For Sale or Trade: Finnsailer 38

[Kettlewell]

Minke is a very large and comfortable, center-cockpit, 38-foot motorsailor that really sails. In 2005-2007 our family of four sailed from New England to Panama and Colombia and back, and we never had a moment's concern about our safety. She has large tanks, a powerful and reliable diesel engine, a very comfortable three-cabin layout, a sea-kindly motion offshore, and is easy to handle. She is surprisingly weatherly, and with her big spade rudder handles very well.


Manufacturer: OY FISKARS AB, Turku, Finland
Year: 1978
U.S. Coast Guard documented: 605765
LOA: 37' 7" (11.5 m)
LWL: 32' 6" (9.9 m)
Beam: 11' 7" (3.54 m)
Draft: 5' 2" (1.58 m)
Displacement: about 9 tons
Sail area: 100% fore triangle sloop = 500 sq. ft. (46 sq. m)
(Minke is ketch rigged, with a very small mizzen for additional area and better balance.)
Engine: Perkins 4.236 with approx. 4200 hours
Fuel tankage: 115 gallons
Water tankage: 150 gallons

For more information check out my blog. Asking price is $59,000 (USD), and I am willing to consider trades.

[Boatguy30]

Hope you are not swallowing the anchor. seems like a realistic price.

[Kettlewell]

Nope, just downsizing if she sells. I'll probably go for a 25-30 footer next. Minke was a great long-distance cruising boat for our family, with her big tanks and three-cabin layout. Very comfortable. Maybe I'll even look at small cats. I like those Woods cats like yours. I'd like something with shallow draft that sails really well.

[S/V Alchemy]

That's a good boat at a good price. You may have to explain how a ketch is a nice choice for cruising couples, however, and that "jib and jigger" isn't some kind of sailor's beverage.

I looked at a Finn 38 once. It's a clever boat that gets a great deal right in a relatively compact package. I have no doubt she's been maintained to a high standard.

Having had a Finn 38, I am curious to learn what sort of 25-30 footer would make you happy. I ask because my two boats, a '70s IOR-derived light fin keel racer and an '80s steel pilothouse cutter, are very different, but each serves its purpose!

[Kettlewell]

Minke is really almost a yawl in that her mizzen is so small, though technically it is a ketch as it is ahead of the rudder post. We found the mizzen is handy as you say under "jib and jigger" when the wind is up, and at other times it makes a great riding sail. She sails very well for a big heavy boat. We cruised in company for several months with a 43-foot cat and a 53-foot mono and we kept right up most of the time. Of course she motors right along too--had no problems keeping up with some of the trawlers on the ICW.

I like trying different sorts of boats. For my next boat I want something lighter and livelier, that sails like a witch, and preferably shallow or at least not too deep draft (absolute max would be around 5 feet). Around 30 feet I think is the sweet spot where you can get those things, and still have a decent amount of accommodation so you can go places. I want a real sailboat.

What's your IOR boat like--any links to it on your blog maybe?

[PapaBruce]

The 1993 Hunter 30 I have for sale would be perfect! Very roomy, well maintained, 4'3" draft and pretty fast! See her at Yachtworld for $29.500. At Fair Haven, ny.

[Kettlewell]

Anybody who is interested in discussing a possible trade or purchase feel free to PM me and we'll discuss offline. I'm not in the buying market until my boat sells. I've been a two-boat owner before, and I don't want to do it again! Thanks.

[S/V Alchemy]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

Around 30 feet I think is the sweet spot where you can get those things, and still have a decent amount of accommodation so you can go places. I want a real sailboat.

What's your IOR boat like--any links to it on your blog maybe?

I think you're right, although I would consider going to 33-34 feet (like the Rival 34 or the Southerly 31) for things like headroom. Not too wide, though: 10 feet is fine!

Thanks for asking about the old boat. She's called Valiente, and she's 40 this year, a 1973 Viking 33 designed by C&C for Ontario Yachts. She's stripped out for "fast cruising" and as a 40th birthday present, I bought her new standing rigging.

As she was last week after anti-fouling and a quick wax:



Some links: The world encompassed: Foul weather anti-fouling

The world encompassed: The old girl

And underway:

[The Vortex]

Sweet! one needs a quiver, whether bicycles or boats...

[Boatguy30]

34 why not just 38?

[Kettlewell]

34 why not just 38?

Nothing wrong with 38, just I like a light, lithe sailboat for the sailing part of sailing--you know, the way we used to do it in the "good old days." I know it's old school to sail a cruising boat, but some of us are Luddites that way! I like motorcycles the same way. To me a 500cc bike is a "big" bike, and a 250 is just about the right size. Actually, my current boat, the Finnsailer 38 I'm selling, is a fantastic boat for cruising, even though many these days consider it to be "too small." We found that out cruising, fully loaded for an extended trip, we were traveling just about the same speed as most of the rest of the fleet, yet she was still handy enough so we found her very easy to handle for a couple.

[Kettlewell]

Forgot to comment--like that Viking 33! C&C designed some really nice boats. "Fast cruising" is a good term.

[S/V Alchemy]

Glad you like it...I've worked hard at making it mechanically "better than factory" by putting in all sorts of backing plates, epoxy in the core thru-bolt holes, rebuilding the engine, replacing the fuel system, etc.

What I haven't done is swap out the original upholstery. I've just gotten used to the horrible brown plaid that screams "that '70s boat"...I say the interior was designed by a colour-blind Scotsman.

If you want a similarly "fast cruiser", you could consider the S2 (Sailboats built by S2 Yachts (USA) by year on Sailboatdata.com). I've sailed against both the 8 and 9.2 metre models (within your spec) and they are excellent across the board boats old enough to pick up cheaply.

[Kettlewell]

Yeah, we got rid of most of the old upholstery wherever it can be seen in our Finnsailer, but I think it served its purpose to hide stains and never look any dirtier than it did when new. It's better than the bordello look (tufted red velvet) that was popular in the '80s!

[Boatguy30]

Another bump/ question. Is that picture dockside take somewhere up along the
Hudson?