CETACEA
Yacht for Sale
Length:
52′ 9″ / 16.08m
| Builder: Cheoy Lee
| Year: 1990
CETACEA Yacht for Sale - 52 Cheoy Lee
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Detailed Information
Full Description
Background Information
CETACEA has been continuously and meticulously maintained and upgraded over the years to ensure unmatched comfort, performance, and reliability. The original owners, a British couple, purchased her in 1990 and configured her for long-distance offshore cruising and sailed from England to the British Virgin Islands. The second owner, a Swiss national, used her for two months each year, sailing in the Eastern Caribbean. During this time, CETACEA was berthed in St. Lucia. Uli Miexner, an Austrian mechanical engineer and owner of DSL Yachts, maintained her and made frequent updates, ensuring she was always ready for the owner’s use.
The current owners purchased her in 2001, and continued to entrust her care to Uli and DSL Yachts. For the following 12 years, they sailed her up and down the Caribbean Island chain, while working in the U.S. and vacationing in the Caribbean. In January 2013, they retired and departed St. Lucia to begin their circumnavigation, heading westward.
Since then, CETACEA has sailed more than 20,000 miles, visited 35 countries in the Caribbean, South Pacific, Oceana, and SE Asia. They sailed from St. Lucia, to Bonaire, Curacao, Columbia, through the Panama Canal, to the Galapagos, to French Polynesia, where they spent two years enjoying all the islands including Tahiti and Bora Bora. In 2016, they sailed 2,500 miles, continuing westward to Palmerston, Niue, Samoa, Tonga, and south to New Zealand, where they spent 2 years completing a major refit and touring the whole country.
Their favorite sail, from the Galapagos to French Polynesia was 3,400 miles, was completed in 21 days, with an average speed of 6.75 kts making 163 nm/day, despite the rough weather conditions of 12 to 15-foot seas. The engines were only used on the last day to get into the anchorage without jibbing one more time. With her 53’ length and 35-ton weight, CETACEA was not only comfortable under way, but proved to be a great performance boat with a galley designed for cooking underway (positioned at the focal point in the boat), along with easy sail handling and good speed. And night watches were so safe and enjoyable in the fully enclosed pilot house with an almost 360-degree view, all the navigation instrumentation, and raised full berth.
In 2019, they sailed 1,500 miles north to cruise in Fiji and Vanuatu, and then to the Solomon Islands, where CETACEA spent 2.5 years during COVID. With very little care, she had no mold or mildew inside and was in very good condition when the owners finally got back to her in 2022. From there, they continued their adventure sailing in the Solomons for the season and then on to Papua New Guinea.
Sailing across the South Pacific was the best adventure with CETACEA exceeding all expectations. She is a heavy yacht, built for blue water cruising with 800 gallons of fuel and 500 gallons of water and redundancy in critical safety features including 2 engines, 2 outboard engines, 2 steering helms (one inside the pilot house), 3 navigation chart plotters, 4 water tanks, 2 anchors, an autohelm, SSB, VHF, Sat Phone, AIS, Radar, Starlink satellite, and brand-new rigging and new dinghy. She always got from port to port, sailing thousands of miles safely, and is the perfect boat for someone with a blue water dream and family/friends to share it with.
In 2023, they sailed 1,200 miles through the Torres Strait to Darwin, Australia and then all the way through Indonesia 2,100 miles to Nongsa Point, Batam, across the strait from Singapore. In 2024, they cruised 700 miles north to Malaysia and Thailand. To avoid the dangers of sailing through the Red Sea, they shipped CETACEA from Phuket, Thailand to Marmaris, Turkey, one of the best cruising grounds in the Mediterranean. CETACEA is actively being sailed by the owners in western Turkey and the Greek islands.
The owners have owned seven previous sailboats, two of which were also Cheoy Lee sailboats. While it may not be their last, CETACEA will undoubtedly remain the best boat they have ever owned, and they enjoyed sharing the journeys with family and friends onboard. She is not the fastest boat in the sea, but definitely one of the safest, most comfortable, and easiest yachts to handle. She has been meticulously customized and continuously upgraded to ensure unmatched comfort, performance, and reliability. Whenever CETACEA enters an anchorage or marina, she always turns heads. She is no ordinary sailboat. The owners, now in their 70s, want to be back home more with their grandchildren. While they are still enjoying sailing CETACEA, they are looking to find the perfect new owners to continue her legacy of adventure.
