Bruce Roberts Spray 36 Buyer's Guide
The Bruce Roberts Spray 36 on the brokerage market is less a single production boat than a plan-built family whose members share a long-keel bluewater hull and a remarkable circumnavigation pedigree, but little else guaranteed. Designed by Bruce Roberts-Goodson in the 1980s as part of the Centennial Spray series, the type was offered in steel, aluminum, fiberglass, or wood-epoxy, with center-cockpit, trunk-cabin, aft-cockpit pilothouse, and poop-stern pilothouse layouts all documented. Shopping one means judging not a model year but a specific interpretation of the plans.
Layouts on the Used Market
The versions you will meet range from the standard center-cockpit and trunk-cabin boats to the 36 B pilothouse and the 36 C poop-stern, the latter noted as especially popular. Because the accommodation plans could be chosen and modified by the builder, berth counts and head placement vary; reference data suggests four to six berths in typical form, but a poop-stern build may carry both forward and stern heads with engine-room passage doors. The pilothouse and poop-stern variants are the ones to seek if all-weather helming or a sheltered aft cabin matters to you.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Owner builds diverged sharply on machinery and systems, so equipment is a negotiation point rather than a standard list. Power and tankage on one 36 C ran to a 48 hp turbo-diesel Bukh with four separate stainless tanks for diesel, fresh, black, and grey water — a layout worth checking for corrosion at welded seams. Sail-handling upgrades appear in the form of stretched decks carrying double self-stowing anchor rollers, and some boats were built or later fitted with toughened-glass pilothouse windows up to 10 mm thick. Beyond those, navigation and comfort fit-outs were left to the builder, so assess each example on its own merits rather than expecting a class standard.
What to Inspect
The known issues on this design are tied to its owner-builder nature rather than a production defect. Verify the specific construction method: steel examples should be checked for the integrity of any hot-metal aluminum spray coating, as one owner built in 4 mm steel with interior and exterior aluminum spray anchor. On fiberglass round-bilge boats, a foam-cored composite 36 C built like a tank demands close core-condition assessment. Examine window seals on pilothouse and poop-stern versions where 10 mm toughened glass was fitted, and confirm tankage integrity on boats with separate black and grey stainless tanks. Because the design can be lengthened or heavily modified, compare the actual deck length and rig to the plan you are buying against.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The used Spray 36 market in the United Kingdom is where these boats typically appear. For a buyer, the takeaway is straightforward:
- Identify the exact version (36, 36 B, or 36 C) and construction material before negotiating
- Survey the specific build method; steel coating and fiberglass core are the key risk areas
- Confirm layout matches your needs — heads, berths, and pilothouse are not uniform
- Check engine and tank fitment against the 20–33 hp auxiliary norm or any uprated installation
- Expect to complete systems and finishes; this is a plan boat, not a finished production class
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Bruce Roberts Spray 36. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 3 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 1 | $4,893 | — |
| Mar 26 | 1 | $2,718 | -44.5% |
| May 26 | 1 | $2,650 | -2.5% |
Where they're listed
Bruce Roberts Spray 36 listings appear across 1 country. United Kingdom has the most listings with 3.
Country view
3 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | $2,718 | 3 | 1 | 100.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
4 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rustler Yachts 36 | 35.33' | $ 101,937 | 30 | 8 |
| Creswell Marine 36 | 36' | $ 39,416 | 19 | 1 |
| Cape George 36 | 36' | $ 89,500 | 9 | 1 |
| Bruce Roberts Spray 36You are here | — | $ 2,718 | 3 | 1 |