Excess 14 Sailboats for Sale

Layouts on the Used Market

Owner three-cabin and charter four-cabin configurations are both commonly seen, with ex-charter examples a frequent presence. The charter layout runs four cabins with four heads and showers; owners' versions instead use a flexible starboard forepeak in place of a long bathroom, convertible to two singles, with a midships washroom and a desk area. Where a boat has two staterooms with two amidships heads, those toilets share a single holding tank and the cabins use one larger air-conditioning unit; a Transformer plan with fold-away forward bunks also exists. The saloon wraps nearly 360 degrees of window view with no full-height cabinets, and the aft cockpit keeps a clear central zone except the traveler beam; access to water or tender is from the aft hull platforms.

Equipment and Common Upgrades

Commonly fitted gear on the used fleet centers on self-sufficiency and shorthanded ease: solar, autopilot, electric winches, chartplotter, dinghy davits, inverter, AIS, bimini, lithium batteries, watermaker, radar, life raft, air conditioning, asymmetric spinnaker and a code zero. For a buyer, the power-and-energy cluster—solar with lithium banks and an inverter—determines whether the boat lives at anchor without a generator, though a front bridgedeck locker may house an optional generator. Sail-handling upgrades such as electric winches and a code zero on the sprit (bringing LOA to over 52 feet) matter more than creature tags; an electric Harken FlatWinder traveler and starboard helm winch were popular test-boat options. Navigation commonly includes chartplotter, AIS and radar, with Starlink a frequent owner addition rather than standard.

Often-seen but not universal are a code zero, washing machine, cockpit shower, spinnaker, Starlink, gennaker and hot water. Less common owner upgrades include a freezer, furling main, EPIRB, heating and a swim platform; some boats carry a transatlantic or circumnavigation history. The standard 45 hp diesels (57 hp optional) with saildrives remain the norm, and the shorter standard rig will just clear most Intracoastal Waterway bridges.

What to Inspect

The design's balsa core is divided into small resin-separated squares so localized damage should not spread, and the layup is monolithic at engines and keels; still, confirm any osmotic or impact repair history on specific hulls. Known in-service behavior shows wave tops gently slapping under the bridgedeck in 17–18 knots with steep onshore chop, and speed lost quickly if pointed high in a short steep sea—inspect the bridgedeck underside and forward locker seals for stress or water ingress. The helm has a large blind sector through the saloon windows, so verify the window mullions and any added mirrors or cameras. Check the color-coded headsail sheets and Dyneema rudder cables at the twin helms, and the shared holding tank and single air-con plumbing in two-stateroom hulls.

Availability and Buyer's Takeaway

These cats turn up across Croatia, France, the United States, Grenada, Martinique and Antigua and Barbuda. For a buyer, the checklist is short: confirm layout match (owner vs charter vs Transformer), verify the core and bridgedeck condition given the slap in steep chop, confirm the standard or Pulse rig height against bridge limits, and weigh generator versus solar/lithium sufficiency. A well-kept 14 rewards with light-air liveliness and roomy, weight-smart accommodations.