The New Zealand Refit 2018/2019 ($450,000 USD)
CETACEA was fortunate to have one of the finest Shipwright’s, Steve Eichler of Lighthouse Projects, for its 2-year refit. An extensive list of most of the refit projects are outlined at the end of this summary. The major projects making CETACEA a “one-of-a-kind boat” included: replacing the teak deck with proper fiberglass and non-skid decking; repainting and fairing the entire boat; replacing all custom portholes and windows; increasing the ventilation in the engine room for better engine performance; and insulating for sound and heat was added to 85% of the ceiling and 80% of the hull. This alone greatly dampened the sound and heat experienced when underway and at anchor. All lights were upgraded with LED lights; the original electrical panel was replaced with a new updated Blue Sea electrical panel; the old AGM batteries were replaced with lithium batteries and battery management systems, and USB charging ports were added for convenience.
Several project goals involved decreasing maintenance for teak including: replacing all windows and port holes to prevent leaks; replacing the cockpit teak locker doors with locking aluminum powder coated doors; replacing teak handrails with steel tube rails; replacing the teak rub rail with fiberglassed rail; replacing the teak planks under the bollards, winches, traveler, windshield, etc. with fiberglassed planks; installing battens on the sides of cabins to provide sound-proofing and replace teak veneer; and using a 3M product, “Di-noc” to cover the remainder teak veneer walls throughout the entire boat, providing a durable surface which is easy to maintain and clean.
Most importantly, several manufacture defects and safety issues were identified and corrected including: redesigning the life line stanchions for security; replacing teak railings with stainless tubing for better gripping; addition of a full-length door for ease of entering the pilothouse; and strengthening the rudder platform. In addition, two main engine exhaust lines were relocated to exit at the stern of the boat, avoiding fumes entering in the cockpit.
And don’t forget, the comfort standpoint had to be taken into account including: the master stateroom, v-berth and main salon were updated with beautiful headboards, and brightened with more white vinyl materials, lighted lockers, door latches to reduce banging under way; modified cabinets to hold dishes properly; a galley vent to evacuate smoke and steam, and many more minor details that make cruising more comfortable. But the highlight was gutting the master stateroom shower and installing wrap-around walls (with no caulking to clean); a non-skid shower pan (no more teak grate); and a new beautiful glass door – a real showcase!
A complete summary of all the NZ Refit work is included at the end of this document.
New Equipment & Updates Completed 2023/2024 (>$110,000 USD)
CETACEA is an old boat, made new! And ready to go anywhere you want in safety and comfort.
Boat Interior Layout
Pilothouse
Entering the pilothouse from the cockpit through a new full-size door, you immediately find convenient storage shelves to port, below which is a breaker box that controls the instrumentation, navigation lights, cockpit lighting (including red and dimmable white lights), and underwater lights at each side gate. To port is a seat adjacent to the helm, while to starboard, there is a raised full berth with nearly 360 degrees of visibility. Forward on the port side, you will find both engine instrumentation and switches for boat lights and navigation lights. Midship, the engine throttles are positioned along with a compass and VHF radio beneath it. To starboard are two Garmin GPSMAP MFDs (16” and 12”). Along the starboard side is a large navigation chart table with storage underneath. Above the nav station is another instrument panel for the stereo, SSB AIS, Mastervolt Easy View 5, Spectra Watermaker panel, Weems & Plath clock, barometer, and Starlink communication equipment. Adjacent is an additional cabinet that can hold handheld VHFs, binoculars, and flashlights, etc.
Galley
Descending three steps from the pilothouse into the galley, you will find a large cabinet to starboard containing a U-line ice maker (230V). The galley features a new Force 10 three-burner LPG stove and oven, a microwave, and two Isotherm 6 cu. Ft. air-cooled refrigerators with side-opening doors. A powered vent hood with lights captures any steam/smoke from cooking. The galley also includes a double sink, large countertop workspaces, 5 cabinets overhead, two large bins and a large cabinet below the counter tops, a large storage below the sinks, and 4 drawers.
