Mine is bigger than yours

[KorculaChris]

28-32

We currently have a Hunter 23, which is great on the Great South Bay and for occasional ventures out into the ocean when it's a nice day. My wife and daughter are new to sailing and I want to only have "happy thoughts" when the time comes to move up! My ideal is in the 28--32 foot range. Easy to singlehand or short crew, cheap to buy, maintain and dock. Blue water capable (think Baba 30, Allied Seawind, Hans Christian, etc) and traditional looking. If only the interior of a Catalina 42 would fit inside... That forward heads and pullman berth are just terrific!!

 

[sailortonyb Allied Mis]

Newsailor06

I didnt have Pneumatic lifters, it would have been nice though. If i didnt stand in just the right spot for leverage, the top is quite heavy. I'm 5-9 and gf is 5-2, both are medium build, us that is. Anyway, we fit just fine in the "v" berth and actually lived aboard for about a year. I think with the poptop canvas thingy, and a nice bimini,you may want to keep the 25 forever. We had a propane camping stove, an electric skillet, an elecric fryer, a crockpot, microwave and toaster oven. Was able to cook most anything. Also had the gas BBQ on the back deck which was used quite extensively. As your boat grows in size, your expenses grow disproportionately. Also note that we found the Catalina 27 was or felt much smller inside than the Catalina 25.One more observation.....the bigger the boat, the less it leaves the slip. You may think that it will not be so in your case, but statistic are against you. I always said that if i won the Lottery my choices would be a Vagabond 47 AND a Mac26. The big and the heavy for long trips only and the light and the small for EVERYDAY sailing.Im 60 years old and probably wont want to handle the 39 Allied much in about 8 to 10 years. At that point, I plan on buying a new Mac 26 with all the sailsand everything, providing the Macs continue in improving the way they are. Im actually lookin forward to trailer sailing some day.My most 'sailed' boat ever.....Mac 25 and as the sizes increased, they were sailed less often, but diffferently. Most fun to sail for its ease and performance.....Catalina 25If you dont intend to keep the boat on a major body of water, keep the C-25. Its a more capable boat than most would suspect.

 

[George Jirak]

Agree with mid to upper 30's

Agree with the mid to upper 30's. I have a Freedom 38 and have debated getting something around 40-42 ft but the costs go up dramatically. The 38 gives you most of the advantages space wise as a larger boat but less cost to maintain and maneuver around slips. It's small enough to "muscle" in and around the slip but large enough to handle rough weather on the bay. The genset and air conditioning make it comfortable as a condo on weekends.

 

[BarryL]

Another vote for mid 30's

Hello,I think (for now) that a boat in the mid 30's is the right size (for me anyway). I startd sailing in 2003 with a Catalina 22. We (wife and 3 little kids) wanted a small, easy to sail, easy to afford, trailerable boat that had a small cabin. The plan was for relaxing day sails on the Long Island sound. The plan worked perfectly. Maybe too perfectly because I found myself hooked on sailing. By the summer of 04 I wanted a bigger boat - something that we could spend a weekend on, that had wheel steering and self tailing winches. My research led me to 28-32 boats, with the Catalina 30 as my #1 choice. Due to budgetary constraints I was not able to find a good Catalina, but I did find a very nice Newport 28. The Newport has all the 'big boat' features I wanted - hot cold pressure water, shower, galley with stove and sinks, standing headroom, 5 separate beths, etc. The Newport was great and I enjoyed it very much, but it is too small to spend more than 1 or 2 night on. When in 'sleeping' mode there is no room to move around.So this past November I bought an O'day 35. Same features are the Newport but everything is bigger. MUCH more space below, head that is big enough to (almost) strech out in, bigger berths, refridgeration and freezer, propane stove and over, etc. This boat should be big enough to spend a week or so on.Good luck,BarryBarry LenobleCurragh, 1986 O'day 35Mt. Sinai, NYlenoble@optonline.net

 

[Scott]

We are a big fish ...

in a small pond right now with our Starwind 27. There are only a handful of small cruisers with a keel on our lake. So far, I am happy that we are learning many of the basics in this boat. When we are ready to move to a new location, we will keep our Starwind initially, but I think a move up in size to the mid-30's will be necessary to be comfortable for weekends and short cruises.Something that can accommodate a flat screen TV and a satellite connection for the Lifetime Channel will be a big plus!

 

[Benny]

Stole it?

Daniel, the seller was probably just as happy to unload the old bucket. Next time you'll be on the other end.

 

[dennis]

big enuf 2 live on!

I moved from a 15' daysailer to a Mac 65!What a difference. I think a boat that's big enough to do all you want is the perfect size. Don't worry about cost, even the cheap ones end up costing as much as the expensive ones!

