Noob question about 560 Sedan Bridge staterooms

PetePWES

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Jun 19, 2019
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Hi Guys, apologies in advance as I'm going to swear here...

We have narrowed our choice of boat for live aboard while cruising the Caribbean to the Sea Ray 560 Sedan Bridge or (and here comes the swearing) Carver 530 Voyager Pilothouse.

Because we live in the UK and nobody over here is selling either model (or even similar) we can only go on the many photo's and videos across the net. Of the two, we prefer the salon layout of the Sea Ray, however what worries us are the Sea Ray staterooms

The bed in the master looks to be nearer the ceiling than the floor with barely any walking/ standing/ dressing space. The guest room looks even worse and the twin bunk room looks pointless unless you have very small children (we don't)

If anyone with experience with our other choice of boat or similar could give any guidance, we'd really appreciate it! Also any of you guys who are live aboard on a 560 Sedan, are all the pictures deceiving and how do you and guests get on with the Staterooms?

We are looking to head over to the states to check out a final selection before purchase obviously, but currently struggling to find both boat models in the same state! We'd like to avoid transatlantic flights plus internal flights between boats if possible

Look forward to any guidance you can offer, thanks in advance! (and sorry for the swearing ;-) )

Pete
 
You should get lots of advice on the 560DB here, however I can tell you a few things about the Carver as my slip mate has one. His biggest gripe is there is zero visibility of the starboard side from the bridge when in the captains chair. Second biggest is the the master bed is transverse (meaning the headboard is on the starboard side running amidships). This doesn't sound bad until you fill the fuel tanks which are located aft of the engines, and I swear it drops the stern a good 8" and raises the bow the same. He said it feels like you're gonna roll out of bed. Oh, and the Volvo's smoke like crazy. Exhaust is above waterline, and his swim platform and dinghy are covered with soot even after a short run.

Good luck with your search.

-Tom
 
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Hi Pete - Welcome aboard!

I have three dockmates with 530 Voyagers - one with Volvo's (2001) and two with Cummins (1999). I agree with TNT - the Volvo's smoke like crazy and he is constantly cleaning soot - thick soot. Volvo marine service is not as good in the US as it is in Europe...in Chattanooga anyway...The Cummins guys are happy, but make sure you have the updated injectors...
 
Hi Pete - Welcome aboard!

I have three dockmates with 530 Voyagers - one with Volvo's (2001) and two with Cummins (1999). I agree with TNT - the Volvo's smoke like crazy and he is constantly cleaning soot - thick soot. Volvo marine service is not as good in the US as it is in Europe...in Chattanooga anyway...The Cummins guys are happy, but make sure you have the updated injectors...

Thanks Carter, your advice is much appreciated!
 
You should get lots of advice on the 560DB here, however I can tell you a few things about the Carver as my slip mate has one. His biggest gripe is there is zero visibility of the starboard side from the bridge when in the captains chair. Second biggest is the the master bed is transverse (meaning the headboard is on the starboard side amidships). This doesn't sound bad until you fill the fuel tanks which are located aft of the engines, and I swear drops the stern a good 8" and raises the bow the same. He said it feels like you're gonna roll out of bed. Oh, and the Volvo's smoke like crazy. Exhaust is above water, and his swim platform and dinghy are covered with soot even after a short run.

Good luck with your search.

-Tom

Thanks Tom, that's very interesting info and much appreciated!!
 
Thanks Jim, I'll do some reading tomorrow (bed time here!). Much appreciated!

Some reading for you:
http://www.clubsearay.com/index.php?threads/560-db-owners-club.39449/

Good luck with your search and welcome to CSR!

Thanks again for the link Jim, I had already found that one a couple of weeks ago, but a thorough re-read has been really useful.

Particularly one picture of a group of around 10 people sharing Thanksgiving dinner on board, with plenty of space for more! That really shows off how big the 560 DB is.

As mentioned before, the staterooms were our main concern, and in that article it's mentioned that between the door and bed in the master is 7ft. No picture or video I've seen to date has indicated that level of space, so again really useful information

The hunt continues, but with my eyes more open thanks to you guys. The 560 is looking more and more like the ideal boat for our future...
 
The only other thing I can offer is to keep an open mind, and go physically get on some boats. I think the worst case is you get on one, love it, buy it, but when you actually boat, it doesn’t work for you. Do you know the range of these boats? If I were going to do the Caribbean on a live aboard, I’d potentially look at a power catamaran. Great range, super stable in rough water, plenty of living space. Not as fast as planing hulls, typically, harder to come by, more expensive to dock (takes up two slips), etc.
 
