[Anonymous]

Apologies for resurrecting this debate.

I’m the new owner of a Bavaria 30 (Freebird). I am aware of all the publicity about Bavaria’s use of brass rather than bronze for seacocks, and so on survey I asked the surveyor to check the condition of these carefully.

He reported that these were in fact bronze, not brass, and appeared to be original.

Freebird was built in 2007: did Bavaria change their materials at this time? The previous owner has no record of the cocks being changed…

Thanks to anyone who can assist here!

[Anonymous]

Just as an update – Freebird was actually built in 2006 (misleading info from Broker!) and I’m still not sure the surveyor was right about the fittings being bronze…

[Anonymous]

We have a B39 built in 2006 and the Seacocks/ Thro Hull fittings are definitely Brass. The 38mm Seacocks for the holding tanks became very stiff, so over the summer I replaced them with reinforced plastic assemblies made by Trudesign. This is a huge improvement- they are feather light to operate. I thoroughly investigated the condition of the old assemblies & despite some pinkness on the outer flanges the brass was still very solid, so from an integrity point of view they clearly didn’t need changing.

John

[Anonymous]

Thanks, John. I’m by no means an expert, but my through hull fittings on my previous pocket cruiser were definitely bronze, and these look shinier and lighter. I’d hoped I could trust the surveyor, who otherwise has done a decent job (I hope!) I am of course aware that Bavaria Yachts or their owners are not saying much about this part of the boat. It just makes me nervous, especially as I have read that the “life” of marine brass is around seven years! Ho hum…

[Anonymous]

Hi Freebird.
I suspect most Bavaria owners are staying silent on this matter because there is not really that much of an issue.
I have a year 2000 34 and this year changed the original toilet seacock as it was showing minor signs of turning pink and going brittle so your 7 years sounds a bit pessimistic.
Certainly though with Bavaria you get what you pay for and must expect some cost savings along the line and it’s not as if other production boat builders all stick to bronze.
I have a much bigger concern with pitting on the lower sail drive and at £4K for a new one fitted would be chuffed to bits if I only had to replace the other brass seacock!
Then of course there’s the usual corroded exhaust muffler which is quite common on Bavaria’s and I won’t even mention the Eberspacer I had on an earlier Bav. Fortunately I now have a Mikuni which is more silent, easier to service and doesn’t have a habit of breaking down every time you really need it.
Cheers
Richard

[Anonymous]

Thanks, Richard. We are certainly finding the “built to a price” issues – but we’re pleased with the boat overall, especially her sailing ability and the accommodation. We knew there’d be issues, but our replacement list is rather longer than we’d hoped! Ho hum.

We’ll keep an eye on the fittings, and softwood dowels as well. Although the only time I had an through-hull issue with another boat, I found that a pair of underpants in a plastic bag was the best quick-fix until we were able to reach the marina!

Best wishes,

Chris

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