Sundancer 410 2001 - 2002

[Avanti]

I am looking at two boats. Both are low hours/Gas. I am currently on fresh water but will want to move the boat to FL in the future. Primary use will be my wife and I.

Dream: cruise the Bahamas south to ? Have charter experience to 50' (sail) in BVI

Pros and cons on gas vs diesel?

Thoughts on the 410 layout? Machinery serviceability?

Neither boat has the Hydraulic lift? worth adding?

 

[autovette]

410 is an awesome boat. You want diesel's...gas is fine for lake boating but if you plan on anything offshore...you really should consider diesels..

 

[Warren]

Diesel engines are a must in my book given the kind of down south boating you are considering. More money up front but you will get it all back someday. Great boat, the 410. Lots of material here on gas vs. diesel if you do a search, but for me - great economy/hours of use, torque esp. around the dock (bow thruster not required), ease of self-maintenance, and SAFETY. Personally I would pass on the hydralic davits - complex, expensive and worst fear - they could fail in the down position. Check out Hurley davits or equivalent. This forum was an incredible resource for me when I bought. Good luck!
Warren

 

[katricol]

Agree with above posts...great boat with gas or diesel, however if you want to go to the Bahams or further some day.....diesels

 

[tcamba]

Be wary of a "low hour" 10 year old boat. Boats need to be used or other problems can develop. Strongly recommend you have a thorough survey completed before buying.

One of our boats is a 2001 410 DA with 370Hp gas engines and 7.0 kw generator. Great layout, very functional and reliable boat. Mechanical is very well matched to this hull size and weight - the ride and handling are great. Engine room equipment is generally easy to access so most service items can be D-I-Y if you are so inclined. Don't need a huge cache of spare parts to drag with you - just the basics for this boat.

One of our big surprises was how much we use and appreciate our hydraulic swim platform - rated for 800 lbs. Carry a jetski, kayaks or just put chairs out on it and lower into the water while relaxing at sunset. We have not had any problems with this lift in 9 years of ownership. It does have a manual lift feature in case of mechanical failure so you should be able to get it to lift this way in a pinch.

Our experienced range at 26 kts is around 180 miles while calculating a 10% fuel reserve. This should be plenty of range to get you into the Bahamas with little worry.

Deisels are supposed to be easier to maintain but our other boat has twin deisels and the maintenance cost is at least four times higher for the engines - granted it is a more complicated boat but thought it worth mentioning.

The 410 DA is just very simple and straightforward to manage for the two of us.

 

[Avanti]

Thank you all for your experience and insight!

 

[douglee25]

PM Mistercomputerman. He has a gas 410 that he brought up from VA to NJ along the coast last year.

PM OSD9. He has a diesel 410 in NJ.

PM ImpulseIII. He also has a 410 in NJ.

Doug