 

[Warren Milberg]

To me

Boats up to 30 ft are just about perfect. Big enough for small family/crew to cruise or vacation in while small enough to easily single hand. And, prices/costs of everything from slips to mooring lines really jump up when you get over 30 ft and 10,000 lbs displacement.

 

[Bill Roosa]

sailortonyb, how is she to windword?

Since you have an experience and a man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with a theory, how does your ketch handle pointing close to the wind.I've been toying with the idea of buying one and pointing to windward is one place that ketches have been reported by "them" to be a poor performer.I have this "safety first" bug that tells me that once in a while I'm going to want to point as high as I can to avoid a lee shore etc and so want a boat that has that ability.

 

[danknoxsf]

You need to be able to lift the main sail.

Somewhere arount 36 feet is good for me. But your milage may vary as they say. Still if you can't lift the sail on your boat it is probably to big for you.--Dan

 

[Peter Gonzalez]

Does Size Matter

Where does your enjoyment come from. Does it come from the competive racing with others in the same class, or with mixed classes. Does it come from the socializing aspect of inviting guest on board and having an enjoyable atmosphere to talk and drink wine. Does it come from the comaraderie of socializing with other people with the same boat. I currently own a Hartley ts 16 and enjoy sailing, socializing, and having a great time. I also belong to a cooperative that gives me access to boats ranging in size from 16' to 40'. Sailing a boat under 25' gives me more time on the water with minimum clean up time when putting the boat away. Also the ability to tow the boat to other areas gives me a broader sailing area. My wife being a wine and cheese type, when we go sailing we take a 30' Catalina out. More space, more comfort, and an enclosed head.I have friends that own the West Wight Potters. The Potters seem to be very social and like to sail in a group. They are a good group of people, and I am looking for a boat just to hang out with them.Some one said "Life is like a bull chip sandwich. The more bread you have the better it taste". The same analogy could be given to boats. The more bread you have the bigger the boat. I just don't see the larger boats going out on the water as much as I do, at least once a week if not more.

 

[sand sailor]

stole it

it needs some work but its all cosmetic paint upholstry replace rigging its 40yr old and in real good shape for a salt water boat

 

[dbecker68]

Difficult to say

There are just too many variables, as others have already said. If I won the Lottery, I would probably buy several boats, a small daysailer, a fast catamaran, and a larger (mid-30s to mid-40s) cruiser.The most fun boat I ever sailed was a Hobie 16, but obviously, you can't weekend on that.Currently I own a Hunter 30 that is a nice compromise. Enough room to stay on for several days at a time without getting cabin fever, enough amenities to make it comfortable (full galley, head with shower, standing headroom, pressure hot & cold water, plenty of storage, etc.) Easy enough to single-hand, small enough to dock alone, shallow draft. I do agree that the larger the boat, the less it gets sailed. There is no such thing as a perfect-sized boat for me, it would take at least three different boats!

 

[Paul Ouellette]

Beneteau 423

Once upon a time, Goldilocks went to the Annapolis Boat Show, looked at all the new Beneteau's...and was heard to say..."This one's too small" (looking at the B343) "This one's too big" (looking at the B523)"But...this one's juuuuuuust right" (looking at the 423)Because...Someday, Goldilocks & I are going to be cruising down the ICW to the Keys & the Bahamas...and so we need (& want)...1) A shoal draft (5ft) 2) A mast that will fit under ICW bridges 3) A centerline master berth (not a "crawl across") 4) Enough power so we can quickly get across the Gulf stream 5) Enough interior space to avoid claustrophobia 6) Enough storage space to allow us to stay away from Walmart for a while7) A forward facing nav-station8) A GREAT BIG galley with a decent size fridge & freezer9) A powerful boat that sails well, is not tender & is not a slug10) A boat with a master cabin & ensuite-head that's seperated from the salon 11) A boat with a generator12) A boat that Goldilock & I can live aboard comfortably for 6'mos per yearWe presently own a Beneteau 361, but will be moving up to a 423...for all these reasons.There is (of course) no such thing as a "perfect" boat, however, for our intended use...the B423 is as close as it gets.

 

[Scott21120]

Art Greenman -

We sailed our Oday 34 from Lake St Clair (where we bought it) to Milwaukee last spring! If they don't get some snow soon, they'll be walking across the lake next summer. We left the last week of April, and they had JUST put the channel markers in the middle of the lake the week before. We did more navigating to make it across Lake St Clair than we did for the rest of the trip! I'd like to read your article - is the Mainsheet online, or is it only for subscribers?--Scott FullerO34 Dawn TreaderMilwaukee, WI

 

[Old Salt]

I want it all

I want the sailing abilities of a big J-boat in light air and the stability of an Island Packet in confused seas.I want the ridiculous excess room of a Beneteau 49 at anchor and a Pacific Seacraft 37 layout and handholds underway in heavy weather.I want the walk around Center Line aft cabin of a Jenneau 43DS and the Pilot berths of Mason 43.I want the gorgeous teak of a Hinckley with the outside maintenance ease of a CatalinaI want the olympic swimming pool sized cockpit of a at Hunter at the dock and cozy secure cockpit of a Valiant offshore.I want a tall bendy fractional rigged mast with the simplicity and of ruggedness of a single spreaderI want deep keel stability and shoal keel access.I want the ruggedness of Steel/Aluminum with the ease of maintenance of fiberglassI want a 50 foot boat that will fit in a 35 foot slip.I want a buxom blonde with the brains of a slender brunetteAm I asking too much !? If I can't have all that can I have Beth and Evan's S/V "Hawk" with 5 foot keel ;D

 

[sailortonyb Allied Mis]

Bill Roosa....

