Jeanneau Tonic 23

Jeanneau Tonic 23 “Minuet”
Built: 1987
LOA: 23’ 11”'
LWL: 20’ 4”
Beam: 8' 2" Minimum Draft: 2’3” / 0.7m
Maximum Draft: 4' 6" / 1.4m
Displacement: 1420kg
Engine: Yamaha FT8DEL 4 stroke 8 H.P. High Thrust - New 2008.
15 Litre Fuel tank.
Fractional rig. All standing rigging replaced within last 2 years. Self-draining cockpit. Tiller steering with
extension. Furling Genoa. Headlining ‘serviced’ Winter 2011-12 (see Owners Notes for details).
Accommodation
Open plan layout with V berth forward. 5'7" of headroom in cabin. Teak dining table with drop down leaf.
Galley to port with stainless steel sink with cold pumped water supply,
Double gas burner stove + grill (Gas bottle in locker at stern), Cool Box and plentiful work area.
Chart table/navigation area to starboard with storage beneath and brass tidal clock.
Separate head compartment with Jabsco toilet with 42 litre holding tank (Drains overboard or pump out),
sink with cold pumped water, 12v light.
Double width berth aft beneath cockpit with port light in transom.
Teak and holly sole with teak woodwork. Plenty of storage space below all seating and berths. Throw
pillows for living area.
Sprayhood , Spray Dodgers (not fitted) , Cockpit tent,
Lazy Jacks and boom bag.
Jeanneau Beaching Legs in Carry bag.
50 litre flexible water tank with deck filler
Single 12 volt battery
Electric Bilge Pump / Manual Bilge Pump operated from cockpit
Gas / Carbon Monoxide alarm
Navlights for and aft + all-round white led (anchor/stern/steaming) on masthead.
Cabin lights in main cabin, heads and aft berth.
Lowrance 5150c Chart Plotter interfaced to :
Raytheon ST1000 Plus Tillerpilot and Icom M411 DSC / VHF radio
Clipper depth and wind indictator, Stowe water speed indicator (log not functioning).
Removable Nasa 10w Solar panel + fitted regulator.
Outboard storage bracket - Boarding ladder on transom
Custom 4 wheel trailer by RM trailers (New 2009) with winch, lighting board and spare wheel.
Sails: Main (Good), Genoa (Good except for sacrificial strip which is fair), Cruising Chute in
Snuffer (V.Good).
Price £12,750 Vat paid.
Contact: Andy Glen 07770 767261 Lying Bursledon (on the hard).
Owners Notes (Updated 19 January)
I bought ‘Minuet’ 4 years ago. She has been and remains superb but due to a happy
conjunction of events I can now consider moving to a significantly larger yacht. And so
she is being offered for sale. Here are a few notes to explain what might not be apparent
from the film.
The Tonic was offered with a choice of fin or long stub keel with a swinging centreboard.
Minuet has the latter complete with lifting rudder. Draft is 0.7 metres with the swinging
centreboard up. 1.4 meters with it down. The design displacement is 1420 kg. A few
came with an inboard diesel … Minuet like most Tonics has an outboard in a well offset to
the starboard side on the cockpit. This outboard is a 8HP 4 stroke by Yamaha with an
extended shaft and high thrust prop. The engine was new in April 2008 and has been
serviced regularly. It has electric start and remote controls and charges the boats single
battery. It runs like as dream, smooth and quiet and starts easily. The last Tonic was built
in 1995.
Why did I settle on a Tonic 23? I wanted a yacht that I could move to Scotland for a
season from time to time. A yacht that could accommodate members of the family but was
easily single-handed if necessary. I had been considering a water-ballasted boat but given
that I have no interest in using a slipway, when I saw the quality of the Jeanneau’s design,
build and fittings, and its tardis-like accommodation… well, there really is no comparison.
This is a proper yacht.
What attracted me to Tonic were its modern lines, heavy keel yet shallow draft. the clever
use of space that allows a separate heads compartment and sea-loo, a proper galley, a full
size chart table, 5’7” inches of headroom, loads of storage.
This boat in particular was in good condition and was well spec-ed.. a spec I have
improved on over the last 4 years. It don’t think one could find a better equipped Tonic.
Whereas the standard Tonic has simply a hinged seat over the engine, I have added a very
solid, epoxy faced wooden wall to the engine well, thereby fully enclosing the engine.
This extends to port with a lid thereby creating a fuel locker. This reduces engine noise
and keeps the fuel secure and out of site. The engine air intake is fed by a duct from a
grate in the cockpit and the fuel tank and gas bottle vent overboard via the engine well and
a cockpit drain to port.
The rudder lifts easily using a small line, pulley and jamming cleat on the transom such
that its base is level with the bottom of the keel. This is necessary when taking the ground
especially when using the beaching legs.
On the starboard side forward of the engine is a huge locker which is deep enough to store
the beaching legs, a dinghy (not included) and fenders and warps. I keep spare spare fuel
on a shelf that runs aft from this.
