Albin 31 TE single vs twin

[Boatguy]

Hi All,

I am seriously considering an Albin 31' TE for my family for cruising. I am sure this topic has been addressed in this forum before, but I figured I would put it out there anyway.
I would really like to purchase a single diesel for better fuel economy and less overall maintenance expense. The boat would be used primarily in Buzzards Bay where we get a good step chop and 15-20kts of SW breeze on any given day. From what I have read the single screw has the skeg, where as the twin screws are just straight shafts. How do these handle in a following sea? I've read the 28's can be a little squirrely in a following sea, and I am wondering if the 31's are the same way? How about the single around the docks (with bow thruster)? What speed can I expect to cruise at and how much fuel should I expect to burn? Any and all advise on this would be much appreciated. I am looking to make the purchase very soon.

Thank you!

[irishwake]

Having owned and run many boats over my lifetime the twin engine set up is the easiest to maneuver. That being said if you learn to handle a single engine with a keel and a bow thruster it is the only way to go. I have at times parallel docked my boat in a marina between two other boats.The cost factors between a single and a twin set up should be the number one factor in your decision. The room in the engine compartment for doing maintenance is a breeze with the single setup, not so easy with the twin. My boat runs strait as an arrow when you take your hands off the wheel, and will cruise at 20 mph and tops off at about 25 mph at wide open. This is of course depending on weight on board, bottom condition etc. My boat burns about 6 gals per hour overall and I have all the fuel records if you are interested.( Cummins 450c). Good luck on your purchase and enjoy your Albin.

[Jeremyvmd]

on the 28 if the waves are coming dead astern I usually don't have an issue, where she gets squirrely is a rear quartering sea - which is true of any keeled powerboat. I have gotten decent at maneuvering with a single and bow thruster but its very different from outboards or twins. Its just a skill that you will learn over time and after a little practice. I prefer having the keel to protect the running gear to having twins IMO. Seen too many boats scrape the bottom (no big deal with a keel setup like the albin) and have major damage to want one that doesn't have it!. Fuel burn and speed is going to depend on a lot of different variables, so I wouldn't hang my hat on them. Only way to know is to do a sea trial on a given boat.

[kowal_53]

I would like to add that the Albin 31 single has a large keel which gives you a 4 foot draft. The twins do not have this feature and would draw less water than mine.

I have been told that twins are easier to handle, but have never had one.

If you are off shore two engines might be a nice safety feature, I operate in the Chesapeake bay.

With that said, I do believe there are significant cost savings working with a single engine.

Engine manufactor may be an issue too, most of the singles are Cummins, and a lot of the twins are Yanmars. I am sure there are exceptions to this.

[Old School]

I'm looking for a 31TE single, Does anyone have any idea how many 31s were made and how many were singles?

OS

[RobS]

Being a 2008 kowal_53's 31TE may be one of the last made. So I looked it up on the NOAA Vessel Search and digits 6,7 & 8 of the HIN are 232. With the 28TE Albin started with hull number 101. So if this holds true for the 31TE, his 2008 is hull number 132. Wow, not as many made as I would have guessed. As to single vs twin I would venture to say the majority were singles..

[Old School]

Being a 2008 kowal_53's 31TE may be one of the last made. So I looked it up on the NOAA Vessel Search and digits 6,7 & 8 of the HIN are 232. With the 28TE Albin started with hull number 101. So if this holds true for the 31TE, his 2008 is hull number 132. Wow, not as many made as I would have guessed. As to single vs twin I would venture to say the majority were singles..

I'm not sure I can follow your math. So how many 31's do you think were made?
And your guess is most were singles? There are MUCH many more twins in the marketplace than singles it appears.
Just trying to get an idea.

OS

[Pitou]

Being a 2008 kowal_53's 31TE may be one of the last made. So I looked it up on the NOAA Vessel Search and digits 6,7 & 8 of the HIN are 232. With the 28TE Albin started with hull number 101. So if this holds true for the 31TE, his 2008 is hull number 132. Wow, not as many made as I would have guessed. As to single vs twin I would venture to say the majority were singles..

I'm not sure I can follow your math. So how many 31's do you think were made?
And your guess is most were singles? There are MUCH many more twins in the marketplace than singles it appears.
Just trying to get an idea.

OS

Digits 6, 7 & 8 of the hull ID designate it's number in the models production. As with the 28 and if Albin did start using 101 to designate hull #1 for the 31 as well, with Kowal-53 having hull ID 232 it makes his the 132nd hull laid. If they started at 001 his hull at most is number 232. I do believe that 2008 was the last year for this hull as that is the year that Albin sold the 28 & 31 molds to Shamrock who went out of business shortly thereafter not even laying one one 31TE. My 2006 is number 221 making it the 121st or 221st hull laid. I hope this helps with the math further explaining how Rob got to the determination of how many 31TE's exist. Maybe we can get some guys with earlier vintage 31's to share digits 6, 7 & 8 of their hull ID. I have a buddy with a 2000 laid in June of 1999 and his (a single) is number 115 / an early vintage 31. Remember, the 31's when new were 2X the price of a 28 which limited the market. In '02 a new 28 was around 160k and a 31 hovered around 300 for a single. At the end of production in '08 a 28 was in the 180 range and a single 31 was just shy of 400k. The pricing alone made market demand for a 31 much less than the 28 which limited production.

As far as how many singles vs. twin screw boats were produced .. at this point we can only guess and I would say that taking a snapshot of the marketplace is a tough way to evaluate it. I've followed the market for quite a few years and the balance is always changing. I would also venture that singles dominate with Albin having its roots in single screw keeled boats and not twins. In my area I know of five 31's and all are singles.

When I finally got serious about looking for a 31TE it took me 15 months to find mine and it was a private sale shared to me by Rob from an ad that he saw in the "LI fisherman". Be patient and the right boat will come along.

