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• Sailboat Reviews

Nicholson 35

A real-live, serious ocean cruiser. the hard part will be finding one on the used market in the u.s..

Today’s new boat market has fragmented about as far as it can: cruiser/racers, racer/cruisers, cruiser/cruisers, racer/racers. But not so long ago, there were a few boats built as plain-old cruisers, with decent performance (but no racing aspirations), seaworthy construction (without overkill), and design that allowed you to take an out-of-the-box sailboat on a cruise for a week, or a year.

Maybe you have to go to a real old-time boatbuilder to get that kind of quality. How old-time? Will 200 years of yacht building experience do?

If not the oldest yacht builder around, Camper & Nicholsons has to be in the running. Over the years, Nicholsons built every kind of boat imaginable, including pure racers and boats that came precariously close to being sailing houseboats. Nicholsons have never had the type of exquisite joinerwork you find in Far Eastern boats, nor have the looks of most of their boats fallen into the category of classic. But the boats have always been built with a high level of integrity, and a few of the designs are classic not in looks or detailing, but in overall quality.

Just over 200 Nicholson 35s were built over more than a 10-year period, with production tailing off in the early 1980s. Most boats were sold in England, but a number were built for American owners, and still more found their way to the U.S. during the rampage of the dollar against foreign currencies in the mid 1980s.

The Nicholson 35 is a cruising boat, plain and simple. Its proportions are about as common-sense and moderate as you can get. The boat is clean, almost austere in appearance, with very little exterior wood trim. You’ll find a teak caprail, teak grab rails, teak ply cockpit seats, and that’s about it. It is a true medium-displacement boat: heavy by contemporary racer/cruiser standards, but very reasonable for an offshore cruiser with a waterline almost 27′ long.

Sailing Performance

The Nic 35 is no racing boat, but she’s no slug, either. Her PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) rating of about 156 is some six seconds per mile slower than the Ericson 35-2, but some 20 seconds per mile faster than a “pure” cruiser such as the Tayana 37 or Crealock 37.

A moderate fin keel and skeg-mounted rudder underbody allows reasonable performance in light air, despite a smallish sailplan. The working sail area is just about evenly divided between the foretriangle and mainsail.

The rig is a simple masthead sloop, with double lower shrouds and single, airfoil spreaders. The mast is a tapered, anodized Proctor spar, which is filled with foam to deaden sound. Halyard winches are mounted on the mast.

While the sailplan never changed, there were many minor revisions to the rig over the years. Early boats have roller-reefing booms, while late boats have slab reefing. Winch specifications and options changed over the years.

Most early boats have halyard winches that are large enough for hoisting sail, but too small to allow you to easily get a person to the masthead. We wouldn’t want to hoist a 90-pounder up the mast with the standard Lewmar 8C winches. Larger halyard winches were optional—Lewmar 16 or 25. The 25 is as small a winch as we’d want to use to hoist anyone aloft, and even that would be work for most people.

The mainsheet traveler bisects the cockpit just forward of the wheel, so that you have to step over the traveler and onto the cockpit seats to go forward from the steering position. While the mainsheet’s position just forward of the helmsman is reasonable, the driver cannot easily trim the mainsheet, which secures to a cleat on the front of the teak traveler support. It would be a simple matter to replace this awkward arrangement with a modern traveler, with the sheet ending at a cam cleat on top of the traveler car.

The cockpit seats themselves are short and not very comfortable, with a high, nearly vertical fiberglass cockpit coaming. The deep cockpit does give excellent protection from seas and spray. One of the best features of the cockpit is a moldedin dodger coaming, much like you find in this country on S&S-designed boats such as the Tartan 37. When fitted with a good dodger, the entire forward half of the cockpit will be bone-dry in almost any conditions.

Despite the fact that the aft side of the deckhouse slopes forward, the companionway is built out slightly, making it vertical. This allows you to remove the top dropboard in light rain, even with the dodger down. The companionway hatch slides have Tufnol runners, allowing the hatch to move easily. This is typical of the good structural detailing in boats from C&N.

Cockpit volume is huge. A bridgedeck protects the companionway, but the high coamings could allow the cockpit to fill almost to the top of the hatch in a major pooping. Later boats have large flapper-protected pipe scuppers through the transom in addition to big cockpit scuppers. We’d suggest retrofitting these to any older boat to be used for offshore voyaging.

Shroud chainplates are just inboard of the low bulwarks. They consist of heavy stainless steel “hairpins,” and are bolted through what would be the beam shelf on a wooden boat. We had some reservations about this construction when we first looked at it more than a decade ago, but after finding no chainplate damage on a similarly-fitted Nicholson 40 that had been rolled over and dismasted, we can’t argue with the strength of the installation. Lloyds approves it, and they’re notoriously conservative.

Like most boats of the 1970s, Nicholson 35s tend to be under-winched. Standard jib sheet winches are Lewmar 40s or 43s. Larger Lewmars were optional. We’d go for the biggest self-tailing genoa sheet winches that could fit on the coamings, and we’d make it a high priority for shorthanded cruising.

