Pearson 28-1

[me262]

I am a new member and I would like some advice:

I bought a Pearson 28 last year for a song. Boat needed a little help so I had her hauled and dry docked for a year while I worked on her as time permitted. She was so cheap that I didn't bother with a survey.

Boat had a good inventory of sails, was very basic being a lake boat, and has an A-4 engine which runs fine. Some of the things I have done:

Installed electric bilge pump with float switch
Installed new exhaust hose
Cut 2" off bottom of mast due to corrosion and built riser out of stainless steel plate to compensate.
Installed VHF radio and antenna at masthead
New halyards
New bilge hose for the whalepump
Fixed elecrtical wiring as some yo yo had the ground for the buss bar hooked up to the starter solenoid, hence, no ground to the boats electical
new prop zinc
Cleaned and greased thru hull valves
re-packed prop stuffing box
Installed new depth finder.
Dug out rot around cabin top where mast comes through. Filled with epoxy and fiberglass resin
Added a stern ladder and outboard mount (for redundancy)
Painted bottom
I also have a small 2500 watt Coleman generator and a tow behind generator.

Standing rigging looks good, chainplates look good, no leaks. Ports don't leak. Boat looks to be in very decent shape. Cosmetically shes decent, but not shiny. Hell, its a 30 year old boat! As everything stands right now with haul out and boat storage, I probably have +/-$2,500 invested so I'm not upside down and she's all mine and paid for. I am tired of lake sailing so I'll have another $K in her by the time I get her hauled to the Texas coast and into a slip. Still...not too bad.

She seems to be a very well built boat, especially by Hunter and Catalina standards, and though a bit small, and somewhat light at 7800 lbs, I think she'd make a decent cruiser. My aspirations are to cruise to Mexico and Central America. I have heard there are a lot of lesser boats that have made the trip. I think my navigation and sailing skills are adequate and I'd like to sail while my health is still good.

So, fellow cruisers, what sayeth you about my choice of vessel for my voyage? This is the Bill Shaw designed boat with fin keel and partial skeg rudder not the Triton. I have heard and read all sorts of opinions about how anything less than a 40 footer is courting disaster. I just don't feel this is so. However, you guys are the experienced voices...I have no real offshore experience.

Thanks for your reply's!!!!!!

Dan
1977 Pearson 28-1
Canyon Lake, TX

[cjbeals]

I'm no sailor but I did sleep in a Holiday Express once and it was near water so I'll venture an opinion. Do it. I couldn't find any reason the Pearson 28 won't make an excellent offshore sailor. Sounds as though you have most of what you need and you know your way around the maintenance end so double and triple check everything (including keel bolts). Go slow and think ahead, if you feel it's not working then head home and rethink.

In three months I'm learning to sail, buying a 30' boat, upgrading and reinforcing all systems, provisioning, and heading out for good. After a year of researching I'm certain I can do it with a minimum of added risk, being on the sea is the main risk in itself for even the most skilled. All this and I'm a certified coward when drowning is involved

[maxingout]

One of my friends did his circumnavigation with his wife in a Tartan 30 sailboat without a problem.

The mini-transatlantic boat racers are only 6.5 meters which makes these transatlantic boats smaller than your boat.

Poeple who have sailed offshore in boats under thirty feet have a rougher ride when the going gets tough compared with boats over 40 feet. That does not mean they aren't as safe. At the end of the day, you may have a few more bruises and be a little more tired compared with larger boats that don't get thrown around as much.

I believe that Dave Martin did his circumnavigation on an upgraded Cal 24.

You have fewer creature comforts and less stuff on a smaller yacht, but that has nothing to do with seaworthiness. It's more like being an ocean backpacker.

I used to have a Pearson 27 Renegade, and it was an awesome sailing boat in rough seas. I would not be afraid to take it anywhere.

Go for it.

[cjbeals]

Originally Posted by maxingout

You have fewer creature comforts and less stuff on a smaller yacht, but that has nothing to do with seaworthiness. It's more like being an ocean backpacker.

I used to have a Pearson 27 Renegade, and it was an awesome sailing boat in rough seas. I would not be afraid to take it anywhere.

Go for it.

