the foil were worn / missing.

The rigger decided the failure was caused by these missing / worn bushes and the lack of lubrication in the bearings caused by worn grease seals - caused the stranded forestay to unravel at the top and jam/fail. Its a worry that he said this was not uncommon with my model of the Facnor after around 8 - 10 years.

The Facnor website had indicated the bearings were self lubricating - and needed washing regularly as I did. Apparently on the older Facnors a good old greasing regime is needed despite there being no grease nipple to facilitate this.. - I would welcome clarification on this from experts in the forum?

- My 42DS was shoal keel. Definate tendancy to luff up when too much mainsail.

If I am expecting 15 - 18 knots plus then I sail with a reef(s) in and play with the genoa - boat is nicely ballanced and speed increased.

Happy sailing

[barryl]

Hello,

In April of 2021 I purchased my 2011 Sun Odyssey 409. My boat has the deep keel, traditional main, genoa, bow thruster, 2 air conditioners, 3 powered winches, 2 heads, 3 cabin, etc. I also sail on the Long Island sound, further east, out in Suffolk county. 

I was looking for a comfortable, fast, performance cruiser, and so far I am very happy with the boat. I do a fair amount of racing on the boat, including double handed and fully crewed. The boat is not a serious racing boat, but does sail very well. I have done some distance races, including the 2022 Around Long Island Regatta, and plan on doing more.

When not racing I am almost always short handed and the below deck pilot (Raymarine) does a credible job under most conditions. Downwind, when the wind and seas are up, causes the pilot to struggle, but I also struggle in those conditions. The bow thruster makes backing into a slip easier as well as departing a dock when the wind pins you against it. 

This past August I went on my first long cruise - a two week trip from Long Island to Portland Maine and back. There were 5 on board for the delivery to Portland. We went nonstop from home to Portland in about 36 hours. Everyone enjoyed that trip. The cruise home had 2-5 people aboard and was just fantastic. After two weeks aboard I felt rested and relaxed, I could easily have stayed onboard for another month. 

I haven't had any serious problems in the two seasons I have owned my boat. The standing rigging is original and I will change it when it gets 15 years old. The running rigging is a mix, the halyards are original, most of the rest has been upgraded. The sails are from 2016 and still in great shape. The engine and saildrive get regular maintenance. I've had to replace the bilge pump, the joker valves in the heads, and that sort of stuff but just comes with owning a boat. The bilge pump is located in an easy to reach location so changing it was pretty simple. 

Things I like about Jeanneau:
All hatches have built in sun shades and screens
Powered winches (for main halyard and mainsail sheets) are awesome. My race crew was originally skeptical but quickly grew to love them. Raising the main is now a snap. 
Below Deck autopilot is so much better than the wheel pilot on my previous boat. it's powerful, quiet, and very easy to use.
Galley works great - stove and oven work great, plenty of room in the fridge (tough to reach the bottom without the side door the newer models have) and the freezer makes ice and keeps ice cream solid (makes my wife very happy).
10 gallons of hot water is great for showers and doing dishes
The shower stall in the main head is roomy and works well.
Airconditioning is amazing when you need it. 

Things I don't like:
The head door in the main cabin opens the wrong way - into the head, when it should open out. To use the toilet you need to open the door, step into the shower, close the door, and then use the toilet.
The table is main salon is very cool, the way it folds open and lowers is clever, BUT, the base is not very strong. I was thrown against the table and broke the table off of the base. Just a few small wood screws were all that held the table to the base, and about 1/2 of them missed most of the base. 
The glass backsplash behind the sink exploded, which is a common problem. 


Overall I am very happy with my boat. 

Let me know if you have any specific questions regarding the 409.

Barry