Sparkman & Stephens SHE 36 Buyer's Guide
The Sparkman & Stephens SHE 36 on the brokerage market is a 35ft 6in fibreglass cruiser-racer descended from a 1974–75 Three Quarter Ton design and built by South Hants Engineering. She began life as a racer and has since been refitted by many owners into a comfortable offshore cruiser, so the used boats you meet today vary widely in equipment and layout depending on how far each previous owner took that evolution.
Layouts on the Used Market
Two interior arrangements appear, but the owner three-cabin version is the more common on the brokerage scene, with both layouts still available to the patient shopper. Ex-charter examples are also common, so verify the history of any boat offered, as charter use can mean higher cycle counts on gear and interior wear even when the hull is fundamentally sound.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Used SHE 36s commonly carry a deep list of cruising kit. For power and energy, hot water, solar, inverter, and electric winches are commonly fitted, joined by a watermaker and air conditioning on many boats. Navigation and safety clusters lean on AIS, autopilot, chartplotter, EPIRB, and life raft, all commonly seen, with a short-handed setup frequently part of the package. Canvas and comfort usually include a bimini and cockpit shower. A buyer should treat these as baseline conveniences rather than upgrades, and judge condition over spec-sheet presence.
What to Inspect
The original gelcoat on the topsides is very thick, so look for that as a sign of an honest, little-rebuilt hull anchor. The bottom was stripped on at least one well-known example in 1998 and a new bottom applied, so ask whether any hull has had similar treatment and confirm the work. Owners converted from wheel to tiller steering to gain cockpit and lazarette room and reduce stern weight, so check which steering a specific boat carries and what it means for access. The one handling note from owners is a tendency to roll on a windy spinnaker run, manageable with twin headsails; this is not a defect but worth confirming you are comfortable with downwind technique.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
SHE 36s typically appear in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Italy, and Spain. For a shopper, the short checklist is: confirm layout (owner three-cabin most common), verify ex-charter history if relevant, check steering type and bottom refit records, and assess the commonly fitted cruising equipment as condition-based rather than value-adding. A fundamentally sound hull with thick topside gelcoat and a convertible interior makes a careful example a strong used-market cruiser-racer.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Sparkman & Stephens SHE 36. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 5 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 1 | $74,754 | — |
| Oct 25 | 2 | $49,000 | -34.5% |
| Feb 26 | 1 | $17,484 | -64.3% |
| Mar 26 | 1 | $40,223 | +130.1% |
| Aug 26 | 1 | $28,012 | -30.4% |
Where they're listed
Sparkman & Stephens SHE 36 listings appear across 4 countries. Australia has the most listings with 2 (33.3%), followed by United States and Spain.
Country view
6 listings · 4 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | $34,117 | 2 | 1 | 33.3% |
| United States | $49,000 | 2 | 0 | 33.3% |
| Spain | $17,484 | 1 | 0 | 16.7% |
| United Kingdom | $74,754 | 1 | 0 | 16.7% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
3 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nicholson 36 | 36.25' | $ 29,000 | 16 | 1 |
| Sweden Yachts 36 | 36.1' | $ 72,500 | 9 | 5 |
| Sparkman & Stephens SHE 36You are here | — | $ 44,611 | 6 | 1 |