Me and my wife have been looking over the last few weeks at sail boats. We looked at a Hunter 34', 1984 model today and we like it, so some times this week, we will attempt to make an offer and see where it goes. Neither me or my wife have any experience on a sail boat so we have a lot to earn. In the past, The boat seems to be in good shape. There are a few things that need to be fixed on it but mechanically it seems to be ok. This week we will make an offer and once we agree on a price we will get a survey done and see what they find. They are asking $17K for it. If all goes well, we will be on this site a bunch. We live in Houston. Wish us luck and we hope to make a lot of friends here.
hope to be new sailor
- Thread starter catapultdude
- Start date
Welcome to sailing!
Glad to hear you're planning a survey on her.
Sailing has a fairly steep learning curve, but all sorts of resources are available. For questions that you can't find answers to on your own, this site is pure gold. Of course, the search function is your friend.
Thanks to sites like this, using and maintaining your sailboat is much easier than it was prior to the internet. Assuming that you plan to do a portion of your own maintenance.
Use this site throughout your buying process.
You may already know, but: Offer contingent on favorable survey. And, think about whether you want a sea trial. Under sail isn't necessary, but under power can be very revealing.
The pitfalls in purchasing and owning a sailboat are many, but the rewards are incredible. There are plenty of people who will help you avoid the former and maximize the latter.
Glad to hear you're planning a survey on her.
Sailing has a fairly steep learning curve, but all sorts of resources are available. For questions that you can't find answers to on your own, this site is pure gold. Of course, the search function is your friend.
Thanks to sites like this, using and maintaining your sailboat is much easier than it was prior to the internet. Assuming that you plan to do a portion of your own maintenance.
Use this site throughout your buying process.
You may already know, but: Offer contingent on favorable survey. And, think about whether you want a sea trial. Under sail isn't necessary, but under power can be very revealing.
The pitfalls in purchasing and owning a sailboat are many, but the rewards are incredible. There are plenty of people who will help you avoid the former and maximize the latter.
Welcome to the sailing community. A survey of the 34 is important because of the age of the boat. Materials and practices have changed since these boats were made. Of particular concern should be the compression post (mine had a shoddy repair), the hull below the waterline (mine felt like orange rind), the powertrain, and the potable water system (I have Quest tubing and fittings).
Thanks for the response. Yes I hope the survey will include a sea trial. Oh im sure the further we get into boating, I will have all kinds of questions. Most of ur boating will be on weekends on the hook. I have a long ways to go before I would feel comfortable going out in the Gulf.
I hope that with the survey, there will be a pull out. The owner said he had a bottom job done last year, so if he is correct, then I hope it is still in good shape and I hope he doesn't find any soft spots. We looked at an Irwin that we loked but the Broker was reall honest and said that it had a couple of soft spots so that kind of scared me away from that boat.
Begging your pardon if I appear to make assumptions on your general boat knowledge and boat purchasing knowledge. Am erring on side of advising you too much rather than too little.
Don't "hope" for a sea trial and a haul out. Insist on them. There are many important things to learn from both events.
Your surveyor should definitely be along for the sea trial. Engine run at right temp? If you know the peak rpm for the engine in advance you can see if it comes to to peak rpm at full throttle. Auto pilot?...does it work? Gauges work? Knotmeter work? And so on.
Take care choosing your surveyor. People on this site and/or Sailnet can make recommendations for your area. Surveyor skill varies. When they miss something, you're the one that's stuck. When old boats bite you in the butt, they bite HARD.
The haul out will be on your nickel, of course. OUCH. Money well spent. Cost of surveyor and haul out add up to OUCH x 2, but still money well spent. A detailed pre-inspection by you and maybe an experienced friend can eliminate any real losers.
I'm not a "by the book" type, but this is how I actually purchase a boat (almost 40 years sailing experience). 'Not recommending procedures that I don't actually use.
Don't "hope" for a sea trial and a haul out. Insist on them. There are many important things to learn from both events.
