Francis Jones Motor Sailer

Full specification

Wooden ships comments on this Francis Jones Motor Sailer

Length on deck                                  38’

Beam                                                  12’

Draft                                                  4’6”

 

Designed by J. Francis Jones.

Built by Porter and Haylet of Wroxham in 1972.

J Francis Jones was one of UK’s best known marine architects with a particular gift for designing good looking motor yachts such as the Fleur de Lys range, motor sailers like the Inchcape range and the Sole Bays and a wide range of interesting sailing yachts.

Following a wartime career in the Navy he set up his office in Woodbridge and produced some of our best known yachts of the period.

 

The Porter and Haylet yard was in Wroxham on the Norfolk Broads and over many years produced a huge range of Broads motor cruisers and sailing yachts for the very busy Broads holiday cruising market. Amongst many others they built the popular Laurent Giles designed Peter Duck range of sailing yachts and the great Humphrey Barton’s lovely 38’ Laurent Giles designed Rose Rambler.

 

This motor sailer is typical of their work – a stout boat, simple but sound detail and a boat which is weathering the years amazingly well. She is a surprisingly big boat for her dimensions, this full hull form providing the space for a twin berth fore cabin, a lower saloon with 2 settee berths and a table, a deck saloon with 2 settee berths, table and inside steering position, a starboard passageway below deck through to the aft cabin with the galley along the side of the ship as you go aft and a heads/shower compartment on the other side accessed from the aft cabin. And  a fantastic great big Gardner engine in it’s own place under the deck saloon. And all in 38’.   Amazing!

 

She has had the advantage of good ownership which makes such a difference with our wooden boats.

Sold by Wooden Ships for the first owner who had her built so in only second ownership now for over 20 years

They carried out a thorough refit after purchase following the survey recommendations by Frank Harris Surveyor of Barrow in Furness including replacing the deck entirely and since then have spent the greater part of each year on board quietly cruising the Mediterranean Sea.

 

Hull Design and Construction.

The hull design features a fairly conventional long keel with a snub spoon bow and a short over-hanging transom stern. The midships section is quite full and with her generous freeboard makes her a stiff dry boat capable of riding over the waves and standing up to her canvas. The centre wheel-house/deck saloon over the engine room gives a wonderful living space from where you can survey the scene or on a dark evening you can retire to the warm of the cosy lower saloon.

An inside steering position is provided at the forward end of the deck saloon ideal for longer passages under motor on a wet night while the excellent outside steering position gives full control of the vessel and the rig.

She is not going to win any races round the cans and was never designed to do so but she is a very capable off-wind cruising yacht capable of making long and reliable passages in comfort and safety. Windward passages are often most efficiently made with the engine in gear on tick-

over.

 

Planked in 1” iroko on a oak back-bone, all copper fastened to close-spaced steam bent oak timbers with the usual stringers, floors and beam-shelves.

The hull below the water-line is sheathed with Cascover, a modern version of copper sheathing using a nylon cloth glued to the prepared surface with a cascophene glue. The result gives total worm protection and has the huge advantage of giving enormous strength against impact damage.

Substantial oak floors with galvanised steel strap floors in the ends.

Long external 5 ton iron ballast keel. Galvanised steel keel bolts removed and checked in 1994.

Small quantity of lead trimming ballast in the bilge.

 

The deck is laid in iroko over a ply sub deck. This deck was laid following purchase by the present owners in 1992.  A sub-deck of 3/4” ‘Brunzel’ marine ply was laid with the panels jointed together with all sides/ends sealed with epoxy resin. This sub-deck was then treated with West Epoxy system and new 1” kiln-dried Iroko planking laid on top and screwed down. Finally the fastening holes were plugged and seams payed with Sikaflex.

 

The superstructure is built in iroko and painted to protect and cool it in the hot Med sun. Aluminium framed windows.

Coach-roof decks sheathed in cascover.

 

Steering: Inside and outside wheel on Mathway rod and gear system to steel plate rudder.

Stainless steel davits over the stern

Teak table on the after deck folds away against the mizzen tabernacle.

 

Gardner 4LK 45hp 4–cylinder naturally aspirated fresh water cooled diesel engine on the centre-line to centre-line 3-blade bronze prop gives a maximum speed of 7knts. Installed new in 1973.

