J/42

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Kurt Huseman

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Jan 4, 2022, 2:46:34 PM1/4/22
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 I'm interested  in buying a J/42 and would like some insight. Are there any construction/manufacturing issues I should be concerned about when I purchasing a used boat?  How comfortable is the boat to sail offshore?  Is it a boat to consider if I am looking for a performance cruiser?  What is the price range I should expect to pay for well maintained boat? Thanks in advance for your feedback.

Charles Hecht-Leavitt

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Jan 4, 2022, 3:19:33 PM1/4/22
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I bought J/40 #73  used in 1998 and sail her on the southern Chesapeake Bay.  I love the way she performs and handles.  Sturdy, balanced, fast, responsive in winds from 8 to 30 kts.  I tend not to sail her if it's blowing outside that range.  Gelcoat on J/40 generally not great:  can reveal the swirly pattern of darker layers beneath it.  I don't know whether or not that problem was solved with J/42.  Check for leaky fresh water tanks and check for stray wires in the electrical system.

On Tue, Jan 4, 2022 at 2:46 PM Kurt Huseman <kurt.h...@gmail.com> wrote:
 I'm interested  in buying a J/42 and would like some insight. Are there any construction/manufacturing issues I should be concerned about when I purchasing a used boat?  How comfortable is the boat to sail offshore?  Is it a boat to consider if I am looking for a performance cruiser?  What is the price range I should expect to pay for well maintained boat? Thanks in advance for your feedback.

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Charles Hecht-Leavitt, M.D.

Newt Merrill

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Jan 4, 2022, 5:29:44 PM1/4/22
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As 25 year owners of J/42 Hull #20 (FINESSE) we endorse wholeheartedly in all regards. With 9 or 10 Bermuda Races (and return passages) in all conditions along with extensive coastal cruising (New England) we found the 42 to be well constructed and a superb sailing vessel. No issues with Gelcoat or leaking water tanks (we did have one fuel tank leak which was repaired). We did upgrade electrical system to get 600a/h of house and upgraded wiring—but not because of any failure of “stray wires”. All in all a superb family boat for cruising and excellent racing characteristics. Believe you will find the well maintained/well equipped ones will be in the $110K to $125K range.

William Stellin

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Jan 4, 2022, 9:01:26 PM1/4/22
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I second Newts comments. 
We own hull #6 since it came out of the mould in 1996. We have had 2 crossings of the Atlantic double handed and 8 years of being live-aboards in the Med. Jaywalker has been the perfect boat for us. We have raced it, cruised it, day sailed it and it has always met or exceeded our expectations. As a testament to their worth, they don’t often come up for sale in the public market. They get snatched up through word of mouth (as do the J/40’s).
Once you sail one you will be smitten. 
Bill #6

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On Jan 4, 2022, at 5:29 PM, Newt Merrill <ne...@merrillemail.com> wrote:



William Stellin

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Jan 4, 2022, 9:07:38 PM1/4/22
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The last J/42 I knew was for sale was Arrowhead near Newport RI. She was listed for $225,000 and was recently bought by a person who I guess paid several thousand less but probably quite a bit more than $150,000 
Bill #6

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On Jan 4, 2022, at 5:29 PM, Newt Merrill <ne...@merrillemail.com> wrote:



As 25 year owners of J/42 Hull #20 (FINESSE) we endorse wholeheartedly in all regards. With 9 or 10 Bermuda Races (and return passages) in all conditions along with extensive coastal cruising (New England) we found the 42 to be well constructed and a superb sailing vessel. No issues with Gelcoat or leaking water tanks (we did have one fuel tank leak which was repaired). We did upgrade electrical system to get 600a/h of house and upgraded wiring—but not because of any failure of “stray wires”. All in all a superb family boat for cruising and excellent racing characteristics. Believe you will find the well maintained/well equipped ones will be in the $110K to $125K range.

Tom Keffer

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Jan 4, 2022, 9:11:11 PM1/4/22
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Arrowhead sold? She's still listed on Yachtworld for $214k.

But, I agree, you're unlikely to find a J/42 in decent shape for less than $180k or so.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/j4x-owners-group/BLAPR19MB4580C5FD8413F97E40FA1A55DD4B9%40BLAPR19MB4580.namprd19.prod.outlook.com.

Newt Merrill

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Jan 4, 2022, 9:28:05 PM1/4/22
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Apologies—My typo—Intended to suggest price range of $210 to 225K for J/42 in good condition.

