Design and Construction
Zaal's hull measures 10.36 meters overall with an 8.41-meter waterline, a 3.40-meter beam, and a 1.75-meter draft. At 7.4 tonnes displacement with 3.2 tonnes of ballast making up roughly 42 percent of the weight — testers called it a whopping 43 per cent ballast — the boat carries real heft for its length anchor. That mass is not dead weight: the enormous weight of 7.4 tonnes provides a lot of momentum and therefore also more speed when you steer anchor. The hull and deck are built from thick polyester solid laminates with no cored structure below, and Contest's boats were and still are built under Lloyds supervision anchor. The keel section including skeg is glued into a watertight recess, and the floor assembly including keel and skeg were laminated separately before being glued into an inwardly watertight recess in the hull and broadly laminated over anchor. There are no keel bolts, and the connecting surface between keel and hull is huge, with the keel itself filled with lead ballast, iron filings and polyester resin thickened with Portland cement anchor. A circumferential seam on the hull was filled with polyester filler, and the typical Contest teak rubbing strakes finish the topsides anchor.
Rig and Handling
The Contest 34 is a masthead sloop carrying a 26.0 square-meter mainsail and a 125 percent furling genoa of 35.0 square meters. The mainsheet travels on the bridge deck, while large genoa winches sit on the coaming within easy reach of the helmsman. Steering is by a very direct, but also completely unfeeling mini steering wheel, and owners report great directional stability under way anchor. The cockpit itself is spacious, but also easy to use under sail, a combination that serves short-handed cruising well anchor.
Accommodations
Below, the engine is positioned far forward, leaving the accommodation aft largely quiet. The port-side galley holds a cooker and oven, fridge and sink, while saloon benches run on both sides with a large navigation table opposite. A passageway into the foredeck sits offset to starboard, and a folding door next to the chart table opens into the aft cabin, which may only be 1.52 metres high at the door yet gives 1.66 metres of headroom within anchor. The aft cabin holds a bunk on each side: the port berth is 1.05 metres wide by 1.93 metres long, the starboard only 67 centimetres wide but 2.03 metres long. Ventilation comes from a small hatch to the cockpit. Forward, the foredeck bunk is genuinely big — two metres long and 1.80 metres wide at shoulder height. Headroom runs 1.93 to 1.97 metres in the saloon and as much as 2.05 metres in the wet room under the hatch, where the standing area measures 0.95 by 0.80 metres. Buyers could choose teak or mahogany surfaces for the interior anchor.
Known Issues
Two structural notes matter for any survey. Osmosis can occur on the Contest 34, though problems with softened core materials are not known with old boats anchor. More specific is the circumferential seam: the polyester filler in that seam absorbs moisture and crumbles out over the decades anchor. Designer Dick Zaal recommends simply sanding down the seam and then sealing it with epoxy filler anchor. The period gas-fired instant water heater poses a carbon-monoxide hazard on board and should be taken out.
Refits and Ownership
The standard engine was a 25-horse diesel, though the tested boat carried Volvo's MD 17C, a single-circuit cooled unit still running at 42 years old, with other examples fitted with a Volvo rated 27 kW (36 hp) anchor. Hot water originally came from the gas instantaneous heater noted above. The thick solid laminate and boltless keel structure make for a straightforward ownership case where the principal watch items are the seam and any osmotic blistering.
The Verdict
The Contest 34 is a heavy, well-structured Dutch cruiser that trades sparkle for steadiness. Its separate-laminated, glue-bonded keel structure and Lloyd's-supervised solid glass build give a buyer real confidence in the hull, while the accommodative layout — particularly the vast foredeck berth and usable aft cabin — suits two couples or a family on passage. The chief caveats are age-related: the crumbling seam filler, possible osmosis, and the hazardous original water heater.
Pros
- Thick solid polyester laminates in hull and deck, Lloyd's-supervised construction
- Huge glue-bonded keel-hull interface with no keel bolts and lead-ballast keel
- Spacious, sail-friendly cockpit with bridgedeck mainsheet and coaming winches
- Large foredeck berth and separated aft cabin with standing headroom in saloon and wet room
- Strong momentum and directional stability from 7.4-tonne displacement
Cons
- Circumferential seam filler absorbs water and crumbles with age
- Osmosis can appear on the hull
- Original gas instantaneous water heater is a carbon-monoxide hazard
- Mini steering wheel described as completely unfeeling
