Dehler Duetta 86 Sailboats for Sale

Layouts on the Used Market

The Duetta 86 came in 'L', 'G', and 'A' versions, and the used fleet reflects that split. The 'L' shows a double berth under the foredeck with an L-shaped galley saloon and a cockpit to the transom. The 'G' trades the foredeck berth for interior lockers and a deck-accessed sail locker plus dog bunks. The 'A' slides the cockpit forward, adds a separate aft cabin with two singles, and lowers its saloon table into a large sunbathing platform. The 'S' suffix on any of these means more luxurious equipment — teak rubbing strake, teak in the cockpit, Treadmaster deck covering, and a gas cooker. Berths are sufficiently large and the saloon seats four around a rotating table; the WC room is very small on every layout.

Equipment and Common Upgrades

On the used market a Duetta 86 will commonly be fitted with a chartplotter, a self-tacking jib, and an autopilot. Heating is often seen. The 'A' version's hydraulic wheel and forward-sliding cockpit are original rather than upgrades, as is the variable sail plan. Engines in the fleet range from the robust Yanmar 2GM20 to alternative Farymann installations, with old single-circuit cooled units frequently at end of life. Where the teak rubbing strake has worn, plastic replacement is now the typical remedy rather than a period-correct teak refit.

What to Inspect

Documentation flags several areas a buyer should treat as red lines. Moisture must never have reached the balsa core, and hairline gelcoat cracks at the starboard dunnage have let laminate swell on the test boat. The mast base holds a wooden core damaged by leaking electrical plugs, and the self-turning rail ends show the same wood-swell-and-laminate-destroy path. Cockpit drainage relies on copper standpipes above the waterline with no sea valves, and the hull connection's durability is questionable; there are no seacocks on the cockpit drains. Rudder bearings wear and betray themselves by blade slap under engine power, while hatch rubbers, windows, and hatch seals age and leak. ABS deep-drawn parts — inner shell, washbasin, hatch garage — are no longer available and cannot be repaired, only rebuilt in GRP, and the original gas cooker has no replacement. The gelcoat chalks and the Treadmaster covering is labour-intensive if it loosens.

Availability and Buyer's Takeaway

Typical markets for the Duetta 86 are the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Italy, and the United Kingdom. For a buyer, the checklist is short but non-negotiable: confirm the balsa deck core is dry, trace the mast-base and rail-end wood for moisture damage, verify cockpit drain bonds and absence of seacocks, test rudder bearings for slap, and budget for ABS-part rebuilds and gelcoat repaint. A sound example rewards with a good-natured, protected cockpit cruiser and a spare-parts contact at the Großenbrode marina.