Gunboat 48 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the used market for a Gunboat 48 means chasing a scarce but well-regarded performance cruising catamaran. Owner three-cabin layouts are the more common on the brokerage scene, though both configurations appear, and ex-charter examples are common. With just six hulls built between 2004 and 2009, any purchase is a low-volume, high-intent acquisition rather than a commodity trade.
Layouts on the Used Market
The dominant used configuration is the owner three-cabin plan: a pair of queen-berth staterooms plus a third single cabin, with two forward heads with showers in the respective hulls. A central bridgedeck saloon opens through a door to a forward cockpit where the sail-handling gear lives, and a roomy aft "back porch" gives access to dinghy davits. Ex-charter boats will typically show heavier wear in these high-traffic zones but follow the same footprint.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Most used 48s carry a strong passage-making kit. Power and energy systems commonly include a watermaker, heating, solar, an inverter, and lithium batteries, meaning a buyer can expect off-grid endurance without immediate overhaul. For canvas and sail handling, a code zero, self-tacking jib, asymmetric spinnaker or gennaker, electric winches, and a short-handed setup are commonly fitted, supporting reduced crew workloads. Navigation is usually covered by chartplotter, autopilot, radar, and AIS, while dinghy davits, a bow thruster, freezer, hot water, bimini, teak decks, and cockpit shower round out the comfort and utility clusters.
What to Inspect
The defining structural story is the oven-cured vacuum-bagged monocoque shell built from a foam sandwich with epoxy, biaxial and unidirectional glass, Kevlar, and carbon fiber, with carbon daggerboards, lifting rudders, stringers, ring frames, and crossbeams anchor. A survey should confirm the integrity of those carbon elements and the foam core after any charter service. The twin Westerbeke 35-horsepower diesels and the forward-cockpit rigging stations—Harken winches, blocks, and Spinlock clutches near the carbon spar—deserve close mechanical review, as does the Raymarine autopilot and the tucked-away engine controls just inside the forward door anchor.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
Typical market availability centers on Finland. For a buyer, the checklist is short but non-negotiable: verify the carbon structure and core, service the twin diesels, confirm the forward-cockpit sail-handling suite, and validate the owner three-cabin layout against ex-charter wear. A Gunboat 48 is a rare find; inspect it like the bespoke performance cat it is.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Gunboat 48. 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 | $1,421,598 | — |
| Apr 26 | 1 | $1,421,598 | 0.0% |
| Aug 26 | 1 | $1,483,714 | +4.4% |
Where they're listed
Gunboat 48 listings appear across 1 country. Finland has the most listings with 1.
Country view
1 listings · 1 country| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finland | $1,483,714 | 1 | 1 | 100.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
6 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robertson and Caine 48 | 48.39' | $ 495,000 | 140 | 38 |
| Swan 48 | 48.49' | $ 554,087 | 21 | 6 |
| Nautitech 48 Open | 48.13' | $ 1,141,733 | 12 | 0 |
| C-Catamarans 48 | 49.08' | $ 1,499,000 | 11 | 1 |
| Dufour Catamaran 48 | 46.59' | $ 667,714 | 10 | 1 |
| Gunboat 48You are here | — | $ 1,452,656 | 2 | 1 |