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MaDouleur · 21-03-2008, 08:14

I'm going to be shopping for a 28' - 32' boat to live on / cruise with soon. I want long-distance cruising, reliability and the greatest degree of self-sufficiency to be a priority. To address this, I want the following in the boat I purchase:

Full keel that is straight across the bottom - not angled. This would make it easy to dry out on a beach or lean against a bulkhead when the tide goes out to do bottom work.
Rudder attached to the back of the keel - not a fin.
Tiller steering. I was originally thinking wheel but from a lot of reading, it looks like tiller is best for solo sailing in terms of simplicity, reliability, auto-pilot, cockpit room, etc.

Of course, I am open to suggestion so please provide feedback on the above.

When looking at listings, there are obviously a LOT of ads to go through. Are there certain manufacturers that I should make a point of clicking on because (for example) they make all full-keel boats? Are there certain manufacturers I shoul dmake a point of NOT clicking on because (for example) the do nothing but fin rudders?

Thanks - Jake

By Invitation · 21-03-2008, 08:23

The list is almost endless for all of your requests, you just need to look at advertisements for boats and make some decisions then ask about a specific boat.