Beginner at sailing - advice on boats?

dscribner · May 4, 2010

Congratulations and welcome aboard!

We started sailing last year so we now know EVERYTHING! (Hah!) A friend of mine (James L Nelson, noteworthy historian and bestselling author of nautical fiction. Ask for him by name!) recommended this book to us. It has all kind of information on all kinds of boats in your range. I got it for $9 on Amazon.com. It is a very useful book. It's aimed at trailer sailors, like us (oh, yeah, that's me and my lovely bride) but it also has sailing theory and practice, knots, all sorts of stuff. It's highly recommended by Sailing Magazine.

Gotta go to supper but I'll be watching!

Fair Winds!

Don,

Biddeford, Maine

RECESS · May 4, 2010

Be careful of serious bargains. They can have many thousands of needed repairs that do not look like they are there to an unexperienced sailor.

If you are going to be trailering the 22s will be easier to rig than the 25s. The mast is more to handle with 25+ but can be done easily with a gin pole or other mast raising system. People that are not cautious raising a mast can easily damage the most expensive part of the boat. The nice thing about a 22 is the mast can be put up by hand instead of needing to be cranked up. I have put up our mast by hand on our 25 with a couple of friends but it is no fun for anyone. I love the O'Day 25 we have because of the interior room and the forgiveness of the boat. My wife loves the the space down below of the boat. It is also a very well supported line that is no longer in production. I can get anything for the boat at a reasonable price from Rudy at D&R Marine who owns all the molds for the boats. Choose the boat that has the least amount of work and the rigging is the best. You can end up spending thousands after the purchase on just odd and ends needed items for the boat to be solid.

This is me rigging our boat before a launch.

druid · May 4, 2010

Wow - $2000... I spend twice that on moorage every year.

My favourite of the boats you list is the Cal 25, but I wouldn't call it a trailerable - it's pretty heavy and has a big keel. I'd also be leery of the Bucaneer - they were pretty lightly-built boats and didn't sail all that well. The Chryslers weren't much better.

Which leaves the Oday's and the Hunters. Both would be decent, depending on condition. One thing: if your budget is really tight, don't go with the biggest you can find - every foot adds to the cost of EVERYTHING. So I'd go with the Hunter 22 or Oday 23. I'd also look out for a Catalina 22, or even a McGreggor/Venture 22. There's a Venture 22 in my neighbour's driveway that I think he picked up for under $1000, and it looks sailable (although could use a scrub, cut/polish/wax, some gelcoat work, new sails, new cushions...)

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Sailboats!
druid

RECESS · May 4, 2010

On a 22 the mast can usually be erected by one person, but it takes another to help secure it. You can rig both 22s and 25s to be raised and secured by a single person.

This is a typical mast raising rig.

http://slowflight.net/upgrades/tips-GinPole.html

druid · May 4, 2010

One other thing: when looking at ads, make sure they include a TRAILER in useable condition with brakes. Most of the ones I just looked at did not include a trailer for under $2000. An outboard motor is also pretty much a necessity.

druid

garylinger · May 4, 2010

I started sailing with an O'Day 22. I easily trailered it without trailer brakes (although they would have been nice). The mast, once I figured out how to do it, was very easy to put up by myself either on the trailer or on the water. It was a great daysailer and wasn't too bad for overnight for 2 people.

RECESS · May 4, 2010

Yes, but the price of a beginner's sailing class is so very inexpensive and you will learn much faster and be much safer. If you are going to be sailing by yourself, that is another aspect to consider when buying... does the main sheet and jib sheet go all the way to the cockpit?

Ross · May 4, 2010

Much smaller but still able to sleep two is the West Wight Potter at 15 feet. A quite capable boat that doesn't get enough press.

Prime Time · May 4, 2010

How to get started?

I would recommend that if you are a complete newbie, that you get a used sunfish and learn the basics. How to sail upwind, downwind, tacking , gybing, etc..Small boats are great for showing you what you are doing right or wrong. Once you have learned the basics, then think about buying a pocket cruiser. You also may start by crewing on other peoples boats. That is a great way to get plugged into the sailing community and benefiting from the experience of others.

kenn · May 4, 2010

piratenotions said:
I just checked those out. VERY cute boats. But even some that are 25 years old seem to be over my budget.

The 15' West Wight Potters are indeed cute. The 19' ones are also cute and bigger

. I've always found that the Potters are expensive. Their owners usually love them, but myself I haven't seen what would make them worth twice what our 19' boat cost.

Your budget of $2k isn't impossible, but it is tight, and boats in that range will almost certainly need some work. For reference, we paid just under $3k for our 19' boat, including trailer and motor.

(Geez, sell the jetskis and plough that money into a sailboat

)

I've always sailed and I took keelboat courses about 15 years ago, my wife is keen but her confidence and enjoyment shot up alot after she took a basic keelboat cruising course. Highly recommended.

sailingdog · May 4, 2010

First, I'd recommend Dave Seidman's book, The Complete Sailor.

Second, I'd recommend you read the boat buying inspection trip tips thread I wrote.

I would also recommend that you not buy a boat that is in need of any major work. It is far less expensive to buy the same model boat in decent shape than it will usually cost to buy the boat and refurbish it to that point.

piratenotions said:
Yes - my husband and I are wanting to get into sailing! We have always wanted to do it but just never did so would like to go for it. We have powerboats and jet skis but not a sailboat. Ive been looking at boats the past couple of days. Unfortunately our budget really and honestly needs to stay at 2000 or less. Ive got a trailer I can borrow if I can find one or the boat doesnt come with one. We want a boat we can learn on but also a boat that could sleep 2 people at least. What I have found in our price range is:

Chrysler 26 and 22 foot
Oday 25 and 23
Hunter 22 or 23 foot (which needs ports sealed and an engine but is priced cheap)
Cal 25
Bayliner Bucaneer that needs inside redone

Just some advice and opinions would be great! This boat would be sailed in an inland lake only.

BobM · May 4, 2010

Boat and trailer for $2K in 22-25 foot range?

Sorry, but it is a bit of a tall order. Trailers are typically custom fit to the boat. I agree with the others in that the bigger the boat the more difficult it is to set up and trailer sail, especially solo. I'd look for 19-22 feet with a swing keel or center board for good performance as well as easy launching and retrieval. Boat ramps usually are not designed with keel boats in mind. Living space in a small boat can easily be expanded via a boom tent. The biggest difference between a 19 and a 22-25 footer is bound to be whether or not you can deal with sharing a porta potty in the open cabin vs. a separate area.

O'day 19-22
MFG 19

San Juan 23 perhaps close enough (Moyock, NC) with a trailer and motor looking for a fast sale. This is a very nice choice too.

http://www.sailboatlistings.com/cgi...ault&uid=default&view_records=1&ID=12445&mh=1

sailingdog · May 4, 2010

Another good book is The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Boats, by Henkel.

This book discusses 360 boats under 27' LOA.

MrUnix · May 4, 2010

I have always found great deals on the sailboats I've owned.. but the key is to be patient. There are some fantastic deals, usually under rare conditions, but they are few and far between. And when you find one, jump on it or it will be gone before you know it. Keep looking and you will eventually run across one. Pay attention to completeness and added extras, since those will add up quickly if you don't get them at purchase.

A quick search for sub $2000 sailboats in TN turned up:

http://knoxville.craigslist.org/boa/1720808592.html
http://nashville.craigslist.org/boa/1718248404.html
http://nashville.craigslist.org/boa/1712936685.html

Cheers,
Brad

Beginner at sailing - advice on boats?

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