The mast itself is substantial. Whereas the standard Tonic mast hinged from the
coachroof, Minuet’s is supported by very solid stainless steel tabernacle. The great benefit
of this is that, when dropping the mast it hinges at a height level with the coachroof and
lays along it rather than fouling its leading edge and thus remaining elevated at an
awkward angle. Once dropped it can be easily detached from the tabernacle and carried
forwards over the pulpit and laid within the jaws of the tabernacle, secure for towing.
Moving to the bow, Minuet has a good sized lockable drained anchor locker which holds
a Bruce-type anchor with approximately 8 metres of chain with 8 metres of warp.
Amidships are 2 factory fittings to which attach the top of the beaching legs.
It is inside that the Tonic really amazes. Room enough for 4 adults to sit and sleep.
I added a holding tank behind the sea loo. There are valves to enable this to be bypassed
and also a pump to empty it in to the sea. There is also a ‘pump-out fitting’ on deck. This
tank has been invaluable, indeed essential, on visits to creeks and harbours such as
Chichester and was well worth doing. I also fitted a flexible fresh watertank that resides
beneath the 12 volt cool box.
The engine was new a year before I bought the boat. I have serviced it at the end of each
season. It runs beautifully and starts well. It has electric start and also charges the battery
at about 4 amps. I fitted a battery monitor to keep track of the state of charge. I also have a
small solar panel that operates through a rectifier which keeps the battery at 100% between
visits.
There is shore power connection to a single double socket / RCD. However this is for
short term, occasional use only as the yacht is not fitted with anodes for galvanic
protection.
One item Minuet did not have did not have on purchase was a trailer so I commissioned
one brand new from RM trailers who had the plans from one they had built previously.
And while I have yet to make the trip to Scotland, it has allowed me to take the yacht away
from the water for cheap storage at the end of each season and and to choose where to
crane her in and out. It also facilitates antifouling. And she tows beautifully. I estimate the
has only done at about 400 miles of which only half was with the boat loaded. And the
trailer has never been immersed in water.
I spend a lot of time singlehanded. The tiller-pilot works well and is interfaced to the
plotter, as indeed is the DFC VHF. One can go below with some confidence as the
windows give good all-round visibility.
She has spray dodgers bearing her name though I tend not to use them as I feel they
increase leeway. She points at 35-40 degrees off the wind.
There are a few personal items in the film which are not included in the sale. To be clear,
I have listed the included inventory.
As things stand Minuet has been washed down, hull polished and is looking lovely on her
trailer in a yard adjacent to the Hamble.
Andy Glen, January 2013.
Note:
For clarity, this is not the same Tonic that was advertised by Brian Sheath some years ago at the same
price. His ad is still online though that yacht is long sold.
Updates
On 14 Jan 2013, at 19:58, HG wrote:
Hi Andy,
I have shown your Youtube video to a few of my sailing friends & they enjoyed the video & liked
the boat.
One point arose - the cabin lining seems to be very bubbly in places & looking at a web chat
about Tonics I noted that one disgruntled owner complained about his boat's failing headlining &
that Jeanneau didn't want to take any responsibility for it. Is it foam-backed vinyl where the foam
is perishing? If so, this is a common problem on Westerly's which can be tricky to repair (and
expensive if you have it done professionally). What are your thoughts on the problem?
Regards, ….
From: Andy Glen <andyglen@me.com>
Subject: Re: Jeanneau Tonic 23
Date: 14 January 2013 21:33:47 GMT
Dear H…
Ah... the headlining. I'd erased that from my memory as it was something of a nightmare.
Yes, the disgruntled owner is absolutely right. The foam backing seems to turn, with age, to a
disgusting and probably noxious orange dust. It gets everywhere. The headlining inevitably falls
down when this happens and cannot be re-stuck without undertaking a major job.
The previous owner had completely replaced some of the headlining towards the aft of the boat
but I inherited the problem with the rest of the boat.
12 months ago, while the boat was on its trailer, I decided to bite the bullet and tackle it. But my
approach was not to replace the original lining, the surface of which was clean and in good
condition, but to reuse it. I took advice from Hawke House Ltd in Fareham who are a great
company and who had encountered this situation many times. The technique I used was to pull
down the headlining and thoroughly scrub the back with a wire brush and then get rid of the dust
with a vacuum cleaner. I then scrubbed and in places took a sander to the bare inner hull
which was coated in the dust.. Then I took double-sided adhesive 6mm 'closed-cell' foam
sheets bought from Hawke House, cut to the appropriate size and shape and stuck this to the
hull. This has to be done with the ambient temperature above 10 degrees or so. So I had to
use a generator and electric heaters as it was early spring.
I then offered up the clean original vinyl. This is where the 'bubbles' occurred. The trouble was
that the self adhesive foam sheets are REALLY sticky. Once in contact with the vinyl it was
very difficult to re-adjust and make perfect. In the end I decided it was better the stuff stayed up
there securely rather than risk compromising a good 'stick' to eliminate the 'bubbles' ... and
besides, it was time to go sailing !.
I would say to a potential buyer that the second part of the process could be redone at relatively
little cost and effort if the bubbles are an issue. And I think it would be possible to get it pretty
well perfect especially with someone helping (I only had me!). But the important thing is that I
have got rid of the dust, a task that was really, really unpleasant and not a job I would want to
repeat! And the headlining should stay up there for a good few years.
Regards…