Much of a boat - just for fun

[jwcolby54]

Having been watching the forums for months, I understand that everyone has their own budget for buying, and given a budget they then define (in their own head) 'much of a boat' as in 'You can't get much of a boat for less than $XYZ'.

Given that I had this 'you ain't gonna get much of a boat' dropped into another of my threads, I thought it might be fun to actually provide a place where we could all write out how much we spent (ball park will do, lie if you wanna) on a boat and our beliefs about 'it just isn't useful to go out looking unless you have $XYZ'.

'You can't get much of a boat unless you can spend $XYZ'.

Please keep this fun folks. It is only meant to allow us all to see the range of notions out there. If you can, perhaps you could also show a couple of links to boats that you could really buy if you wanted and you think represent 'anything less than this ain't worth buying'.

Since this is a real concern for those in the market, and since I am in the market, and since this 'not much of a boat for less' was dropped in my lap, I will be happy to start the thread with my own situation.

As it happens, my budget is $20K+/-. So what I am looking for is:

1) 60s-70s era boat.
2) 33-40 feet
3) An offshore cruiser (properly prepared).

So on my short list is:

1) The 'Cherubini hunters' - 33,34 and 37.
2) 35 Morgan
3) Irwin 34 Citation
4) Islander 36/37
5) Dickerson 36
6) Morgan West Indies 38
7) Seidleman 37

I have found all of these for under 25K.

Hunter Cherubini Sailboat 1981

So let's have fun with this. And while this is all tongue in cheek, it is also useful to demonstrate that what would be filtered right out by a guy with a half million budget, would be actively sought after by us bottom feeders. And given that, saying 'not much of a boat for less than $xyz' only speaks to your personal budget.

Let the fun begin.

[Cheechako]

The "much of a boat" part often includes condition or completeness, rather than well made design I think.
-I bought a 1985 44 cutter for $65k. By the time I had it done I had $115k in it... and 2 years of work.
-That is typical for most boats I had.


So I think one has to revise how much you can buy a boat for by adding $ to completion in order to fit your budget.
For a 35 ft Blue water boat at $20k budget, you may need someone to give you a boat and also hand you about $20k with it.


Or you need to find a basic boat that is solid with good sails, no defects. Add nothing and live like you're cruising in 1960; no refrig, no gps, row your dingy, navigate by charts, hand pull your anchor, get water ashore, etc. Which is entirely possible to do.

[BlueMaxx]

I am in the latter stages of cutting loose here on land after a long period of planning and saving.....My heart goes pitter-patter whenever I see a Hans Christian or Baba and the Westsails.

Plus in my "wants" column I would like to have a full keel double ender....The newer vessels I see mostly have some form of a skeg rudder. I am thinking 36-40' would suit me fine, especially if I set her up with some newer rigging.

Then the buying a newer boat starts itching in my haid.

I am one of those folks who is not in it for speed save running for cover!

I have been watching prices and boats sell for a few years.....and I guess everyone to some extent may have the same anxiety about a final choice.

Some I find look great, but most need some sort of updating or repair.

So then I start crunching numbers for a newer (more expensive) model.

Life sort of gave me a kick in the teeth as of late and my planned "departure" time has come much quicker than I thought...

My son gets out of the Army soon and I hope to sail with him, but I still have a long way to go..

Anyway, I see a good later model Jeaneau, or Beneteau and Hunter and I think to myself that unless I find those "once in a lifetime" deals on a very very nice well equipped yet older vessel I am leaning towards spending a little more on a later model.

I am concerned about newer craft being a little too slick and too many options that just sound expensive to fix should they break...

So back and forth I go!

Looking forward to others replies here that have some nautical miles under their belt...


Cheers,

M

[SkiprJohn]

It depends on your place and timing what you'll be able to get for 20K. Some folks sail across the ocean, step on dry land and say, "Never again!" and want to get rid of the boat. You can't just come right out and say you can't get much of a boat for 20K because sometimes you can get a great boat all fitted out and provisioned for 20K.