The low bulwarks give an enormous feeling of security under sail. The side decks are wide, and there is a grab rail atop the cabin trunk on each side, although the rail’s flattened shape takes a little getting used to. The molded-in fiberglass non-skid is soso.

Teak decks were an option, but not a commonly chosen one.

In general, sailing performance is what you would look for in a serious cruising boat. The hull shape is uncompromised by any rating rule. The ballast/displacement ratio of 42%, with the lead concentrated quite low in the molded keel, results in a reasonably stiff boat by any standard.

Sailing performance can be improved on any boat by replacing a main and genoa more than a few years old. You’ll never get racing boat performance out of the Nic 35, but you also won’t have to work yourself to death to get acceptable speed, either. That’s not a bad trade-off.

A variety of engines have been used in the Nic 35, all diesels. Early boats have the ubiquitous Perkins or Westerbeke 4-107. Later boats have a smaller Westerbeke L-25 or a marinized Volkswagen Rabbit diesel. Given our druthers, we’d take the Perkins engine. But there’s a complication here. Early boats, recognizable by a prop shaft that emerges from the aft end of the keel, utilize a hydraulic drive rather than a conventional transmission. The engine faces aft under the cockpit bridgedeck, with the hydraulic pump mounted on its back end. The hydraulic motor is in the bilge at the aft end of the main cabin.

Hydraulic drives are a mixed blessing. They allow the engine to be mounted anywhere, but most marine mechanics don’t know how to work on them. However, heavy equipment mechanics anywhere in the world can solve most hydraulic problems. On the downside, a major problem requiring replacement of the hydraulic motor or pump in a non-industrial area could be a real headache.

Later boats have a more conventional exposed shaft and strut. The engine is mounted further aft, under the cockpit, and the shaft is driven through a V-drive. Access to the engine in either installation is poor. On V-drive boats with a quarterberth, you can get to the front of the engine through the quarterberth.

With no quarterberth, it’s a crawl through a cockpit locker. The back of the engine is accessed through removable hatches behind the companionway ladder.

Control when backing is better with the V-drive installation, since the prop is much further aft. Likewise, tight maneuvering ahead is better with the same prop configuration, since you get good prop wash over the rudder.

In all boats, the fuel tank is a fiberglass molding. It is not integral to the hull, but is glassed in after the hull is laid up. We have heard no reports of failures of the tank.

Fuel capacity varies from 33 to 40 gallons—adequate for a cruising boat, but a little on the skimpy side for true long-term independence.

Construction

There’s nothing to fault in the construction of these boats. Some hulls—but not all—were built under Lloyds survey. A Lloyds Hull Moulding Note—which covers the basic layup of the hull, installation of bulkheads, and the deck molding—is fairly common, as it added nothing to the cost of the boat other than a survey. A full-blown Lloyds 100 A-1 certificate is rarer, since it added substantially to the price of the boat.

Nicholsons was an early user of isophthalic polyester resin, although it was only used for gelcoat. This made Nicholson 35s more blister-resistant when new, but it probably doesn’t substantially reduce a boat’s tendency to blister if it is left in the water constantly for years. Structural work in these boats is first-class. We’ve never understood why good-quality European boats in the late 70s and early 80s seemed to have much neater glass work than most production American boats of the same period, but they do.

The lead ballast casting is dropped into a molded keel cavity, then heavily glassed over. The outside of the keel molding of any boat with internal ballasting should be carefully examined for grounding damage.

There is a deep bilge sump under the cabin sole just aft of the fiberglass water tank. This will keep bilge water where it belongs until it can be pumped overboard.

Two 90 amp-hour batteries were standard on early boats. They were increased to 128 amp-hours each on later boats, and the alternator size was increased to 60 amps. If you want to go to bigger batteries on an older boat—a must for serious cruising—you’ll need to install a bigger alternator if you don’t want to run your engine all the time.

Many small changes were made to the interior design and decor over the years. In addition, the Nicholson 35 was built to order—you didn’t buy one off some dealer’s lot—so there is a lot of minor interior customizing. This was encouraged by the builder, and the prices for modifications were reasonable. It makes buying a used boat more complicated, however, because the combination of features you’re looking for may be hard to find.

The forward cabin on all boats is pretty much the same. There are the usual V-berths, but unlike a lot of boats, they don’t come to a point at the bow; there’s plenty of foot room. The berths could be converted to a big double, but you won’t find that on most boats.

A chain pipe runs vertically between the berths to the chain locker on many boats, rendering moot any modification to a double berth. The chain locker under the berths does keep the weight of chain low and fairly far aft, if you’re willing to make the tradeoff.

Padded vinyl liners are used on the hull sides, rather than wood ceiling. This looks good when new, but gets tired after a few years. We’d prefer wood. Wood ceilings can be refinished; vinyl can only be cleaned.

The earliest boats have white melamine-finished bulkheads, which lend to the general austerity of older models. Later boats have teak-veneered bulkheads, but the teak used is generally fairly light, so it doesn’t dramatically darken the interior.

Ventilation in the forward cabin is poor. A low profile Tannoy ventilator installed in the aluminum-framed deck hatch was standard, but these don’t move nearly as much air as big cowl vents. Original specs called for cowl vents over the forward cabin, but we’ve never seen them.

