As an owner of both a stabilized 58MY and a non-stabilized 48LRC I am sharing this for the benefit of all who read this post to provide some balance to the responses which so far make it seem your cannot take a 48LRC out of the slip (or even in the slip) without peril. Very far from the truth. I will confess I feel like some of you are calling my baby ugly. Everyone of course is entitled to an opinion but unless you have first hand knowledge and have operated a 48LRC extensively I hope the comments will be taken in perspective. I have had a direct discussion with the OP so these comments are for the benefit of the wider forum and anyone considering a 48LRC in the future.
No one has asked the question about the mission of the vessel. I have run my 48 LRC without stabilizers from SF to San Diego and back as well as multiple SoCal coastal trips in a variety of conditions.
It absolutely would be a better ride with stabilizers. If I were spending 30-50% of my time on the open ocean I would invest the $75K +/- to add them. But when I purchased mine it had the original gyro gale system was 40 years old and needed at least $25K in repairs. I decided to have them removed at the yard and then run it for awhile to see if the investment and continued maintenance would be worth it (TO ME).
My first trip was southbound SF to SD. We had some rough conditions but nothing over 6 feet. Very happy with the ride of the boat.
Regarding rolling at a dock or on anchor:
I spent 4 years docked along a 49 DeFever and can assure you that not only was my Hatteras very stable but much more so than the DeFever. So stories of a 48 LRC having some crazy long term roll are not consistent with my experience. Maybe if light on fuel and water and a heavy dinghy on top the roll might be more pronounced but generally there is so much weight low on this boat that when it does roll it slows and stops pretty quickly. The DeFever was more tender (although nothing crazy) and the owner refused to even take it out in the SD Bay when his stabilizers were out of commission. On a run to Catalina they were traumatized and conditions were what I would consider "not bad". I nran a mainship 39 down the coast in similar conditions. What I noticed on this was the rolling was much more uncomfortable as it was a "snap" roll. Really annoying vs. the more gradual roll of that "round bottom" 48LRC.
I have also spent plenty of time on moorings at Catalina. It can be rolly there and when it is everyone is uncomfortable unless you have a SeaKeeper. The 48LRC was better than some
My Hatteras 58EDMY was stabilized and in rougher water they made a huge difference. That boat was very uncomfortable in a following sea even with stabilizers.
I was out in 8-10 foot mostly beam seas in June for a total of 12 hours. It was NOT a fun ride. Never felt unsafe and we had everything secured but far from pleasant. However the real impact of these types of conditions are felt when you adjust angle (which you would also do in an unstabilized boat) and then you are subject to more of a pitching motion with roll still significant. I was happy to have the mass of the boat and the high bow. I was even happier to get out of that rough water. This was a delivery trip so I could not wait what probably was another week for the Pacific to flatten to 2-4 feet.
Truth I’ve watched LRC’s tied to the dock rolling when all the other boats in the marine were still
OK very different from my experience. Based upon 4 years side by side in a slip with a 49 DeFever and also many nights on moorings at Avalon. How can this be true? The 48LRC has a massive amount of weight down low and a huge beam. Maybe if tanks are nearly empty and you have a big heavy Boston Whaler on top?
I have spoken to the OP directly so no need for me to go into detail but bottom line it is a fantastic cruising boat stabilized or not. Like most boats stabilizers will improve the comfort but not needed for safety on the 48LRC in any "reasonable" conditions.
If cruising in rough water a lot you might really find value in stabilizers. But for the occasional wakes discussed here you are paying a significant price. That may or may not matter to the owner.
If stabilized you need to run your genset which to me is a big negative. Also it costs fuel and adds to maintenance expense. All things being equal if I had 2 identical 48LRCs at the same price sure buy the stabilized version if you are willing to maintain them and use them enough. But generally you pay a premium for stabilization in the market and the 48LRC has a gentle rolling motion like most full displacement boats.