Main Salon
Forward of the galley, on the port side, is a U-shaped dinette that seats six with an additional chair. To starboard is a long L-shaped settee and a cocktail table with a freezer inside. Beneath and behind the cushions on both sides of the salon is an enormous amount of storage, with latches to secure the cushions when underway. Above the settees, there are cabinets and bookcases. Dimmable LED cove lighting runs along both sides of the salon area, with a large opening hatch above the dining table to provide additional natural light and ventilation.
Forward Area
Two steps descend into the hallway leading to the starboard cabin, fwd head, and V-berth. The starboard cabin features two full-length over/under berths, with a hanging locker forward and a small locker above the upper berth. There is also a cabinet housing the water maker, with additional storage space above it. The head features an electric freshwater head, a sink with 2 cabinets above and 1 below, a separate walk-in-shower with a seat, storage cabinet, handheld showerhead, and sliding shower curtain. The V-berth has been redesigned as a queen/king sized v-berth bunk with a removable filler, large storage under the berth, a large cabinet to starboard, and a spacious shelf for storage. There are also two drawers beneath the V-berth. The forward area is well-ventilated with a large hatch in the V-berth, small hatches in the head and starboard cabin, and two opening ports in each room. A 230V 16,000 BTU AC/heat unit serves the forward area, with a privacy curtain at the hallway steps.
Utility/Service Room
On the starboard side, heading aft, descending two steps from the main salon, is a hallway leading to the aft master stateroom. To port is the engine service room, which houses the main electrical service panel, a washer/dryer combo unit, fuel polishing system, and ample storage for engine fluids, tools, and spare parts. The service room also provides access to the main engines, fuel manifold, and dual Racor filters. There is an additional entry into the engine room from the main salon, providing convenient access to the generator, fresh water system, and fresh water manifold.
Master Cabin
Continuing down the hallway, your reach the spacious aft master stateroom. To starboard are two large full-length cedar-lined hanging lockers and a central dressing table. There are bookcases and storage cabinets along each side of the queen-size berth. The bed is positioned centerline for comfort, with padded sides and a padded head board. Wall lights and reading lights are mounted on either side, with cup holders containing switches for lights and fans. Abundant storage with clothes cabinets, storage under the bed, and three drawers beneath the foot of the bed. Dimmable LED cove lighting runs along both sides and at the aft end of the bed. The stateroom also has 4 opening ports with custom screens, and an escape hatch affording additional ventilation in addition to the 230V 16,000 BTU air conditioning/heating unit.
The large aft head includes an electric freshwater head, sink with long counterspace, all new towel racks and faucet, and several above and below counter cabinets. The shower was totally gutted and redesigned in 2019 with wrap-around walls (without any caulking), a thermostatically controlled Hansgrohe valve, new hand-held showerhead, and non-skid shower pan (no teak grate), making the shower so beautiful and easy to clean and keep clean. The shower door is also new, adorned with whale designs. There is an opening port and a new exhaust fan in the head.
Carpeting/Upholstery/Headliners
All floor areas were fitted with new carpeting in 2019, with each section custom bound for easy access to floor board hatches. The upholstery and accent pillow, and the headliner throughout the boat was replaced in 2019.
Exterior
- Forward Deck: The bow features a hydraulic Hood Sea Furl unit for the genoa/jib and a 3500 Maxwell-Nilsson electric windlass. The windlass includes a starboard chain gypsy and a port rope gypsy. The starboard anchor is a 125 lb. Navy Stock anchor with 100 meters of 10mm Maggi G70 chain rode, while the port anchor is an 85 lb. Navy Stock anchor with 20 meters of chain and 75 meters of rope. Both anchors are stored in the hawse pipe and the chain/rope goes over the windlass and down into the divided anchor well, located just forward of the V-Berth. The sissy bars above the windlass feature stainless steel chain claws for easy tie-offs. Oversized cleats are positioned aft of the windlass. All cleats were modified to increase the size for easier tie-offs.
