Small Boat for the Bahamas and Caribbean Cruising

[s/v Breakaway]

Originally Posted by Blasko

Tell me something good about my choice please ))
The owner said that Pearsons-28 from 70s are really solid boats.

A Pearson 28 will do you just fine. A boat purchase is as much an emotional decision as an intellectual one - if you don't love your boat you will resent working on it. A decent Pearson 28 should cost you half of your budget, the other half for upgrades and repairs. Make sure you get a survey and NEVER pay asking price for a 1970's era boat; there are a million of them for sale.

Good luck and keep us posted!

[s/v Breakaway]

Blasko, another thing - get a copy of Don Casey's book, "Inspecting the Aging Sailboat." It will help you screen-out bad boats rather than wasting money on surveyors.

[lowcountryjimmb]

nice looking boat

[RTB]

Originally Posted by Blasko

Hi guys,
What do you think about Pearson -28 (1975).
I've found one, that looks like new and I really like it.
Is it ok, for the Bahamas and Carribbean?

I have an old-timer with one of these on the dock next to me. He loves that old boat. He's cruised from Texas to the Keys on it, and still lives aboard on it.

We were anchored at Allans Cay last year, and a boat comes screaming in the channel flying full sails (had an engine problem at the time). They sailed in, luffed the sails and dropped the hook. A nice young couple from somewhere up the NE coast. It was a Catalina 27. We kept bumping into them as we worked our way down the Exuma chain.

We also ran into these girls at No Name Harbor. They left for the Bahamas the next day just behind us. KATIE & JESSIE | aboard lovely Louise…

Katie and Jessie sail a Cal 27. A friend, Ronnie Simpson, is currently just off the coast of American Samoa on one as well. Must be a pretty solid boat.

Maybe we'll see you in the Bahamas one day soon. Best wishes with your plans.

Ralph
The Exumas! | sailing away with R & B

[Finny]

We are selling our westerly centaur 26' and I just can recommend this boat.
It have a 3' draft and is pretty strong build in case of hard weather. We just made the trip from Great Britain to Florida, and of course we go through the bahamas and it was pretty easy for us with that little draft. Even in the storms of hurricane Arthur we felt really save, with the furling main and genoa we could react pretty fast when a squall came through.

Here is our blog, maybe you are interested.

S/V Jillion's Voyage: The Boat

[Cheechako]

If you haven't found anything, here's a bargain $6000 diesel powered and stout looking little boat! No relation to me.. 24' Eastward HO Diesel | eBay

[nautical62]

Originally Posted by snort

Blasko,
Nautical's suggestion (Westerly Konsort) is on sailboatlistings as of a couple of days ago: 1980 Westerly Konsort sailboat for sale in Virginia

Wish that had been on the market last time I was looking. Kills me!.

[Cheechako]

These people do it in less than 20ft; Go Small, Go Now: A Cruising Couple and their Micro-Cruisers | Sail Magazine

[jangann]

We had a Pearson 28 we sailed all over the shallow west coast of Floriida. That was a great boat. Nice freeboard and comfy ride. It had done the Bahamas twice with former owner, and we would have done it but for life getting in the way.

Atomic 4s are fine. When did you last hear of one exploding? When did you last hear of a propane explosion though? Much more common, but everyone seems to use propane. Our A4 was a workhorse. Simple to maintain, no issue with dirty fuel. Just run your blower and use your sniffer.

I'll second the idea that a good mariner can do the Bahamas in anything. We had a friend who repeatedly did it in a Compac 16. He was drunk the whole time, but I guess that speaks to the Compac's qualities even more!

Sounds very exciting. Best of luck!

[gjordan]

I am going to say something that I have never said before! Consider GOING OVER TO THE DARK SIDE. After 30+thousand miles in monohulls, if I were to consider a boat only for the Bahamas and Caribbean, I would look at Trimarans. Cats are way over priced for what they are, but Tri,s seem to go for reasonable dollars. Shallow draft, room for solar panels, very little rolling, reasonable performance, lots of good things. I got to sail on 4 different Searunners in Tahiti, and I liked them. The 31 didnt have much more (if any) space than my Contessa 26, but the 2 different 37s that I sailed on were fast, fun and roomy enough for cruising. The 41 seemed like a palace compared to what I was used to. Just another avenue to look at. __________Grant.

[the_alpine]

My friend is selling his Cal 27 in St Petersburg, FL. Nice boat: Cal 27 MK3 ***OPEN BOAT SATURDAY 8-23***

[bella]

Originally Posted by Blasko

I am in Florida now and looking for small boat (25-27 feet) to go to the Bahamas.

What model is the best for this? I can spend no more then 15000 USD.

Thanks

For that kind of money I would go up to a 3-32 footer unless you like living in a closet for months on end. Look on craigslist around florida.. I have some some really good buys in the past few yrs.. also look at boatyard and marina repos. Look at each on a case by case basis.
older Catalina 30s have a great layout for living aboard. Perasons are awesome boats but only 8 feet wide and the living space is minimal.
CnC, Ericsons in their day were well founded, esp if someone has dug out the chain plates and fixed them correctly for you..
you could go with a swing keel as well.. a bit of a pia but they are doable.
good luck.

[CSY Man]

Does the $15,000 include fixing it up and making the vessel seaworthy..?
Or $15k for just the initial purchase, then another $10k for needed repairs and upgrades?
Sailboats in general are are expensive and most old/cheap boats have a lot of deferred maintenance.
(Been wheeling and dealing in used boats in Florida, sold a 52' Ferro Cement ketch once for $15k.
Sold another, a Dutch 50' "Glass Slipper" FRP for $2500, etc, etc.)
All the buyers were looking for bargain boats, but there is no such thing (

The best buy out there is a well equipped and well maintained boat that sells for more than the cheapest
Comparable / similar model on the market. The expensive one is the real bargain.
Been there done that, I learned the hard way.



Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Broken-Sailor]

Originally Posted by nautical62

My first cruising boat was a Westerly Centaur 26. Looking back 4 cruising boats later, I still feel it was a good choice for a pocket cruiser for Bahamas use. I think I did 4 cruises of the Abacos in that boat, one to the Exumas, several in the Keys and few through the Great Lakes.

It had standing headroom, and only a 3-foot draft. Heavily built, I could sail it in much rougher conditions than my next pocket cruiser could handle. I'd also look at the larger Westerly Berwick and "newer" Westerly Konsort. I think the Konsort is a very well designed boat, also fairly shallow draft. At 29 feet, it will not require a custom's decal, but uses space better than many boats I've seen that are 5 feet longer.

I've seen some Centaurs that need re-powering at almost give away prices, so you could put a new inboard in and still be in your price range, or make due with an outboard. Centaur's are easy to come by, Konsorts and Berwicks are much rarer. If I could have found a Konsort or Berwick available when I was last looking for a Bahamas cruiser, I would have bought it in a second. I ended up with a Hunter 30 shoal draft which worked fine, which you might find in your price range.

1980 Westerly Konsort 29 $3500.00 Weems, Virginia If the pictures are up to date might be something to look at, has a Yanmar Diesel 2GM20 inboard in it that they say runs like a top. The a used engine of that type cost almost that much, more if rebuilt.