Corsair 31 feedback

JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,037
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
Might be looking at a Corsair 31 and I'm curious about any feedback? The ad is lacking in any details except rotating mast, which I really don't understand what that means. It also says Retractable Carbon Fiber Bowsprit , Kevlar/Carbon sails. Trailer included which makes it intersting to me.

Thanks
 
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Mar 26, 2011
3,399
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
...except rotating mast, which I really don't understand what that means....
Every beach cat, since the Hobie 14, has a rotating mast. Thus, my first assumption is that you have never sailed on a performance multihull.

This is a high performance boat. This is a boat that can be capsized in a breeze if you havn't been to multihull school. Are your SURE that is what you are looking for? Maybe it is. It also won't have much cabin space, not that much more than your Oday.
 
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JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,037
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
So no experience with multi hulls but I've had an intetest in triamarans for awhile. Don't need to make a change but saw an opportunity so figured it can't hurt to look and ask.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
Not sure if I want to own one but I sure would like to sail one.....:dancing:
 

JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,037
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
Yup I think it would be a blast, probably not the best boat for our area but the benefits would be additional stability for the wife and having the trailer to take to gulf coast on vacation would rock.

The person with the ad hasn't responded still so maybe it was an error or already sold. No big deal as I've decided when the right boat and price shows up that will be fine. We looked very hard and long at a new boat in FL but decided the commitment just wasn't there yet with the kids still at home.
 
Mar 26, 2011
3,399
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
Don't get me wrong. I LOVE Corsairs and they can be quite safe, reefed down. But powered up you need to understand their nature. Just look at my avitar; the lee ama is pretty well under in only ~ 12-15 knots of breeze. Of course, I'm reaching in the low- to mid-teens and loving it. I've had it out gusting over 30 knots, main only and reefed way down, and it wasn't bad.

Another option is to reef more than you technically need to. Yesterday I was out in a breeze, singlehanding at 9-14 knots. Fun but stressful after a while. After a while I just wanted to relax and take pictures, so I furled the jib and sailed main only at 6-8 knots, without a care in the world. Reefed down she's not that fast, but she still faster than most, well-mannered, and quite weatherly. I often do that, just to relax. So it depends on what you want.
 

JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,037
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
Thanks, I've read the F-24 is wet ride, even the F-27 is pretty wet. I was really wondering about the 31 since it seems bigger and maybe more freeboard? We have some pretty low wind days around here but the gusting can get up fast with fronts coming over the mountains. The owner sent me an email, he seems to be having issues sending pics so trying another email. I might play skip work on Friday and head out to look at it if I can get some pics and description.
 
Jul 7, 2004
8,402
Hunter 30T Cheney, KS
If you think a Corsair31 is going to relieve your wife’s anxiety about sailing, you should reconsider. Those things scare me, require a very skilled crew.
We had a married couple in the club that had one. I don't think she really liked it much. They sold it and bought a sweet Oceanis.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
I have a Hobie 16 that I use when I just want to get an adrenaline fix. For cruising I use my H26. If a F31 is big enough for your purposes, then it might be a really fun compromise to having two boats. I guess it depends on if you want to do extended cruises or just short cruises and how many people need to comfortably sleep in the F31. I'm a family of 6 and almost always have at least 4 people on the boat... so the H26 will remain in my fleet for now.
 

JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,037
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
We are just day sailors, a trailer could improve that since we go to the Gulf and FL for vacations. My O'Day 25 is nice enough plus easy to sail and stress free. I've got an O'Day 272 LE with trailer on my radar and a MK III Catalina 30 also a few days of sailing up river from me too. The 272 LE looks nicely updated and maintained, the 30 will be a big boat for us and fit the family well but may be over kill for day sailing. This Corsair may just be too much boat, but the funny thing it is in between price wise of the 272 and Catalina 30.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
I went and looked at some interior pics of the F31. It looks like a family of 3 or 4 could do very well on a few short weekend cruises on this boat. How large is your crew? The nice thing about a fast boat is you can actually get someplace on a short weekend so short cruises can still be an adventure. You can also outrun some weather if you keep your eye on the radar apps.
 

JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,037
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
Our family is four, my daughter and I have got more use out of the O'Day 25 this year then my son and wife. The plan for next year is to have my wife and son take sailing lessons with club instructor as Dad is not a good instructor:) My daughter and I enjoy the old O'Day 25 but a few times out when the wind picked up we really had some fun then. It's nice to cover some distance on short trips for sure.

I pulled a lot of good info from http://www.f-boat.com/owners/ site, including inspection areas and issues.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
If I could afford one of those F37's.... I would buy it and never go to work another day of my life......
 
Jun 25, 2004
1,108
Corsair F24 Mk1 003 San Francisco Bay, CA
Might be looking at a Corsair 31 and I'm curious about any feedback? The ad is lacking in any details except rotating mast, which I really don't understand what that means. It also says Retractable Carbon Fiber Bowsprit , Kevlar/Carbon sails. Trailer included which makes it interesting to me.

Thanks
@John Tubb ,
You might try asking your questions about a Corsair 31 at the Farrier & Corsair discussion group at
https://fct.groups.io/g/main .

They're not scary and you don't need to be super skilled to sail one with a jib and main. You can do 10 knots in 10 knots of breeze in that boat, so you can reach destination in half the time of other boats. You will have roughly the same cruising range as a 45 foot cruising monohulls. You won't have as much room inside the cabin though.

We have a Corsair F24, and we have twice the cruising range that we used to have with our Catalina 27. The Catalina never went faster than about 7 kts. The Corsair F24 regularly hits 11-14 kts through the water in high winds, but it's dryer and more relaxing if we reef down to sail at about 8-10 kts. And we trailer with our SUV to distant cruising grounds a couple of times per year.

Yes, they Corsairs/Farriers can be wet, especially when doing double digit speeds in rough water. They are definitely not as dry as a boat with 4-5' of freeboard. You can minimize the spray by slowing down down by reefing. You don't have to sail at break neck speed if you don't want to. The boats are very docile when canvassed for lazy cruising. You can sit back and sail relaxed . They're very well behaved.

The Corsair 31 is trailerable, and it comes with a very good mast raising system. It's street legal at less than 8' wide. But raising that big mast is not a trivial exercise and you won't want to do it for day trips. You can either crane or ramp launch it, but at 22+' wide and around 5000 pounds, it's no daysailor!

Here's a review by Bob Perry.
https://www.boats.com/reviews/perry-design-review-f-31/

Have fun. Try sailing a Corsair or Farrier Trimaran soon to see if you like it. If the owner is a racer, tell him/her not to push the boat. You'll be very favorably impressed, I think, at what the tri's can do without pushing them,

 
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JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,037
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
Thanks @DrJudyB for the feedback. I read Bob Perry's reviews and the few others I found around. Farrier web site has some great details and info. I'm just waiting to hear back from the seller and see what we have.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
So there's a Corsair 31 that showed up on the Birmingham Craigslist this morning for $20,000.
Is that the one you're looking at? https://bham.craigslist.org/boa/d/corsair-31rs/6730135930.html
I figure it's a scam.
If he says it's sitting in his backyard here in Birmingham, then that's great -- I'll even drive by and take a quick look for you, but I have my doubts...
The two pics in that ad have different registration stickers. Might not mean anything except one of the photos is older.
 
Aug 3, 2012
2,542
Performance Cruising Telstar 28 302 Watkins Glen
I have not been inside the Corsair 31, but the F27 was a disappointment inside. No headroom, and I am only 5’8”... no room for the head, no room for a fridge, not much of a galley. They are light, so they will not handle nicely in a chop. Super fast, but very wet. Keeping it in the marina means having a T dock because you will not close the outriggers on the water. You can, but you won’t. They are not really made for it.
I agree that it is probably not going to ease your wife’s mind. They routinely fly a hull.