Sent from my iPad Air
Newton P.S. Merrill 

On Jan 4, 2022, at 3:19 PM, Charles Hecht-Leavitt <checht...@gmail.com> wrote:



KVH

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Jan 4, 2022, 9:42:44 PM1/4/22
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Thanks Newt.  You input is very useful.
Best,
Kurt

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On Jan 4, 2022, at 8:28 PM, Newt Merrill <ne...@merrillemail.com> wrote:

Apologies—My typo—Intended to suggest price range of $210 to 225K for J/42 in good condition.

rers...@netscape.net

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Jan 4, 2022, 10:06:22 PM1/4/22
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What do you get with a J42?  Hard to break it down.  A thing of beauty, definitely an eye-full.  A superb piece of functional design: secure working galley, handholds above and below decks within easy reach, copious storage, accessibility and simplicity of construction, good anchor tackle handling, good engine access, massive one piece composite rudder, rack and pinion steering, nimble maneuverability, a roomy aft deck with a self draining locker suitable for liferaft storage or a kiddy pool.

Sailing performance is oft times scary good as she will, when hard on the wind, accelerate under the increasing power of apparent wind until she takes your breath away.  She'll shoulder through nasty, short chop unperturbed .  As for drawbacks, some will find her a wet ride, and compared to contemporary designs she's pretty small for a 42 foot boat, but quibbles aside, there's not much not to love in a J42.
Reed Erskine  s/v Cayenne J42 #65

William Stellin

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Jan 4, 2022, 10:31:16 PM1/4/22
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It is my understanding Arrowhead has been sold to a couple in Milwaukee. The new owner asked me about yards on the MI side of Lake MI to have it trucked to. I think they closed on the deal about Christmas time
Bill

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On Jan 4, 2022, at 9:11 PM, Tom Keffer <tke...@gmail.com> wrote:



Jason Chu

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Jan 4, 2022, 11:08:54 PM1/4/22
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In September, we purchased Merlin #11. It was listed for $144k and it sounds like we got a great deal.

We've had it in 30+ kts winds abeam, slicing through waves, as comfortable as can be, though we don't have any of the sailing experience of anyone else on this list. We're excited to take it out much more in the years to come.

Jason


Fred deNapoli

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Jan 5, 2022, 8:34:12 AM1/5/22
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I was very keen to get that boat, spent a lot of time on it last fall after the Newport Show.  Absolutely beautiful.  The 9’ draft custom keel was the deal killer, but apparently it’s a monster upwind.  The other concern was that as magnificent as this new blade is (Jim Taylor design, what else did you expect!), from my understanding they made it about 1,300 lbs lighter as they felt the boat had “excess stability” for typical New England light air.  Which could well be true, but one of our goals moving from a very amped up J/124 was to get a boat that had considerably more hull form stability for cruising double handed (at our ripe old age!).  I had a naval architect friend run the numbers and yes, the extra draft does add stability above the OEM blade with less weight but more leverage, but, to break even you’d take out around 300-350#, not 1,300.

Fred deNapoli
J/42 #20, ex-“Finesse"
"finezza veloce”



Owen Harren

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Jan 5, 2022, 9:01:25 AM1/5/22
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I went from a J40 to a J44 and while I loved my 40. the 44 is a beast. There are several 44's for sale and some at some great prices... I would consider them.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/j4x-owners-group/215E5554-362C-4CF4-A156-F4499D785C81%40gmail.com.

Robert Kowalski

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Jan 5, 2022, 9:08:29 AM1/5/22
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I’m trying to figure out where the “typical New England light air” is?

Bob

Sailing a course less traveled
Delightfully typed on a full keyboard on a mac
> To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/j4x-owners-group/215E5554-362C-4CF4-A156-F4499D785C81%40gmail.com.

Fred deNapoli

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Jan 5, 2022, 9:09:19 AM1/5/22
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We’re the proud new owners of “Finesse”!  Can’t wait to sail her.  She came highly recommended by her sailmaker extradinaire and close friend Chris Howes of Doyle Sails.  He’s sailed on her quite a bit and vouched for her condition, maintenance history and constant upgrades.  He was correct.

I was in the business for about 12 years working almost exclusively for various J/Boat agencies and have sailed, and in many cases owned, many of their models, most recently a J/105 for 9 years (Bob J’s former boat), and a J/124 for the past 4 years (a boat that Rod J was involved in, “Wicked”).  

Our primary focus has been racing and performance day sailing, and there’s not a J/Boat afloat that can’t check off those boxes.  The ‘124 can do both brilliantly, but we eventually found it to be a bit too “amped up” for just the two of us offshore.  To put a quantifiable range on these three, using PHRF numbers, the ‘105 rates 90 in one-design configuration, the ‘124 rates 36 (!), and the ’42 comes in at 69.  What’s remarkable about the ’42 is how much faster it is than the ’40, a boat that it’s largely based upon, which comes in at 90.  The boys in Newport tell us they completely re-worked the boat including more efficient blades and a carbon mast among other improvements.  

