fisher 37 sailboat review

• Yachting Monthly
• Digital edition

• August 6, 2009

A truly substantial cruising boat with a reasonable sail area, particularly in the revised models built after 1986 when she had genuine performance. Chronologically the third Fisher launched, she appeared in 1977 and model numbers have now reached 145. She underwent a number of revisions, mainly owner inspired, which have been interpreted as different marques butarenot recognised as such by Northshore. The standard layout introduced with the bigger rig has the owner’s suite. with heads, up forward with a large double cabin aft The galley is huge and the saloon spacious with the option of a pilot berth. The rig was extended by giving her a bowsprit, raising the mast height and giving her a staysail.

LOA 37ft (11.3m) LWL 32ft 6in (9.9m) beam 12ft (3.6m) draught 5ft 3in (1.60m) displacement 31,1171b (14,112kg) Price guide: late 1970s models from £65,000, late 1980s models from £87,000, late 1990s models from £190,000.

FISHER 37 MS Detailed Review

If you are a boat enthusiast looking to get more information on specs, built, make, etc. of different boats, then here is a complete review of FISHER 37 MS. Built by Northshore Yachts (UK) and designed by Wyatt and Freeman, the boat was first built in 1973. It has a hull type of Long Keel and LOA is 11.33. Its sail area/displacement ratio 12.76. Its auxiliary power tank, manufactured by Yanmar/Perkins, runs on Diesel.

FISHER 37 MS has retained its value as a result of superior building, a solid reputation, and a devoted owner base. Read on to find out more about FISHER 37 MS and decide if it is a fit for your boating needs.

Boat Information

Boat specifications, sail boat calculation, auxillary power tank, contributions, who designed the fisher 37 ms.

FISHER 37 MS was designed by Wyatt and Freeman.

Who builds FISHER 37 MS?

FISHER 37 MS is built by Northshore Yachts (UK).

When was FISHER 37 MS first built?

FISHER 37 MS was first built in 1973.

How long is FISHER 37 MS?

FISHER 37 MS is 9.91 m in length.

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• Sailboat Guide

Fisher 37 MS

Fisher 37 MS is a 37 ′ 2 ″ / 11.3 m monohull sailboat designed by Wyatt and Freeman and built by Fisher Yachts International, Fisher Motor Sailers, and Northshore Yachts starting in 1973.

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)

Sloop, ketch, or staysail ketch.

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Fisher 37 ms

The fisher 37 ms is a 37.16ft masthead ketch designed by wyatt and freeman and built in fiberglass by northshore yachts (uk) since 1973., 140 units have been built..

The Fisher 37 ms is a very heavy sailboat which is under powered. It is stable / stiff and has an excellent righting capability if capsized. It is best suited as a heavy bluewater cruising boat. The fuel capacity is good. There is a good water supply range.

Fisher 37 ms for sale elsewhere on the web:

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• Yachting Monthly's Scuttlebutt

Anyone Sailed A Fisher 34/37.

• Thread starter dewent
• Start date 16 Sep 2012
• 16 Sep 2012

Interesting to hear if anyone has sailed a Fisher 34 or 37. Cruising around the Irish Sea 6 to 8 months of the year, and trips up the west coast of Scotland is our normal trip. We like the idea of being able to keep warm and dry in bad weather. Only ever sailed fin keel boats so interested to know: A) do they sail ok or would most time be spent motoring? B) how comfortable are they in a blow and at anchor?  

I have experience only of the smaller editions, but believe they are all pretty similar. These boats are impressively solid and don't move when you walk round the decks. They sail well on a reach, in a stately manner, and can be quite difficult to overtake. Not much fun on a dead run, as you can only get two of the three sails to work properly. When it comes to going to windward (and that's most of the time when you're cruising!) you reach for the starter button and smash your way through the chop. So you need a good engine and to maintain it well (and that applies to the screen wiper too). Fortunately the diesel tankage is usually generous.... For your proposed cruising area they are excellent. Enjoy and to hell with the expense!  

