Cherubini 48 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the brokerage market for a used Cherubini 48 means looking at a 48-foot sailboat from John E. Cherubini's early-eighties design work, built by Cherubini Boat Co. with a solid fiberglass hull and lead ballast. She is a heavy, narrow offshore cruiser rather than a light-displacement coastal weekender, and the used boats reflect that original brief.
Layouts on the Used Market
The 48 carries a 44-foot waterline and 13-foot beam, with an attached rudder and a draft near 5 feet 9 inches that keeps her in most marina depths. Her slender hull—narrower than 82 percent of similar designs—and 42 percent ballast ratio mark her as a steady voyager, not a voluminous charter hull. The early-eighties Cherubini Boat Co. construction is fiberglass hull, with the period deck and cabin approach of that builder's pre-Mark II era. The 90-gallon diesel and 130-gallon water capacities are part of the cruising layout's self-sufficiency.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
On the used market, teak decks and an EPIRB are commonly fitted to these boats, the kind of equipment that matters for both appearance and safety offshore. Beyond those, the available record does not itemize a long owner-upgrade list, so a buyer should assess each boat on its own rig and systems. The original rig specs are substantial: a 63-foot mast, roughly 1,218 square feet of sail, and running rigging sized at 5/8-inch diameter with jib and genoa sheets near 48.8 feet and a mainsheet of 121.9 feet. A buyer should confirm the sails and sheet runs are serviceable rather than assume modern upgrades.
What to Inspect
The bottom area of about 592 square feet warrants careful hull inspection for blistering or poorly executed bottom work, since that area is large to maintain. Confirm the long-keel hull-to-deck joint integrity and the attached rudder bearing, as these are load-bearing and age-prone on a 40,000-pound boat. Check the lead-ballast encapsulation and the immersion behavior—about 1,992 pounds per inch—under any added cruising load.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
Cherubini 48s are typically found in the United States market. For a buyer, the takeaway is straightforward:
- Expect teak decks and an EPIRB as common factory or early fitted equipment
- Verify rigging sizes and sail condition against the original 5/8-inch, 48.8-foot sheet spec
- Survey the 592 sq ft bottom and keel/rudder structure closely
- Budget for antifouling and haulout on a large bottom area
- Value her comfort (more than 85% of similar designs) and directional stability for offshore use
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Cherubini 48. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 2 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 1 | $195,000 | — |
| May 26 | 1 | $195,000 | 0.0% |
Where they're listed
Cherubini 48 listings appear across 1 country. United States has the most listings with 2.
Country view
2 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $195,000 | 2 | 0 | 100.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
2 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hans Christian 48 | 47.83' | $ 248,228 | 7 | 2 |
| Cherubini 48You are here | — | $ 195,000 | 2 | 0 |