[oldragbaggers]

We got our 33' Cape Dory for $15K in distressed condition (we knew that going in, but not the full extent of her distress). When I say distressed I mean weathered and needing some equipment repair, replacement, and upgrades; canvas, sail, line, and standing rigging replacement, and some engine work, but hull structurally sound and interior in beautiful condition, sans cushions. We expect to have somewhere around $45-50K in it ready to sail away, equipped very basic but with all of the essentials either new or in good working order.

We plan for a generous yearly budget to continue upgrading and adding equipment, in addition to normal yearly maintenance, after we start to cruise.

We happen to think it is very much of a boat but that's just our opinion, which is the only opinion that counts since it's our boat.

[laika]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

The "much of a boat" part often includes condition or completeness, rather than well made design I think.
-I bought a 1985 44 cutter for $65k. By the time I had it done I had $115k in it... and 2 years of work.
-That is typical for most boats I had.


So I think one has to revise how much you can buy a boat for by adding $ to completion in order to fit your budget.
For a 35 ft Blue water boat at $20k budget, you may need someone to give you a boat and also hand you about $20k with it.


Or you need to find a basic boat that is solid with good sails, no defects. Add nothing and live like you're cruising in 1960; no refrig, no gps, row your dingy, navigate by charts, hand pull your anchor, get water ashore, etc. Which is entirely possible to do.

I think this sums it up. If you're onboard with the "go small. go simple, go now" idea then the money can take you a long way. If you want something larger with more comforts then it's not going to get you very far out the door at all.

After living and cruising on a friend's 40' for years, I bought a 1982 27' cutter for $30k and put another $30k into it, with 18mo spent in a boatyard. I could've purchased a larger vessel, but small and quality is what I was looking for. Self-insured with $200/yr for liability. I'm 32 and wasn't looking for a retirement condo. Just a really nice boat that was built to go places.

There is a common saying, "the most expensive boats have the cheapest asking price". There are certainly lots of deals to be found out there if your patient and know what to look for. Just don't buy a large project boat! Your fate will be sealed in the boatyards of America.

Best of luck man!

[alctel]

Add the Cherubini Hunter 36 to your list! .

Not as well known as the 37 cutter, but still a few out there... (like mine)

[jwcolby54]

Originally Posted by alctel

Add the Cherubini Hunter 36 to your list! .

Not as well known as the 37 cutter, but still a few out there... (like mine)

You know the ONE THING that keeps the 36 off my list is the lack of the aft quarter berth. It perplexes me that they did that.

There are a lot out there and yep, nice boats.

Lack of an aft berth pretty much keeps any such boat off my list. It must have an aft cabin or an aft quarter birth. I lived full time in an RV and I can tell you from experience, "converting" a seat into a berth every night. long term, is a non-starter. I expect to sail alone much of the time, but if I do have a guest - my kid(s) for example, I must have a ready made place for them (or me).

[jwcolby54]

Originally Posted by laika

There is a common saying, "the most expensive boats have the cheapest asking price".

LOL, anyone saying that hasn't looked at new boats. I can take an older 38' boat and trick it out nice, and put $100K in the bank for the cost of a new one.

There is another old saying out there, 'the value drops 40 pct when you sail it off the lot'.

All of which makes no difference if one has the money and wants the new one.

I don't.

[brownoarsman]

Great idea for a thread. $8,000 for a Pearson 28-1. It was really well maintained with major issues recently fixed. New chainplates, new mast step, wet deck spots record, newer sails, etc. Put another 2 grand in right away in new ground tackle, a back up tiller pilot, and other odds and ends. 1 month later the diesel died! Win some, lose some.


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by BlueMaxx

I am in the latter stages of cutting loose here on land after a long period of planning and saving.....My heart goes pitter-patter whenever I see a Hans Christian or Baba and the Westsails.

Plus in my "wants" column I would like to have a full keel double ender....The newer vessels I see mostly have some form of a skeg rudder. I am thinking 36-40' would suit me fine, especially if I set her up with some newer rigging.

Then the buying a newer boat starts itching in my haid.

I am one of those folks who is not in it for speed save running for cover!

