JANUARY 2016 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com 83USED BOAT TEST
OUR VERDICT ON THE BOATWhat’s she like to sail?
As with all boats of this era, she was designed for quick progress to windward. Despite her shoal draught with the board up, her ballast ratio is still high in modern terms and she is stiff under full
(albeit quite conservative) sail. Her underwater shape and deep-vee bow give her an easy motion through the waves and good directional stability, although downwind her pinched stern makes her a little vulnerable to broaching if over-canvassed in a big sea.
steering (tiller or wheel) is fairly heavy and she can also be prone to weather helm if not reefed in time.She has no forward balance in her skeg-hung rudder, so the The cockpit layout of the tiller-steered model is great for
singlehanding. The sail controls are all within easy reach and with the rudder stock, and consequently the tiller, being quite far forward, it’s easy to shelter behind the sprayhood when desired.Being heavy, she needs as much sail area as possible in light
airs, so I would recommend a big gennaker or cruising chute for light air work – especially off the wind.
What’s she like in port and at anchor?Modern 33-footers are enormous down below thanks to their massively wide sterns, but in yachts of this era wide open spaces
were considered dangerous at sea. The Deb 33 was built for safe, secure offshore sailing in all conditions – and that’s exactly what she offers, albeit at the expense of a few modern luxuries. Saying
that, she has a long, if somewhat narrow cockpit that’s fi ne for entertaining in good weather and could even provide two extra berths if you were to buy a full cockpit tent and enjoy camping.The saloon is cosy and the American-style folding table that
hinges up against the main bulkhead means that, when you’re not eating, you have plenty of fl oor space. Her galley is capable of providing a decent meal for a crew of six if necessary and there’s proper berths for up to fi ve crew at sea, or six in port.
down, but I had exactly the same arrangement on my last two Nicholsons and we always managed without too much bother. It’s only a pain if you have guests staying in the saloon who need You may feel that the rather rudimentary heads is a let-
to use the heads, or if you sleep in the saloon and the guests forward shut the saloon door and treat it as their en suite!
Would she suit you and your crew?She’s perfect for someone who puts sailing performance above home comforts. That’s not to say she’s uncomfortable – far from
it, but the absence of internal volume aft, means there a lack of privacy with friends on board that some mightn’t favour.For those who like to sail hard in all conditions, and often either
short-handed or solo, this is a cracking yacht. She looks lovely on the water, her overhangs and sheer give her the classic styling that owners of more mass-produced boats often envy. She’s stiff under sail with a generous ballast ratio, but has the bonus
of a centreboard for a fi ner pointing ability to windward, while retaining the benefi ts of shoal water sailing and creek-crawling. In all, she’s a solid, seaworthy and sensibly laid-out offshore yacht with the ability to make good passage times on all points of
sail and take her owners across oceans.FACTS AND FIGURES■■■ Guide price LOA LWL 10.16m (33ft 5in) 7.31m (24ft 0in) £17,500-£27,500
■■■ Beam Draught Displacement(3ft 7in-6ft 7in) 3.14m (10ft 4in) 1.08-2.00m 6,136kg■■■ Ballast Ballast ratio Sail area(13,500 lb) 2,363kg (5,200 lb) 45.58m 38.5% (^2) (490sq ft)
■■■■ Diesel SA/D ratio Water Engine 90lit (20 gal) 200lit (44 gal) 20hp 13.82
■■■ Transmission Designer BuilderSparkman and Stephens Tyler/Deacons Shaft drive
■ Owners Associationwww.sparkmanstephensuk.info
Deb 33
Would she suit your styleof sailing? (^) ★★★★CRAWLINGCREEK ★ ★★★★PORT-HOPPINGCOA STA L ★
OFFSHORE PASSAGE-MAKING★★★★ TRADE WIND VOYAGING★★★★★ HIGH-LATITUDE ADVENTURE ★★★★★
GRAPHICS: MAXINE HEATH
The well-appointed galley has stowage for food, crockery and utensils
Having the engine box in the saloon means access is excellent for servicing and maintenance