- LPG Locker: Located just aft of the windlass, the LPG locker holds two large tanks for the galley and two smaller tanks for the stern BBQ grill. The locker also serves as support for the dinghy when hoisted during passages, and offers tie-downs for safety. It functions as a rinse station for diving/snorkeling gear and provides workspace. The top of the locker folds out to offer a convenient table for meals and sundowners. A freshwater hose attachment is available underneath a bench seat on the starboard side, with a 50-foot hose for cleaning the boat.
- Storage & Safety: The cabin top area includes storage for a two-piece 9' aluminum boarding plank on the port side and a swim ladder/boat hooks storage on the starboard side. Sissy bars on both sides of the main mast provide for safety. The life raft is stored just aft of the salon hatch. Handrails along the cabin top and pilot house provide convenient hand holds and boarding gates are located on both sides.
Cockpit
The cockpit is elevated 6” above the side deck, featuring heavy cockpit doors on each side. Each door is flanked by a large hydraulic primary winch. An oval seating area with a cockpit table accommodates five people comfortably, with extra seating in the upper helm. A hardtop covers the cockpit and upper helm area, providing shelter and dimmable white and red LED lights above the table and near each cockpit door. There are 3 storage lockers under the seating, one locker behind the pilot house door, and 2 large lockable lockers under the upper helm seats.
- Upper Helm: Elevated by two steps, the upper helm features a helm chair and a nav chair. A large window in the aft wall of the pilothouse includes two sliding, locking openings for ventilation and passing food and drinks. The upper helm has two LED lights, one over the nav area and one over the step, as well as two opening hatches for ventilation.
- Cockpit Enclosure: The cockpit is fully enclosed with canvas and Strataglass panels, offering near 360-degree visibility. The system is rain-resistant and designed for airflow, as it's attached only to the lifeline handrails, not the cockpit seat comings.
Aft Stern Area
The stern features a BBQ grill on the starboard side. On the port side, there is a 20 hp Honda 4-stroke engine, a smaller 2.3 hp Honda engine and a Kato lift. There are 2 Kato davits for the dingy lift, which also serves as the boarding plank lift. A large opening manhole provides access to a storage garage for emergency equipment, hurricane lines, and the hydraulic steering ram.
Engine Room
- Main Engines: Powered by Perkins 4-236 engines, each with a conical sea water valve, dual coolers for engine oil and transmission fluid, dual Racor filters with inline fuel pumps, Balmar 100A alternators, and newly installed stainless exhaust manifolds. Both engines feature dripless shaft seals with spare seals. Notably, the exhaust is routed to the rear of the boat (rather than the sides), preventing exhaust from entering the cockpit, a major improvement for comfort underway.
- Main Generator: A new Kohler 11 kW raw water-cooled generator (2024) is housed in an enclosed sound shield with an exhaust separator. It powers the 230V systems and is located in the forward engine room.
- Electrical System: The boat utilizes both 230/240V and 120V AC and 12V DC electrical systems. There are two 500A banks of LiFePO4 house batteries (2019) with a Mastervolt Mass Combi Pro 12V/3000W inverter/charger (2023), a parallel Chargemaster 100A charger (2019) in the main salon starboard cabinet with a Mastervolt Easy View5 monitor in the pilothouse. There is an additional Mastervolt Chargemaster 230V charger for the two engine start batteries (Victron AGM 4D batteries) and an isolated battery for the Kohler generator (GP31XT Lifeline AGM battery). The Kohler is used for the A/C units, the washer/dryer, heavy draw appliances and battery charging. Solar power is provided by three 360-watt panels on the upper hardtop and a 200-watt panel on the lower hardtop, along with a Superwind 350-watt wind generator to supplement the energy system.
Fuel System
The boat has two fiberglass fuel tanks, each holding 400 US gallons (1,500 liters), for a total of 800 US gallons (3,000 liters). A fuel manifold controls supply and return fuel for the engines and generator. The boat has a fuel polishing system and can transfer fuel between tanks. At 1,800 RPM, the fuel consumption is approximately 1.5 US gallons per hour per engine, providing a range of 1,700 nautical miles at 6.5 knots, or 3,000 nautical miles on one engine.
