Blue Water Boat Survey

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Jun 10, 2006
79
Catalina 30 Boston MA
I am taking a survey to see what boats you all would purchase to use in open waters under the size of 40ft. Looking for opinions or facts about your choices. Would want a boat that I could sail from New England to Bermuda or even the Caribbean. Let me know your thoughts. Please include make, model, size and year if you would.
 

Rick D

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Jun 14, 2008
7,195
Hunter Legend 40.5 Shoreline Marina Long Beach CA
Wide Open Question

Honestly, I think any current production boat over 30' could do that trip. Probably most from the 70's too. It's all about preparation, proper equipment, weather monitoring and skipper/crew skill. Most of the 'blue water' design debates that rage on this board and others contemplate crossings from one continent to another, voyages for weeks to a month at at time in open water and in unsettled conditions. In any event, that's my take. We'll see what others have to say. Rick D.
 
Jun 19, 2007
77
- - Long Beach, CA
To each his own, but...

a well-maintained Tartan 37 would be a good choice, in my opinion. The newest of the "older line" is 1988; you can get one of the 70's-80's model years for < $80,000; the replacement line is the Tartan 3700, a fast cruiser; these are much more money b/c they are newer. A fast, quality yacht, with an impeccable reputation. Check them out at yachtworld.com. BEO
 
May 11, 2005
3,431
Seidelman S37 Slidell, La.
For your needs

For the type of sailing you are asking about, I would think most modern boats in the 35 to 40 foot range would do, assuming it is a very well maintained vessel. I have recently done some open water sailing on a new Hunter 36, and while quite capable, this model tends to pound some in head seas. May be the design, may be the way the owner has it loaded and the weight distribution. Crossed the Gulf last year on an Allied Mistress 39, which is excellent. And my own Seidelman 37, is quite capable. So lots of choices. And I am sure you will get many opinions. The Hunters and Catalinas are by far the most popular production boats available, and there is a reason for this.
 
Jun 7, 2007
875
Pearson- 323- Mobile,Al
Look at the sail calculator on the internet

Blue water is a hot topic on this board. Something like a Pacific Seacraft 37 would do the job nicely. Something like my Pearson 323 has made the trip. Someone will say that a Macgregor 25 can circumnavigate. Spring 2006 I sailed on a new Beneteau 35" I think. that was very tender and I wouldn't trust offshore. It was a beautiful boat!!!! But it was light and got knocked around a lot on Pickwick lake. With wave action I think that it would be dangerous offshore. In general light beamy boats aren't comfortable or particularly safe offshore. Narrow heavy boats tend to give a better ride. The sail- calculator has hundreds of boats and will even search for boats with particular characteristics. A google search for sail calculator will give you the site. Roger Marshalls book on sailboat design is an excellent palces to start. John Vigor also has a good book on bluewater boats...20 boats to take you anywhere..or something close to that is the title. I looked hard at a Tayana 37 which is generally considered a good blue water boat. But of course nothing can compare to a Mac 25 for bluewater use.
 
Jun 9, 2004
165
Hunter 37-cutter San Francisco Bay
Hug the coasts and island hop

...and you could make most of that trip in almost anything. I saw college kids in a trailerable 24 ft sailboat in the Bahamas, and working your way south while watching the weather is doable. However, I'd want more substance and a solid boat with a keel. My (modified) Hunter 37 cutter could certainly do it safely, as could any number of older heavier boats from the 70s and 80s. Then there are boats like Westsails, smaller but made for the ocean. Me, I'd want some weight and a longer waterline for comfort. S.L.
 
May 31, 2004
858
Catalina 28 Branford
Wide Open

It's difficult to give advice without knowing more about your preferences and budget. That leaves me with only one option: to give you advice based on my preferences and budget. I can only afford older boats, so I would be tempted to go with the Allied Seabreeze, a 35' cutaway keel/centerboard boat. Other choices: the Swiftsure (35') and the Pearson Alberg 35. Old fashioned, full keel, not too fast in light airs, beasts in reverse? Sure, but real bluewater boats, and you can get any of them fully renovated and tricked out for about 20k. Oh, they are beautiful boats.
 
R

Roberto

OLD vs NEW

I don't know. What do you all think is best an OLD heavy boat from the 70's or 80's or a NEW "production" boat SAME SIZE?
 
Jun 7, 2007
875
Pearson- 323- Mobile,Al
Willian:: A surprise with the Marion-bermuda race

Wow I looked at the lists and was surprised to see no hunters or catalinas in the boat lists. Several Beneteaus??? No Pearsons... You would think that sailers who enter that race would know something about boats. I will take another look at the Beneteau Oceanis series. J boats were also well represented. Searching for race boats may bias the results but probably is a valid way to look at boats suitable for blue water use.
 
