Small Boat for the Bahamas and Caribbean Cruising

[Blue Crab]

That CD28 looks real good, and ready to go and in the right place. Wot's not to like? You could do way worse, and older hands will agree the CD is a better built boat than a Cat or Hunter. Them's fightin' words around here of course but a Cape Dory has a great reputation. You could screw around for a really long time and not find a better boat for an island voyage as you're planning.

Odds are you'll start thinking about bigger cuz it'll hold more stuff; not always an advantage, and bigger costs more in an exponential way. The low hour engine is worth close to the asking price if you had to replace it.

[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?

[JK n Smitty]

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?

Do an internet search for "hold fast" or the "anarchist yatch club". A couple of young people that buy a really cheap Pearson, either a 28 or 30, and sail it from Florida through the Bahamas to the Dominican Republic.

But in general my biggest problem with pearsons is that they used gaskets instead of bedding hardware correctly. So be sure to have someone who knows how to use a moisture meter inspect the deck. But if it's in good condition it would be fine for that trip.

And IMHO the spade rudder concern is way overblown. Do your own research. All rudders fail and almost always from lack of maintenance including improper repairs. Think about insurance, if spade rudders were really such a concern they would cost more to insure. Insurance companies have really smart people looking for things like that. I have a former colleague who has a PhD in statistics who now works for an insurance company. I asked her to look at the issue and she could find no statistically significant evidence that it's a real issue. It's all anecdotal.



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[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.

[onestepcsy37]

Our sailing club has a pearson 30, fin keel / spade rudder. It's grounded twice in the past 4 years and cost us over $3k in rudder repairs. No spade rudders for me...

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[Blasko]

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

[snort]

Make sure you do comparison shopping of like models. For example, this one:
Pearson 28, 1976, Shady Side, Maryland, sailboat for sale from Sailing Texas

Generally speaking, folks who keep a list of work done and parts replaced do decent upkeep on a boat, which will hopefully avoid too many surprises.

[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

[Blue Crab]

Originally Posted by snort

Make sure you do comparison shopping of like models. For example, this one:
Pearson 28, 1976, Shady Side, Maryland, sailboat for sale from Sailing Texas

Generally speaking, folks who keep a list of work done and parts replaced do decent upkeep on a boat, which will hopefully avoid too many surprises.

While I completely agree with the above, the Atomic 4 was all I needed to read. It's 2014, hint hint...kinda like the Hunter/other inexpensive boats debates. With serious boats at giveaway prices with diesels, why consider anything less? OP: that was great advice about the Westerly. btw, don't let the girlfriend see any boats cus she 'll want a "more modern" boat (eg Hunter), some of which rudder failures are a little more frequent than anecdotal.

[JK n Smitty]

Originally Posted by Blue Crab

While I completely agree with the above, the Atomic 4 was all I needed to read. It's 2014, hint hint...kinda like the Hunter/other inexpensive boats debates. With serious boats at giveaway prices with diesels, why consider anything less? OP: that was great advice about the Westerly. btw, don't let the girlfriend see any boats cus she 'll want a "more modern" boat (eg Hunter), some of which rudder failures are a little more frequent than anecdotal.

Good advice on diesel over atomic 4.

But could you please support your rudder failure statement with links to any facts or statistics? I know there was a short duration of product that hunter had some manufacturer related rudder issues but I believe that was on less than 100 boats.


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[onestepcsy37]

Not picking on hunter rudders, but since you asked...

A club member has a 1970's hunter 30. On a trip to key west this winter the shaft went loose inside the rudder; no steering.

If you search the forum you will find a late model, larger hunter that was cruising east of the abacos when his rudder FELL OFF! He floated around for a few days until he got a tow into green turtle.

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[Blue Crab]

We've had many reports just here on the forum but I admit I don't know where the line is between anecdotal and de TRUTH. The 31 was the worst one as I recall.

I am however quite certain that some folks are not convinceable no matter what. It's the human condition. Take the advice ya like; leave the rest.

[Crazer]

Don't listen to the nonsense about getting a bigger boat. A Cat 30 draws too much for the Bahamas, IMO, as do most boats 30 ft and over. One design that hasn't been mentioned but is worth a look is the Tartan 27. Although they're a bit older, they are a good solid design with a shoal draft and a good pedigree. They can be had fairly cheap. Here's a fantastic one in VA for $10K asking: 1976 Tartan 27 Price Reduced!

[CSY Man]

Catalina 30 would be my choice in that size and price range.
Sailed the Bahamas 27 times in my CSY 33 over 15 years, a perfect boat for the area and for one couple, but more money and more maintenance.

[JK n Smitty]

I am however quite certain that some folks are not convinceable no matter what. It's the human condition. Take the advice ya like; leave the rest.

in my world this is the absolute worst thing you can do. It's called confirmation bias and the second biggest sin a scientist can commit.

Internet forums are filled with stories of failed rudders. However there are very few with true causal analysis. Further when you evaluate those stories most of the say they heard a hit and then they had no steerage. A hit, singular. They then attribute the steering lose to hitting something then the rudder fell off. A singular hit with an object that bypassed the keel and the rest of the hull is kind of like the magic bullet theory. Instead it is more likely that the rudder failed and the sound was the rudder hitting the hull or the shaft snapping off.

All rudders will fail if not maintained. This includes spades, skeg hung and barn door style keel hung rudders. They will eventually have water intrusion, hardware failure, delaminate etc. these are all due to lack of maintenance.

Damage from a grounding will also damage all types of rudders. There are plenty of stories of skeg hung and keel hung rudders being damaged on this and other forums. People will say that spades are unprotected but they seem to forget about the big thing in front of the rudder called the keel. Also they disregard the advantage of spades in a hard grounding in that they can break free without doing major damage to the boat.

Then there is the damage from wear. Again all rudders are subject to this damage. However spade rudders clearly have the hydrodynamic advantage here. They are far more efficient and subject to less stress during normal operation.

Clearly there are pros and cons to all rudder types. Spade rudders however seem to have an unjustified prejudice against them as not being suitable for offshore work. This prejudice does not appeal to be supported by any true facts or statistics. So as I said earlier I urge anyone to do their own research and look for information beyond anecdotes.


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