Alberg 30

[damjan dan alaica]

hi there,
i intend to sail solo from toronto via erie canal to bermuda/azores and on to med.
alberg 30 has been recommended as an ideal boat to do this singlehandedly.
any comments would be appreciated
thanks
damjan

[GordMay]

No offense, but the Alberg 30 is hardly what I’d call an ideal boat, for any purposes. The design of the Alberg 30 dates back to 1961, and some of its features and appearance are reminiscent of the old wooded sailboats of the 1950s and 1940s. With her full keel, low free board, long overhangs, narrow beams, and low-aspect sail plan, the Alberg 30 design translates into a boat with limited interior room, and its full keel means it will not have the same pointing ability as a fin keel boat.
The construction is also 1960's vintage - consisting of a solid lay-up of fiberglass cloth and polyester resin hul, with iron ballast is encapsulated in the full length fiberglass keel and a fiberglass composite rudder is attached to the keel. Decks and cabin houses are constructed of fiberglass cloth and resin and a core was used in areas of the deck and top of the cabin house for added strength. Boats built prior to 1970 utilized masonite as a core material while those built after used balsa wood.
Common maintenance problems include: leaking ports and fittings, balsa wood deck core that has become deteriorated by water saturation, and worn rudder pintles, gudgeons and bushings.
LOA 30’ 3", LWL 21'8", Beam 8' 9", Draft 4' 3", Displ 9,000#

Owners site: http://www.alberg30.org/boat/
Owner reviews: http://www.sailnet.com/collections/b...detail2&Model=
Paul Howard Review: http://www.boats.com/content/default...ontentid=15722

There are lots of these boats around (each with a proud owner), so we'll soon see alternative opinions to mine.

[Jeff H]

I have spent a lot of time sailing these old girls and frankly they are the antithesis of what I would call "an ideal boat to do this singlehandedly." Lots of weather helm or lots of sail changes, pain in the butt jib to drag around the stays.

While some people seem to want to call these full keels, (when they are fins with attached rudders by the classic definition of a fin keel), semantics aside, these boats have all of the worst faults of both fin keels and full keels with none of the virtues of either. They don't track, the rudder is not protected by the keel, they won't stand fore and aft without struts, nor are they easy to maneuver or offer a light helm.

For a 30 footer these are hard boats to single-hand and offer poor sailing ability at either the heavy and light ends of the wind range.

As built they lack the kind of carrying capacities and storage that one would want in a distance cruiser. Build quality was pretty mediocre and they are now 35 to 44, or so, year old boats. That means that unless you found one in that had been carefully restored for the purpose, making an Alberg 30 suitable for your planned sailing venue require such an investment in time and money that this would make the Alberg 30 a very expensive boat. To some extent, it would be like starting from a bare hull and building out, and when you were all done you would still end up with a pretty mediocre boat. Bad idea!

Respectfully,
Jeff

[dirtrider5001]

I love the ALberg30 just got one that sat for 6 years in the water, had to use a winch to winch it out, looked like a haunted house inside but after removing 50 full bags of trash, about 50 filled to the top 6 gallon buckets of water , pulled the engine pulled out crap that was in the keel all the way down to the masonite, I THINK I NEED TO USE A IMPACT HAMMER, (you know what i mean) to get that masonite out of there cuz i wont trust antifreeze to stop the keel from freezing around the waterlogged masonite, i just want a dry keel! ill dry it out and put small rocks or something i can remove easily but any input on my situation would be greatly appreciated since the alberg 30 website does not mention a dam thing about this they want you to pay to join first dammit, but yea thanks again

[s/v 'Faith']

Jeff;

While some people seem to want to call these full keels, (when they are fins with attached rudders by the classic definition of a fin keel), semantics aside, these boats have all of the worst faults of both fin keels and full keels with none of the virtues of either. They don't track, the rudder is not protected by the keel, they won't stand fore and aft without struts, nor are they easy to maneuver or offer a light helm.

I think you are thinking of another boat. The Alberg 30 is indeed a full keel with a cutaway forefoot. She will track better then many modern designs and her fine entry and narrow beam make her a better sea boat then much of the 'modern designs'. She most certainly does have an attached rudder that is indeed protected by the keel.

[waverider]

I have never sailed one but I have always thought they had beautiful lines. It is true that they are narrow on the beam, and that they do have alot of overhang ( short waterline).