Totally agree, I like the "ocean backpacker" line, seems a good subject for a possible book/film. I think that 28'-30" a wee bit smallish for good storage and comfort even for a singlehander but, for doing it all by yourself, it's perfect. Good planning and awareness of your goals discount all the negatives.

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by me262

Standing rigging looks good, chainplates look good

Standing rigging usually still looks good even after it breaks......if you do not know the age of your rigging, then given the trip you are intending (and also away from the comfort / ease of doing the job at homebase), I would seriously consider renewing the Standing Rigging before you go (includuing / especially the connections).

Opinions vary on how often one should renew - but IMO 7 - 10 years would be somewhere in my comfort zone - no doubt for others less and some more......but if not known I would guess from the description of your boat that being original equipment is not impossible!

And you probably have done it already and just not listed, but double jubilee clips on your through hull hoses is a good insurance.....and some wooden bungs just in case - No water coming up and mast not coming down - everything else is a luxury

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha Me262,
Good tough boat. Good Luck. Oh, and by the way, welcome aboard!
I'd change the standing rigging if you have the original and check your rudder post and attachments. Rudder to rudder post failures are common for long downwind treks in older fin keelers so have some sort of backup, i. e. windvane that can be converted to and emergency rudder.
Kind Regards,
JohnL

[me262]

You guys are confirming what I already have thought. I understand that the most common cruiser out there is a Catatlina 27. That would make my Pearson a lot of overkill!

I appreciate all the encouragement and am supposed to be hauling my boat to the Texas coast tomorrow. That will give me time to get acclimated to her and the salt environment. We'll see how this goes. Wish I didn't have to worry about 'poor boying' this endeavor!

[doslocos]

In response to some of the misinformation you have been given I enter my two cents worth. I spent 9 years putting together a Blue Water Cruiser and then sailing it from San Diego to Panama, through the canal, up to Roatan, Honduras. Then I turned around and went back through the canal and sailed the Pacific to Thailand. I have logged over 35,000 miles so I think I speak with some authority. Most cruisers these days are on 26-30 foot boats. The Yachties are on 35-40 foot boats. Most cruisers own their boats and can handle them. Most Yachties owe the bank and are constantly in some sort of trouble. I rebuilt 4 boats underway that yachties had broken and did not know how to fix. My suggestion to you is go aboard a 40 foot boat and have someone wet down the sails. Then try to raise and lower them and imagine having to do that in a blow. Now go aboard your 28 and do the same. You will quickly learn the right size boat. Also look at the various parts and their cost to replace. Again you will quickly figure out what size boat is right. I suggest that you stop listening to the "marina experts" and find some books by real sailors who have been out there and learn what is proper. By the way, my boat was a 30 footer and I have just downsized to a 28.

[roverhi]

Dosocos, did you read the other posts?? Almost all are encouraging the guy to do it with some good reservations. My ocean mileage is in the 5 figures mostly single handed on mid 30' boats so have done a bit of sailing to have a basis for my thoughts.

If the rigging is of questionable age, replace it yourself using Norseman/StaLok terminals and definitely do the chain plates. Shouldn't cost an arm and a leg and will help to keep from having to set off the Epirb on some dark and stormy night. you'll need a self steering vane or at the least a couple of tiller pilots and a way to keep the electrons flowing. Get an inflatable dinghy which can double as a raft if the unthinkable happens. Will probably need bigger anchor with a rode that has more chain and line. Should have at least 200' of rode and a backup 2nd anchor. Old Danforths and rode are available cheap on Craig's List. You can easily equal the current cost of the boat in things that I now feel are absolute safety issues. Having said that, we left on our first long ocean passage with an Avon RedCrest Dinghy, no radio, a decent sextant and a couple of timex quartz watches. We did have self steering, good ground tackle, new sails and rigging, on a very comfortable, though not large, boat that we'd built from a bare hull. We had a great time that I still dream about. The only thing I'd change is building the boat. Cost two years we could have been cruising and more money than buying a completed boat.

Haunt Craig's List and Ebay, they are the friend of the frugal sailor.