I have been watching prices and boats sell for a few years.....and I guess everyone to some extent may have the same anxiety about a final choice.

Some I find look great, but most need some sort of updating or repair.

So then I start crunching numbers for a newer (more expensive) model.

Life sort of gave me a kick in the teeth as of late and my planned "departure" time has come much quicker than I thought...

My son gets out of the Army soon and I hope to sail with him, but I still have a long way to go..

Anyway, I see a good later model Jeaneau, or Beneteau and Hunter and I think to myself that unless I find those "once in a lifetime" deals on a very very nice well equipped yet older vessel I am leaning towards spending a little more on a later model.

I am concerned about newer craft being a little too slick and too many options that just sound expensive to fix should they break...

So back and forth I go!

Looking forward to others replies here that have some nautical miles under their belt...


Cheers,

M

Blue Maxx,

Your last sentence implies that you have little sailing experience, so one wonders about this dream of yours to go sailing with your son. What experiential basis do you have? do you get seasick? how are you with small spaces? Do you know how to sail at all?

You're probably aware of it, but I just checked on the yachtworld brokerage site. Westsail 32's are listed at 32k to 64k, approx., Baba 30 at 51k-82k; and HC 33T at 126,380 and 121,753. You didn't say how much you are planning to spend. There have been a number of threads started about what to look for at the lower end of the market, as well as for cruising boats in general. The Google search here on CF under "Search" will get you there.

I am sorry to be discouraging, but a son grown, and getting out of the Army, is not terribly likely to want to spend these particular years of his life sailing with his Dad. Don't count on it, not for long. Perhaps if you state your plan more clearly, we might be able to help more. Maybe start your own thread.

Ann

[jwcolby54]

Originally Posted by SkiprJohn

You can't just come right out and say you can't get much of a boat for 20K because sometimes you can get a great boat all fitted out and provisioned for 20K.

And yes, someone said that to me already.

Look at that old 33' hunter I linked to. A damned pretty boat. And old. And small. And pretty.

The thing I understand is that a 33' boat may be the very definition of 'not much of a boat' if one already owns a 60' boat that one spent a quarter of a million on.

Which is kinda the point of this thread, give ya'all a place to express such feelings without banging on some poor guy with a $20K budget. There are LOTS of folks out here trying to buy a $20K boat and jumping into their thread with a statement like that is unhelpful.

[BlueMaxx]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Blue Maxx,

Your last sentence implies that you have little sailing experience, so one wonders about this dream of yours to go sailing with your son. What experiential basis do you have? do you get seasick? how are you with small spaces? Do you know how to sail at all?

You're probably aware of it, but I just checked on the yachtworld brokerage site. Westsail 32's are listed at 32k to 64k, approx., Baba 30 at 51k-82k; and HC 33T at 126,380 and 121,753. You didn't say how much you are planning to spend. There have been a number of threads started about what to look for at the lower end of the market, as well as for cruising boats in general. The Google search here on CF under "Search" will get you there.

I am sorry to be discouraging, but a son grown, and getting out of the Army, is not terribly likely to want to spend these particular years of his life sailing with his Dad. Don't count on it, not for long. Perhaps if you state your plan more clearly, we might be able to help more. Maybe start your own thread.

Ann

deleted

[BlueMaxx]

deleted and new thread started, my apologies!

M

[jwcolby54]

Originally Posted by oldragbaggers

We got our 33' Cape Dory for $15K in distressed condition (we knew that going in, but not the full extent of her distress). When I say distressed I mean weathered and needing some equipment repair, replacement, and upgrades; canvas, sail, line, and standing rigging replacement, and some engine work, but hull structurally sound and interior in beautiful condition, sans cushions. We expect to have somewhere around $45-50K in it ready to sail away, equipped very basic but with all of the essentials either new or in good working order.

We plan for a generous yearly budget to continue upgrading and adding equipment, in addition to normal yearly maintenance, after we start to cruise.

We happen to think it is very much of a boat but that's just our opinion, which is the only opinion that counts since it's our boat.

It is a nice boat indeed. Enjoy!!!