Help me pick my next boat

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Tim R.

Tim R.

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May 27, 2004
3,626
Caliber 40 Long Range Cruiser Portland, Maine
My wife and I will be moving aboard. We have not yet picked out the boat. Here are our criteria:

Boat buying budget of $200,000. $50,000 in reserve for upgrades, repairs, etc.
Live aboard comfort(aft cabin with centerline queen possibly)
Fast and ability to point well
Prefer solid hull but would consider cored
1985 or newer
Proven offshore record
Pleasing to the eyes(no ugly boats)
Monohull
No teak decks(if possible)
Skeg hung rudder(a must)
Keel depth 6'6" or less
Swim platform for loading the dog in the dinghy

More info:

We will be living aboard in Portland Maine for a few years doing upgrades, etc and learning the boats systems. Then we will go for a mini extended cruise up the Maine coast and the Canadian maritimes. Eventually we will head for Europe. We are not big fans of the caribbean but do like the Bahamas and may also visit Bermuda.

Of course we will have to compromise some of the points above and we do have some boats in mind. Let's see what you guys think.

BTW, I believe in buying the best boat I can so no $200,000 boat projects. I can do almost anything but even a boat in great shape will need updating.
 
Ed Schenck

Ed Schenck

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Jun 2, 2004
5,802
Hunter 37-cutter, '79 41 23' 30"N 82 33' 20"W--------Huron, OH
Does "fast" rule out Neil's IP suggestion? And curious why you are not considering a center cockpit. They seem ideal for living aboard.
 
Tim R.

Tim R.

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May 27, 2004
3,626
Caliber 40 Long Range Cruiser Portland, Maine
CalebD said:
Here is an idea Tim: http://www.nautorswan.com/Brokerage/tabid/80/ctl/Results/mid/814/Default.aspx?SkinSrc=[G]/Skins/NautorGroup/Base-1ColTopFix&ContainerSrc=[G]/Containers/_default/No%20Container

Disclaimer: not affiliated with this company.
Click to expand
That looks like a good one Caleb. What I do not like is the high bridgedeck. That cannot be safe in big seas.

Ed Schenck said:
Does "fast" rule out Neil's IP suggestion? And curious why you are not considering a center cockpit. They seem ideal for living aboard.
Click to expand
Ed, I did not stipulate aft or center cockpit. Most of the boats I have been looking at are CC. The IP would not be considered a performance cruiser.

I realize that I will have to concede some criteria but comfort and performance are high on the list.
 
Stu Jackson

Stu Jackson

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Feb 26, 2004
23,356
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Valiant, Caliber, Pacific Seacraft. The "aft cabin with centerline queen possibly" and "swim platform for loading the dog in the dinghy" are hard to get with "Proven offshore record."
 
sailingdog

sailingdog

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Oct 22, 2008
3,502
- Telstar 28 Buzzards Bay
Steal Maine Sail's CS 36T when he's done with this round of projects... ;)

Seriously, the CS 36T is a pretty solid boat and one that is well capable of doing what you want, but doesn't have the island queen berth you're looking for.

I'd point out that the skeg hung rudder is going to cut out a lot of boats.

Most of the IPs, Calibers, or other full keel designs are out, since they aren't fast. :D
 
M

MSter

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Apr 12, 2010
131
Sabre 38' MK II Oriental, NC
Watching for your decision

Hi all,
You may have sensed my presence over the last few months as I've been avidly reading the posts and learning from all of you. Maybe my nickname s/b "The Canadian Ghost ".
We ( wife and I ) very much want to join the sailing fraternity and are looking at boats at this time with much the same criteria that you have.
I'll be watching with great interest.
Best of Luck and keep the info flowing.
Mster
 
B

Barnacle Bill

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Jun 9, 2008
1,850
- -- -Bayfield
Most of the suggestions above for boats do not point very well. But, if you are going to sail in Florida or the Bahamas, you can't get a boat with a keel over 6.5 feet (and that is pushing it). Of course, deeper fin keels point the best. You seem to be putting a lot of emphasis on performance, which is fine (it is fun to sail fast boats, you get there faster and because you can point, you can take miles off. I would consider a J/Boat. They have s number of cruising boats that are quite comfortable, sail very easily and much faster than all of the boats listed above (not that any of them are bad boats - they just don'e sail fast or high to weather).
 
druid

druid

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Apr 22, 2009
837
Ontario 32 Pender Harbour
Re: Watching for your decision

Well, if your budget was a bit higher, I'd recommend my "dream" yacht, the Sceptre 41. You might get an older used one for $200K.

http://www.sceptremarine.com/sceptre41.htm

I'm not sure about the skeg, but they're a "fast motorsailer" which seems to be a contradiction... ;)

druid
 
jibes138

jibes138

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Jan 27, 2008
3,092
ODay 35 Beaufort, NC
get an Island Packet 465. A nice used one will do the trick.

I looked at a nice Han Christian 52 or some such monstrosity at a boat show once. It had twin cabins in the v-berth area. That was 20 years ago or so and they should be quite reasonably priced now. Unfortunately they are slow. A Passport 42 is a desirable boat, but they mostly have teak decks. Could you remove the teak and paint the deck?
Tartan 37 has a skeg rudder but no island berth, for offshore work you will want pilot berths not a centerline queen. Offshore I usually sleep on deck in 1 hour increments. Pretty soon I start seeing things and having conversations with my imaginary friends.
Fast and offshore don't seem to be mutually compatible in most designs for cruising boats.
Have you thought about a steel hull? I see lots of them around NC and their owners seem to be pretty knowledgable. They have a lot of robustness in the offshore duty community.
 
BobM

BobM

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Jun 10, 2004
3,269
S2 9.2A Winthrop, MA
Fast with a skeg hung rudder and a swim platform? No project boats? This will be a short list!
 
Scott B

Scott B

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Sep 20, 2006
2,953
Hunter 33 Georgian Bay, Ontario, Canada
In fact short listed to ...... in your dreams????
 
jibes138

jibes138

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Jan 27, 2008
3,092
ODay 35 Beaufort, NC
I love these boats that show a picture of what looks to be a coffin and they call it a "stateroom." If you want a real island queen berth in the aft then you will have to get a center cockpit. Some friends had a gulfstar 41 center cockpit and it had a queen aft berth, quite nice and the full cockpit enclosure gave a nice place to hang out and entertain even when it got cold outside. The boat was quite heavy and a ketch rig. You can buy them very cheap, but I'm sure you can get a much nicer boat for the money you are talking.
Here is a nice Shannon for 199.
http://www.yachtworld.com/core/list...4&url=&hosturl=tritonyachts&&ywo=tritonyachts&

I also found a nice schooner for you that would be a wonderful home
http://www2.yachtworld.com/core/lis...rl=beaufortyachtsales&&ywo=beaufortyachtsales&

At Deaton Yachts in Oriental they have a Hunter 46 for sale....$189. It has a queen island aft berth and looks very accomodating plus the engine looks clean. 2001 vintage. I know the hunters are only made of tissue paper and will dissolve when launched but it seems some of them have sailed around the world? I assume it would be pretty fast. This thing has a washer and dryer and a generator. Looks like it fits exactly what you want but maybe not the skeg rudder?
 
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