Bermuda 40

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by NormanMartin

As mentioned by others, those older designs are tight spaces and may be difficult to maintain because of that. I agree.

I'm curious about that comment. Is it because it is hard to get in to work on the engine or to check for leaks from backing blocks and the such?

[NormanMartin]

Don C L: Hello and thanks for asking. I find there are a couple aspects to the issue.

First is that older boats are not designed to contain a lot of the stuff we now consider essential such as reefers, autopilots, etc. and there is no good space designed for those things so they get squashed into place.

Second is simply that older boats are worn and require more maintenance simply based on age. A reno is always more work than you think.

My work as a pro on charter boats is always complicated by the systems and their operation never by the sailing or navigation. Big boats full of complex systems do not yield a better sailing experience.... in my opinion!

Norm
Cape Cod

[sck5]

I have sailed on my cousin's B40 and it is a beautiful boat. It is very strongly built (i.e. kind of heavy) but sails so nicely and is a beautiful boat.

However, you should be aware of two things:

1. It can be a bit wet in the cockpit out in the ocean
2. There is a LOT of brightwork so you better either enjoy constant maintenance of it or have the $$ to pay somebody else to do it (or be OK with letting the teak weather until you eventually sell the boat at which point you will need to make it all shiny again, which is what they have undoubtedly done with the boat you are looking at)

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by NormanMartin

Don C L: Hello and thanks for asking. I find there are a couple aspects to the issue.

First is that older boats are not designed to contain a lot of the stuff we now consider essential such as reefers, autopilots, etc. and there is no good space designed for those things so they get squashed into place.

Second is simply that older boats are worn and require more maintenance simply based on age. A reno is always more work than you think.

My work as a pro on charter boats is always complicated by the systems and their operation never by the sailing or navigation. Big boats full of complex systems do not yield a better sailing experience.... in my opinion!

Norm
Cape Cod

Well I agree with that! And that actually, to my mind, speaks to the superiority of the older hulls... no way to add all that non essential stuff and systems.

[Reedville]

Hi All

I've looked at several boats and am back to the B40. Please have a look at this one. They just lowered the price. I will probably go see it next week. Thoughts and comments greatly appreciated.

https://www.boats.com/sailing-boats/...ull-7-8389486/

[Jim Greer]

These are truly beautiful boats and can be taken offshore with confidence. As usual, a thorough survey for any hidden issues. Unknown hours on the engine is a wee concern. If you plan to keep her a while, a repower may be in your future. You are going to want a mizzen staysail and a spinnaker or code zero for the light air days.
Best of luck

[Jim Cate]

IF the pix are current, she looks well cared for, and that's always a good sign. However, I note that many of the "recent" upgrades, described as new, are quite old... some nearly 20 years in the past. I would view those as somewhat dated, and hardly "new", especially the sails.

Also, no pix of engine or access to it, and that's kinda odd. I suspect that access is pretty poor, and to me that is a big turn-off. YMMV.

do let us know how she seems to YOU!

Jim

[rls8r]

Hi Reedville -

Haven't heard from you in a while so I was wondering if you were still looking at B40s. The one you linked to looks good - looks like it was well-maintained and upgraded. It always amazes me how many differences there are in the same model boat. Hinckley built the hull (mostly) the same, but the interiors were all custom. Huntress (Hull #1) and the last B40 built (Hull #203, I believe, but I can't recall the name) are (or at least were) both at Hartge's in Galesville - about 4 blocks from where my boat is.

Nothing I saw at first glance of this boat caused much concern.

• As Jim Greer said - check out the engine. They didn't show any pictures of it.

• The boat must have been re-wired since the breaker panel is not the original Hinckley board.

• The instruments seem to be the original Datamarine ones. You may look to replace them at some point if they give you problems since Datamarine (like most of the suppliers of B40 equipment) is long out of business (the parts supplied by DMI Marine are quite expensive).

• The write-up says that the winches are Lewmar, but the ones on the mast shown in the photo are the original Barient winches. You get replacement parts for those from Australia. All winches shown are self-tailing, and that's good.

• The port lights are plexiglass. Watch for crazing in the future - and replace them with the original safety glass when that happens.

• Can't identify the windlass but it doesn't have a chain gypsy or stop - something to keep in mind.

• Lots of teak covers! That's a very, very good thing.

No real deal-breakers (at least, for me) in the 'Known Issues' list.

• Missing knob on (Shipmate?) stove is for the oven. You may be able to replace it with an old Robertshaw valve - they are the ones who made the original Shipmate valves. Otherwise, do without the oven or replace the unit with a Force 10 (which fits in the space - at least one did on my boat).

• Leaking water tank in the V-berth is a problem (and a potentially costly one). The fresh water is filled at the bow and enters the V-berth tank first. The water in the V-berth tank is (usually) held in reserve. A valve is opened (under the step shown in Photos 31 and 35) to release water into the port-side salon tank when the two salon tanks are empty. So, it's difficult to avoid using the V-berth tank.

I'm a bit confused about the sail compliment. They mention having spinnaker staysails. Perhaps the metal diamond on the foredeck between the windlass and the cleats is a removable inner forestay fitting (similar to the one that I have on my boat) - something to check. However, they don't mention having a 'regular' forestay sail.

Let us know how it goes. There are several B40s on the market and I know of another one (around here - Annapolis) going on the market in a month or so.

[rls8r]

Jim -

Access to the engine is not as poor as you might think - but not really great, either. Photo 12 shows two doors - one under the companionway steps, and another just to the right of it. Those access the front of the engine from the galley area.