Aft of the forward cabin is a full-width head. Camper & Nicholsons used this same basic design on several boats, and it works well. You may not like the idea of walking through the head to get to the forward cabin, but it allows a much larger head than you’ll find on the typical boat of this length built in the 1970s.

There are good touches in the head, such as a stainless steel grab rail in front of the sink, and a mirror that angles upward so you don’t have to bend over to shave. Using the full width of the boat for the head allows its use as a dressing room without undue contortions.

Early boats do not have pressure water, nor do they have hot water for a shower. These creature comforts came later in the production run, but they can be added to older boats without much trouble.

There is very little wood in the head—just trim around locker doors—which makes it easy to keep clean and dry. A single Tannoy vent provides limited ventilation, but there’s plenty of room on deck over the head to add two cowl vents in Dorade boxes.

This would help ventilate the entire boat, and would be high on our priority list.

You’ll find a lot of variations in the main cabin, and which ones are most desirable is really a matter of choice.

All boats have a U-shaped dinette to starboard, with a permanently mounted dropleaf table. On the later boats we’ve looked at, the table is mounted on a heavy tubular aluminum base, securely bolted to the cabin sole. It is one of the sturdiest tables we’ve ever seen. The design allows the table to be reached from both the dinette and the starboard settee, giving lots of elbow room for five for dinner, with elbow-to-elbow seating for seven close friends if a lot of passing of food isn’t required.

There is storage space under the dinette, with lockers and bookshelves behind the seat back.

Starboard side layout varies. As originally designed, there is a straight extension settee, with a pilot berth outboard. The pilot berth was deleted on many boats, increasing storage space but visually narrowing the cabin. On a serious cruising boat, the extra storage would be a plus, since both the dinette and settee can serve as good sea berths. All berths, incidentally, are fitted with lee cloths—something you don’t find as standard on most American boats, even boats sold as serious cruisers.

Ventilation is provided by an aluminum-framed hatch over the middle of the cabin, plus two small water-trap cowl vents at the aft end of the main cabin. For use in the tropics, you really need to add more cowl vents, at the very least.

Minor changes were made in the galley over the years, but they were not earth-shaking. The earliest boats have good locker space, but no cutlery drawer. This was added under the counter on later boats. It would be a simple retrofit.

Nice molded teak counter fiddles on early boats were replaced by functional but tacky aluminum fiddles on later boats. Galley counters are covered with plastic laminate, and some of it is hideous: Godawful speckly-tweedy stuff, sort of in keeping with the interior decor we’ve experienced in unnamed cheap bed and breakfast joints in the UK.

There’s good storage space in the galley, with lockers outboard, a big pantry locker under one counter, a pot locker under the stove well, and another locker under the sink. The sink itself is quite small.

The icebox is outboard of the sink, next to the stove. It’s a good-sixed box—five cubic feet—and insulation is adequate for northern climates. In the tropics, we don’t think it would make the grade.

A gimbaled two-burner Flavel propane stove with oven and broiler is standard equipment. It is painted steel—as are most European galley stoves—and will be a ripe candidate for replacement on older boats. The stove well is narrow, so it may take some searching to find a stove that fits. Force 10 makes a stove that is narrow enough to fit most European stove wells, but you’ll probably have to special-order it, as most American boats take a wider model.

The propane supply is a paltry 10 pounds, so you may well end up looking for ways to expand that. A Marine Energy Systems two-tank molded gas locker should fit in the starboard cockpit locker if you don’t mind giving up some storage space.

All in all, the galley is very good for a 35′ cruising boat; exceptional when you compare it to most American boats of the early 1970s.

Although all boats have a nav station at the port after quarter, the layout varies tremendously.

There are two basic configurations: an aft-facing nav station, which uses the dinette for a seat; and a forward-facing station, using the quarterberth head as a seat.

With the aft-facing station, there is no quarterberth; you get an extra cockpit locker. You also get a real curiosity: a belowdecks watch seat next to the companionway, elevated high enough so you can see out both the companionway and the cabin trunk windows.

This is a real seagoing feature, but will be wasted space on boats that are only used for coastal cruising. Offshore, with the boat running under autopilot or steering vane, the watch seat allows you to sit below, out of the weather, while still keeping a reasonable watch unless you’re in crowded shipping lanes.

On some boats, the watch seat was deleted, and replaced with a big hanging locker. This would be a feasible and desirable modification on boats not used for serious cruising.

Both nav station layouts have a big chart table, good bulkhead space for mounting electronics, and space for navigation books and tools. It’s a tough call as to which arrangement is better.

The quarterberth would make an excellent sea berth. We’d rather sleep in a quarterberth than a pilot berth, particularly in a warm climate. At the same time, a wave down the companionway can douse you in big-time fashion in the quarterberth. We’d take our chances, opting for the quarterberth and forward-facing nav station.

Headroom is over 6′ throughout. The long windows of the main cabin make for a well-lighted interior.

