>My wife and I am considering a Lord Nelson Victory Tug 37' as a possible vessel for us. ....What are the good and bad points? Years ago my wife and I decided a 37' Victory Tug would be the perfect boat for us. We liked everything about it. At the time, we couldn't afford anything, so the Victory Tug remained a "someday" dream for us. When we reached the position of actually being able to buy a trawler-type boat, our interest in the Victory Tug hadn't lessened, but even the older ones were too new for the prices to be in the neighborhood of what we were willing to pay for a boat at the time. So we decided on a much older Grand Banks 36 instead. We don't regret the decision at all, but not because our opinion of the Victory Tug has changed. We've met and talked to several VT37 owners, and all of them really like their boats. The boat is well built, has great lines aesthetically--a growing rarity these days-- a beautifully finished interior, and is very seaworthy and economical to operate. The only complaints, and they weren't really complaints, they were more "I wish," regarded the use of space on the boat and a few details. I've heard some owners express the wish there was more usable interior space on the boat as compared to boats of a similar length. I've heard an occasional "I wish it had a flying bridge," but with the elevated wheelhouse I guess you get more or less the same thing. I've heard people say "I wish it had a swim step." Now it may be that you can put a swim step on a VT37, but I have yet to see one. But without a swim step, the only option for carrying a dinghy is on the cabin top. This is not a big deal, as a lot of boats carry their dinghy on the cabin top. But there can be an advantage to a swimstep-mounted dinghy, and this doesn't seem to be an option with a VT37. There's a fair amount of wood to be taken care of on a VT37 in the way of trim and caprails and whatnot. Not as much as on an older Grand Banks, but a fair amount nevertheless. One pair of retired ladies we met the other year take their VT37 up the Inside Passage every summer. We talked to them at length about a number of things. They said they used to do all their own wood maintenance themselves, but got tired of watching boats in their marina heading out on a cruise while they were sanding and varnishing. So now at the beginning of the season they take the boat to a yard on Vancouver Island and have all the brightwork done professionally over the course of a few days. Then they head out on their trip. I've heard the opinion expressed that the VT37 is underpowered. Most of the earlier ones seem to have Yanmar diesels, the later ones seem to have Cummins. I believe a BMW diesel was offered, too, at some point, but I could be wrong about that.. In a full displacement hull I'm not sure any of those engines could be considered too little power. You're not going to get the thing to go much faster with a larger engine, so I tend to discount the "underpowered" opinion. And with fuel prices what they are and what they will be, burning 2-3 gallons an hour (or less) is a hell of a lot better than burning 10 or 12 or 20. With its high bow and pilothouse, the VT37 is more susceptible to being blown around by the wind than a boat with a lower profile. I don't know if bow thrusters are standard on the VT37, but I think I'd want one if they aren't. Not that you can't dock or depart without a thruster, but there are times, at least out here where strong currents combined with an adverse wind can make arriving or departing a challenge, a thruster can make life a lot easier. On the other side of the coin, the single propeller and rudder protected by the hull and keel are a big benefit in the waters here with their carpet of logs, deadheads, branches, lumber, kelp, and floating wads of eelgrass. I know you asked for opinions from owners. We aren't owners, but based on our observations and conversations, the 37' Victory Tug is a really neat boat. Of this type of pilothouse boat in this size range, it is a very close second on my "I'd like to own one" list after the Krogen. ______________________________ C. Marin Faure GB36-403 "La Perouse" Bellingham, Washington