Self Changing Gears gear-box with separate throttle and gear controls at both inside and outside helm positions, manually operated shaft brake, shaft drive with universal joints to conventional stern gear.

Performance: 1 gph @ 5 kts

Electrics:       Domestic supply. 4 x 12v batteries in the ER on 24v circuits.

Engine start          1 x 12v battery in the ER

240v circuits        2 x battery chargers

 

Tanks

Diesel.  100 galls diesel in 2 stainless steel tanks, one either side of the engine.

Water    100 galls stainless steel in the engine room space

Pressurised water supply with new 2013 12v pump.

Ascot gas water heater in the heads compartment.

Black water tank. Stainless steel sited under the lower saloon cabin sole. 12v mascerator pump to               evacuate to sea or specialised deck connecter outlet for shoreside evacuation.

 

Rig

Bermudian ketch rig, cutter headed,  on alloy masts stepped in stainless steel tabernacles on the deck, steel compression post below.

Stainless steel rigging.

Internal galvanised steel chain plates

Galvanised steel stemhead fitting incorporates single chain roller.

Aluminium booms fitted with slab reefing.

Roller furling gear on the outer stemhead genoa. The staysail is rigged on a stay from the fore deck to the lower spreaders, boomed and self-tacking with runners on tackles for use as a heavy weather storm jib.

Main sheet to the mizzen tabernacle, single-tailed with jammer on the lower block.

Mizzen sheeted to the push-pit.

 

Winches.

Pair of Lewmar 6 single speed top action main mast halyard winches

Pair of self tailing sheet winches at the outside helm position

 

Sails:

Mainsail 2009

Mizzen   2003

Staysail  2003 on hanks, self tacking on a boom.

Genoa     2009 on Profurl roller furling gear.

 

 

Accommodation.                  6 berths

 

The accommodation below deck is divided in a fore cabin with V-berths, a lower saloon with 2 settee berths, a passageway aft down the starboard side with the galley along the side of the ship to the aft cabin with 2 berths. Off the aft cabin to port is a heads and shower compartment.

The engine space is between the passageway and the heads compartment.

Head-room.    Standing head-room all through.

Shower in the heads compartment, the shower tray currently drains to the bilge but could be rigged to drain to the holding tank. Showers usually taken on deck in the Med.

The deck saloon has one settee berth + seating around the table. Helm position at the forward end.

 

Equipment.

Navigation.

2 x Sestral compasses, one at the helm position, one on the aft deck

Nasa Clipper Sounder

Nasa Clipper thru’ hull log

Nasa SSB radio

Sailor VHF Radio

Sailor LW + MW radio

Decca 24mile radar

Raymarine autopilot

Garmin GPS

Nasa Weatherman

 

Safety equipment

6-man life raft

4 life jackets

Flares

Fire extinguisher

 

Ground tackle

60lbs Bugel bower anchor

2 x 40lb Danforth anchors

1 x Fisherman anchor with folding stock

65 meters 10mm chain

Lofrans 24v windlass with remote operation from both helm positions.

Double chain roller over the stem to take 2 chains at the same time.

 

Deck equipment

6’ grp dinghy

Johnson 2.2hp outboard engine

Winter and summer covers

8 mooring warps

7 fenders

 

This nice quality, robust vessel was sold to the present owners by Wooden Ships in 1993. Their purchase survey indicated that there was deterioration in the deck so they had the deck replaced entirely. Since then the couple have lived aboard for long periods while cruising the Med. and the boat is currently in Greece.

 

The vessel offers very comfortable accommodation with an upper and lower saloon, an owner’s cabin aft and a guest cabin forward and all within a very manageable size.

She carries a very effective sail area and has that wonderfully reassuring Gardner engine.

After 20 years very happy and successful cruising it is time to come ashore.

Disclaimer:

These particulars have been prepared in good faith from information provided by the Vendors and are intended as a guide, Wooden Ships cannot guarantee or warrant the accuracy of this information nor warrant the condition of the vessel. The Purchaser should instruct his agent or surveyor to validate all details as necessary and satisfy himself with the condition of the vessel and its equipment.