Moody 31 MkII Yachting monthly review - opinions?

  • Thread starter Martyn Johnson
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Martyn Johnson

Having decided that a M31 is an ideal choice for our first boat I have been reading reports on here and on line. I came across a M31 bilge keel review in YM Sep 2017, I would appreciate M31 owners comments on points in the review and put my mind at rest that I have made the correct decision.

1) A touch skittish

2) Like sailing a dinghy

3) Impossible to shift main sheet traveler under load

4) Wheel steer option, no room to turn over in aft cabin

5) Young persons boat, too wild for senior sailors.

Overall the review was positive

Regards,

Martyn
 
Can I just check, bearing in mind the review date which is long after the Moody 31 ceased production....... you do mean the Moody 31, do you, and not the Moody S31? The S31 was in production in 2017 and is a completely different boat.
 
Morning Dick,

It was a second hand boat review by Dick Durham on a M31 called Aquaholic.

Martyn
 
I can only say that Dick Durham is used to sailing gaffers............
I'm sure you'll get some M31 owners along soon.
 
Hi

We own a gorgeous Moody 31

to give my subjective view on each point

skittish/ like a dinghy - we do not find this at all, I have sailed her along side boats of similar size and delighted we have been able to sail a much more consistent and controlled course in 25 to 30 knot winds

Agree moving the traveller to windward under load upwind is not easy. Some owners have modified their travellers to fix the concern but it’s not a major issue for us (if necessary we put a bit of grunt into it, spill some wind, or wait and plan it as we tack )

2 in the aft berth is tight for the middle (we call it the coffin berth ) but heh she is only 31 ft

I am 50 so don’t mind it being called a young persons boat

hopefully this helps

Adam
 
Hi Martyn

We have had our 31Mk 2 (our first and only boat) for 15 years and for the last 12 years we have spent 12 continuous weeks of every summer on board. Our sailing area has extended from Biscay Ports to the Orkneys with most points in between including UK east and west coasts & N Ireland.

We do not find her skittish. Clearly she is is not as firm as a large boat but in her class she is excellent.

Yes the traveller can be hard to move under high load but that must apply to all boats. We always manage and in extremes you can simply lighten the load on the sail first.

Our boat is a wheel steer version with bilge keels. Yes there is less room in the aft cabin as a result but I am 6’ 2” and 13.5 st and have no problem. Room at hip region only leaves a couple of inches at worst when turning over but that’s ok. If I can manage without complaint for 90 straight nights at a time it can’t be too bad! The berth is full king size width at the head.

As for being a young persons boat I don’t get that all. We bought her when I was 57 and we are now in our 70s and love the boat. She is so easy to handle and plenty big enough for 2 to live in comfort. Single handed sailing is also good. Over the years we have made lots of personal improvements. For handling, having all lines go back to the cockpit is a great safety measure. No need for either off us to leave the cockpit other than for handling fenders and warps.

Hope that helps. Geoff
 
Hi Martyn,

I have never owned a Moody 31, but I have sailed a couple of them and I'm surprised by the quotes from Dick Durham's review.

I can only think that Dick was having an off day. While it's true that he is widely experienced in sailing gaffers and sailing barges, he also has experience of modern yachts and normally I respect his views. However, in this case I'm sure he is wrong. A Moody 31 is considerably less skittish than a Westerly Fulmar, and I'm not sure I would call a Fulmar skittish - they were for decades widely respected as the best yacht for training beginners because they extracted reasonable performance from a very stable design. Certainly both boats are less skittish than a Beneteau 31 of the same era.

I love yachts that sail like dinghies - to me that means that you get instant feedback through the feel (both tiller and seat of your pants) while she remains easily controllable. A Moody 31 will not heel like a dinghy, in fact they sail flatter than most yachts of that size. Like all of Bill Dixon's designs, the helm is light and you will find that if, going to weather, you heel her until the lee rail is down to the sea, tucking in a reef will cause speed to increase - you reefed too late! That is Bill's trade mark.

On a boat of that size, as I have said here before, I would steer clear of wheel steering. Not only will it take away from space in the rear cabin and space in the cockpit, it will trap the helmsman in one position far more than a tiller will. A tiller also gives far more feedback than a wheel and you have no need of the extra power on the rudder a wheel gives, especially if she sails like a dinghy.