There are two other ways to access the engine. Each cockpit sail locker has a removable partition that allows access to either side of the engine and to the transmission/shaft/stuffing box. Sort of a pain to have to empty the sail locker to get to the engine - but it is what it is.

If the engine compartment is set up right, most of the routine maintenance can be done from the galley access. The Racor filter should be mounted on the left compartment wall, and behind it the oil filter (mine has an extension that routes oil lines across the back of the engine to the remote oil filter). My oil pan has a hose fitting and hose attached to the bottom and the hose is led forward on the left to allow oil changes to be performed. The sea water pump is on the right - as is (or should be) the sea water filter. Unless something odd goes wrong - the access allows routine work to be done fairly easily.

I did think it odd that there were no photos of the engine. I often wonder why photos of boats for sale always show the aesthetic pictures, and hardly ever places where a buyer is most interested - behind the breaker panel, not the front, various shots of the engine, not just the salon, etc.

[mlspadaro]

Just seeing the photo of this beautiful Hinckley makes my mouth water! I sure wish there was a Pilot 35 here in Hawaii that I could buy!
She IS BEAUTIFUL and sounds very well maintained and refurbished (deck).
Mary

Originally Posted by Reedville

Hi All

I've looked at several boats and am back to the B40. Please have a look at this one. They just lowered the price. I will probably go see it next week. Thoughts and comments greatly appreciated.

https://www.boats.com/sailing-boats/...ull-7-8389486/

[malbert73]

It looks like a cut above for a 53 year old boat.
There has been a 1963 B40 in our family for 25 years and I’ve sailed on it a bunch and have helped some with maintenance.

Unique things that will be positives- you will not have structural, core (this vintage used no core in deck or hull) bulkhead, or leak issues due to many ways Hinckley just took more time in construction. Like tapping fasteners to help reduce leaks. Meticulously mated hull deck joint. Monel fuel tank and keel bolts. Massive tabbing of every piece of woodwork.

But, bolt on systems and electronics fail regularly and this boat will not be unique.

This is a small 40 footer but there is a ton of storage so it feels less cramped as all can be stowed. I cruised on one for 4 weeks with 3 people. 2 in v berth and one of the pilot berths was my home, and super comfortable.

Slow? Upwind in light airs, sure. But very confidence inspiring and can easily truck along off the wind at 6.5-7 knots all day in 15 knots of breeze. Shallow draft is awesome. Bulletproof keel with external lead which protects against hard grounding.
Best of all, cruising in Maine we just turned off motor and sailed with prop locked and never worried about a single lobster pot line (ran over a ton and they just slid off)

[malbert73]

Oh, and I hope you like varnishing [emoji3]

[thomm225]

New rigging 2005?

That's 18 years ago!

Price is pretty high for a good old boat which many times you can get for $10,000 -$25,000 or less.

As for as coring, hardly any of the old boats had coring.

They were all like mine (1974 Bristol 27) solid fiberglass hulls and very thick.

Just check out the Disp./Len

My $2,000 Bristol 27 Disp./Len. is 382.47

The $85,000 Bermuda 40 Disp./Len. is 393.52

Both being well built.

One just a couple dollars more

[jtsailjt]

Originally Posted by malbert73

Oh, and I hope you like varnishing [emoji3]

I live and sail in downeast Maine and see these boats all the time. They’re very well made, are beautiful and most are very well kept too. I used to own a Pilot 35 and loved it so I can relate to your lust for a B40 and wouldn’t discourage you at all. I also don’t see any problem with it as a first boat for a 60 something. A good friend who’s now 69 but a good sailor bought a beautiful Hinckley 59 as his first boat 3 years ago. He was pretty careful his first year but now he’s fine and sails it with various constantly changing crew all over downeast Maine. You’ll quickly feel comfortable singlehanding a B40.

However, I do want to emphasize what Malbert and others have said about varnishing. With varnished toe rails, coamings, dorade boxes, eyebrows. grab rails, hatch covers all needing varnishing at least a couple coats every year with periodic stripping and building back up it’s a full time job or a surprisingly big expense. I also found it quite difficult to find the perfect day to varnish outdoors. Certainly keeping it on your own dock will help with this but it’s still going to be quite a task. If you stored it at Hinckleys theyd varnish it over the winter in a heated building over a weekend when no other workers are around and would flood the floor of the building to eliminate any chance of dust. Tough to duplicate those conditions yourself. If the toe rails haven’t been removed and rebedded the original bedding compound under them will have long since dried out so water gets under them and lifts the varnish along the bottom edges of them so this varnish has to be removed, the teak dried, and edges of varnish feathered before applying about 7 coats to match the rest of the toe rails. It’s an annual exercise so if I got another one of these boats I’d have the toe rails removed and rebedded so the bottoms would be sealed to keep water out, which will keep your toe rails looking good and save you many hours each year. If this rebedding has already been done on a boat you’re looking at I’d consider it a plus. You can usually tell by just looking hard along the bottom of the toe rails especially on the inside to see if the varnish here is a slightly different shade indicating it has recently had to be stripped and revarnished due to this lifting. If the varnish is a uniform color all the way to the deck, then those toerails have probably already been rebedded with a more modern sealant than was available originally.

But they’re wonderful boats that always attract attention and are perfect for coastal cruising the Chesapeake. I hope you find one to your liking and are able to complete the purchase.

[Jim Cate]

They were all like mine (1974 Bristol 27) solid fiberglass hulls and very thick.

Well, no, they were not all like that: my 1974 Yankee 30 had cored decks and wasn't particularly thick in the layup. My 1974 Palmer Johnson Standfast 36 had a foam cored hull and balsa cored deck.

Not all builders were mired in the past in those days...

Jim