While we can’t share any model-specific first hand experience with the ’42 yet, we can take the view from 30,000 feet and compare it to a wide range of J/Boats we’ve had, including a J/37 which is a close cousin and a contemporary to the ’40.  As such we’re thrilled to be part of this group and look forward to many years of adventures on board!  Hope to see many of you out there.  Our cruising range is typically from Camden ME to Newport/Barrington.

Fred deNapoli
J/42 #20
"finezza veloce”   ("fast with finesse", a tip of the hat to Eliot’s name, Finesse)

(This seems to be our new pattern, finding a way to honor the previous name and owner.  Our ‘124 was a fairly high profile boat called “Wicked” after the musical.  We renamed her “allegro malvagio”, loosely translated, “wicked fast”, combining Rod and Doug’s name and of course fast.  We live in Salem MA, and people from here have been using “wicked” in their conversation for at least 150 yrs.  I have clients in their late 90’s who say “wicked good”, and tell me they learned that from their grandmother!)

On Jan 4, 2022, at 5:29 PM, Newt Merrill <ne...@merrillemail.com> wrote:

Bernie Coyne

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Jan 5, 2022, 9:30:27 AM1/5/22
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Marblehead, MA 😊

 

Bernie Coyne

Email: bernie...@outlook.com

Cell/text: 781-789-0762

 

Protect yourself, family and friends

Please get vaccinated

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>>>> Charles Hecht-Leavitt, M.D.

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Fred deNapoli

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Jan 5, 2022, 9:34:47 AM1/5/22
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Yes, agreed.  I spent three seasons on various J/44’s and while they’re just monsters they take gorillas to tack the 155%.  But they’re out there for cheap money.  Note that they’re all pre-scrim and getting a little long in the tooth.  Moisture is an issues as are maintenance and systems.  But, if you could get into one in the $50-60 range and did a lot of the work yourself you could convert it to a decent cruiser racer with a modern main and blade configuration, a retractable bow sprit and an oversized asymmetrical.  Getting weight out would be nice, but not life and death.  We converted our ‘124 to this layout and were very successful in ORRez as well as now having a much more user-friendly sail plan for day sailing and cruising.  If you’re stuck with PHRF only, well, their archaic one-size fits all approach is going to be tough in light air.  Once you’ve moved beyond overlapping headsails, and just sailed with a blade, you’ll never go back.  We typically lead our jib sheets to the cabin top halyard winches on either side of the companionway, which allows us to only send one person to tack the jib as they can release and snap the new one in without moving with just their wrists.  Again, this is with a 100% jib, not a genoa, obviously.  

We looked hard and long at ‘46s, a close cousin to the ’44, but felt that 46’ was just too much boat for two people.  Perhaps if we were younger or had considerably more grandiose cruising plans the simply breathtaking ’46 would be just the ticket.



Dasa...@yahoo.com

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Jan 5, 2022, 9:35:37 AM1/5/22
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As Bill Stellin referenced, as of today, we will be owners of (ex-)Arrowhead. We are very excited about getting to sail her and are very appreciative of Bill (who took us for a sail on Jaywalker and is a great salesman for the boat) and several others in this group who have shared their wisdom and experience with us regarding the J/42. From everything we have heard, she should be exactly what we are looking for--a great boat for cruising, some distance racing, and casual beer can racing and set up for short handed sailing. Looking forward to continuing to learn from this group and to have our own experiences to share.

David Saudek

Fred deNapoli

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Jan 5, 2022, 9:37:59 AM1/5/22
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AKA, Marble-dead!  That’s my village.  

Most of MA Bay, Bay of Maine.  Nantucket Sound is a toss up, Buzzard’s Bay is clearly better configured geographically to pull in a lot more pressure, thou.  But then Narragansett Bay and LI Sound are back to light/moderate.

Tom Keffer

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Jan 5, 2022, 10:27:00 AM1/5/22
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Back to the original poster, you've heard from the fanboys (and, I'm one of them). But, to answer your question about areas of concern, there are not many of them --- mostly the boats are very well constructed --- but they do have a few weaknesses. 
  • Some boats are prone to crazing of the gelcoat. The pattern is mysterious, but it seems to be late 90s, early-2000 boats.
  • Limber holes were not always drilled for the starboard fuel tank, allowing salt water to accumulate against the aluminum tank, causing corrosion.
  • The portlights in some boats were cut out in an indifferent manner, allowing leaks.
  • The original rudder bearings were junk, but 20 years on, it is likely to have been replaced.
  • The contactor for the anchor windlass was placed in the anchor locker, where they quickly rust. Many of us have relocated it inside, in the forward berth area.
While the boats are great performers, they won't break the laws of physics. With a SA/D ratio around 18 with the 100% jib, you won't be going anywhere fast in light air. 