Well-known member

Rumour or reputation had it that the sloop version of the F34 was easily the best of the bunch, for sailing to windward... ...no quarter-tonner, but quite a nice tall rig. At the boatshow, it struck me as regrettable that the old-school motorsailer deck & wheelhouse form is gone. The upwind efficiency of sleek 'deck-saloon' yachts gladdens purists in fine weather, but how much more often does a wheelhouse suit chilly UK waters?!  

EuanMcKenzie

re fisher 37 met a guy in the Crinan Canal at Ardrishaig who way heading south on his round Britain. He was from the east coast somewhere and had gone anti clockwise including Orkney. He admitted they motored to windward but otherwise sailed when off the wind and it was windy enough which was most of the east coast. What impressed was that he and his other half handled it between them including the canal. Met them again in Tarbert. They had motored down into a short chop with a typical Loch Fyne F5-6 and hadn't felt a thing. would seem the ideal beast for relaxed cruising up west if you're really honest rather than optimistic about our northern weather paterns. Only issue is the price!  

Motor Saiors The Fisher would be my second favourite, first would be the Nauticat 32 motor sailor, big boat for your money, not to be confused with the 33. Stearman65  

• 17 Sep 2012

Nver sailed one, but use to have a 9ton hillyard amny years ago, tacking angle of 100 degrees at least but the long water line meant she averaged reasoanable passage times with a breeze, wouldn't surf though. More recently bought a second hand light weight sail for my conway and was marked as being for a fisher 37. If I had a fisher 37 I would have kept this big light weight sail, formy conway it means I am sailing satisfactorily in 10 knts. Lovey looking boat and seems so well made sesible for our waters but would want to sail one first. Good luck with it and post some pics when you get one.  

there is a review of heavy motor sailers, particularly Fishers, in PBO this month.  

I've journeyed on a 30 and a 34 quite a bit. Solid as a rock. Will sail to windward reasonably well in smooth water but not really in a chop. Off the wind they will stamp along nicely. In a cross-sea they roll, can be qute wearing. Overall they are a nice boat but not my cuppa tea.  

• 26 Sep 2012

I have one Last spring bougt a Fisher 34, called her "Sea Otter" (ex Mitra III - you can see her at hers builder, the Northshore, WEB site) Not enough experienced, particularly so with this heavy boat, I was really impressed be her sailing ability so far. You can see a bit here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEpVe7AYSTU&feature=channel&list=UL When motored with no wind near the Portuguese coast she rolled heavily on not so heavy Atlantic swell - I was warned before and expected this, though.  

Fisher Old Dog That brought the memories flooding back, was one of the clips Cape St Vincent? Looked like a sloop? Originals were ketch's. comment about rolling when motoring, did you have the main up to steady you?  

Good post Olddog57. See you have the Mk III interior and the better sloop rig. Here is a F37 sailing video for the sceptics: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL9GVpuNMio&feature=related  

stearman65 said: Old Dog That brought the memories flooding back, was one of the clips Cape St Vincent? Looked like a sloop? Originals were ketch's. comment about rolling when motoring, did you have the main up to steady you? Click to expand...

Active member

Haven't sailed one, but I covet the one moored next to me, it's the deck house which appeals, warm, dry and panoramic views. Make the helmsman as comfy as a tractor driver, seems like a good idea to me.  

E39mad said: The F37 later versions are cutter ketches with approx 1000 sq ft of sail iirc. With a long waterline length they can reach 7 knots + quite easily (again with over 15 across the decks). The F34 has a narrower bow entry and sails very well in sloop form in particular. The later Mk 3 layouts from around 1995 had a bigger fwd cabin and aft head (same head module as the Vancouver 34 ). Also the sloop version allows for double doors to the pilot house. Click to expand...

olddog57 said: This on our way from Sines (Sinesh you should read) to Lisbon, last May. Cannot be sure now - I think the swell was about 1m high, and with main up to steady her I saw rolling (I think) up to 35-40 degrees sometimes (rarely), but all-in-all the motion was very unsteady. And, yes, this is mark III, sloop rigged (2003 year of construction). Here is the next day motoring, much calmer sea: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BCg9YeadCA&feature=channel&list=UL Click to expand...

Colvic Watson

jonic said: There is also a rare aft cabin version for the F37 . With the two cabins it seems to be a good layout. Her owner sailed her through the Med and said the sailing performance was really good. Solid as a rock and comfortable in a blow. Do you know how many were built to that layout? Click to expand...