A molded fiberglass water tank holding about 70 gallons fits under the sole in the main cabin, smack on top of the boat’s longitudinal center of flotation, where it belongs. This is marginal water capacity for long-distance cruising—we’d like to see at least 100 gallons, even for a couple—but it would be simple enough to install auxiliary tanks under both the dinette and settee. A second tank is a good idea on any boat, in case of a leaky tank or a contaminated water supply.

On early boats, the tank is filled from inside the boat—no deck fill. This avoids any chance of salt water contamination from a leaking filler cap, but it complicates tanking up: you have to drag hoses or jerry cans belowdecks.

The tank vents properly, inside the boat rather than outside. Most American boats have water tank vents on deck, many of them in the side of the hull. To put it bluntly, this is really dumb. If a boat spends a lot of time on one tack with the vent submerged, salt water will siphon back into the tank. Heavy water on deck can even get into vents mounted on the side of the cabin.

With the exception of the aluminum galley fiddles, most of the interior changes over the years are a distinct improvement. Storage is excellent for long-term cruising.

Conclusions

This is a real-live, serious ocean cruiser. It’s not pointy at both ends, doesn’t have a full-length keel, isn’t shippy looking, and doesn’t have oodles of nicely-fitted exterior teak to drive you wild with pleasure at the boat show, delirious from endless maintenance when you have to live with it.

The cockpit is uncomfortable, but can be improved with seat cushions and back cushions. It’s a shame the cockpit seats aren’t long enough to lie down on.

The interior is roomy and comfortable for cruising, lacking only a permanent double berth—a shortcoming that can be remedied, albeit with some work. The interior lacks the space and privacy of current 35-footers best suited for marina living or coastal cruising, but is functional for offshore sailing, particularly for a couple.

We wouldn’t hesitate to sail this boat anywhere, with virtually no changes. It demonstrates commonsense design and high-grade construction, even though it’s not fancy, and there’s not a gimmick to be found: no microwave, no stall shower, no recessed lights, none of the things that some people think they need for comfortable cruising.

The hard part, of course, is finding one. English boating magazines have a lot of Nicholson 35s for sale, but there are not too many on this side of the pond. Actually, that might be an advantage.

Buying a boat overseas is relatively painless, and you save yourself the trouble of sailing across the ocean before you can cruise Europe. Buy a boat in England, cruise there for a couple of summers, laying the boat up over the winters. Then, when you retire or get that long-awaited sabbatical, you can do some “real” cruising. You could do a lot worse.

RELATED ARTICLES MORE FROM AUTHOR

Well kind of found this after the event !! Just bought a Nic 35 – I’m not a sailor ( bit of Dinghy sailing in my teens ) but have a friend who is so it will be a fast learning curve . Did some research before buying but hadn’t come across this before today , has just strengthened my reason for going for a Nic 35 instead of my other options . Looking for any other information and advice ( Is there an owners group ? ) I’m based in France and the boat will be on the Med for the foreseeable future .

Congratulations on your new ownership – great choice of boat! There is an active and informative Nic 35 owners association on Facebook.

Hi Raymond,

I keep the register for the Nic 35s and have owned Argonaut of Rhu for 20 plus years. Which Nic did you buy and where are you located? There is an active group of us who used to be on yahoo but now we are on groups.io. If you send me your email address I can give you more info. I do not use facebook or any other social media. [email protected] is my email address.

The dining table is on the port side of our Nic 35 (Hull 78), launched ’73.

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Yachting Monthly

• Digital edition

USED BOAT: Nicholson 35

• Chris Beeson
• February 24, 2017

Designed in the late 1960s by Peter Nicholson, the Nicholson 35 quickly earned a reputation as a steadfast ocean cruising yacht. Duncan Kent reports

Product Overview

Manufacturer:.

Nicholson 35 review

See the Summer 2016 issue of Yachting Monthly for the full test

What’s she like to sail?

Like all long fin-keeled heavy displacement cruisers the Nicholson 35 is designed to take almost any adverse weather and sea conditions in her stride. Her overhanging, deep-vee bow section means she parts the waves resolutely, with little drama or spray, exuding only a gentle rocking motion as she goes. The very conservative sail plan of the early models versus her generous ballast ratio means she’s a very stiff yacht that only really starts to heel in a Force 5 and can keep full sail up until well over 20 knots of wind is blowing over her decks.

Her big genoa can make headsail sheeting hard work, but this is mitigated her leisurely tacking speed compared to a shorter fin keeled yacht. She makes good passage time due to her steadfast ability to drive through the rough stuff, and being so stable and sea kindly means you can live, sleep and cook aboard safely and comfortably, relaxing in the knowledge that these robust and resilient vessels have covered millions of sea miles in their lifetime.

What’s she like in port and at anchor?

Like all yachts of this era her accommodation is fairly rudimentary. Though 35ft overall, her interior is ideally suited to a couple, with occasional guests. The forecabin isn’t massive – I’m 6ft tall and in ours we used to sleep heads forward so my feet could hang over the end of the bunk through the door! The saloon is much roomier, but means you have to make up the beds every night, which is tedious long term. Later models offered a quarterberth, which, though useful on passage, nearly always gets used for stowage and you lose a deep cockpit locker.