Your surveyor should definitely be along for the sea trial. Engine run at right temp? If you know the peak rpm for the engine in advance you can see if it comes to to peak rpm at full throttle. Auto pilot?...does it work? Gauges work? Knotmeter work? And so on.
Take care choosing your surveyor. People on this site and/or Sailnet can make recommendations for your area. Surveyor skill varies. When they miss something, you're the one that's stuck. When old boats bite you in the butt, they bite HARD.
The haul out will be on your nickel, of course. OUCH. Money well spent. Cost of surveyor and haul out add up to OUCH x 2, but still money well spent. A detailed pre-inspection by you and maybe an experienced friend can eliminate any real losers.
I'm not a "by the book" type, but this is how I actually purchase a boat (almost 40 years sailing experience). 'Not recommending procedures that I don't actually use.
Yea, I used the wrong choice of words. Who ever we find to do the survey, will include a sea trial and a haul out. I have not been on sailnet yet. I will give it a try.
I don't mind any assumptions you might make as i'm going some place I've never been and im sure I will make a bunch of mistakes.
Thank you very much for your feedback.
I don't mind any assumptions you might make as i'm going some place I've never been and im sure I will make a bunch of mistakes.
Thank you very much for your feedback.
Catapult Dude.. Welcome aboard.. Lots of great info here on the 34's. I bought my '85 model there in Seabrook back in '91 and have been very happy with her. Check out the "Owner Resources" tab and "Boat Info By Model" tabs on this site.. Look up the H-34's .. lots of reviews and things discussed concerning this model..
Welcome to sailing.
Do yourself and your wife a big favor and get acquainted with someone who is experienced and will take you out a few times (maybe many times) on their boat to get you acclimated and teach you a few things. Ideally I'd say do this or charter a boat a time or two before you even consider buying a boat (however it sounds like you are past that point) to make sure you even like it. Then have them go with you on your boat so that they can coach you on how to handle it. Professional lessons can never hurt either.
A 34 is big boat to start with and learning curve will be significant but you won't regret that. Most people buy small thinking it's easier and soon find they have outgrown the boat or that smaller is more tender. To a certain point bigger can actually be easier to learn on as they are more forgiving of the mistakes you will inevitably make.
Getting in and out of a dock is one area where bigger is harder. Unfortunately we see many people who think that because they can drive a car they can drive a boat. Believe me - unless you car walks sideways when in reverse and steers by its rear wheels it's not anything alike.
That said its a wonderful lifestyle. Talk to people, listen a lot, ask questions, be conservative, and have a blast.
Do yourself and your wife a big favor and get acquainted with someone who is experienced and will take you out a few times (maybe many times) on their boat to get you acclimated and teach you a few things. Ideally I'd say do this or charter a boat a time or two before you even consider buying a boat (however it sounds like you are past that point) to make sure you even like it. Then have them go with you on your boat so that they can coach you on how to handle it. Professional lessons can never hurt either.
A 34 is big boat to start with and learning curve will be significant but you won't regret that. Most people buy small thinking it's easier and soon find they have outgrown the boat or that smaller is more tender. To a certain point bigger can actually be easier to learn on as they are more forgiving of the mistakes you will inevitably make.
Getting in and out of a dock is one area where bigger is harder. Unfortunately we see many people who think that because they can drive a car they can drive a boat. Believe me - unless you car walks sideways when in reverse and steers by its rear wheels it's not anything alike.
That said its a wonderful lifestyle. Talk to people, listen a lot, ask questions, be conservative, and have a blast.
Do you have boating experience already on powerboats? Power squadron course? Familiarity with the COLREGS?
Just wondering so we can help you better.
A previous responder mentioned that 34ft. is a lot to start with. It is. But doable. Definitely a serious commitment, though.
Just wondering so we can help you better.
A previous responder mentioned that 34ft. is a lot to start with. It is. But doable. Definitely a serious commitment, though.
