[Swamp fox]

I've been on a Marlow 72 for almost 6 years, its a great boat. Marlow has more speed than of any of their competitors. Fleming and the Grand Banks Aleutian boats are slow tugs. Being able to do 25+knots when the weather turns bad is a priceless bonus. Nobody plans on being caught in rough weather, so it is good to have the power if you need it.

I've seen the finish on an Ocean Alexander as well as others. In my opinion, Marlow does top notch work on their interior fit and finish. I think Marlow builds a better boat with each one they build. They listen to customers comments and act on them.

As far as the exterior goes, I'm on an 8 year old boat, and just now having the blue hull painted. The boat should have had the entire thing painted from the start, but that has to do with paint vs gelcote, not Fleming vs. Marlow vs other Asian boats.

One item I wish Marlows had is more weight in the bow. Marlow is proud of the kevlar/glass vacuum bagged hull to save weight, but a solid glass hull is nice. I believe the other boats carry significantly more weight. Not sure.

[lurch]

Dear CAPTJ and CHUCKB,

Chartering a boat is a possibility I didn't think of, thank you. My wife and I did speak about cruises: we were only on one cruise with the grandchildren to Alaska and we liked that.

We live in the middle of Long Island NY and kept our old boat at the East end on the North Fork, about an hour and a half drive from home. It is nice there: rural, wine making, farms and about three hours to Newport. We find we miss the folks in the marina. There were lots of times we went our for three days and relaxed, read, listened to music, visited neighbors, etc. When we sold our Meridian we found that we missed that aspect. Boaters are very nice people.

I work full time but can take lots of time off. So we were thinking we could take the boat to Florida for the winter and comute. Long Island Macarthur Airport is 20 minutes from out house and South West flies to many places in Florida.

I can't complain about choices like this.

Thank you.

[Capt J]

Originally Posted by lurch

Dear CAPTJ and CHUCKB,

Chartering a boat is a possibility I didn't think of, thank you. My wife and I did speak about cruises: we were only on one cruise with the grandchildren to Alaska and we liked that.

We live in the middle of Long Island NY and kept our old boat at the East end on the North Fork, about an hour and a half drive from home. It is nice there: rural, wine making, farms and about three hours to Newport. We find we miss the folks in the marina. There were lots of times we went our for three days and relaxed, read, listened to music, visited neighbors, etc. When we sold our Meridian we found that we missed that aspect. Boaters are very nice people.

I work full time but can take lots of time off. So we were thinking we could take the boat to Florida for the winter and comute. Long Island Macarthur Airport is 20 minutes from out house and South West flies to many places in Florida.

I can't complain about choices like this.

Thank you.

Chartering and owning are both great choices for different people. It depends on your personality and sounds like you enjoy the ownership experience more. Chartering might be a good way for you to determine what type of yacht suits you best. Chartering is a great aspect to try different area's and yachts. I have some owners that have a yacht here in the States, but charter a week in the Med and a week in the Carribbean in addition to it because they can charter a larger boat and in unique area's for less money than getting their yacht there.

[NYCAP123]

Lurch, it sounds like you live just west of me (20 minutes east of LIMA) and cruise in my stomping grounds. If you ever want some suggestions on where to go or local knowledge, feel free to get in touch. I cruise these waters about 200 days a year and have been to just about every nook, cranny, marina and waterfront restaurant from Jersey to Boston. I run from all over the Island, but my main gigs are out of the Southampton, Sag and Easthampton area. BTW, you should have seen the North Fork before the vineyards came. Now that was paradise.

[rudolph]

Originally Posted by Swamp fox

I've been on a Marlow 72 for almost 6 years, its a great boat. Marlow has more speed than of any of their competitors. Fleming and the Grand Banks Aleutian boats are slow tugs. Being able to do 25+knots when the weather turns bad is a priceless bonus. Nobody plans on being caught in rough weather, so it is good to have the power if you need it.

I've seen the finish on an Ocean Alexander as well as others. In my opinion, Marlow does top notch work on their interior fit and finish. I think Marlow builds a better boat with each one they build. They listen to customers comments and act on them.

As far as the exterior goes, I'm on an 8 year old boat, and just now having the blue hull painted. The boat should have had the entire thing painted from the start, but that has to do with paint vs gelcote, not Fleming vs. Marlow vs other Asian boats.

One item I wish Marlows had is more weight in the bow. Marlow is proud of the kevlar/glass vacuum bagged hull to save weight, but a solid glass hull is nice. I believe the other boats carry significantly more weight. Not sure.

I believe the Flemings and GB can cruise at between 17 to 20 Kts !

[PropBet]

Originally Posted by rudolph

I believe the Flemings and GB can cruise at between 17 to 20 Kts !

Agreed.
We can / have kicked the sticks forward and cruised at 22kts but fuel consumption is depressing. Realistic cruise on the GB 59 is about 12 or 13kts.
Maybe 14 when you get the tanks down and some weight off.

The Fleming is less. 10ish I think is their sweet spot. The Marlow I believe is more. 18ish IIRC is theirs. Fleming says they cruise at 15 or 18kts, but when you look at the fuel chart, you'll soon realize that it's a pipe dream. Consumption goes through the roof. The Marlow is a considerably lighter boat as well so that plays a large factor in it. However the two deal with head and beam seas much differently. Light v. Heavy boat dock talk.... err, never ending debate.

[Mdhagans]

Originally Posted by lurch

I'm brand new to the forum and very impressed with the information and knowlege available. I had a Meridian 58 and put it up for sale early this year and it sold. So, my wife and I are looking for a used 55 to 60 ft used boat. We kept our Meridian in Greenport, NY (the North Fork of Long Island) and liked both the North Fork and cruising around New England.