Fresh Water System
The boat’s water system includes 4 fiberglass tanks with a total capacity of 500 US gallons (1,900 liters). The Spectra Newport Mark II watermaker (12V) system with a monitoring panel in the pilot house, produces 15-17 gallons per hour and can be directed to the 3 larger tanks. A new 20-gallon Raritan water heater (2023) is located forward of the generator.
Sails and Rigging
Cetacea is equipped with hydraulic furling on both the genoa and mainsail. The main sail (2022) and genoa (2015, with limited sun exposure) are controlled by hydraulic switches at the mast and cockpit. The standing rigging was replaced in 2024 with stainless Dyform wire for the cap shrouds and standard 1x19 wire for the rest of the rigging. All winches were serviced during the 2024 refit, and the hydraulic fluid was replaced in 2023.
Safety Equipment
Safety gear includes a 6-person Viking RescYou Pro canister life raft (needs to be serviced), two GPS EPIRBs (ACR Global Fix and Jotran Tron), an ICOM 605 VHF radio integrated with the NMEA 2000 system for emergency DSC reporting, and 2 Standard Horizon handheld VHFs. The boat is equipped with fire extinguishers, CO2 alarms, bilge pumps, manual pumps, high-water alarms in key areas, and boat repair kits, as well as life preservers, man overboard devices, and US Coast Guard equipment. The navigation lights were upgraded to Aqua Signal LED masthead, side and stern lights as well as steaming and deck lights in 2019. There is a LED OPTO masthead lamp tri-color/anchor/strobe light (2024) as a spare. A Starlink Global Marine satellite/communications system is mounted on the aft hard top for both casual and emergency use and it supplies WI-FI to the boat.
Tender and Outboard
The boat comes with a new 2024 Highfield Hypalon 340 Classic tender, complete with chaps, deck cover, bow roller, seat cushion and ladder for snorkeling. The primary outboard is a 2009 Honda 20 hp 4-stroke engine, with a 2.5 hp 4-stroke Honda engine as a backup.
Electronics
The pilothouse features a breaker box controlling all instruments and lighting, protected by a Victron DC-to-DC 50A power source. The boat also integrates NMEA 2000-connected instruments for seamless navigation.
- Garmin GPSMAP 8416 Pilothouse
- Garmin GPSMAP 8412 Pilothouse
- Garmin GPSMAP 8416 Upper Bridge
- Garmin Fantom 24Xhd – 48 mile Radar
- Garmin Vesper Cortex with wired and wireless MICs
- Furuno SCX20 Satellite GPS
- Furuno Autopilot 711C with Simrad hydraulic pump with Pilothouse and Upper Bridge Controls
- Furuno FI-70 color instruments – 3 upper helm and 3 lower helm
- Furuno Wind machine with Actisense interface into NMEA 2000 system
- Airmar DST-810 depth, speed and temp transducer NMEA 2000 connected
- All instruments are interconnected via a NMEA 2000 network and work on various iPhone apps
Below is the final Vessel Survey performed in 2019 for insurance purposes and is a summary of MOST items performed during the NZ Refit.
SY CETACEA REFIT in Whangarei, NZ 2018/2019 ($450,000 USD)
Project Manager: Lighthouse Projects, Steve Eichler
Interior Throughout
Pilothouse
Fwd V-Berth
Starboard Berth
Fwd Head
Main Saloon
Galley
Service Room
Aft Stateroom
Aft Head
Engine Room – by Tim Brown, Sunny Marine
Hull & Topsides – by Simon Kristensson, Northland Marine Coatings
Stainless Steel – by Alloy Stainless & Marine Ltd.
Electrical & Battery Work – by Empower and MacKay Electrical
Canvass & Upholstery – by North Canvas
Miscellaneous Items
Rigging inspection by NZ Yacht Services.
Exclusions
The dinghy and outboard are excluded until the legal documentation process for transferring ownership outside of the U.S. can be confirmed.
Mechanical Disclaimer
Engine and generator hours are as of the date of the original listing and are a representation of what the listing broker is told by the owner and/or actual reading of the engine hour meters. The broker cannot guarantee the true hours. It is the responsibility of the purchaser and/or his agent to verify engine hours, warranties implied or otherwise and major overhauls as well as all other representations noted on the listing brochure.
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.