E39mad said: Not sure how many aft cabin F37's were built but iirc none produced after the mid 1980's. Probably used the same hull numbers as the std F37. Don't quote me but I'd be surprised if there are any more than 20 in total. There are a number of differing internal layouts over the years even for the aft cockpit models. Click to expand...

jonic said: Thanks, I think it may be even less than that, which is odd because it looks to be a really good layout. Perhaps it was a bit ahead of it's time. Click to expand...

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FISHER 37 MOTOR SAILER

General specification & standard outfitting, construction, steering gear, bilge pumps, underwater fittings.

• DECK FITTINGS
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• INTERIOR JOINERY & COVERINGS JOINER
• ACCOMMODATION FORECABIN
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Fisher 34 boat test

Jeff Howlett goes for a sail on the sturdy and much-admired Fisher 34 motor-sailer, with photography by Ray Little

The Fisher seems to have been around for ever. In fact, the story of this classic motor-sailer began in 1969 when naval architects David Freeman and Gordon Wyatt set out to fill what they perceived as a gap in the market. Their aim was to design a motor-sailer with equal performance under either sail or motor.

The formula was the key to the Fisher’s early success. In the Sixties many yachts were described as motor-sailers but most had large engines and small rigs. They motored well enough but the sailing characteristics left a great deal to be desired.

The rest is history. Over 1,000 Fishers have been built and they can be seen all over the world, tucked up in harbour after a long passage or pottering along the coast.

With its traditional Colin Archer-inspired canoe stern, angular trawler style wheelhouse, and high, chunky, work-boat-derived bow the Fisher looks familiarly timeless, friendly and reassuring.

The 34 was launched in 1978 and was the fourth of the Fisher range, slotting in between the 30 and the 37, with the 25 on hand for those about to enter the market.

The lines of the Fisher haven’t changed.

However, in 1988 the Mk II raised the side decks giving more room below; and the 1989 Mk III sloop has a full-length galley, improved heads and roomier forecabin.

It was to sail the Mark III 34 that I had come to Northshore’s yard on Itchenor Reach in Chichester Harbour, West Sussex.

Pearl Fisher , a 34 sloop at the time just two years old, was owned by Melanie and Kerry Lloyd and had recently returned from a cruise of Brittany.

The first impression is one of strength. Bulwarks are sturdy and high, fittings seem over-sized and the lines muscular. It’s not superficial: the lay-up is very heavy and becomes increasingly so beneath the waterline to culminate in nearly 5 tons of encapsulated cast-iron ballast in the keel.

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The heavy-duty hand-laid-up hull is built in accordance with Northshore’s Nordseal system, which provides a resin-rich outer laminate designed to prevent any risk of wicking – the usual forerunner of osmosis.

The deck is bonded to the hull in accessible areas and bolted throughout the whole hull-to-deck joint. The bulkheads are laminated to the deck, resulting in a strong, integrated unit.

Stepping on board was easy, thanks to an upward-hinging section of the guardrail, and passage back aft was comfortable by way of the wide side decks. The cockpit is roomy, comfortable and enclosed by high surrounds. Storage is provided under the cockpit seats and a varnished teak tiller can be fitted to a sternpost for fresh-air helming. Two large bollards are sited aft.

Genoa sheets lead to two Lewmar 40 self-tailing winches on the cockpit coaming. There is a Spinlock rope clutch for the genoa furling line to port.

On Pearl Fisher, the mainsheet is attached to a stainless-steel horse on the pushpit. The standard arrangement is for the main to be controlled from a point on the coachroof. This not only frees up space in the cockpit but also results in a more efficient angle of pull for the mainsheet.

Going forward – after first negotiating the inevitable awkward pull up from a deep cockpit and a swing around the wheelhouse corner – is a satisfying experience. Deck design is without compromise to modern fashion: sturdy teak grabrails, deep bulwarks, high guardrails, Treadmaster non-slip in profusion – including on the wheelhouse roof – and hefty deck fittings.

Two midship cleats, two large mooring cleats and a bollard on the foredeck serve warps fed over chafing plates fitted to the teak rail cappings in way of fairleads.