Catapultdude,
Good luck with the process and welcome to sailing and the lifestyle.
Would also chime in on the survey, pullout and sea trial, hopefully sailing so you can see how everything works. Negotiate to have issues corrected before you get the boat as that will give you more time to learn and enjoy. I am still working through systems on the boat this year.
I was in the same position last year as we decided to get back into boating after 25 years and venture into sailing. Went out and got a Hunter 356 having never sailed before, except on a sailing dinghy a long time ago and a friends 27' Hunter.
Might want to check the Power Squadron as I took a 11 week sailing course through them that was very informative and the instructor even took us out on his boat for 3 times for on the water experience.
You will pick it quickly and just try not to make big mistakes, and eliminate the little ones as you learn.
Jeff
s/v LegaSea
Hunter 356
Good luck with the process and welcome to sailing and the lifestyle.
Would also chime in on the survey, pullout and sea trial, hopefully sailing so you can see how everything works. Negotiate to have issues corrected before you get the boat as that will give you more time to learn and enjoy. I am still working through systems on the boat this year.
I was in the same position last year as we decided to get back into boating after 25 years and venture into sailing. Went out and got a Hunter 356 having never sailed before, except on a sailing dinghy a long time ago and a friends 27' Hunter.
Might want to check the Power Squadron as I took a 11 week sailing course through them that was very informative and the instructor even took us out on his boat for 3 times for on the water experience.
You will pick it quickly and just try not to make big mistakes, and eliminate the little ones as you learn.
Jeff
s/v LegaSea
Hunter 356
Back in the 80's I owned a small Glastron ski boat. I had that for a couple of summers, so even though I have driven a boat before, that was a long time ago, so i am going into this sail boat experience really with no experience. I was in the Navy back in the 70's stationed on an Air Craft Carrier and that's were i feel in love with being on the water, but with life, came a marriage or 2 and a couple of kids, so my boating dreams got put on the back burner. So now that im getting older, im trying to do some of the things ive always wanted to do and boating is one of them. I do know that we have a lot to learn and i will have a ton of questions to ask as we go thru this. Tonight we will make an offer and start the process and see where it goes. We have talked with a couple of guys that do surveys and think we have decided on one to call if our offer is accepted. Im sure i will make a bunch of mistakes but that's part of the journey.
Thanks for all your feedback. It is appreciated. i will keep ya'll posted.
Thanks for all your feedback. It is appreciated. i will keep ya'll posted.
Well when I got home me and my wife talked about an offer and we still have a few concerns so right now, we are going to hold off. One question we have is below decks on the flooring going into the forward berthing compartment, the flooring is loose. Not sure what the construction of the Hunter boats are, but thinking if it is wood, could there be some moister issues under the deck. does any one know if there is wood beams running across the deck and maybe at some point water got down there and the wood has rotted out some. I will have to do some research and see how the hull is designed. It might not be a problem but we are curious as to why in some spots, the floor has a few soft spots. I appreciate any feed back you folks might have.
thanks
thanks
There are no wood beams.Just fiberglass stringers.Then plywood on top,that is screwed down. Here's a pic.I have the same boat you are looking at.Mine will be up for sale shortly in Seabrook (be looking)if your deal falls through.
Thanks for the reply Spraygun. After looking at your picture. im guessing the plywood might be loose or might just need to be replaced. If you don't mind me asking, do you have a price in mine as to how much you will be asking for yours?
It won't be loose . Moisture get trapped underneath and starts to get soft.When I put down my new cabin sole.I epoxy coated the back side,so it can never happen again.
The 34 is a great boat.
Well, looks like we will have to put our boating dreams off for a while. We had a family crisis come up that will require us to help out. Thanks to all the folks that have replied to my boating dream. I will still come to this site and read every ones post. hopefully down the road we can restart our dream. Hopefully we can meet some fellow Texans down this way on this site and at least get to know them and become friends.
Thanks
catapultdude
Thanks
catapultdude