Albin Ballad – 1972 - £9,500
‘Matui’ is well respected in the Plymouth circuit and known as the particular example that has enjoyed so much money spent on her in recent years – even to the extent of a new mast and boom, as well as the auxiliary engine! In the early 2000’s she was bought by a retired medical consultant, looking to enjoy more room than in his previous Trapper 300. She offered satisfying sailing speed, but better comfort for local cruising and with his relatively comfortable income, he set about improving the boat’s appearance by having the topsides spray-painted and then replacing the original 10hp Volvo engine with a modern, indirectly cooled, 20 BHP Beta Marine diesel.
The main boom had been replaced to provide slab-reefing, but the mast remained the original. When the next ownership came to replace the standing rigging (May 2018), they were persuaded of the merits in replacing the mast too! Hence, we are able to offer a better than averagely presented Ballad, with a lot of ‘big ticket’ items of equipment already replaced.
Many more, ‘cloud’-based photos are available, contact us for details.
Accommodation
This ballad offers up to 4 berths in two cabins; main saloon and forward cabin. Two in the forward cabin with an in-filling cushion to provide a ‘double’; two in single settee berths in the main saloon but with an infilling, slatted support, these berths can provide a double berth that utilises the full beam of the boat.
The cushions are covered in a relatively recent and heavy-weight fabric to good standard. The galley has been fitted with a replacement cooker and the cool box is fitted with a refrigeration unit. In short, this particular Ballard has been fitted out with a greater emphasis on ‘creature comforts’ than will be commonly found on many of her peers.
Forward Cabin: Accessed through a door in the main bulkhead that is slightly offset to port of the centreline, the sole area extends forward from the bulkhead and its use is shared with the heads compartment located to starboard of the centreline, but an additional door to the latter compartment closes the heads from the forward cabin’s berths. Diffused light is provided through the GRP of an overhead hatch, with a ‘Tannoy’-style ventilator provided too. An in-filling panel of plywood with associated cushion may be removed to provide addition cabin sole area, between the two berths.
Heads Compartment: Located to starboard, immediately forward of the main bulkhead, this heads is fitted with a manually-flushed marine toilet.
Main Saloon: A ‘Tannoy’-style ventilator is fitted on the centre-line to provide natural ventilation and fixed, toughened glass windows provide good light levels. A bulkhead-mounted table hinges down and extends across the centre-line immediately abaft the mast and may be sat to from the settee berths to either side of the cabin. Beneath the side decks, there are wide stowage areas abaft a closed and shelved locker on either side of the cabin. Additionally, cave lockers are to be found behind the backrest cushions. A stereo CD player by Sony is fitted alongside the chart table, with speakers fitted in the main saloon.
Nav area: In this Ballad, an additional cockpit locker was provided in lieu of a quarter berth, meaning that a fixed and dedicated chart table was fitted within the port aft corner of the main saloon. A centralised 12V DC switch panel for the instrumentation is fitted above the table, along with an Adverc Battery Monitoring display panel giving the state of battery charge and output available.
Disguised behind a removable panel above the engine box/companionway steps, the main 12V DC distribution board is located alongside three double pole isolation switches for the batteries.
Galley: ‘L’-shaped in form and located to starboard of the companionway, the galley features a stainless steel sink; a top access fridge (unserviceable) and plenty of closed lockers. The cooker is a replacement (a ‘Neptune 4500’, by Plastimo)
Mechanical and Electrical Systems
Engine:
A Beta Marine 20 BHP, indirectly cooled diesel drives a two-bladed, folding propeller through a conventional propeller shaft. Date of installation is thought to have been in 2009, but number of running hours has not been established.
Electrical:
• 1 x 105 A/hr lead acid battery is used for the ‘Domestic and Services’ battery bank.
• 1 x 105 A/hr lead acid battery for engine cranking.
• Two independent double-pole isolation switches, with third switch acting as a ‘bridge’ when required.