Aug 21, 2006
203
Pearson 367 Alexandria, VA
Offshore Characteristics of the Pearson 365 /367

I choose Sea Dragon with that in mind below are some my thoughts on the offshore characteristics of the Pearson 365/367. Being the nerd I am, I have a tendency to start with the numbers. The book “Desirable and Undesirable Characteristics of Offshore Yachts” by the Technical Committee of the Cruising Club of America is good read on this topic and talks about construction, features, and other considerations of an offshore or blue water boat. The committee’s number one concerns revolved around capsizing. They focused first a boat’s resistance to capsizing and second a boat’s ability to right itself should it capsize. To this end they offered up several numbers to consider CSF & AVS. Capsize Screen Formula (CSF) The capsize screening formula is a somewhat controversial figure. It came into being after the 1979 Fastnet race in England where a storm shredded the race fleet. The Cruising Club of America (CCA) technical committee analyzed race boat data and came up with this formula to compare boats based on readily available data. A lower value is supposed to indicate a boat is less likely to capsize. a value of 2 is taken as a cut off for acceptable to certain race committees. However this is an arbitrary cutoff based on the performance of boats in the '79 Fastnet. The CSF takes no account of hull shape or ballast location. The CCA characterizes the formula as "rough". But still one of the most commonly used factors for comparing boats The Pearson 365’s CSF is 1.76 Angle of Vanishing Stability (AVS) This is the resistance to capsize and heel. One of the best predictors of ultimate stability is the "angle of vanishing stability" or the angle to which the boat can heel and still right itself. A dingy will have a stability range of about 80 degrees, an inland water boat should have a stability range of 100 degrees, and an offshore boat of at least 120 degrees. Boats which have a stability angle of less than 140 degrees may be left floating upside down once capsized. Boats with a higher angle will usually right themselves. The Pearson 365’s AVS is approx. 150 Finally, the Displacement to Length Ratio (D/L) D/L Ratio is the displacement to length ratio. This indicates if the boat is a heavy cruiser (results greater than 325) or a light displacement racing boat (results less than 200). Traditional wisdom called for offshore cruising boats to have a D/L closer to 300 than 200. The Pearson 365’s D/L is 293 Next the committee talked about steering and rudder design. After capsizing the next most important issue was loss of steering due to rudder failure. The committee felt that keel or skeg hung rudders were preferred for offshore boats. Pearson’s rudder is skeg hung. Now for some of my thoughts on the construction of the Pearson 365. Anyone that has had their rigging replaced will already know that it is heavier than the rigging on similar size boats… Nice Next, both the hull and deck are heavier than similar boats. Nice The boat is built with a liner that is well tabbed to the hull and has a solid bulkhead separating the cabin from the engine area. Once again. nice. The hull to deck joint has already been discussed and while strong enough could be improved by through bolting with screws and bolts not sheet metal screws. Another area of concern is the installation of the ports and hatches. Both the hatches and the ports on Sea Dragon are not through bolted but held in place with sheet metal screws and adhesive. I would suggest that through bolting with screws with nuts would be an improvement in construction… Also better quality ports would be in order for Sea Dragon. Next the cockpit. The cockpit could use a second set of drains aft, also mentioned in this thread. Next the lockers are not water tight by any means and should the vessel roll or be hit with a large wave there is a chance that large amounts of water could/would enter the boat. So sealing the lockers would be good move. Other weak points on the boat are the sump in the keel and the anchor locker… First there is the issue of the deep sump in the aft portion of the keel.. This strikes me as an area that is at risk and should be filled in some way.. Next there is no water tight compartment in the bow…. A simple and reasonable modification would be to modify the anchor locker so that it becomes a water tight compartment should there be a collision. Just my thoughts for what it is worth. Garner _________________ Sea Dragon http://www.sailingseadragon.com/index.htm 1981 36 Cutter (367)
 
Jun 19, 2007
77
- - Long Beach, CA
In the words of Bill Shaw...

I remember reading somewhere along the way, a "no apologies" cruising yacht. The Pearson 365 is not a racer/cruiser, cruiser/racer, or dockside dinning yacht-- it's meant to go to sea, period. They're great boats. BEO
 

muised

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Aug 17, 2005
97
- - Halifax, Nova Scotia
Douglas 32

Just bought one this year - mostly based on research. My first trip was 355 miles in May along the Nova Scotia coastline. I am very happy with the boat and it is very seaworthy. I happen to know there is one in the Boston area for around $15K for sale - original owner hull #1. There are only about 80 boats known to have been built. You would not regret getting one and spending the money to update it. Check out www.douglas32.com . Check out the specs for any boat at http://www.image-ination.com/sailcalc.html .
 
