Pacific Seacraft 40 Voyagemaker, Specs and Buying Guide

The Voyagemaker brief: a 40 footer a couple can sail hard

Pacific Seacraft called its 40 the Voyagemaker, and Bill Crealock's own design notes explain the name. He wanted an offshore cruiser that a small crew could sail to its full potential without exhaustion, arguing that speed on passage is a different thing from speed around the buoys and that the passage itself should be relaxing. He also said that in the 40 the beam proportion had come close to the practical limit, adding beam a little at a time so balance and handling were never threatened.

SAIL tested the new boat on Chesapeake Bay in its May 1996 issue, which dates the launch, and Wikipedia describes it as produced since 1996. It sits above the 31, 34 and 37 in the classic Crealock range and below the 44. When Steve Brodie bought Pacific Seacraft out of bankruptcy in 2007, the 40 was one of the four models he set out to keep building, and SAIL reported that a new 40 would debut at the fall 2008 shows from the North Carolina yard.

Split underbody, canoe stern and 141 degrees of stability

Outwardly the 40 resembles its sisters, but Crealock reshaped each model. The 40 keeps his split underbody: a fin keel, a ventral fin between keel and skeg, and a large skeg that supports the rudder and protects the propeller aperture. The skeg has a half inch steel spine encased in filled resin and a heavy bronze gudgeon at its base. The lead keel is external, on ten 1 inch bolts with stainless backing plates bedded in epoxy, so a grounding marks lead rather than fiberglass.

The factory specification lists 42 ft 2 in overall including the bow platform, 40 ft 2 in on deck, 31 ft 3 in on the waterline, 12 ft 5 in of beam and a half-load displacement of 24,000 lb. Draft is 6 ft 1 in with 8,600 lb of ballast or 5 ft 2 in with the shoal keel, which carries 8,880 lb. Pacific Seacraft quotes an angle of positive stability greater than 141 degrees, and the structure went through ABS plan certification and CE Category A certification.

Crealock noted that owners of other boats in the line reported surfing in heavy weather at speed to length ratios over 2 with easy control, and that the canoe stern's fair run gives a clean exit for the water, unlike a wide transom drawn for interior volume.

A cutter rig set up for two

The rig is a masthead cutter with Forespar spars, two spreaders and 1x19 wire rigging on external tangs for easy inspection. Sail area is 846 sq ft with a 100 percent foretriangle, or 978 sq ft including the 132 sq ft staysail. The masthead stands 55 ft above the waterline. Both headsails roll up, lazy jacks are standard and the staysail is double-sheeted, because the factory preferred no spars at deck level in the foretriangle.

Winches are all two-speed self-tailers, with 53.2 primaries on the coamings and a dedicated 44.2 for the mainsheet so it is never shared with a rope clutch. In SAIL's test the boat tacked through about 90 degrees, sailed steadily on all points, tracked well with a solid if not racing-sensitive wheel, and turned in slightly more than a boat length under power. Measured saloon noise at cruising speed was 78 dB.

An interior laid out for sea, not the boat show

Crealock slanted the accommodation toward offshore use, with settee corners kept tight for support at heel and a galley that braces the cook. The head and separate stall shower sit right at the foot of the companionway, so wet gear comes off before anyone reaches the cabins; the shower, with its own overhead hatch, doubles as a wet locker on passage. The large forward-facing nav station is to port, with a slanted chart table and room for instruments outboard.

Opposite is a U-shaped galley with the double sink near the centerline so it drains on either tack, a three-burner Force 10 stove with oven, Corian counters and optional Sea Frost or Technautics refrigeration. The saloon has a U-shaped settee whose dinette table lowers to form a berth. Forward is either an island berth with drawers or a V-berth, plus a cedar-lined hanging locker; aft is a double berth cabin. Interior joinery is varnished Burmese teak, and light and air come through four hatches, fourteen bronze opening ports and two Dorade vents.

Yanmar 4JH3E, 122 gallons of water and real tankage

The standard engine in the 2003 specification is a naturally aspirated Yanmar 4JH3E rated at 56 hp, with a 2.62:1 reduction gear, a straight 1.25 inch Aquamet shaft and an 18 by 12 inch three-blade propeller. SAIL noted the cockpit sole lifts out for engine access and even engine removal, a detail that matters on a boat expected to be repowered at some point in a long life.

Fuel capacity is 63 gallons standard with an optional 22 gallon tank, and three water tanks total 122 gallons, with 19 gallons of holding. The 12 volt system came with group 31 AGM batteries, an 80 amp alternator and an optional 2,000 watt inverter-charger. Older sailboatdata records list different tank figures, so confirm what a specific boat actually carries.

Construction, then and now

The California boats used a biaxial layup with vinylester resin in the outer skin, solid laminate below the waterline and Baltek balsa core in the topsides and deck. The hull-to-deck area is surrounded by deep bulwarks that support 32 inch stanchions and give real footing. Deck hardware is chrome-plated cast bronze, every fitting has a backing plate, and the stainless bow platform is engineered for loads beyond 3/8 inch chain.

Brodie's North Carolina yard has since switched to all-vinylester hulls, 316 stainless for exterior and structural metal, CNC waterjet cut chainplates and hard-panel headliners. Those changes came from lessons learned refitting older hulls, and they tell a buyer where older boats need attention: chainplates, cored deck areas around hardware, and headliner access to wiring and backing plates.

Buying a used Pacific Seacraft 40 in the US

Pacific Seacraft 40 for sale listings draw a lot of attention, partly thanks to Sailing Project Atticus, a YouTube channel with more than a quarter-million subscribers filmed aboard a 1997 PS40 that the factory had worked on. Brodie credits the couple with bringing new attention to the brand. Expect competition for well-kept boats, especially those already set up with watermakers, solar, windvanes and modern electronics.

Budget roughly $16,000 to $34,000 a year in the US to keep one properly, covering a 42 to 45 ft slip, insurance (higher for offshore cruising), haul-out, bottom paint, engine and rigging maintenance and varnish. Set aside further reserves for standing rigging replacement, sails and electronics, which on a boat of this size and quality run well into five figures each time.