Caliber, Passport ... what else

[Sail IC]

I will most likely start a long term (five years?) cruise around the world cruise starting in 6-9 months and single handed. I'm living in Sweden but given the weak dollar and the amount of second handed good US cruising boats i plan to buy one in the US. I haven't settled on the route yet but will most likely also cruise the not tempered latitudes. Like to see Alaska and will for sure go to northen Europe, but most of the time i will cruise the tropics.

I'm not an experienced cruiser yet, but have cruised with my family from San Francisco down to Mexico and back and I also cruised the Bahamas for about 3 months. So i think I have the experiance to get started and learn more as I go. I have sailed my whole life though but mostly racing high performance dinghies on international level.

First step is to narrow down what boat to look at. I will do this single handed so i think the right size of boat is around 37-42 feet. We all have personal preferences and given my racing background boats like Hans Christian, Tayana, Pacific Seacraft, Valiant does not appeal to me. I recognize they are excellent yachts to sail around the world.

I'm also tall at 6'6". I pullman berth seems like an great layout as i plan to live for 5 years on the boat and i don't like the idea of sleeping in a V-berth for that long.

Oh yes, then it's the budget. I like to be able to get on the water for about $150K.

So far the boat i think i like the best is the Caliber 38 and the Passport 40 looks good too which can be had for $150K twenty years old. Somehow the Island packet 38 appeals to me too, but i don't like the long keel as its probably slower than the other two.

Given above, are there other boats i should be looking at. If there is something that sails better it would clearly be good. I looked (on the web) on Sabre and Tartans (same age). Great quality sailboats but are they up for the task and how about the interior volume and head room. On the other side of the spectrum, how about a newer Beneteau. I did the SF-Mexico cruise in my at the time Catalina 380 (great headroom). Great family cruiser but i'm not sure about i as a world cruiser, but I've seen people recomending a Vega (Swedish) and if you can do it in a Vega you must be able to do it in anything.

Looking forward for your suggestions.

Cheers, Johan

[Pblais]

Caliber and Valiant are good headroom boats. At 6-6 headroom counts a lot more than us less tall persons (5-7 myself). It is about hauling lots of stuff though. You just lost most all performance right out of the slip. I think I would make a list of potential boats then search for the deal. If you narrow the boat down to the perfect boat only to find none for sale then what? Flexibility says find the features that are deal breakers. We had someone several years ago and in the end he was at Valiant and Caliber new boats too. Headroom was 6-8 so you think you are too tall. He went Valiant as he stumbled into a deal. A great deal changes everything. You just need to figure out the things that don't change at any price. Then find the right boat. You have enough experience now to tell what are the important things. You can research a lot of things in the mean time as anyone would. But at some point you need to either select a boat and go or write a research paper. You could post the paper here and be home but you could also post your trip notes too. The trip notes would be more fun. Is the goal the perfect boat or the trip? Preparing to be successful means you have to show up.

[MikeNZ]

Ok, here's my thoughts...

Saga 43, Outbound 46, Aerodyne 47

Both high performance from great designers and well-built to boot.
Maybe a little ut of the price range, and a little bigger but designed for short handed sailing. Maybe that budget can stretch a little!

[speedoo]

Take a look at the Islander Freeport 36, "B layout". Might be the perfect liveaboard for you with a pullman berth and forward head. Don't know about the headroom, but it's supposed to be an excellent bluewater sailor. Bob Perry design... he's an exceptional cruising boat designer.

[CarlF]

A Ted Hood designed Bristol 41 will be fast and strong - not to mention gorgeous. I think the headroom is 6'5" or 6' 6". The Endeavors have a lot of head room too. Here's a Bristol in your price range:

1988 Bristol 41.1 Aft Cockpit Boat For Sale

Carl

[Sail IC]

Thanks for your answers and replies.

The Bristol 41.1 looks absolutely gorgeous and I will study that boat more. It has a centerboard which is great as I will do up-wind sailing but will stand up for long time offshore work? There is also a center cockpit version which might have a better layout. Do you know if it has the same headroom.

The Saga 43 would be the perfect boat for me but I don’t think I’ll be able to sail away with one below $300K. Even if could stretch my budget I like to have a big cushion for running expenses and not burn too much on the boat upfront. On the Saga, to me this is a true offshore cruising boat way ahead of its time. Truly a modern hull shape but made to stand up for more than costal cruising. I think and easily driven hull and less sail must be a great concept for cruising (and racing).

The Islander Freeport 36 “B Layout“. What a perfect layout for (tall) single or couple. The boats offered looks a bit low priced so I wonder how much they need to be upgraded to make a 5 year jurney. How does it sail?

Having bought a few boats looking out for the deal is what is the most important at the end of the day. I went over to the US to buy my current boat and the cheapest boat on my list was also the one on best condition by far. Finding a motivated seller offering a boat at the right price is the only way to buy even if you often can’t haggle down the price much (not needed anyway).

From above I think the Bristol 41.1 is a boat I will seriously add to my boat search list. Any other similar boats I should look at, given my priorities in my first post.

Thank you all, Johan

[dkall]

Don't forget a quality Westsail 42 or 43. Full keel, looks great, great sailing boats, comfortable and still a great buy. Personally (and I'm biased) I don't like the newer fin keel boats, squirrelly and less storage. Eric on Fiona has approx 270,000 cruising miles on one. A great testament to their longevity. Try WOA Message Board: Does a Westsail 43 make sense for my family? for some comments on the 43 specifically; Boats for some boat comments by owners; WESTSAIL - CRUISING BOATS FOR SALE for some boats for sale.

Good Luck, looking is half the fun.

[limmer]

1983 C&C Landfall Center Cockpit Boat For Sale

these also come with a modified full keel, lots of head room and the aft cabin with its large center line bed is very comfortable with lots of space. just my 2 cents cheers oh ya I also own one.

[imagine2frolic]

No suggestion on boats, but as far as your experience. If you have done the Baja Bash all the way back to S.F. Then most likely you have already seen the worst of things to come if you plan your trip properly......BEST WISHES in accomplishing your goal.