C

Clyde

Tayana 37, a Robert (Bob) Perry design

"There are more Tayana 37’s cruising offshore than an other single design according to George Day, the Editor of BLUE WATER CRUISING." The noted Northwest sailboat designer, Robert (Bob) Perry, designed the Tayana 37. It's like the old TIMEX commercial, "It can take a licking and still keeps on ticking", the Tayana 37 is built for circumnavigation or sailing where help isn't readily available and your vessel must be able to survival a knockdown or rollover. "Seaworthiness is the sum of all the factors which make a boat able to remain at sea and survive about anything that comes along. The hull must be strong and tight, the deck structures must be able to withstand the pounding of boarding seas, and the deck openings must be located so that the boat cannot be flooded, even in a knockdown. The rig must be strong against failure in severe weather conditions, and even survive knockdowns and rollovers, God forbid. The ballast must be secured so that it cannot shift under any circumstances. So, seaworthiness is a condition brought about by combining many strong features into a strong whole, and cannot be conjured up simply by a designer drawing the right lines on paper." Quote by the late Joel White, one of the best American ship designers. The term "Bluewater" boat is a vague term. It used to mean a seaworthy offshore design that was strong enough to withstand the pounding of a storm. Now days it could mean a fast light to medium displacement fin keel spade rudder sloop. Selecting an offshore sailboat is usually based on personal preference and intended use. Long distance cruisers sailing short-handed, tend to prefer full-keel sailboats instead of deep fin keel sailboats because they spend most of their time sailing hours on end in the open ocean without tacking. If you are going to spend more time near shore and doing a lot of tacking and sailing to windward, then a fin keel or shoal draft keel sloop will be more maneuverable then a full-keel sailboat. If you plan on staying at a marina where you can recharge your batteries, you can get all the electrically powered gadgets to make it easy to sail shorthanded. Most long-range cruisers limit their dependence on electrical gadgets, because if it fails they might not be able to fix it or be near civilization to get the parts to fix it; they try to keep it simple. Most conventional extended offshore cruisers don't have the "Sugar Scoop" transoms. When running in heavy seas a traditional canoe transom like the Tayana 37 provides sufficient volume for reserve buoyancy allowing the stern to effectively become your bow while running before a storm. A sugar scoop transoms found on light to medium displacement sloops, while allowing easy access for swimming and boarding a dinghy, will submarine and be swamped by a following wave in a storm. Most traditional extended offshore cruisers limit the cross-sectional area of their portholes and hatches to limit the amount of water that can enter if a boarding wave hits the vessel. The modern light to medium displacement sailboats have "Picture Window" or portlights to allow more natural light below decks. Most traditional extended offshore cruisers have sea berths with Lee cloths since they will be sailing 24/7 even in heavy weather. During heavy weather sailing, it's impossible to sleep on the wide "Queen" size beds on the production light displacement sailboats. Most traditional extended offshore cruisers have small cockpits; it's easier to brace yourself during heavy weather. Most modern production sailboats have wide cockpits to entertain their guest when they are not sailing. The bottom line, you have to find a sailboat that fits the type of sailing you are comfortable with. You can find a full-keel ketch that's perfect for offshore, but it's slow and doesn't point as well as a sloop and is less maneuverable in the close quarters of a marina because it's meant to be sailed on the open ocean for hours on end without tacking. You can find a fin keel spade rudder sloop that handles like a sport's car when compared to a full-keel sailboat, but it will be pounding the hell of out of you in the open ocean if you get caught in really bad weather. A fin keel spade rudder sloop is faster than a full keel skeg hung rudder sailboat and with proper weather planning you can avoid the bad weather. Sailing down from New England to Bermuda or even the Caribbean doesn't require a true offshore designed sailboat. Most modern production fin keel or shoal draft sloop would work, since you are near the East Coast and within range of a safe harbor. If you are interested in the Tayana 37, you can checkout the Tayana owners group. Fair Winds, Clyde Tayana owner's group http://tognews.com/
 

Rick D

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Jun 14, 2008
7,195
Hunter Legend 40.5 Shoreline Marina Long Beach CA
Um, Clyde...

...with all repect to the editor, with less than 600 produced, and figuring no more than 50% cruising, I don't believe it is possible that there are more T-37's "blue water cruising" than any other design. Of course, that's just a guess, but it would seem impossible from the numbers. That was a very nice recap of the considerations and design of the 37; hat's off to you. Of course, as you point out, blue water cruising design is an evaluation with very different conclusions, opinions and biases. You did a nice job representing the pluses of this design. I'd prefer something else, but that's what makes the world go 'round, huh? Good sailing, Rick D.
 
Jun 10, 2006
79
Catalina 30 Boston MA
Whats your opinion Rick?

Rick that is why I posted this blog to get all aspects of what people think and or like. What boat do you think is best suited for off shore sailing? Thanks Clyde
 
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