Design and Construction
The hull is solid fiberglass with a moderate fin keel and skeg-mounted rudder, a configuration that delivers reasonable light-air performance despite a modest sailplan. Lead ballast is dropped into a molded keel cavity and heavily glassed over, with the weight concentrated low; the resulting 42% ballast-displacement ratio makes her reasonably stiff by any measure. Some hulls were built under Lloyds survey, though not all, and Nicholsons used isophthalic polyester resin for the gelcoat. Shroud chainplates are heavy stainless "hairpins" bolted just inboard of the low bulwarks at what would be the beam shelf in a wooden hull, and Lloyds approved the installation. The low bulwarks themselves lend an enormous sense of security under sail, while wide side decks and a cabin-trunk grab rail on each side aid movement forward.
Rig and Handling
The rig is a simple masthead sloop with double lower shrouds and single airfoil spreaders, carrying a tapered anodized Proctor spar foamed inside to deaden sound. Working sail area splits almost evenly between foretriangle and mainsail. Early boats used roller-reefing booms while later ones adopted slab reefing; halyard winches sit on the mast, and most early examples had winches adequate for hoisting but too small for easy masthead access. Standard jib sheet winches are Lewmar 40s or 43s. The mainsheet traveler bisects the cockpit just forward of the wheel, requiring you to step over it to reach the seats. Her PHRF of about 156 places her some six seconds per mile slower than an Ericson 35-2 but roughly 20 seconds quicker than some contemporaries, marking her as a steady cruiser rather than a racer.
Accommodations
Below, the boat is a serious cruiser's interior. All berths carry lee cloths as standard — unusual even on American boats sold as offshore-capable. The forward cabin has V-berths with unusual foot room that don't narrow to a point, though ventilation there is poor and a vertical chain pipe between berths on many boats limits any double-berth conversion. A full-width head follows, then a U-shaped dinette to starboard with a permanent drop-leaf table. Early boats used white melamine bulkheads lending austerity; later ones gained teak veneer, and later tables sit on a heavy tubular aluminum base bolted to the sole. The original straight settee with outboard pilot berth was deleted on many boats to widen stowage. Headroom exceeds six feet throughout, and long main-cabin windows keep the interior bright. The galley has a small sink, a five-cubic-foot icebox outboard of it, and a standard gimbaled two-burner Flavel propane stove with oven, though the 10-pound propane supply is meager. A nav station sits at the port after quarter in two layouts: aft-facing (using the dinette, deleting the quarterberth for an extra locker and adding a raised watch seat by the companionway) or forward-facing (using the quarterberth).
Cockpit and Deck
The cockpit is voluminous and deep, giving excellent protection from seas and spray, though the seats are short with a high vertical coaming that limits comfort. A molded-in dodger coaming — similar to S&S-designed American boats like the Tartan 37 — is a standout feature, and the companionway hatch slides on Tufnol runners. A bridgedeck protects the companionway, but the high coamings could let the cockpit fill nearly to the hatch top in a severe pooping. Later boats added flapper-protected transom pipe scuppers alongside the large cockpit scuppers. Exterior wood is minimal: a teak caprail, grab rails, and plywood cockpit seats, with teak decks an uncommon option. Molded non-skid is only so-so.
Engine and Systems
All engines are diesels. Early boats used the Perkins or Westerbeke 4-107, recognizable by a prop shaft exiting the keel's aft end and driving through a hydraulic unit rather than a gearbox; the engine faces aft under the bridgedeck with the pump on its back and the hydraulic motor in the bilge aft of the main cabin. Later boats adopted a smaller Westerbeke L-25 or marinized Volkswagen Rabbit with a conventional exposed shaft, strut, and V-drive mounted further aft. Access is poor in either layout, though V-drive quarterberth boats allow front access through the berth. The tank holding diesel is a fiberglass molding that was glassed into the hull after the layup, with capacity of 33 to 40 gallons. Early boats carried two 90 amp-hour batteries; later ones upgraded to 128 amp-hours each with a 60-amp alternator. The molded water tank beneath the main-cabin sole holds about 70 gallons and vents inside the hull; early boats filled it from inside with no deck fill.
The Verdict
The Nicholson 35-2 is a thoughtfully engineered medium-displacement cruiser whose strengths lie in structural conservatism, seakeeping, and a genuinely offshore-minded interior. Weaknesses cluster around engine access, cockpit ergonomics, and some early-system quirks that a buyer should budget to update.
Pros
- Stiff, low-ballasted lead keel with Lloyds-approved chainplate installation
- Deep, protective cockpit with molded dodger coaming and effective scuppering
- All-berths lee cloths, over-6-foot headroom, bright main cabin
- Early hydraulic or later V-drive diesel options, both with adequate tankage for coastal cruising
Cons
- Poor engine access in all configurations
- Short, uncomfortable cockpit seats with high coamings
- Poor forward-cabin ventilation; early inside-only water fill
- Meager 10-pound propane supply and small galley sink