Double opening doors – in the ketch these are replaced by a sliding door – lead into the wheelhouse, which serves as an internal helming position, navigation position and deck saloon. Pearl Fisher is trimmed throughout in maple, making a warm but exceptionally airy interior. Standard trim is teak, but Northshore is happy to accommodate owners’ preferences.

There are slide-opening windows each side, a central drop-down window and a wiper fitted on the port forward screen.

The engine is accessed through the wheelhouse sole, and lifting up the floorplates reveals deep bilges and full access to all the workings back to the shaft and sterngland. Pearl Fisher is fitted with a 60hp Perkins Sabre diesel, but the standard engine is the more powerful four-cylinder Yanmar 4JH3-TE 75hp.

Going below, there is a distinct feeling of space. And from wheelhouse to forepeak there is at least 6ft 3in (1.9m) headroom.

The saloon has a U-shaped settee to port with lockers behind. The table is mounted on a pole so that it can be raised clear or lowered to form a double berth.

Opposite the sitting area is a fore-and-aft galley, which has stainless-steel sink and drainer, hot and cold water, top-opening ice box, and gimballed two-burner cooker with grill and oven.

The forecabin, with a panelled door, has two full-length single berths that convert, with a drop-in infill, to a double. There is a hanging locker and storage locker aft of the berths on each side. Access to the deck is via a Perspex hatch.

The joinery throughout is excellent and the finish faultless. Although Pearl Fisher was at the end of two fairly hectic seasons, she looked new and will do, with good care, for many years. It is a shame the same cannot be said for so many production-line floating examples of built-in expendability that today crowd our marinas.

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It was August – doing a convincing impression of December. The hangover from a Caribbean hurricane made for a wet, chilly day, topped off with a southwesterly between 28 and 30 knots. All in all, perfect conditions for an offshore cruiser.

We slipped our lines and edged away from the jetty under power and out into the channel. I was expecting her considerable weight and long keel to make her something of a handful at close-quarter manoeuvring.

I was pleasantly surprised.

Of course, she is not as nimble as a fin-keeler but, provided you give her a little more room and time, the 34 is predictable and steady, with a reassuring momentum to her progress. Many owners fit bow thrusters for extra control, but provided you have basic boat-handling awareness and think ahead, I wouldn’t think that necessary.

Her powerful engine and large, three-bladed prop provide more than enough grunt to point the bow anywhere you want to. And she’ll cruise for day after day at 2,000 revs and an economical 61⁄2 knots, with a maximum of 7 knots. Her power and punching weight make light work of motoring into a head sea.

The Fisher 34 is offered as either a ketch or a sloop, the sail area in each case being the same. The ketch is a versatile rig with many tricks up its sleeve. For instance, sailing under jib and mizzen in heavy weather makes the going easy.

Once away from the trots of moored craft, in clear water and nose to wind, we set about hoisting the 270sqft (25.1m2) main and unfurling the 360sqft (33.5m2) genoa. We tore off down Chichester Harbour, past Bosham Channel and towards West Wittering. The Arun sails set beautifully and the 34 simply screamed along.

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It was at this point I became surprised. I really hadn’t expected, given her overall design concept, that the 34 would be particularly close-winded. However, as we hardened on the wind she could be pinched up to an impressive 40 degrees apparent to make a respectable 6.2 knots.

The leeway was, understandably, a little excessive on this point of sail and so I eased off to 50 degrees. Leeway dropped to an acceptable level and she picked up to 7 knots. She was responsive, light and balanced on the helm, tacking easily through 85 degrees or so. Coming off the wind, she reached happily at around 71⁄2 knots.

Designers Wyatt and Freeman may be best known for their Fisher range, but in the commercial market hundreds of boats of their design operate – often in weather conditions the average yachtsman wisely does his best to avoid – throughout the world. And you can see this in the Fisher: seaworthiness comes first.

This is a yacht for the individual. A long-keeled, high-bowed double-ender that will see you safely across oceans and through rough conditions and keep you dry while she’s at it.

The Fisher 34 is not cheap, but then quality never is. The comforting thing is that the money is spent where it matters, on uncompromisingly high-standard construction and the best quality hardware and furnishings.

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