Finally, the youngest of the J/42s are 15 years old, so they are beginning to show their age.

Not mentioned is that while there are other great performance cruisers out there (X-Yachts Xc series, the Pogos, Grand Soleil come to mind), the J/42 has the advantage that it's a domestic boat, with a very strong dealer network, and good resale value. 

-tk

On Tue, Jan 4, 2022 at 11:46 AM Kurt Huseman <kurt.h...@gmail.com> wrote:
 I'm interested  in buying a J/42 and would like some insight. Are there any construction/manufacturing issues I should be concerned about when I purchasing a used boat?  How comfortable is the boat to sail offshore?  Is it a boat to consider if I am looking for a performance cruiser?  What is the price range I should expect to pay for well maintained boat? Thanks in advance for your feedback.

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James Ashton

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Jan 5, 2022, 10:30:53 AM1/5/22
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Agree on Marblehead but still much better breeze up here than western Long Island sound where I grew up. 😎

I have owned my J42 for a year and I am overjoyed .  Stunning performance along with comfort and safety - not to mention that she is one of the prettiest boats in any harbor.

Best of luck in your search .

Arcadia 
J42, #17
Marblehead 

James F. Ashton


On Jan 5, 2022, at 9:38 AM, Fred deNapoli <phred...@gmail.com> wrote:

AKA, Marble-dead!  That’s my village.  

Fred deNapoli

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Jan 5, 2022, 10:45:35 AM1/5/22
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James, let’s take this off-line.  We’re just off the Corinthian.  Same mooring as our J/124 had, it’s likely you may have seen it.  I know we have at least three in the harbor, including Ward Blodgett's wife’s boat which is over by the the Fort.  She’s lovely, apparently they found his J/33 a bit lacking in comfort for cruising!  Drop me an email with your contact info, might be nice to exchange notes.


Thanks!

Fred



Fred deNapoli

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Jan 5, 2022, 10:53:13 AM1/5/22
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Thanks, Tom, lots of great info for us “novices” to this boat.  

I’d also agree that the 100% jib might be a bit small in lighter air, esp. off the breeze a bit.  We intend to experiment with a few as Finesse comes with quite the inventory.  After a season we may opt for a wireless luff continuous roller furler Code 0 to augment short handed sailing longer distances with minimal stress.

Fred

Ward Blodgett

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Jan 5, 2022, 11:05:19 AM1/5/22
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Fred-

 

Welcome to the J42 world!!  You will love it!!

 

The J33 is certainly no cruising boat!  Its fast but not comfortable.

 

The J42 is the perfect combination of speed and comfort.

 

Take care,

Ward

 

Ward Blodgett

Mistral #22

Robert Thuss

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Jan 12, 2022, 6:21:24 PM1/12/22
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Weighing in as a 2-time J/42 owner (#19 from 2004-2012 and now #63) on the other two questions:

How comfortable is the boat to sail offshore?  

Fantastic as I can attest from two Newport-Bermuda races and return trips (2006 and 2010). What you give up in beam and storage you get in sea kindliness and motion comfort. The J/42 is easy to steer and will handle any conditions. The life raft bin is brilliant and the interior is comfortable when heeling. One return trip we were pegged at 8.3 knot hull speed for two solid 200 mile days. 

Is it a boat to consider if I am looking for a performance cruiser?

Absolutely for all the reasons stated. After owning other boats for awhile, in 2020 I went looking for a cruiser in the 42-48 foot size and realized I wanted another J/42. We are very pleased with #63 since she is fun to daysail and cruise. She seems small compared to my friend’s Bavaria 42, but we literally sail circles around them. 

Best of luck in your search, come back here with questions and results!

Robert  

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rob...@thuss.com

Newt Merrill

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Jan 12, 2022, 6:32:21 PM1/12/22
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Agree completely!  Eight or maybe ten Newport’s and perhaps a Marion or two thrown in. Class honors plus maybe a 3rd. You can’t go wrong! Go for it and keep us posted! FINESSE #20


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Newton P.S. Merrill 

On Jan 12, 2022, at 6:21 PM, Robert Thuss <rober...@gmail.com> wrote:


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