The only other thing I can offer is to keep an open mind, and go physically get on some boats. I think the worst case is you get on one, love it, buy it, but when you actually boat, it doesn’t work for you. Do you know the range of these boats? If I were going to do the Caribbean on a live aboard, I’d potentially look at a power catamaran. Great range, super stable in rough water, plenty of living space. Not as fast as planing hulls, typically, harder to come by, more expensive to dock (takes up two slips), etc.

Thanks Todd, sailing never did it for me, so the idea of a Cat makes me fall asleep just thinking about...zzzzzzz

We've been on a good range of boats at large boat shows here in the UK, but they are all new models, so VERY spacious compared with older ones, but at around the £1m mark, not happening without a lottery win. It did help with the decision on boat size at least.

We then had a trip to Florida earlier this year where we looked at Italian yachts of our preferred size, but all were in pretty poor condition. While a used turnkey would be great, such a thing probably never actually is turnkey... If the boat is the right price then happy to spend out on refurbishment of whatever it needs

At this stage it's understanding the potential pitfalls, and trying to get a better idea of American built boats v the Italian ones we know quite well. Of all the American built boats, the Sea Ray is probably the nearest to Italian design in terms of the salon, wide, open and pretty much a single level, which we really like

Thanks again for your advice, all very welcome!!

Cheers

Pete
 
Thanks Todd, sailing never did it for me, so the idea of a Cat makes me fall asleep just thinking about...zzzzzzz

Pete
Power cat! Not sexy, at all, and not fast, but faster than sailing! Friends of ours just bought an Aquila 44, 2016(?), and it is amazing (unfortunately, that’s a lottery boat for me). Here is something in my price range, still too much boat for me.
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2002/prowler-450-3497119/
 
Power cat! Not sexy, at all, and not fast, but faster than sailing! Friends of ours just bought an Aquila 44, 2016(?), and it is amazing (unfortunately, that’s a lottery boat for me). Here is something in my price range, still too much boat for me.
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2002/prowler-450-3497119/

Oh dear :-( Just when I thought it was a race between two boats, along comes Todd with his Cat idea....

I never knew you could get suck a thing as a power cat, and while it not the fastest thing on water, you do seem to get a lot of space!!

Not keen on the crawl in bunk idea of the prowler 450, but the Aquila.... Now that's more like it!

Maybe if we combine funds Todd, I can live on it, then send you pictures - Deal? ;-)
 
Pete, you mention "guest bunks" on the 560DB, but that's a 3 stateroom boat. The 560 owners I know consider the fwd stateroom the master, and the starboard stateroom the "VIP", with the bunk room being the 3rd choice.

Carver folk may argue, but I'd remove the 53 Voyager from your list. Volvos are actually solid engines, but parts are expensive and service options aren't as plentiful as they are for Cummins. Carver made a LOT of 53's with small engines. You can see how they got away with it by looking at the shape of the hull: It's basically a sleek-looking houseboat. It's fast/efficient for it's size and power, but that's not to say it's fast. The ride is horrible. Even a 2 foot chop shakes that boat like a washboard.

The 57 is just a stretched version, and it comes with reliable Volvo D12's, but it has the same ride. They're great boats for their intended use: dock queens with maximized space making occasional trips in nice conditions.
 
Pete, you mention "guest bunks" on the 560DB, but that's a 3 stateroom boat. The 560 owners I know consider the fwd stateroom the master, and the starboard stateroom the "VIP", with the bunk room being the 3rd choice.

Carver folk may argue, but I'd remove the 53 Voyager from your list. Volvos are actually solid engines, but parts are expensive and service options aren't as plentiful as they are for Cummins. Carver made a LOT of 53's with small engines. You can see how they got away with it by looking at the shape of the hull: It's basically a sleek-looking houseboat. It's fast/efficient for it's size and power, but that's not to say it's fast. The ride is horrible. Even a 2 foot chop shakes that boat like a washboard.

The 57 is just a stretched version, and it comes with reliable Volvo D12's, but it has the same ride. They're great boats for their intended use: dock queens with maximized space making occasional trips in nice conditions.

Good points well made sir, thank you!

Volvo's are VERY popular for boats over this way (probably north of 80% have them), but I do get what you're saying about parts and servicing. What percentage more would you say parts and servicing would be over, say a year with average bills? Big repair bills will always be crippling and a hundred dollars here or there won't make any real difference of course, but thousands would

Interesting about the 2' chop and being thrown around. Is the Sea Ray MUCH better coping with that, or a bit better and I really should be getting a bigger/ better boat for anything more than ponds and lakes?

I'm sure you'll agree that certainly by photo's, the Carver has noticeably bigger staterooms. It may just be the way they are laid out doesn't make for decent photo's, but this is why I've been asking the question from experts like yourself

Thanks again for your input everything helps!!

Cheers

Pete
 

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