Closing both forecabin and saloon sliding doors gives a good sized, ventilated heads compartment, which is easily fitted with a shower. Her galley is a good size too, so cooking for friends and crew presents few problems and her deep cool box is often converted to provide separate fridge and freezer compartments.

She has a roomy cockpit for living and eating al fresco, but her slightly retroussé transom can make access to the water for swimming a little awkward.

Would she suit you and your crew?

She comes with an excellent pedigree and is fondly loved by those for whom safety and comfort at sea is more important than speed and agility. That’s not to say she can’t make impressive passage times. Given enough wind she’ll still be battling to windward in sea conditions that would make many a more modern cruising yacht owner run for the nearest cover.

The original deck gear was made from top quality materials and substantially engineered, thereby making it all simple to maintain regularly. Obviously, it depends on how they’ve been worked over the years, but it’s not unusual to find them still going strong with 40 year-old winches, tracks and cars. Probably the only aspect of the boat that could put off a potential buyer is the original reverse-mount engine with its hydraulic drive system. It’s getting more difficult to gets spares for and the location of the prop, on the back of the keel, makes her very difficult to manoeuvre at close quarters, particularly when going astern.

FACTS AND FIGURES

Guide price £30-40,000

LOA 10.76m (35ft 3in)

LWL 8.15m (26ft 9in)

Beam 3.20m (10ft 5in)

Draught 1.70m (5ft 6in)

Displacement 8,013kg (17,628 lb)

Ballast 3,318kg (7,300 lb)

Ballast ratio 41.4%

D/LWL ratio 411

Sail area 65/70m2 (698/757ft2)

SA/D ratio 16.48

Diesel 160 lit (35 gal)

Water 275 lit (60 gal)

Engine 47hp Perkins 4108

Transmission Z-drive hydraulic

Designer Peter Nicholson

Builder Camper & Nicholson

The Nicholson 35 was designed in-house by Camper & Nicholsons in 1970/71, and remained in production from 1971 to 1990, with various minor model changes from Mk I to Mk VII. Whilst the hull mouldings of some boats were contracted out, always to quality moulders, all Nicholsons 35s were finished by Camper & Nicholson themselves, to a very high standard.

About 230 were built over their long production run, and they have a superb reputation as a safe, fast passage-maker. it is is thus very rare now to find one that has not had the wear and tear of multiple extended ocean passages, or hard racing early in her life. various sources quote slightly different ballast and displacement figures for these boats: the figures here being taken from a nicholson-supplied manual for a mk vi boat, shown in most of the photos here. the later boats had a more conventional shaft drive to a p-bracket instead of the hydraulic drive to a prop mounted in the aft end of keel that was fitted to early boats, as shown in the small plan at left. later boats also have a slightly different internal layout with a quarter berth aft of the chart table. the last boats built had a taller rig, a feature probably introduced for the american market, where a significant number of nicholson 35s were sold by a dealer in annapolis..

Above: early boats had an aft-facing chart table with a small hanging space and seat squab aft of it, later boats had a forward facing chart table with a quarterberth aft - at the expense of a much smaller port cockpit locker - see lower photo.

Engine installations vary, the yacht in some of the photos here having a 29 hp Ford-based Watermota diesel driving a conventional sternshaft via a Z-drive gearbox, instead of the bigger 50 hp Perkins engine with hydraulic drive that was fitted to most early Nicholson 35s. This change in the later models was a definite improvement, as 29 hp is entirely adequate power, and the older boats engine compartments were very cramped with the bigger engine, and access was more awkward for the hydraulics to drive the keel-mounted prop. The photo below shows a Perkins engine with hydraulic drive.

The photos below show a much-travelled Nicholson 35 fitted out for extended cruising, with a fixed GRP doghouse instead of a canvas sprayhood.

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• Sailboat Guide

Nicholson 35-1

Nicholson 35-1 is a 35 ′ 2 ″ / 10.7 m monohull sailboat designed by Raymond Wall and built by Camper & Nicholson between 1971 and 1985.

Rig and Sails

Auxilary power, accomodations, calculations.

The theoretical maximum speed that a displacement hull can move efficiently through the water is determined by it's waterline length and displacement. It may be unable to reach this speed if the boat is underpowered or heavily loaded, though it may exceed this speed given enough power. Read more.

Classic hull speed formula:

Hull Speed = 1.34 x √LWL

Max Speed/Length ratio = 8.26 ÷ Displacement/Length ratio .311 Hull Speed = Max Speed/Length ratio x √LWL

Sail Area / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the power of the sails relative to the weight of the boat. The higher the number, the higher the performance, but the harder the boat will be to handle. This ratio is a "non-dimensional" value that facilitates comparisons between boats of different types and sizes. Read more.

SA/D = SA ÷ (D ÷ 64) 2/3

• SA : Sail area in square feet, derived by adding the mainsail area to 100% of the foretriangle area (the lateral area above the deck between the mast and the forestay).
• D : Displacement in pounds.

Ballast / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the stability of a boat's hull that suggests how well a monohull will stand up to its sails. The ballast displacement ratio indicates how much of the weight of a boat is placed for maximum stability against capsizing and is an indicator of stiffness and resistance to capsize.

