Mariner 28 (mid 80s)

I'm thinking about buying one of these flybridge cruisers and was wondering if anybody knows anything about them, and perhaps make comment about their sea going characteristics and general handling.

I'm told that the smaller 26' rolls and pitches a bit too much but I have no info on the 28'.

A photo of a Mariner 28 can be found here ( http://boatpoint.ninemsn.com.au/Cont...00/M196224.jpg )

Cheers,
Nick

[Willallison]

The Mariner 760 / 780 don't roll so much because of a problem with the hull. The simple fact is that a 26 ft of this style (or probably the 28 that you're looking at) is simply too small to have a flying bridge.
A significant portion of the centres of gravity (both longitudinal and vertical) are as a result of movable on board weights (ie people) 2 or 3 people on the flying bridge and the VCG is raised to the point wher the boat becimes unstable.
I don't think the 28 was available without the flying bridge, but the 26 is quite common in the sedan. So long as you keep people from going upstairs - or at least limit the numbers and conditions under which they're up there, both boats should be ok.
Later on Mariner bought the moulds to a 28 footer from Savage. This was known as the 2800 and is more reminiscent of a Riviera etc. It has the reputation of having an excellent hull - as have all the Savage boats. It is of course rather more expensive (you'll pay around 80K for the 2800, 55K for the 28 and 35K for the 26) but if you can afford it, it's definitely worth the extra money