J/42 & Sabre 402

[H.Finn]

Paul,

Very good to hear your experiences with both the J/37 and the Outbound. It does seem like the "Cruising Js" had quite a bit more creature-comforts than the "metric boats" like the 105 I sail on. But then again I've never been on a cruising J......

Were you pretty happy with the systems installation on your J/37? Just curious about that as the sailing performance and the hull lay-up seemed to get most of the press. I haven't seen much info on quality of systems, etc. I imagine with your Outbound you have excellent systems and can maybe contrast that to the Js.....

[Paul L]

H.
The deck hardware is very good on the J. Chain plates are visible and very strong. Rod rigging is quality, but doesn't last forever. The basic other systems are good and well installed. The Volvo-Penta 2003 engine was long in the tooth and should have been replaced sooner, rather than latter. All the J's of that era started out with Harken lower rudder bearings. All needed replacing. Most went with Jefa bearings. These had a few issues too, as they are aluminum races. Jefa now has an all composite bearing. Not that big a job to install. Electronics, batteries etc were all updated on my J. Since you are looking at boats over 10 years old, a number of the systems will have been installed after the boat was new and will vary from top notch to needs to be replaced.

[Julie Mor]

We just looked at a J37C and two Sabre 38's. From a strictly comfort below point of view, the Sabres won, though not by a lot. From a build quality POV, I'd give that to Sabre too. From what I saw, it seemed the J was very weight conscious when it was built and would be a bit of a ride in heavy weather.

We also saw a Tartan 37 that we both thought was a better boat than either the J or Sabre. When the owner told us of his experience with customer support (awesome) and we considered Sabre sail stopped building boats, the Tartan looked even better.

Just an opinion from a small snapshot of the three boats but it has us a bit more focused on Tartan than the other two.

[H.Finn]

Thanks for that, Julie. I didn't realize Sabre had stopped building sailboats.

[Stu Jackson]

WADR, you may be comparing apples to oranges, even if the "numbers" appear close.

The J is a boat mean to sail with creature comforts added.

The Sabre is a cruiser that "can" race.

The $$ in a J is spent on the hull and sailing features.

The $$ on a Sabre is spent on the fit and finish down below.

I'd carefully check the difference in sailing gear (blocks, winches, travelers, etc.) carefully and see for yourself.

You might also want to do what I call "The Dipstick Check": how easy is it to access & service the engine and other components on each boat.

Your boat, your choice.

Good luck.

[Julie Mor]

Originally Posted by H.Finn

Thanks for that, Julie. I didn't realize Sabre had stopped building sailboats.

Sabre power is still building and doing very well. They just stopped building sailboats this year (or was it late last year?) Sabre said they might start building sailboats when the market recovers. From what I hear, they will continue to support Sabre sailboat owners.