Which boat?

[Fastbikes1]

Hello
I were new to cruising and looking for our first boat.
We have lots of dinghy sailing experience on the Thames estuary, comp crew out on Gib and doing my day skippers.
We have £8k to 15k budget and looking to keep it on a wet swing mooring on the river crouch.
We are looking at : contessa 28, trapper 501, fin keels and a sadler 32, shole keel.

I would like the impossible a fast stable boat, fun to sail with good Headroom 5'11" , able to cruise the coastal waters in the UK and over to France, on a budget.
A boat that we can have our grown up kids stay for a weekend or so.
Long weekends and the odd weeks cruise.
We looking to gain more experience in the next 5yrs then retire and get a bigger boat.
Any advice would be appreciated
Regards Paul

[Don C L]

Welcome aboard Fastbikes! I don't know the boats that are available there but you might check this site run by a gentleman from the UK. He shows some boats locally available with some commentary and he has a lot of other good info about boats and cruising:
https://www.sailboat-cruising.com/

Also this site is a pretty good reference:
Sailboat Reviews of Offshore Cruising Yachts : Bluewaterboats.org

Good luck!

[rbk]

Based on what you are and to do and being on a budget, in all honesty I’d be looking at a trailer Sailor <30’. That would allow you to save more, travel farther via trailer and it would be a good stepping stone towards a bigger boat and something that can be worked on in the driveway.

[rbk]

Based on what you are planing to do and being on a budget, in all honesty I’d be looking at a trailer Sailor <30’. That would allow you to save more, travel farther via trailer and it would be a good stepping stone towards a bigger boat and something that can be worked on in the driveway.

[Fastbikes1]

Thank you all for your comments.
I have 2 dinghys on a jetty and love to drive up and go out but they are very tide dependent.
I would really hate to trailer a boat anywhere let alone trying to find a safe slipway, pay to use it and find parking.
I am happy to pay mooring fees , winter storage and lift out.
I have budged for all of this.
I would like a fun to sail stable boat that we can spend the weekend or my 4 days off on ,feb to october.
My boat buying budget is from 8k to 16k, and i have found examples of all the boats i listed in that price range.
We have looked at 7 boats from the good , the bad and the terrible, oh and the overpriced.
Not beeing able to sail them i was asking opinions. .
Regards Paul

[picklesandjesse]

Originally Posted by Fastbikes1

Hello
I were new to cruising and looking for our first boat.
We have lots of dinghy sailing experience on the Thames estuary, comp crew out on Gib and doing my day skippers.
We have £8k to 15k budget and looking to keep it on a wet swing mooring on the river crouch.
We are looking at : contessa 28, trapper 501, fin keels and a sadler 32, shole keel.

I would like the impossible a fast stable boat, fun to sail with good Headroom 5'11" , able to cruise the coastal waters in the UK and over to France, on a budget.
A boat that we can have our grown up kids stay for a weekend or so.
Long weekends and the odd weeks cruise.
We looking to gain more experience in the next 5yrs then retire and get a bigger boat.
Any advice would be appreciated
Regards Paul

Bad timing !! We sold our really great Contessa 28 in The Netherlands for 3000 Euros about 3 months ago, I was back here in Australia and was too busy to go back over there. We paid 16,000 euros for it a year before. Such a pity !!! This was a good boat and way better than the ones we had seen in the UK. You probably don't want to hear this.

[boatman61]

If you are looking for a boat for the family may I suggest you look at some Westerly's..
They have good storage spaces, tankage andthough a bit VW camper van on the topsides have a lovely hull form below the water line.. mine was a Longbow but they made some others that have a more flowing look.
I remember a run from Alderney down to Gurnsey where we 'raced' against a Sadler 32 with full army crew vs us 2 up and we held them so if sailed well they do shift..
Contessa's are a bit wet.. Trappers poor on stowage so the Sadler is my only like..
Good hunting.. 👍

[Pete7]

I agree with Phil, have a look at the Westerly range. In particular the Fulmar is said to sail like a witch. Just beyond your budget, however, its the winter, Christmas is coming up and a good offer would be quite appropriate, but wait until the early Spring and all bets are off as the world suddenly decides to buy a boat for the summer.

Westerly Fulmar for sale UK, used Westerly Fulmar, Westerly Fulmar sales, free photo ads - Apollo Duck

The extra length will mean a better overall cruising speed and the extra weight much more stability than say a Trapper 501.

Your other option is a Moody 33. Do not be put off by the looks, they can be made to sailed fast and would have perhaps a better layout for you and the family, couple on e bay at the moment, or:

1980 Moody 33 MKII Sail New and Used Boats for Sale -



Pete

[Fastbikes1]

Thank you for the advice...the boat will most likely be sailed with 2 people most of the time but we would like the option to take the grown up children.
I enjoy sailing so would like a sporty boat but with good sea handling and live abord for a week here and thee capacity.
We were going to look at a Hanse 300. Fin. Moody 29 fin and a beneteau first 29... thoughts
I will look out for a fulmar to view but they seem out of my price range.
Many Thanks Paul

[Pete7]

How about this:

Moody 33 Mk1 for sale, 10.05m (33'0"), 1978 | Boatshed

How about a cheeky offer of £8500 for this:

https://www.boatshop24.co.uk/sailboa...ongbow/194283#

The one thing I like about the Longbow/Pentland is there isn't a huge drop from cockpit to saloon, it more like stepping in. When you have climbed up our steps two dozen times in a morning you start to notice these things. With the change buy some really nice new sails to give her a turbo charge.

What ever you decide your timing as winter sets in is excellent, good luck.



Pete