Come on all you 292, 300, 301 owners. You own the best Hanse design ever. Described by the yachting press as "The best yacht ever sailed"......"A real classic"   "The real benchmark for other Hanse's to follow".   OK its not got the same volume as newer designs but who wants to go below when you can experience the joy of sailing this fine craft. Set up right she slices through large seas that newer wider designs bounce over. Fantastic !!

But how come you guys rarely contribute to the web site . Is it because you cant drag yourself away from sailing your boat. Is it because you dont have any issues with your boat or is it because you feel that with the smallest boat in the fleet your voice is not important.

Come on lets hear about your experiences on the CLASSIC HANSE'S                      

Great post...

Morgelyn, our 301 replaced a Hunter Horizon, that was a really good boat, but, the 301 is a really GREAT boat. I cannot think of anything to compalin about except maybe the heads are a bit on the small side but she handles beautifully, is fast, comfortable and we love her.

We really only sail her when the sun shines and the wind isn't too strong but despite this she feels as though she could handle most conditions. The previous owner equipped he with about everything going as far as the domestics are concerned though she still has just the original sails made by East Sails.

We collected her from Poole last year and on the leg from Dartmouth to Falmouth averaged over 7 knots which with the standard east sails and a force 3/4 was I think pretty good for a boat of less than 30 feet and with a less than perfect crew in an untried boat!

Would we part with her, well only perhaps for a bigger Hanse!

Our 300 was new in Nov 03 - we remain as pleased with her now as we were then. The spec was for an easily sailed boat that could be handled single or two handed, at the same time performance had to be good and most of all it had to feel safe to encourage the less confident sailors in the family - that is exactly what we have got.

The boat spins on a sixpense whether under sail or power. The only vice I have found is if trying to hold her across the wind when berthing, but as we have a mooring that is of little concern.

We have been across the Channel and back twice now and the boat has been superb. I added Radar this year and that was a great comfort when dodging shipping in thick fog in June - worth every penny! Unfortunately we caught a 60ft length of netting in the west bound shipping lane and had to get a tow from Freshwater lifeboat as there was no wind, no visibility and lots of vessels much larger than us around!

Would I change her? well when we have a full crew on board, a 342 sounds very attractive. However, when there are four or less on board or when it is time to pay the mooring fees on the Beaulieu River I am very happy where I am.

What would I change? I'd fit a fuel guage (this winter) and a rope cutter (also this winter), probably with a folding prop having seen some of the advice on this site.

It is interesting seeing some owners concerns about how heavy some of the Hanses are on the tiller. I have no problems with my 300 in this respect - she is a pleasure. The self tacking jib makes life very easy. However, as a tall thin sail it is not ideal for all wind /sailing conditions and the option to change this is something I continue to look at - most of the time it is a wothwhile and very effective compromise bearing in mind that I cruise not race my boat.

Graham

Hi Tikatam,

There has been some discussion in the past about fitting a fuel gauge, there were some pictures on this forum some while ago.

It is something I want to do as well so might even compare notes - you are right it is a pain not knowing how much fuel you have and not even any way of dipping the tank?

Don't forget the 331 - she is a lovely sailing boat and her lines and interior are classic.

The boat was tiller steered and never appeared to be heavy. She came through many a rough sea and we felt completely safe at all times - and she had sailed across the channel a few times as well as down the West Country.

We no longer have our 331 as you will see from my past postings - we are due to have a new 371 this week. But our main reason for changing from the 331 to the 371 was the room and stowage.

Because we have plans for the future unfortunately the 331 was just a little to small - but she really was a lovely boat and a pleasure to sail.

Sue 

Hi Morgelyn,

If I could get access to the photos of the fuel guage being fitted again I would be very interested - If not I am sure Peter or Dominic would help. My main concern re the fuel tank is that I cannot tell whether or not the tank is full when loading fuel. The narrow pipe and brether system means that I have to fill the tank slowly or fuel gets spilt - The ability to cross check this with a dipstick or guage would be most reassuring to say the least. If you know it is full, it is not difficult to calculate how many hours running you have done; in the meantime I carry spare fuel in tanks in the hold just in case.

There was some very good info about folding props on the site before it crashed; once again contact with Hanse UK should hopefully provide this.

I'll pass on any info I get and send pictures as and when they are available.

Silverhanse,

Sue, I am sure the 371 will be superb; we moored outside of one at last years Solent rally; it looked like a battleship - I dont mean that rudely - the deck space, layout and stowage were awesome yet it was still rigged for what I call easy sailing.

regards

Graham

Thanks for that, I'll get in touch with Dominic or Peter as I am sure they will have the spec.

Graham