Dufour 36 Classic

 

Issue: December 2001
Manufacturer: Manufacturer: Dufour

With apologies to Charles Dickens, the day we tried out the Dufour 36 Classic provided the best of sails and the worst of sails. It was the best of sails because, not long after we left the marina, a strange and unpredicted NW front came through and delivered 10-30 knots of breeze. But because we were surrounded by hills, it swung through 60 degrees or so every now and then, just to keep us on our toes. This may have been uncomfortable but it gave an instant insight into the Dufour's sailing qualities under pressure.

It was the worst of sails because it was plain bloody nasty and unfair on an untried new boat, fresh out of the box. My idea of a good sail is 12 knots of breeze, steering a responsive hull with my toe on the tiller while daydreaming about mermaids. This was not one of those days.

It is pretty easy to understand why Dufour chose the name Classic for this series of yachts. The two Classics we have sailed were both capable cruiser racers with what could be called Millennial Traditional design and styling. They follow French tradition in that the cockpits are relatively short, though they manage to provide adequate seating and accommodation below is roomy. The hulls are traditional modern with most of the volume aft and a fairly low ballast/weight ratio.

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The 36 Classic is available at five specification levels - the base model with 1.45m draft, three sleeping cabins and 18hp Volvo Penta diesel with fixed two-blade prop; the Cruising Version gets you a two-cabin layout, 28hp Volvo and a long list of extras.

Then there is the Grand Cruiser Pack II, which has a deeper keel, the Grand Cruiser Pack I (more cruising gear) and then the Performance Pack, which has a tri-radial spinnaker, full-batten main and lazyjacks and folding prop. Among a host of other options.

Our test boat had the two-cabin layout and included as standard the fully-battened main, lazyjacks, boom bag, and roller-furling genoa, none of which I would want to go without for weekend sailing. The 28hp Volvo Pennate was so quiet we unintentionally left it running both times we took out the Classic (once for the test and once for the pictures) because we couldn't hear it.

The first time we took out the boat was the bad one. We took off with full main and genoa, the standard sail which is a No. 2. We had just put up the main and unrolled the headsail and were fiddling around getting the boat properly trimmed. We were in that interim stage, when the engine is still running, the sails are up, sheets and outhauls and vangs are being twiddled. No one on board was particularly familiar with the boat.

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