Have seen a bunch of people dream of sailing off into the sunset. Most think they need a dockominium and then have to slave for a decade or more to pay it off or have a way to generate the income to make the payments which usually doesn't happen. The worst part is that too many find the cruising life isn't all maitais and sunset happy hours. They end up stuck with a boat they have way too much money in in some far away port. They will take a bath selling it but an even bigger bath selling it other than in some US major sailing center. In short, too many wait too long, have too much boat, and end up with their dream in ashes. The best cruising boat is the one you afford to leave in now. The hardest part of going cruising is untieing the dock lines.

[Travelnik]

Originally Posted by roverhi

Dosocos, did you read the other posts?? Almost all are encouraging the guy to do it with some good reservations.

Plus, they're all from 2007!

[roverhi]

Damn, hate it when that happens. Will have to learn to check the dates on the thread history. Doslocos response was so Bidenish, just had to respond.

[dadsdream]

Hello everyone.

I just bought a Pearson 28-1. The Atomic 4 engine was replaced with a Westerbeke M3-20B diesel.

The 64CC Control Cable is rusted stuck. It looks like I could be a 33 on her, but the shifter arm attachment is to thick for the clevis pin to fit. Looks like I have to get a 64CC.

I have been looking all over for a replacement but can only find them new and expensive.

Any ideas? Any places to look for used parts?

Thanks.

Also, I need to clean out the heat exchanger. Any ideas? I'll probably take of the whole unit and take it a shop the can give it a bath.

Thanks.

[ebsail]

I'm helping a couple of new sailors get their newly aquired Pearson (1977) 28 ready to sail this spring. However the stern boarding ladder bracket is still there but the boarding ladder is missing. Anyone know the brand and any other details on the original boarding ladder? So we don't have to change the bracket on the stern? Please reply also directly to ebsail@optonline.net

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by ebsail

I'm helping a couple of new sailors get their newly aquired Pearson (1977) 28 ready to sail this spring. However the stern boarding ladder bracket is still there but the boarding ladder is missing. Anyone know the brand and any other details on the original boarding ladder? So we don't have to change the bracket on the stern? Please reply also directly to ebsail@optonline.net

I just modified the boarding ladder on my Pearson 422. First, Pearson probably fabricated the ladders themselves or used a local metal shop to do so and extremely unlikely an exact replacement is still being made. If the brackets are like mine, basically a SS bar sticking out with a hole in it then you could get by with any ladder that's close to the same size.

If your brackets are like this and can't find a used ladder with the exact same width then just buy a bit of SS rod that fits the holes in the brackets and the ladder and use that as the pivot.

If this won't work or doesn't make sense, post a photo of what you've got.

[Pegu Club]

Originally Posted by doslocos

In response to some of the misinformation you have been given I enter my two cents worth. I spent 9 years putting together a Blue Water Cruiser and then sailing it from San Diego to Panama, through the canal, up to Roatan, Honduras. Then I turned around and went back through the canal and sailed the Pacific to Thailand. I have logged over 35,000 miles so I think I speak with some authority. Most cruisers these days are on 26-30 foot boats. The Yachties are on 35-40 foot boats. Most cruisers own their boats and can handle them. Most Yachties owe the bank and are constantly in some sort of trouble. I rebuilt 4 boats underway that yachties had broken and did not know how to fix. My suggestion to you is go aboard a 40 foot boat and have someone wet down the sails. Then try to raise and lower them and imagine having to do that in a blow. Now go aboard your 28 and do the same. You will quickly learn the right size boat. Also look at the various parts and their cost to replace. Again you will quickly figure out what size boat is right. I suggest that you stop listening to the "marina experts" and find some books by real sailors who have been out there and learn what is proper. By the way, my boat was a 30 footer and I have just downsized to a 28.

Although I do not have your level of experience and miles under keel, I do agree with a lot of what you have stated, we are relitively new to sailing ( five years ) we are presently in the Bahamas on our 1977 Bristol 29.9, we did replace just about every truly important parts on our boat, from thru hulls/ seacocks chain plates, standing rigging, rebedding etc etc, cosmetic niceties were essentially the last things on the list.
We feel that our choice in boat size is correct for many reasons, like you described.
To the OP, have a serious look at your standing rigging before you go, the boat will take care of you if you take care of it. Enjoy your adventure.

Fair winds,