What is the best sailboat for me... besides Nor'Sea 27?

[Bulawayo]

The Island Packet is a superb boat as are many others ....have you considered the Nonsuch range?

Originally Posted by gerolamo

Thanks Barnakiel,
The owner finished versions are a concern for sure. The added on balast is something I did not hear of before... hmm.
I keep hearing of it being narrow, I did not consider it being an issue, but I have to get inside one to check for myself.
I could go Island Packet 27 on the other hand, no narrow beam problems there I hear, quite the opposite

[Wallaby]

For 20-odd years I had a Sovereign 28, mid-cockpit, 3/4 encapsulated keel, cutter-rig, with a 18hp Yanmar. It was 28 LOA, + 2'6" bowsprit, 8'4" wide, 3'4" draft, 6' headroom, and 6800 lbs +/-
It served me well, given the situation. I wanted a bare hull to finish off, trailerable, big enough for 2 adults and 2 kids, for coastal cruising with the possibility of going to the Bahamas.
The manufacturer bit the dust in 1990, but the molds were still available. I believe someone has since bought them.

[Pegu Club]

We have a new to us Bristol 29.9, 4' 4" draft, no centerboard, nice boat, lots of storage, fits your initial needs list nicely. You might check some of them out on sailboat listings or yacht world, prices are good, its a quality boat.

[SVTwilight]

Definitely check Cape Dory, probably the 30', the 27' was pretty small inside, older Sabres were 27' and 30' IIRC, Bristol, Cheoy Lee (although they usually have a lot of brightwork to maintain), Alberg 30, Tartan

Don't overlook Pearson and Ericson in that size range, they are some nice quality models

There are lots of all of those for sale on the Great Lakes that are well preserved from the fresh water....

[cpt_757]

If you are locating in Montreal area,
There is KIRIE 30S for sale, nice boat!

[Don C L]

Don't leave a Columbia 29 off the list! It fits your criteria too, but no aft cabin. Check Bluewaterboats.org and the "boats to vote for" list there too. BTW, have you been in the aft cabin of the Nor'Sea, it is a tad small, but perhaps you like that.

[accomplice]

You didn't say what boats you love.

Does an H-28 make your heart go pitter-patter, or your stomach turn?

If you like well made boats, can you spare the extra 4" of draft on a Morris Linda 28?

An Alberg 30 or Cape Dory 30 are very different kinds of boats, but close to your draft specs and proven designs.

What is it about the Nor'sea 27 that you feel makes it ideal? Be careful that if you define one particular boat as ideal for you that any other boat will necessarily be short of that ideal. Lots of boats fit your stated quantitative objectives.

[racinejf]

Albin Vega 27

[iota27]

Gerolamo, Contact me and we can talk about my Nor'sea 27. I'm in Maine. jfrake73@gmail.com

[Sirago]

I will sell you my Island Packet 31. I believe it meets all your requirements.

[barnakiel]

Someone said you pay for the length but you buy the beam.

Narrow is no problem when you think of a weekend boat. Narrow is no problem when you think of a big boat. Narrow IS a limitation when the boat is small and meant for longer off the grid existence. One example will be long offshore passages. We have had 72, 43, 36 and a handful of 20 to 30 days passages. Water, food, sails, fuels, batteries, energy sources, stuff ... maybe even a PARTNER (whoa!). And long offshore passages are not the only time you want prime load carrying capability in a small boat.

If you go into SailCalc you will find a ratio called the sinking ratio or thereabout. It is not at all about how fast the boat will sink. It is about how much she will sink in per each unit of stuff you add. I think if you compare between same LWL boats you will find some that can carry an extra 20%, maybe like 200 extra pounds per inch.

And what shall we do with our newly found 200 pounds of sinking ratio. Say this is 100 liters of water or rum, or 6 extra sails, or 4 days of motoring ... by now you can see my drift.

As she sinks in, she gets less lively, stops sooner in light winds (light winds are a fact of open ocean passages) and she may even get unseaworthy (should you pile the junk vertically, which cannot be avoided in a NARROW boat). Unless there is no junk, but then why buy a heavy displacement boat at all? For when there is no cruising associated junk, you can sail an uldb, like Webb Chiles ... ;-)

Long and winding are the roads to nowhere. And it takes time to understand that when you come to a fork in the road, the best thing you can do is to take it.

If I were to buy another small boat (unlikely), I would buy at least as much beam as we have now (9'). I know IPs are super beamy. If they sail fine with this much beam, I would take one.

Do have a look at the one at hand. It is not all that much about how much beam you own, it is way more about how much sailing you make.

b.

[Don C L]

Hmm... personally I'd prefer to load a narrow, deep keel design heavily than a lighter displacement, beamier boat. IP is not really light displacement though. But the beam on those! They are like Nonsuches in that way. I love the design for some conditions, but in steep chop, larger swells... well I prefer my narrow hull for that. And if you really load up such a beamy boat you are really trying to plow a big furrow aren't you? In my own case I have a very narrow boat that originally came with 3120# of ballast and later they added 1000# more of lead to presumably give it a little more stability and pointing ability. And that extra 1000# doesn't show much on the water line. BUT if I were to add 1000# (loaded in the hull) to a Cal 28 I am pretty sure its sailing characteristics would not be improved at all. In my case, I have the option to load my boat heavily knowing it can absorb it. It is very true my narrow boat does not have as much space available to put stuff, but when packing, all the weight has to go as low as you can go and I have a fair amount of room below the waterline. Heavier displacement boats give you more open volume to load below the waterline.

[rognvald]

" I will use it locally mostly but do plan extended cruises, from time to time, say from North East to Caribbean and maybe twice across the pond. " Gerolamo


G,
You're on the St. Lawrence or on an inland lake/waterway. You've stated a budget of $50K. Have you asked yourself the one most important question in your boat decision . . . how soon do you plan to cross an ocean? It is my opinion in over 30 years of sailing ranging from the Great Lakes to the Caribbean that the majority of people who own "offshore boats" never take them offshore. And, I would also say that the vast majority who never go offshore in these boats rarely, if ever, leave the dock. I am a great proponent of the school that says "buy the best boat you will sail now for its most likely use" because most peoples' dreams are just that . . . and will never become a reality for a myriad of reasons. You can buy a very nice boat for $20K or less that will serve your immediate needs and still will be capable of your ultimate dreams. For example, there's a beautiful Cape Dory 30 for $20k asking price in Chicago and a Nordica 30 for $14K in Canada on Yachtworld. Either of these boats with a competent skipper would serve your short and long term needs with 30K left in your pocket. Don't commit the cardinal sin of boating and buy a boat for an intended purpose that may never become reality. Marinas and boatyards are the resting place of empty pockets and broken dreams. Good luck and safe sailing.

[wizard1_us]

Cape Dory 27' it is on the small side interior wise as was stated, but these boats can sail, ocean or inland and easy motion. I have one for sale if you are instructed. I also have a Cape Dory 31 for sale as well.

[Scout 30]

Check this out!

https://fortmyers.craigslist.org/col...499991894.html