Ballast / Displacement * 100

Displacement / Length Ratio

A measure of the weight of the boat relative to it's length at the waterline. The higher a boat’s D/L ratio, the more easily it will carry a load and the more comfortable its motion will be. The lower a boat's ratio is, the less power it takes to drive the boat to its nominal hull speed or beyond. Read more.

D/L = (D ÷ 2240) ÷ (0.01 x LWL)³

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds.
• LWL: Waterline length in feet

Comfort Ratio

This ratio assess how quickly and abruptly a boat’s hull reacts to waves in a significant seaway, these being the elements of a boat’s motion most likely to cause seasickness. Read more.

Comfort ratio = D ÷ (.65 x (.7 LWL + .3 LOA) x Beam 1.33 )

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds
• LOA: Length overall in feet
• Beam: Width of boat at the widest point in feet

Capsize Screening Formula

This formula attempts to indicate whether a given boat might be too wide and light to readily right itself after being overturned in extreme conditions. Read more.

CSV = Beam ÷ ³√(D / 64)

Alternate engine: Watermota Sea Panther diesel. Taller rig after 1977.

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Nicholson 35

• By Jeremy McGeary
• Updated: April 26, 2011

Nicholson 35 drawings

It seems I’ve gone full circle here, but family is family. In my years at C&N, I saw a few Nicholson 35s being built, and I even got to sail on one or two. I also admire the work of Ray Wall, who designed this boat and several other classic Nicholsons, including the Nicholson 55, which was one of the best designs of its era, if not all time. You can see the lineage in the 35’s hull and feel it in its comfortable motion.

It packs all the components of basic yacht layout—forecabin, saloon, head, galley, chart table (yes—very important), and quarter berth—into 35 feet with enough room left over for a decent-sized cockpit that has wonderfully deep coamings that’ll help shield the crew from cold breezes.

The accommodations plan features a U-shaped galley, quarter berth (on later models), straight settee on the opposite side (two proper sea berths), and cozy dining area. The head occupies the whole width of the boat between the saloon and forward cabin, which gives it lots of elbow room and isn’t a logistical obstacle with just a couple on board.

Early boats had a fairly miserly sail plan to suit the sailing conditions in the English Channel and neighboring waters. An “American” version had a slightly taller rig for the lighter winds of the U.S. East Coast, and this rig was later adopted for all boats.

In some areas, the early boats, although sound, appear a little cheap, but C&N gradually steered back toward the “quality” end of the market, where it could leverage its 200-year history of building for the aristocracy. I could be very comfortable aboard a later Nic 35.

Nicholson 35 Price Range $46,000 (1976) to $77000 (1973) More Info:

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Nicholson 35 2

The nicholson 35 2 is a 35.25ft masthead sloop designed by camper & nicholson and built in fiberglass by camper & nicholson since 1974..

The Nicholson 35 2 is a heavy sailboat which is slightly under powered. It is very stable / stiff and has an excellent righting capability if capsized. It is best suited as a bluewater cruising boat.

Nicholson 35 2 for sale elsewhere on the web:

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Nicholson Yachts 35 for sale in Lefkas Greece

Lefkas Greece

Make & Model

Nicholson Yachts 35

Not Applicable

MEASUREMENTS

Description.

Nicholson 35 built 1979. An incredibly well equipped and maintained example of these respected cruising yachts from the C&N stable. Powered by 34hp Watermota diesel engine, hull treated 2016/17, standing rigging 2017, batteries 2021, solar charging, holding tank. Set up for long term cruising. In the current British ownership for 18 years. £25,995

Yacht to be launched end May 2022 and will be cruising accessible for viewings.

Construction

Built by C&N in Gosport, UK to Peter Nicholson design 1979 GRP hull deck & structure GRP/Tek-Dek decks Encapsulated lead keel ¾ long fin keel Skeg hung rudder Wheel steering

Hull professionally treated for osmosis in November 2016 – April 2017 (in Cleopatra Marina, Preveza). Treatment included sand-blasting to strip off the gelcoat, multiple washing of the exposed fiberglass to remove all evidence of acid and salts, drying, applying an epoxy barrier, filling and fairing, applying an epoxy outer layer, applying primer coats, and finally applying two coats of antifouling. Anti-fouling renewed every year before launching.

LOA: 35’3 (10.79m) LWL: 26’9 (8.15m) Beam: 10’5 (3.20m) Draft: 5’6 (1.68m) Displacement: 8,013 kg (17,628 lb) Ballast: 3,318 kg (7,300 lb)

Watermota Sea Panther 4-cylindar 34hp diesel based on Ford 1600cc engine is coupled to a Hurth Vee drive gearbox. Current engine is, (according the previous owners), a reconditioned one which they had installed in 2001 and which had about 500 hours on it when purchased in 2006.

Since then engine has been used for a further 2,605 hours during the current ownership. Professionally serviced at the end of every season, (it has never once not started nor has it ever stopped in current ownership).

Easily manages 6kts through the water at 1,800-1,900 rpm. Propeller shaft mates to a flexible coupling at the gearbox and drives a 2-blade prop. Current Volvo shaft seal was installed in July 2016, when the cutlass bearing and Vetus rubber couplings were also replaced.

