Boat Trip . . .

[hard-a-ground]

First used boat shopping trip complete... it was fun... well spent few days.

Saw.. in order...

Passport40... outside was nice.. inside did not accommodate my 6'3" frame - small berths, hit my head everywhere walking around. Plus looked like a furniture store inside.

Valiant 40... small berths for me. scary long distance from the mast to the jib (J). didn't sail her.

Masone 33... looked reasonable to me. don't know about the sailing qualities.. in the end decided not big enough.

Tashiba 31... very nice boat... no chance i could sleep in these small berths. wanted to like this boat since it would be simple to own.

Baba 40... fell in love with this boat. 6' 10" long berth in the forepeak. sailed nicely - felt competent with a deep smoldering capability. teak decks were bad news.

My wife requested we look at a pilothouse. One broker said the deck prisms were a thing of the past... this true? marvelous devices.

At this point, i am wondering if a Valiant 47 has a large berth somewhere... (I like the SA/Disp).

cheers,
Frank.

[SailPenelope]

Consider looking at a CT41 - previous owner of mine was 6'2" and he liked the space. He raised the mizzen boom considerably, which made for a more spacious feeling in the cockpit.

CT41s are in the "Leaky Teaky" category and can be a lot of work, but many of us love them. Check out posts by "Zee Hag" on this forum - she is cruising one in Mexico now.

Take a look on Yachtworld - there's usually 10 or more available at any time. Quite variable in price/condition.

[zeehag]

designer of the ct and formosas was 6'4, and all is comfy. sail nicely in big winds.

i LOVE mine.

[meuritt]

Sounds like our story, we started with power boats at my wife's insistence, but most did not feel secure. Generally sail boats didn't have that insecure feeling, but were even harder to fit us, I am 6'3, she is 6'. Finally found a boat that we could stand up in everywhere w/o banging our heads on low spots, and we still had berths too short or narrow for us to sleep together.

I do know the answer, marketing, but what's with this two bed/two bath mentality that makes boats un-functional?

[hard-a-ground]

I looked up the CT41s.. fit pretty well with what i was looking for... except they seem to be ketch rigged. I did some work i'll share on another post - question i have is regarding the value of ability to reach hull speed at moderate wind velocities.

[Bash]

Originally Posted by hard-a-ground

Baba 40... fell in love with this boat. 6' 10" long berth in the forepeak. sailed nicely - felt competent with a deep smoldering capability. teak decks were bad news.

My wife requested we look at a pilothouse. One broker said the deck prisms were a thing of the past... this true? marvelous devices.

Well, the good news is that they made a pilothouse version of the Baba 40.

Great boat.

You can still buy deck prisms.

[zeehag]

they also made a pilot house version of the formosa/ct 41. is gorgeous. they seem to be ketch rigged because they are. they are a well balanced CRUISING sailboat.
they are a gas in 60 kt breezes at sea with reefed mizzen and reefed jib. sail at 8 kts measured. try that in a sloop. might go faster, bu ti guarantee the balance wont be nearly as conducive to comfort. and always remember-- gentlemen NEVER sail to weather. if you wish to eat hot foods while underway, i highly recommend the ct/formosa/hardin sea wolf41. ketch.
and it doesnt matter how long it takes to get to hull speed with it-- yer CRUISING not racing.