[Old School]

Being a 2008 kowal_53's 31TE may be one of the last made. So I looked it up on the NOAA Vessel Search and digits 6,7 & 8 of the HIN are 232. With the 28TE Albin started with hull number 101. So if this holds true for the 31TE, his 2008 is hull number 132. Wow, not as many made as I would have guessed. As to single vs twin I would venture to say the majority were singles..

I'm not sure I can follow your math. So how many 31's do you think were made?
And your guess is most were singles? There are MUCH many more twins in the marketplace than singles it appears.
Just trying to get an idea.

OS

Digits 6, 7 & 8 of the hull ID designate it's number in the models production. As with the 28 and if Albin did start using 101 to designate hull #1 for the 31 as well, with Kowal-53 having hull ID 232 it makes his the 132nd hull laid. If they started at 001 his hull at most is number 232. I do believe that 2008 was the last year for this hull as that is the year that Albin sold the 28 & 31 molds to Shamrock who went out of business shortly thereafter not even laying one one 31TE. My 2006 is number 221 making it the 121st or 221st hull laid. I hope this helps with the math further explaining how Rob got to the determination of how many 31TE's exist. Maybe we can get some guys with earlier vintage 31's to share digits 6, 7 & 8 of their hull ID. I have a buddy with a 2000 laid in June of 1999 and his (a single) is number 115 / an early vintage 31. Remember, the 31's when new were 2X the price of a 28 which limited the market. In '02 a new 28 was around 160k and a 31 hovered around 300 for a single. At the end of production in '08 a 28 was in the 180 range and a single 31 was just shy of 400k. The pricing alone made market demand for a 31 much less than the 28 which limited production.

As far as how many singles vs. twin screw boats were produced .. at this point we can only guess and I would say that taking a snapshot of the marketplace is a tough way to evaluate it. I've followed the market for quite a few years and the balance is always changing. I would also venture that singles dominate with Albin having its roots in single screw keeled boats and not twins. In my area I know of five 31's and all are singles.

When I finally got serious about looking for a 31TE it took me 15 months to find mine and it was a private sale shared to me by Rob from an ad that he saw in the "LI fisherman". Be patient and the right boat will come along.

Thanks for the explanation and encouragement.
I'm content to look diligently for the right boat.
But my Queen is mega ansy.
If anybody sees anything give me a heads up.

OS

[Pitou]

[/quote]

Thanks for the explanation and encouragement.
I'm content to look diligently for the right boat.
But my Queen is mega ansy.
If anybody sees anything give me a heads up.

OS
[/quote]

Don't let antsy drive your purchsse. I know that your 28 has sold, but wait for the right boat for you. I started looking in earnest August of 2012 and found my 31 in November of '13 closing mid December. My 28 sold in April of 2013 and I went boatless for the '13 season. My bride was "antsy" too, but I remained patient. This was not something that I would let be driven by compulsion. I traveled the eastern seaboard
from Florida to Maine in my search before bringing what I considered to be the right boat back home to MA from Freeport, NY.

If you already haven't, you may want to get on the radar at White Water Marine on LI and Standish Boat Yard in Tiverton, RI for future brokerage offerings. These were both big Albin dealers.

I came across another hull ID in a PM from another local boat to me : 2007 single screw / hull ID 229. A rough count from '06 - '08 shows 11- 31's built for this three year period. I'm guessing that Rob's initial analysis of 132 - 31TE boats built is correct.

[gerber30]

My 2004 31 6,7,8. Digits are #206. So that would be boat number 105 if they started at 101...mine is a twin with Cummins 370's. There is a 31 for sale in Florida on Yachtworld that's a 2004 with twins also (Yanmars). I was originally looking for a single but am very satisfied with my twin.

[RobS]

I was originally looking for a single but am very satisfied with my twin.

I agree that you need to keep an open mind on things when boat shopping and really look at the whole picture... there's a lot of junk out there and too many variables and potential issues in boats to let a really good one pass by. Curious, now that you own the twin if your exact boat was available in a single would you make the switch?

[gerber30]

The speed and maneuverbility of the twin has spoiled me. In the long run it will cost more to maintain and operate but for me its worth it. Why leave all my money to my kids...LOL

[Pasteur]

Like some others we moved from the flush deck 28 to the twin 31. Both boats have the Yanmar.

Handling? The twin is easy to maneuver, of course. But RicM's guide to handling the 28 without going to the bowthruster makes operating that boat a cinch, too.

Power. We liked the idea of additional speed which was one of our motivations for the upgrade. The boat cruises at 25+ knots at 3400 rpm. But we find running at 18-20 at 2900-3000 rpm is often more comfortable. It's funny because in the 28 I was pleased when It made 21 knots surfing the backside of a following sea and always craved just a few more knots. And now we run at that same speed.

Don't misunderstand, we like the additional power and we use it. But now it's an option.

Fuel economy improves dramatically at the lower speed. On a recent trip from Newport to Sandwich, MA and back we burned less than 100 gallons. The canal portion of the trip (15 miles roundtrip) is slow and fuel efficient but the balance of the cruse (90 miles) was at 20 knots in fair seas.

As for maintenance,, the twin is obviously the more expensive option. The room around the engine compartment is not generous. There are 3 hatches required for complete access, four if you,count the prop shafts, inlet water and exhaust. But none of the routine, basic maintenance is difficult. Oil, coolant, inlet screens, belts are easy to reach. I had all of the hoses replaced this year and for that project the deck was removed. No big deal, It's a few screws and some caulk.

Bottom line. For our experience the twin was a good choice.

[Tom Cunningham]

As I am currently in the 28 to 31 process thank you for your real life answer and thoughts. Tom.