4 x 12V 100 AH lead acid batteries (all new in 2021). Electrical system is currently being upgraded (April 2022) to 3 x 12V 100 AH lead acid batteries for domestic use and 1 x 12V 100 AH lead acid battery for the main engine starter, with a new master switch.

Shore power is currently being upgraded with a marine-grade external shore power socket fitted in the cockpit, with power going through a RCD.

Flexible (Photonic Universe semi flex) 150 watt solar panel was fitted to the top of the bimini in 2018. That, together with charging from the main engine when motoring (normally about an hour per day), provides sufficient power for all extended cruising needs, including running the fridge 24/7.

Whisper Power WP-BC Battery charger 12-40 amp (2017) Charging by - Main engine alternator & solar panel at sea, Shore power when alongside

Fuel:      Single 190ltr (42 gal) GRP tank Water:    Single 300 ltr (66 gal) GRP tank Holding: Single 25 ltr plastic tank (fitted 2018)

Rig And Sails

Standard sloop rig for a Mk V (I 43’ 3”). Standing rigging was replaced in October 2017, using Python Wires made in Germany; it had been previously replaced in 2009. Furlex 200S headsail system (fitted new in October 2015), and a single backstay with tensioner. Spinnaker pole stows on deck on the port side, there is a track for it on the front of the mast. Removable inner forestay was added in 2009, allowing the setting of hanked-on sails (normally the original No. 2 Jib) for better pointing upwind in stronger winds. Top of the mast is a LED anchor light, fitted in 2017. Stub bowsprit (40 cm) was added by the previous owners allowing the asymmetrical spinnaker to be flown and gybed more easily.

Asymmetrical cruising spinnaker (age unknown), fitted to Hyde spinnaker sock Symmetrical cruising spinnaker (age unknown) 145% Hyde furling genoa (2013) 150% spare Genoa (age unknown) 1 hank on No. 2 jib for inner forestay (original) 1 hank on storm jib (original) 1 fully battened main (2001) 1 spare fully battened main (original)

Self-tailing Lewmar 44 winches handle the jib sheets and self-tailing Lewmar 30 winches are set up for the symmetrical (or asymmetrical) spinnaker.

2 x Lewmar 44’s 2 x Lewmar 30’s 3 x Lewmar (on mast) 2 x 8 and 1 x 7 2 x Lewmar 6’s reefing on boom

Accommodation

Fore cabin Convertible to bunk with cushions. Chain/rope stowage forward of the cabin section, stowage available beneath forward, port starboard sections.

Heads Larger than would be expected head runs athwartship with sliding doors fore and aft for privacy. Full-sized porcelain sink with shower hose to the centre beneath mirror fronted vanity. shower tray drains shower water straight out amidships, above the waterline, when the drain pump is activated. To port is the Lavac head, backed by a cabinet for stowage of foul weather gear. Head is plumbed to pump waste (via a Whale/Henderson Mk 5 manual pump) directly into a 25L holding tank (fitted in April 2018), in the cabinet behind the head. Wastewater can then go, via a valve switch, either directly to sea or be kept in the holding tank, from where it can be either emptied directly overboard when off-shore or be pumped out via the on-deck pump-out access.

Saloon Brown port and starboard seating surrounds the folding table amidships. Ample stowage abides in the cabinets and below under the seating. Access to the 80-gallon freshwater tank is via the large port under the teak sole. The port is large enough to allow thorough cleaning of the tank seasonally. 4 reading lamps in the main salon. Lee cloths are provided for all berths in both the main salon and the fore cabin.

Ventilation below deck is handled by the standard saloon and forward hatches (with a wind scoop hoisted when necessary), plus two dorade vents in the saloon, and a tannoy vent in the head.

Nav station Navigator faces forward while sitting on the quarter berth. Large chart table provides storage for charts beneath the lid. (re-varnished spring 2020) snug quarter berth provides for a welcome nap off-shore.

Galley Plastimo 2500 LPG cooker (new in 2006) is gimbaled and has fiddle rails as does the counter. 2 hobs, Oven & grill Deep ice box is fitted with 12-volt refrigeration. Refrigerator motor and condenser are mounted in the starboard sail locker. Penguin Frigo unit (fitted in August 2015) is set up for air cooling and seawater keel cooling. Sink S/S, pressurized hot and cold water draws from the freshwater tank. Water Heater Note the foot pump to the sink doesn’t work Various/assorted pots, pans, crockery/cutlery etc

Spade S100 (20kg) anchor with 60m of 10mm chain is managed by a 12V Lofrans 1000W Cayman 88 windlass with capstan. Chain feeds through the deck to stowage at the bow. Kedge anchor, stowed on the pushpit, is a Fortress Anchor 3.2Kg FX11, with 3m of 8mm chain connected to a 50m reel & webbing anchor line.

Original canopy was replaced in 2011 with dark blue Sunbrella, when the bimini over the wheel was also installed. Current dodgers are new from 2017. Current plastic windows in the canopy will be replaced before the start of the 2022 sailing season.

