Seafarer 29

David in Sandusky · Mar 12, 2018

For a boat of this age, the key questions are:
- do you like her looks?
- do her sailing ratios meet your needs?
- do you and anyone who will sail regularly with you like the accommodations? This means getting into your bunk(s) and feeling good. And standing in the kitchen while you imagine making a meal. And sitting down at the table in the cabin as if to eat.
- What does the survey (negotiated as a condition of a purchase contract with the right to negotiate any issues it raises, or to walk away) say?

The engine sounds like a Yanmar SB8. In addition to the survey, I would have a diesel mechanic check it out. A 23 year old SB8 with mild compression issues drove our 7000 lb ‘77 h 27 h27 to about 4.5 to 5 knots in flat water. That was OK until it blew the head gasket. If it’s in good shape, I’d use it with a reserve for an upgrade to a 1gm or 2gm in my mind. Our like new 1gm10 drives our boat close to hull speed (6 knots). We got about 8 years out of the SB8.

Boats from the 70’s were mostly made with similar, generic systems, once the fiberglass was laid down. How well a boat has endured the years is usually more important than the original details.

shemandr · Mar 12, 2018

I sail on a Seafarer 23 or that vintage quite often. It is a pretty tired boat. The big issue for me is the keel. On the 23 it is an encapsulated keel meaning that the ballast is put into a fiberglass enclosure which is integral with the hull. If it were a bolted on keel I would probably not sail on it knowing the overall condition of the boat. Seafarers were made here on LI, I think in Huntington area. The 23 was modified by the original owner to remove the skeg hung rudder and replaced it with a transom hung rudder. It is a good sailing boat as I expect the 29 would be. They have reached their bottom value. Be aggressive about price. Whatever you think it's worth - it's worth less.

isaksp00 · Mar 12, 2018

I worked at the Seafarer factory in Long Island one summer in about 1970, a few years before that one was built. Check these:
The ones when I were there had the deck assembly glued to the hull with thickened epoxy, and the chain plates attached to u-bolts that went through the deck but were not attached to the hull. I can't tell from the photo how this one works, but it looks like the chain plates bolt to the side of the deck. Check that area and the toerail area, as if it is designed the same way there is a lot of stress pulling at that hull-deck joint.
From what I recall the portlights were rather cheap plastic of some sort with the white frames molded in, and the inner and outer parts were screwed onto the glass surface with some filler under the white frame part (that is, not through bolted). Seemed prone to loosening and leakage to me - so check the integrity of these. If the holes are a standard size I suppoe it might not be too hard to fix if ever required.

isaksp00 · Mar 12, 2018

Shemander - yes, the factory was in Huntington, If I recall it was on Park Ave near where it crosses the LI Railroad tracks - just north of that.

shemandr · Mar 12, 2018

We still see them around here. I don't know if they had much of a national distribution network.
The description of the UBolt chain plates on the 23 is accurate. I have to admit they are doing OK on the one I sail on. We did lose a lower shroud while hitting a wave once. The "Chainplate" held. There is no deck separation that I've detected. The liner is cracked in places from a couple of rough races in which I was glad to ride on another boat.

Roadking Larry · Mar 12, 2018

PotomacDaysailer said:
I am considering buying one, a 1976 model that appears to be in excellent condition. Current owner has done a great deal of work on her, selling because his wife has developed a phobia of heeling and he bought it with the idea they'd sail together.

I can't find much info on this boat besides the specs on sailboatdata.com. I saw a post on SBO about similar model, except with swing keel, named ROMA, featured on "Coastal Cruising With Hugh & Suze" blog.

Anyway the post mentions a 20 hp outboard auxiliary, but the one I'm looking at has 8.8hp Yanmar single-cylinder inboard. Is that enough power for a 6610 lbs. displacement boat?

Any further information on this boat, especially the fixed-keel model, would be appreciated.

That's a familiar looking place!

The 8.8 would be enough for the lake it's on now. Quite a few boats on Oologah have the single lung Yanmar and do just fine in any reasonable condition. Any questions shoot me a PM.

shemandr · Mar 13, 2018

Congrats! Enjoy lots of good sailing.

Roadking Larry · Mar 13, 2018

Welcome to Oologah Lake!

MitchM · Mar 13, 2018

seafarers are good tough boats. watch the ports for signs of leakage. after 30 years we had to re seal the deck hatches, not a bad job once you figured out the bolts were different lengths around the hatch perimeter and the hatch rubber seal was still avaible in decent quantity. mast lights needed to be re wired . in the olden days 10 hp was the rule for a boat that size.now the rule is engine hp of 2x or more the gross tonnage so a 15000 boat gets a 30 horse or more.

isaksp00 · Mar 16, 2018

Enjoy it!

py26129 · Mar 16, 2018

Congratulations. We had a YSE8 on our previous boat which displaced 6000lbs as per the builder. It had no problems pushing that boat, even when loaded at between 5 & 5.5 knots. on our vacation, every year it would get a workout going up the St. Lawrence, against the current and the prevailing winds often running for 30 hours. It never let us down and, if maintained will be reliable as a stone.

Matt

Roadking Larry · Mar 16, 2018

PotomacDaysailer said:
Well she is now officially mine! I have updated my profile accordingly.

ya spelled Oologah wrong

Roadking Larry · Mar 17, 2018

Hope you had a good first sail on the new boat this afternoon.

Roadking Larry · Mar 17, 2018

Glad you had a good time. I think you'll enjoy sailing on Oologah. The sailors here are a damn fine bunch of folks. Looking forward to getting my medical issues resolved and being back out on the water with you.

Seafarer 29

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