Considering a purchase of an 1987 Irwin Citation 32...any experiences, good and bad, with this boat?
Irwin Citation 32
- Thread starter JRWyble
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Same vintage boat 35 feet long has a lot of weather helm vs.my previous 1987 Hunter 31 or 2004 Hunter 386.
Raced on an Irwin Citation 35 back in the 80's (24 hour regatta). We did well in the regatta. Seemed like a nice rig but I did not do too much of the driving so I can't speak to the balance too much. Was a comfortable boat though. Even considered that as an option before the purchase of my B310. FYI, came out of 30 years of J24 campaigning.
And, of course, here in Wichita we are partial to Citations.
And, of course, here in Wichita we are partial to Citations.
I recently purchased an irwin 32 Citation out of Groton, Ct. I had to tune the rig prior to sailing it to my home port in Narragansett Bay. The boat is so well balanced that in 20 knots of wind she just about sails herself. It is a great sailing vessel.
I just purchased a 1987 Irwin 32 Citation. It was a bit neglected but the purchase price was well worth it. I had to tune the standing rigging prior to a 7 hour sail to my home port. The boat sails beautifully, well balanced, easy motion through rough waters, very comfortable for a 32 footer. Sails like a bigger boat. Turning radius is great, very little prop walk in reverse, handles very, very well. I highly recommend this vessel, well built.
87 citation 32
hi, i am also new to a 32, i am in salem ma, and would like to be in touch with other owners of these boats. we are finding ours to be very fast, previous owner disconnected babt stay, wondering if yours is hooked up?
please contact me if you like at tackingabout@yahoo.com
hi, i am also new to a 32, i am in salem ma, and would like to be in touch with other owners of these boats. we are finding ours to be very fast, previous owner disconnected babt stay, wondering if yours is hooked up?
please contact me if you like at tackingabout@yahoo.com
Irwin cut corners and they were nto the best built boat around, but they aren't the worst, either. I wouldn't take a Citation across an ocean, but then they weren't meant for that. From what I have seen of the Citation boats, i would be quite comfortable using them on the Great Lakes or any comprable body of water including coastal ocean cruising.
Don't take our word for it, but read up on Irwins from respected sailboat surveyors, such as Jack Hornor. He will pretty much trash the Irwin as a production builder that generally cut a lot of corners, and are prone to many deck leaks & core rot if all hardware has not been thoroughly rebedded. But that is common of many production builders, including Catalina & Hunters. I do like that Irwins generally come with Yanmar Diesels in the later 80's models, which are a good, rock solid engine. But beware of neglected Irwins, and any other neglected boat, as rot in the decks, bulkheads, etc. can be big bucks to fix. You get what you pay for. Cheers.
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