Deck-mounted fuel and freshwater accesses are with double filler caps to ensure against contamination. The deck-mounted wastewater access is a single cap.

Three lockers (two deep, one shallow for lines) with teak seats provide storage and a teak grate provides dry footing.

Helm station has a canted cork non-skid surface (being renewed before the start of the 2022 sailing season.

Removable teak cockpit table (fits into bracket in the cockpit when required, stowed below when not in use)

The original B&G instruments have been replaced with Raymarine instruments (i50 speed/log in 2015, i60 wind speed/angle in 2017, i50 depth in 2018). Original Necco autopilot (regularly serviced) eases the helmsman’s burden. The radar is mounted on a pole on the stern starboard quarter, the display is at the chart table below. (owners comment: I’m not sure how well it currently works, I haven’t used it for a couple of years).

At the Navigator’s station: GoldStar GS924 radar display (fitted by previous owners) Standard Horizon CP180i chart plotter (with Navionics West and East Med cards, fitted in July 2010) Standard Horizon VHF DSC radio (fitted in July 2010) AM/FM CD player GlobalFix V4 406MHz GPS EPIRB (bought in April 2018).

Neptune 2.4m dinghy (new in August 2019) Suzuki 2.5hp 4-stroke outboard (new in August 2019)

Plastimo 6-person ORC liferaft in a cannister (new in January 2009, regularly serviced, currently valid to March 2023) EPIRB (406 mhz) Radar reflector 2 Fire Extinguishers Fire Blanket Manual bilge pump Electric bilge pump Emergency tiller Gas alarm Grab bag Flares 3 x PARACHUTE, 3 x Handheld, 1 x Smoke (all new in August 2021)

The condition or level of safety equipment on board is not to be negotiated on following survey. It is likely to be listed by most surveyors but is not structural or an integral working part of the vessel and is not to be used to further negotiate the price down after survey. We strongly suggest that for your own personal safety that when purchasing a yacht you provide new safety equipment rather than relying on second hand gear.

Should you become the new owner of this yacht then the responsibility to re-register or update official bodies for items such as EPIRB, VHF, MMSI or AIS becomes yours.

Owners Comments

1979 Camper & Nicholson 35, Mark V. Hull No. 178 out of a run of 228. She was built to a Lloyds 101A certificate making her one of a select few among these sought after and ruggedly built world cruisers.

My wife and I have owned her for nearly 16 years (since July 2006); we bought her in Lisbon, Portugal for €60,000 and kept her there (Belem Marina) for the next 4 years. The previous owners had owned her for 18 years, home-porting her in Lisbon. In 2010, we moved the boat to Spain (Sant Carles Marina in Sant Carles de la Ràpita) and then in 2012 to Italy (Marina Lepanto in Monfalcone). In 2016, we started more extensive cruising, first along the Croatian coast and then, over 4 years, around the Greek mainland and islands. Each winter in Greece the boat has been stored ashore for 6-7 months.

The boat has been professional maintained every year in a boatyard throughout our ownership at least, with many upgrades as well. She has not been involved in any accidents during our 16-year ownership, and I am not aware of any accidents during the previous 18-year ownership.

Insurance survey 2021.

Title Documents And Tax

Listed below are the documents/or copies of what we have seen on listing this yacht.

Copy British SSR Certificate Copy of Bill of Sale to current owners (2006) Evidence of yacht in EU (Portugal) 1989 RCD Exempt on Age built 1979

Prior to 2006 she was on the Portuguese Flag for 18 years

Disclaimer And Travelling To Inspect

The Company offers the details of this vessel in good faith. Whilst every care has been taken in their preparation, the correctness of these particulars is not guaranteed. The particulars are intended only as a guide and they do not constitute a term of any contract. A prospective buyer is strongly advised to check the particulars and where appropriate at his own expense to employ a qualified Marine Surveyor to carry out a survey and/or to have an engine trial conducted which if conducted by us shall not imply any liability for such engine on our part. This vessel is offered subject to prior sale, price change, or withdrawal without notice.

By contacting Williams & Smithells Ltd from this yacht portal or our website direct you are agreeing to provide us with your contact details relating to your interest in purchasing a yacht. We will use these details to contact you offering suitable yachts in the future. If you no longer wish to be sent yacht details or promotional information please send an email stating you wish to opt-out and be removed.

Please contact Williams and Smithells to book an appointment to inspect any yacht before you book flights or pay for travel. This is to ensure you have a confirmed booking in our diary with the right amount of time allocated to inspect the yachts you want. Our yachts are not all in one marina, yard or harbour and in season do change locations. To avoid disappointment, call or email before you make travel plans.

Engine Count

Engine Horse Power

Engine Location

Propeller Type

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Peter Nicholson

Hull Material

Drive Transmission Description

1.68 meters

Engine Type

No of Heads

ABOUT NICHOLSON YACHTS 35

The Nicholson Yachts 35 is a 35 feet long that boasts a 10 feet beam. and a draft of 1.71 meters.This 1979 diesel Nicholson Yachts 35 is powered by a WATERMOTA SEA PANTHER, with 34.0 horsepower. The Nicholson Yachts 35 is made of fiberglass.

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