any known drawbacks on S-2 11c

[BobnCamie]

Anyone out there help me. I have looked around on internet and practical sailor,etc. and cannot find any hard evidence either way of the S-2 boat and their general sea-worthiness. We have found a very nice 1980 model,all seems good on first go-over, more to come, but need of basic usefulness is what we are looking for. The boat we will purchase(soon we hope) will be in keys and northern carib. in 2 years for an extended stay. 2-5 yrs. is the plan. We have looked at other builds, some we like, some not so, but the center cockpit works very well for us. The 9.2 was ok, but the 11 m. is more to our liking. Just need to hear from some as to usefullness of the S-2. They are well built, just as to the handiness, I guess. Former owners/users would be very helpful. Thank you again.

[sailcruiser]

You might want to head over to sailboatowners.com. They are a sister forum to this one with an active S2 group.

I have the aft cockpit model and one downside IMHO are the fixed large ports. I'd be ok going to the Caribbean but wouldn't do any major crossings without a way to protect them.

Solidly built and generally speaking a good boat. Has the usual caveats of any boat with a cored deck of possible core rot in the deck around chain plates and deck fittings.

Much depends on its' care and feeding over the years.

There is also a Yahoo group for S2 owners.
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[Cheechako]

Most S2 owners seem to like their boats. For the caribe or Bahamas it should be up to the task. Ref: There's a 9.2 C for sale up here for $15k.

[boatpoker]

Just surveyed my third S2 in a row with totally saturated bottom balsa core.

[Boatguy30]

The 9.2 and 11.0 had solid glass hulls. there will likely be some water in the DECK balsa around the chainplates as they leak and are a bit difficult to stop from leaking.


You could realistically sail either a 9.2 or 11.0 anywhere assuming the standard draft model. The shoal models are rare and a bit tippy. A shoal 11.0 would be good for coastal cruising.

Check out the steering cable closely. the 9.2C used a pretty light duty sleeved cable setup not sure about the 11.0.

[Cheechako]

Wow, I thought they were solid hulls...never heard of a core at all...

[BobnCamie]

Thank you very much. I am going back to look at the 11. this week-end. It has been on the hard about 2 years. The 9.2 has been out for at least 5 years. Some-what skeptical about that one. Both under shrink wrap. Will look into the chain plate and backings closely. So far(minimal time) I looked at the 11. decking was not soft that I could feel. Thinking about a local surveyor, but wonder how good he really is. Will kick that around some more at a later date. Thanks again

[sailcruiser]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

Just surveyed my third S2 in a row with totally saturated bottom balsa core.

Are you referring to the catamaran s2 or monohull? The s2 monohull built by what is now Tiara Yachts (power boats only since the late 80s) is a solid glass hull with a cored deck.

I haven't a clue on the cats.

To stop chainplate leaks follow MaineSail's guide to bedding with butyl tape. Been there fixed that. :-)

It's a very comfortable layout but not one I'd think would suit long crossings. The 11.0c looks nice in pics but haven't been on one personally only the aft cockpit model.

I've been happy with only goofy previous owner stuff to deal with mostly.
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