Honestly, i havent really noticed any difference between this boat and my Catalina in windward performance. I dont race , so i dont have records , statistis or any other way to verify this. I sail it just like i sail a sloop and most of the time, forget there is even a mizzen up.When really close hauled, i will look at my mizzen, and sometimes, i dont know how to describe this, but the mizzen is full, but slightly indented in the middle, which is caused by the air flow off of my main, flowing onto or directed at the middle of the mizzen. When this happens, i just drop the mizzen. Im sure a racer can tell you more about how to monitor and measure performance, but a lot of the negative things i read about a ketch just didnt seem to hold true. Also im not sure if pointing ability is a function of rigging or a function of hull shape and keel, or maybe a combination.As for the safety factor, when all goes south, i feel the ability to balance your boat is much more important than pointing. Its much easier to drop a sail in a hurrry than to reef. to be able to hold the boat steady with the mizzen, which you should think of as a tail feather or a weather vane.The ability to get through real rough stuff with just a jib and mizzen ( two small sails) and stand up and do hull speed, is worth more than u think. I too have heard that about pointing, but i have not found out who "they" are that say that. I think for overall safety, on long trips, the ketch is the safest because of all the different options you have in your sail plans. When i took my boat for a "test drive" before i bought it, i had read a lot about this particular model and i found none of it to be true, for one thing it does Ok in light air and is not a slow boat and it is not tender, also what i have read. Im not just saying that because i own one, but it still is the choice rig of cruisers that i have met.I personally would not even consider a sloop again, until i get a much smaller boat which comes with gettin older, and thats only because there arent too many 26 foot ketch's. The only thing i can say is, if you are thinking about it, try to get a ride or two on one.One last thing is that i have read that there were a lot of poorly designed Ketch rigs. I have seen that in print several times, but "they" never mentioned which models were good or bad. Just blanket statements. Why dont you start another post asking about Ketch's? Dont know what the response would be since if you look around marinas, there aren't too many Ketch owners.Try it , u may like it.

 

[David H]

It always needs to be...

Three feet bigger than what you now have. LOL

 

[BobaLou]

What size to get ? ? ?

I have read these many responses, but none really addresses the 3 main questions you must answer: First, for what will you use it? Day sailing, weekends, weeks/months at a time? How many passengers and guests?Second, will you day sail, motor from marina to marina, anchor out? Will you coastal sail instead of using the ICW, or will you be away from shore in crossings of 3 days or more? All these and more like them must be answered before you can tackle the last question: How much boat can you and your crew handle in the worst circumstances you expect to encounter. This is the upper limit! Sloops are the most efficient sailing rig, but can be overwhelming in large sizes in bad weather for short-handed crews. (Roller furling does NOT solve this problem -- it just extends the envelope.) Ketches break up the sail area but are not as fast as sloops and are much easier on the crew. Beamy sailboats with wide sterns and flat bottoms are fast, but are less stable, lurch in a sea, and need to be tended in storms. Traditional hull designs are more sea kindly and safer in bad weather, but are more sluggish and heavy.All in all, if you are planning to sail the bays and inlets, whatever boat fits your comfort with respect to the number of people onboard and cockpit design. The difference between dinghy and daysailer trade weight and speed for accomodations, if that's what you need. If you're going to the Bahamas or points South, a production sloop with room for a generator is minimum. If you're crossing an ocean or make long passages regularly, a traditional hull in sloop or ketch is the way.There's a book out about a woman and her family of 4 (with two eventual teenagers) using a Beneteau 38s5 to sail around the world a few times over the course of several years. When I met her, she said it was perfect for them. You decide.Just my 2 cents. I could be wrong.....

 

[sailortonyb Allied Mis]

Bill Roosa......Mast Height/Bridge Height

I'm back to my usual "one more thing", thing, LOL.With a split rig, like a ketch, for instance, your mast is usually not as tall either. It may or may not make a difference in your area, but here on the Norther Gulf of Mexico ( The Redneck Rivierea), the ICW fixed bridges are at the lowest 50', on paper anyway. Some have settled and are around 49 or 48 feet. So, mast height is a consideration. I'm sure I will be back with "one more thing"