In looking at Yachtworld, we're attracted to the Marlow and Fleming. I'm told that the Marlow is a very wet boat and we frequently encounter rough weather. Can it be wetter than a Meridian? Otherwise it seems quite roomy and seaworthy.

The Fleming seems small (saw one at the Annapolis Boat Show) and I need a space to sprawl out (I'm 71 and 6'3", so when I'm tired I'd like a salon that I can relax in with a book, and leave room for my wife). The main stateroom is in the bow and I'm wondering if there is wave-slap noise in that stateroom.

Any information on these two boats and others is most welcome.

Thank you in advance.

Lurch,
I bought a 2009 61E MARLOW in Portland ME in December and have taken it myself, first to Ft Lauderdale and now to Bahamas, where it sits today. My observations jive with most on this thread, except in response to one comment that the fleming was superior in finish levels, I believe this late model MARLOW easily matches the craftsmanship of the Fleming, GB or others. It is fairly wet in head seas above 4 ft, but handles them so far to above 6 ft without complaint. Mine cruises easy at 16kts at 75% load, 52 gph. 19 it's at 82-3 %. Very quiet and lots of storage. It's quite a change from my previous Euro style boats, but I enjoy the 8-10 knot runs now at 10 gph or less. MARLOW MARINE guys, like those at Burr for the Flemings are very responsive. My decision factors were the full beam Master, lighter weight construction, speed and the more modern E stern and transom. With your height, you would like the headroom, salon, below and engine room. Mine is one of the very few bright white Marlow's, which I like....blue hulls require to much attention to look good.

BTW, My best friend went from his old Meridian to a 55 Fleming. ..... He's happy and so am I. Glad to help if you have further questions. Good Luck.

[lurch]

Originally Posted by Mdhagans

Lurch,
I bought a 2009 61E MARLOW in Portland ME in December and have taken it myself, first to Ft Lauderdale and now to Bahamas, where it sits today. My observations jive with most on this thread, except in response to one comment that the fleming was superior in finish levels, I believe this late model MARLOW easily matches the craftsmanship of the Fleming, GB or others. It is fairly wet in head seas above 4 ft, but handles them so far to above 6 ft without complaint. Mine cruises easy at 16kts at 75% load, 52 gph. 19 it's at 82-3 %. Very quiet and lots of storage. It's quite a change from my previous Euro style boats, but I enjoy the 8-10 knot runs now at 10 gph or less. MARLOW MARINE guys, like those at Burr for the Flemings are very responsive. My decision factors were the full beam Master, lighter weight construction, speed and the more modern E stern and transom. With your height, you would like the headroom, salon, below and engine room. Mine is one of the very few bright white Marlow's, which I like....blue hulls require to much attention to look good.

BTW, My best friend went from his old Meridian to a 55 Fleming. ..... He's happy and so am I. Glad to help if you have further questions. Good Luck.

Thanks MDHAGANS,

I saw that boat listed for sale at DiMillios and it is beautiful. I called Marlow in FL and my wife and I will make a trip to Sarasota. Thank you for your input. This web site is so full of excellent information.

[Deckie]

Hi Lurch,

just curious if you reached any conclusion in your search to choose and buy a new boat. Did you end up getting onboard a Flemming and a Marlow for comparison ? Your thoughts on each ?

Thanks

[lurch]

We purchased a 2008 Marlow 53C. We went on a Fleming 55 and it seemed very small for a 55'. The Marlow 53C is 61'10" over all length and is 18' wide. It is quite roomy. We liked the Grand Banks and looked at a used 58' Eastbay FB. It was very nice (rebuilt after a fire) but a bit tight and burned some fuel. A Grand Banks person told me to buy the Grand Banks and that if I bought a Marlow, I should be certain to have a good person do the survey whether it was new or used. I did use a good person (I think) and there was very little wrong. I hunted the web for a few hours and couldn't find anything major with Marlows. The Marlow owners I met were all very happy. When I was at their yard in Palmetto, I found that they recently sold three 100 footers. If there is a major problem with the boat, I can't find it.

The Marlow had a bit of water on the flybridge at 19 kts. with some chop and wind in the Gulf off Clearwater. My wife and I thought that would be OK as we usually ran our Meridian from the pilot house on long trips. Aside from this, we liked a lot: roomy, the construction, the hull design, decent fuel burn, grey water tank, all drain water exits from under the swim platform rather than on the side of the hull, quality, beauty of the interior, stand up (almost- I'm 6'3") engine room with air conditioning, great survey, 250 hours on engines. The boat didn't come with stabilizers and we will add them. We'll also go to Garmin electronics. Should be bringing it up from Sarasota to Long Island sometime in June.

So far, so good.

[Kafue]

Congratulations and safe and happy boating.

[Swamp fox]

If you need a delivery/instructional Captain, let me know. I might be available in June. My owners have decided to sell their 72' Marlow.

[lurch]

Thanks Swamp Fox and Kafue.

[PropBet]

Glad to hear everything out for you and the Wife Lurch.
Here's to many days of cruising and enjoying your new boat.
I've been on a few of the 53's and agree, they are a nice boat.
It will behave like a different boat once the fins are on.

[Deckie]

Hi Lurch,

Congratulations on the purchase, and thanks for sharing those details. Sounds like you found the right boat for you. I have walked over a couple of Marlow's, and was greatly impressed by some of the details, and the thought that has gone into making the boat as comfortable and practical for cruising use as they could. I like the Twin keels they have. Also thought the Marlow engine rooms were very well laid out, and it seems they also keep adding incremental improvements on each new one built. I hope to get out on a Fleming soon and will have my own comparison.

Thanks again.