As Geoff says, improving the main sheet car adjusting arrangement is not a major job - I would do it and also make the genoa cars towable for adjustment, but I just like tweaking things.

At my age, I'm not into ageism.

Peter.
 
Morning all,

Many thanks for taking the time to reply to questions that I am sure you have all heard before.

My mind is now made up more than ever, all I need to do now is find a looked after tiller steered version for sale. In the meantime I will continue reading all the technical section on here.

Regards,

Martyn
 
Good luck Martyn. I'm sure we'll all keep our ears to the ground and let you know if any likely boats pop up for sale.
 
afternoon, sorry to drag up a old thread. i have searched for this article and can only find part of it. Does anyone by chance have a copy as i would be interested in reading it
thanks
steve
 
For anyone who is interested I have a Sailing Today test article on the Moody 31 from 1999. PM me your email and I will send you the PDF
 
Hi everybody,

as for being skittish......I own a M31 mk1 since 2019, transferred her back to tiller steering and am absolutely pleased with the result. As there are so few videos of a M31 mk1/mk2 to find I put a short one on youtube.
here is the link:


Maybe its of use to somebody considering buying....

nice day to everybody
Jürgen
 
Hi Jurgen,

Your boat is beautifully maintained and the video is beautifully made - well done!

Peter.

p.s. Of Dick Durham's statements all those years ago, "sails like a dinghy" is imho a great comp;liment to any yacht and a 31 footer that sails like a dinghy deserves a tiller, regardless of the comfort of the aft berth, so I believe you were right to revert to tiller steering.

P.
 
Hi Peter,

sorry for the late reply.
Thanks for the nice reply to my post.
I am still in the middle of refurbishing and refitting but aren´t we all? Replaced the pantry worktop laminat yesterday.....insulated the hull behind of the pantry....
I totally agree to the "sails like a dinghy" compliment. Though she does not sail like a dinghy, I was and still am amazed about the maneuverability and the lightness of helm. I admit, i was a bit concerned about weather helm prior to removing the steering pedestal, but that proved to be no problem at all.
I am looking forward to the season 2021.....

kind regards
Jürgen
 
I'm very late to this thread. Dick Durham lives near me - I've spoken to him in the pub a couple of times. Just after this review came out I saw Dick waiting for a bus (with his kit, off to collect his new gaffer) and I was just about to ask him about the review when the bus turned up! I just think that he got his reviews/memory muddled up and he was talking about a different boat.
 
Tim Bowden said:
Hi Barry, I would be interested in a copy of the ST article if possible. timbowden2@gmail.com thanks.
Click to expand...
Hi Tim,

Its in the Moody 31Tech Lib, also published in an earlier thread,

Moody 31 - Buying a Moody 31

Hi Folks Around the year 2000, we had a dream of selling our house and buying a sailing boat. My Wife shortly after became pregnant, we had children, and our lives got tipped upside down. A boat was no place for the pitter patter of tiny feet, so that was the end of that. Funny, I'd forgotten...
moodyowners.info moodyowners.info

For the record, a great boat, solid, sails well and is dependable, capable and reassuring when the wind rises. I am of course a tad biased as I sail a Mk 11 :)
 
Francis Miller said:
Hi Tim,

Its in the Moody 31Tech Lib, also published in an earlier thread,

Moody 31 - Buying a Moody 31

Hi Folks Around the year 2000, we had a dream of selling our house and buying a sailing boat. My Wife shortly after became pregnant, we had children, and our lives got tipped upside down. A boat was no place for the pitter patter of tiny feet, so that was the end of that. Funny, I'd forgotten...
moodyowners.info moodyowners.info

For the record, a great boat, solid, sails well and is dependable, capable and reassuring when the wind rises. I am of course a tad biased as I sail a Mk 11 :)
Click to expand...
 
