Best sailboat for sailing long voyages far away from the coast?

[watersofdiego]

So I sold my old boat and am looking for a new boat.

I've been looking at boats in my area and found 10 sailboats that interest me and are within my budget....

- 30 ft 1978 Catalina
- 30 ft 1975 Clipper Marine sloop
- 30 ft 1975 C&c 1/2 ton
- 32 ft 1976 Clipper Marine Aft Cabin
- 33 ft 1975 Ranger Sloop
- 34 ft 1956 Chinook
- 30 ft 1964 Rhodes Sloop
- 30 ft 1978 Pearson
- 30 ft 1976 Helms Sloop
- 30 ft 1983 Newport Mk III

They're all in good shape.

What one of those sailboats would be best for sailing long voyages far away from the coast?

[Downtime]

The Catalina 30 is a coastal cruiser. I own one and wouldn't consider it a "far from shore" boat.

[maxingout]

Without seeing the yachts up close, I would choose the Pearson. I had a 27 foot Pearson Renegade, and it was a very strong boat that I would have been confident sailing around the world. I have seen some smaller Pearson's making amazing voyages. So Pearson has my vote.

[boatman61]

The one that has a guaranteed dry bunk..

[onestepcsy37]

it was a toss up between the 1978 pearson 30 and the 1975 ranger 33. i've sailed and raced a 1977 pearson 30 and it's a fine boat. i also used to crew on a 1970's ranger 29 and that was a fine boat.

but i chose the ranger 33 because, all other things being equal, it's a 33 and not a 30. the few extra feet give you lot's more living/storage space.

do both boats have diesel engines or does one/both have an atomic 4 or other gas engine? choose the diesel. don't go with a gas engine, especially if you're going cruising.

[JPA Cate]

None of the above.

In the 30-35 foot range, instead consider Sparkman and Stevens Yankee 30; Halberg Rassey 33 or 35; Crealock 34, Trismus 33, or was it 35? sorry, memory is vague at this hour. You don't mention how far offshore you want to go, but for the open ocean, you want a sturdy craft that will take care of you. You are little and the ocean is big.

A

[SailSummerWind]

Aren't they not all a bit small? We met many sailors cruising on small boats in Pacific and they all loved to hop on our bigger boat for fresh water shower and cold beer. Complaining of lack of space, water maker and small water and fuel tanks...

[onestepcsy37]

i think what the op is suggesting but not saying is that he's on a somewhat limited budget. yes there are better ocean cruisers out there but sometimes you have to go with what you can afford.

all of the boats he's listed are under 20k. some are under 10k.

[letsgetsailing3]

The assumption is that all the boats are in the same condition.

I think it likely that this is not the case.

Condition will be one of the more important factors here.

[Sailmonkey]

Dump the clipper marine boats off of the list and leave the rest to condition

[s/v Beth]

I agree that condition of the boat is more important than make, but the rep of clipper marine is so terrible that I would not buy that sailboat to sail it across the lake. Catalina was not designed as a ocean boat. I would look at the C&C, Rhodes (a Pearson) and the Pearson. Look at the rudder, hull blisters and osmosis, and which ones have rotting decks. Beg someone who knows boats to come with you. These old boats and you want to go ocean sailing? Hmmm...
I would stay in the bay for a while.

[boatman61]

Hence my crack about a dry bunk..

[Cheechako]

which ever ones dont have a spade rudder. Rhodes and Pearson?

[oldragbaggers]

Dump the Newport 30 MkII off your list also. We lived aboard and sailed one of these for 3 years. They are beamy suckers with a very large and comfortable v-berth so make a fine livaboard, and I think they are probably pretty fun and lively to sail when they are just loaded for a day sail, but when they are loaded down for living/cruising they become the worst sailing pigs on the planet. That boat just won't perform worth a squat with every thing aboard that you would need to sail offshore. It's not that well built either.

Just my two cents.

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

None of the above...

Ann nailed it.