• Adverc, battery sensing charge regulator with remote monitoring panel mounted at the chart table.
Tankage:
• Fuel – a single fuel tank (unknown capacity) located beneath a false floor within the starboard cockpit locker.
• Water – two independent freshwater tanks (maximum capacity unknown); one rigid plastic tank beneath the foot end of the forward berths, supplemented by a flexible bag located beneath the Saloon’s starboard settee berth.
Sails and Spars
A new mast was fitted in 2018 (at a cost of £8,114) and the boom was a new replacement in 2022 (another £2,757). ‘Matui’ is rigged as masthead sloop, now on Sparcraft spars, stayed with 1x19 stainless steel rigging (new in May 2018) over single, straight spreaders. The mast is stayed by a single for’stay (within a Facnor roller reefing system), single bi-furcated backstay with tensioning pulley system; cap shrouds and pairs of forward and aft lower shrouds.
• A boom-fitted ‘Stack-Pack’ style of sail cover (new July 2022) is been fitted.
• All the main running rigging was replaced at time of the mast replacement (2018)
Sails:
• Mainsail – by Ullman Sails – in Contender cloth, with two reefing points. New in 2020
• Roller reefing genoa (new 2022) by Ullman Sails in Contender Pro sailcloth.
• Previous genoa by Westaway, unknown age, but serviceable and retained as a spare.
Navigation Equipment
• Raymarine ST60 Depth.
• Autohelm ST50 Wind.
• Autohelm ST50 Speed.
• GPS repeater by Silva.
• Garmin 750s chartplotter.
• Previous GPS 128 by Garmin retained as independent back-up.
• Digital Yacht AIT 3000 Class B transponder (AIS send & receive)
• Raymarine ST2000 tiller pilot.
Deck Equipment
• ‘Supreme’ anchor to roll-over design by Manson (currently stowed in cockpit’s port locker).
• 5kg Bruce as a convenient ‘picnicking’ anchor, currently stowed on the bow roller.
• Lewmar 43 ST (self-tailing) primary sheet winches.
• Lewmar 8 single speed spinnaker sheet winches.
• Lewmar 7 and Antal ‘WP’ halyard and reefing line winches.
• Mainsheet track across bridge deck by Barton.
• Stainless steel stanchions to supplement the pulpit and pushpit.
• Mainsail ‘Stak-Pack’ by Ocean Canvas (July 2022).
• Folding sprayhood, also by Ocean Canvas.
• Ensign and staff.
• 2 off Camping Gaz 907 size butane gas canisters.
• Pair of tinted acrylic washboards in addition to the plywood boards.
• Good quality extendable tiller extension by Spinlock.
• Two individual cushions for use in the cockpit.
• Pedestal-mounted cockpit table.
• Outboard engine stowage pad.
Safety Equipment
• VHF 100i GMDSS & DSC capable VHF radio by Garmin.
• Pair of webbing jackstays and two harness attachment points at forward end of the cockpit.
• ‘French’ – style radar reflector, for attachment to a shroud and hoisted aloft as required.
• Manual bilge pump located alongside the chart table.
• Manual bilge pump for operation in the cockpit.
• 12V DC bilge pump with both, automatic and manual switching.
• Horse-shoe lifebuoy with floating light.
• Danbuoy.
• Pair of wire cutters.
• 2 off 1kg dry powder fire extinguishers (both beyond expiry date of manufacturer’s warranty).
General note on safety equipment: Any safety equipment such as Liferafts, Epirbs, fire extinguishers and flares etc. are usually personal to the current owner(s) and if being left on-board as part of the sale of a used vessel may require routine servicing, replacement, or changing to meet a new owner’s specific needs.
Disclaimer
The Company offers the details of this vessel in good faith but cannot guarantee or warrant the accuracy of this information nor warrant the condition of the vessel. A buyer should instruct his agents, or his surveyors, to investigate such details as the buyer desires validated. This vessel is offered subject to prior sale, price change, or withdrawal without notice.