Hi Francis,
Is your Mkll a fin or a bilge keel?
Do you have any feedback on the bilge version?
Regards
Tim
 
She's a 1990 Bilge Keeler that spends most of her time in a half tide harbour.
For cruising the Bristol channel, I would not contemplate a fin Keeler as most opportunities to shelter are in tidal harbours, allowing a bilge Keeler to dry out without too many concerns.
I've not sailed a fin keel version, possibly it would point a little higher and show a slightly better turn of speed, but my experience with the bilge keels is totally positive. Our boat, fitted with an aftermarket mast roller reefing system, stands up well to the sails and I've not experienced any slamming that can sometime be associated with BKs. I normally sail singlehanded, even if the family are aboard! As all the lines are led back to the cockpit, it make easier and safer sailing.
I sailed her from West Wales down to the Isles of Scilly last September. For most of the hundred and twenty mile transit I had NW winds ranging between 25-35kts, according to the B&G. The boat coped without issue, and at no time did it give me any cause for concern. It would not be my yacht of choice for a transatlantic crossing, but would willingly follow in the wake of other Moody 31's that have.
If you have any specific questions, please do ask, if I can't answer, there will be someone here who will know.
 
Francis Miller said:
She's a 1990 Bilge Keeler that spends most of her time in a half tide harbour.
For cruising the Bristol channel, I would not contemplate a fin Keeler as most opportunities to shelter are in tidal harbours, allowing a bilge Keeler to dry out without too many concerns.
I've not sailed a fin keel version, possibly it would point a little higher and show a slightly better turn of speed, but my experience with the bilge keels is totally positive. Our boat, fitted with an aftermarket mast roller reefing system, stands up well to the sails and I've not experienced any slamming that can sometime be associated with BKs. I normally sail singlehanded, even if the family are aboard! As all the lines are led back to the cockpit, it make easier and safer sailing.
I sailed her from West Wales down to the Isles of Scilly last September. For most of the hundred and twenty mile transit I had NW winds ranging between 25-35kts, according to the B&G. The boat coped without issue, and at no time did it give me any cause for concern. It would not be my yacht of choice for a transatlantic crossing, but would willingly follow in the wake of other Moody 31's that have.
If you have any specific questions, please do ask, if I can't answer, there will be someone here who will know.
Click to expand...
Hi Francis,
Thank you for the information.
Regards
Tim
 
Tim, I don’t know if you realise but the 31 and the S31 are completely different boats, hull, rig, layout, everything.
 
Hello Dick,
thanks very much for your wisdom. Barry has been most helpful, and I appreciate we have three different vessels of 31’ (Mk1, Mk2 and S).
Any counsel on the relative merits of the S31 relative to the Hunter Channel 31 are most welcome, though I don’t want to overuse the goodwill of members, or abuse the temporary permissions.
 
Hi Tim,

The M31 Mk 1 & Mk 2 are different incarnations of the same boat - in sailing terms, they are the same, but there are some relatively minor differences in the accomodation. The M S31 is a completely different boat which sails even better than the M31 and has much more accomodation, basically it's a bigger boat if the same length. There was an option with the S31 to have a fractional rig.T

he Moody S31 is, in my view, a better sailer than the Hunter Channel 31 with far better accomodation. For details of the layout of all models of Moody, see the Moody Archive, accessed from a link towards the bottom of the left hand side of the MOA Homepage. To get to the Homepage click on the burgee at the top of this page.

Peter.
 
Peter Wright said:
Hi Tim,

The M31 Mk 1 & Mk 2 are different incarnations of the same boat - in sailing terms, they are the same, but there are some relatively minor differences in the accomodation. The M S31 is a completely different boat which sails even better than the M31 and has much more accomodation, basically it's a bigger boat if the same length. There was an option with the S31 to have a fractional rig.T

he Moody S31 is, in my view, a better sailer than the Hunter Channel 31 with far better accomodation. For details of the layout of all models of Moody, see the Moody Archive, accessed from a link towards the bottom of the left hand side of the MOA Homepage. To get to the Homepage click on the burgee at the top of this page.

Peter.
Click to expand...
Thank you Peter - much appreciated.
 
Hi All, I have a Moody 31. She is a good solid boat with great sea keeping qualities. I am based in the south coast of Ireland I have circumnavigated Ireland and sailed to Scotland and the south of England In her. A sister ship in our club has voyaged to Norway Sweden and Finland without any loss of confidence in the boat. I am seventy one and am happy to be considered young by Dick Durham. Regards Austin
 
When you get to my age, and Dick's about the same vintage, mostnof the world look young.

Peter.
 
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