With the right sailor and the right dissions any boat over 27 feet can be a good boat for cruising. I think its up to you and what you want to spend, how comfortable you want to be and what features you need to survive in the worst weather. I would recommend a Catalina 30 or even a Douglas 32 if you like the overhang style boat.

But any boat with love and respect will treat you right.

Cheers

Todd

[Southern Star]

Wow, quite a trashing of a boat with, in my opinion, a well-desrved reputation for being not only pretty, but well-balanced and well-built. As a previous owner I can say that they decidedly do not suffer from extreme weather helm; indeed, with proper tuning of the rig and proper sail trim I was able to balance mine and sail to windward without touching the helm in most conditions. Consider also that the designer/manufacturer of the 'Cape Horn" self-steering gear circumnavigated in his and his little film stands as a testimonial to both her seakindly motion and balance. She was also built like a tank.

Is she short on interior room? Yes. But she has an extremely large bilge for stores, a high bridgedeck and two proper seaberths. Would I want to circumnavigate in one? No. But not due to any design flaws.

Brad

[rtbates]

The Alberg 30 is PERFECT for any ocean sailing. Get caught in a big ass storm off shore and see. Singlehanding is a matter of setup. The Alberg 30 will heave to like a champ. For singlehanders the ability to heave to off shore is not just nice it's imperative. Try to find one that has had the Atomic4 replaced with a diesel.

[dirtrider5001]

just feel like bragging about the alberg30 a little bit, ive gotton replys tellin me its built like a tank and it really absolutly is, i have the volvo penta and it sat for 6 years and rusted in sides on cylinder walls , i cleaned up rust with sand paper, hit the pistons with 2x4 wood using hammer,(to unfreeze motor) put it all back together, and then found some used injectors, for 50 dollars for the 2, stuck them in, Had to make nice contraption out of autozone valve puller to get them out, but anyways put in the new to me injectors, shot in a dab of starting fluid and she runs pretty much like new probly gonna have motor borred and yada yada, boy though i got lucky that mine wasnt the fresh water cooled version or i can pretty much guarentee that i would have needed much more than an injector with the engine sitting where it was where it freezes everyear anyways i love this boat think i might keep it forever and i can honestly say that it will definiatly last my entire lifetime and im only 22 and plan to get nice and old i really dont care what people say the albergs are the best sailboat ever made in my opinion i might sound a little off saying that but it is the truth and the best thing about the 30 is that is not too large that it couldnt be flipped back over without too much trouble if it was to get capsized, i plan on making mine with the air pockets ive read very little about to make it unsinkable not that ive ever heard of one single alberg sinking another thing i can tell you is that i think it would be really hard to find a stronger boat you should see the gobs of fiberglass resin unlike any fiberglass youve ever seen, if you saw it you would know that it is extremly stong ok im done for now just cant wait for summer.

[Chattcatdaddy]

Originally Posted by s/v 'Faith'

Jeff;

I think you are thinking of another boat. The Alberg 30 is indeed a full keel with a cutaway forefoot. She will track better then many modern designs and her fine entry and narrow beam make her a better sea boat then much of the 'modern designs'. She most certainly does have an attached rudder that is indeed protected by the keel.

Glad to see someone defend this wonderful boat. Should of known it would be a member from sailfar.

[Celestialsailor]

For fun I ordered a book named "Twenty Small Sailboats to Take You Anywhere", by John Vigor.
Chapter One
Alberg 30

A Legend in it's own time
"Not many 30-footers, old or new, seem as basically seaworthy and rugged as the Alberg 30".

It also goes on to say that Practical sailor speaks highly of it.
In all 20 boats they talk about known weaknesses. For the Alberg 30, things to watch for are as follows...
-thartships beam which supports the mast
-rudder and rudder fittings
-tiller head fitting
-forward lower shroud chainplate
-fuel tank
-wooden spreader-mainsail roller furling

Anyways...If you are single handing and looking for a small "cheap" sailer, it's not bad.

[pefjr]

I can only think of a few boats as good as an Alberg 30, and some of those are Alberg Designs. Can't think of any better.

Someone mentioned a Catalina. I would not trade an Alberg for a fleet of Catalinas(one exception the 38' S&S, but that's a different expense level). Check your comfort motion and capsize figures on this site:

Sail Calculator Pro v3.52 - 2000+ boats

If you want room, buy a trawler.

[waverider]

"Someone mentioned a Catalina. I would not trade an Alberg for a fleet of Catalinas(one exception the 38' S&S, but that's a different expense level"

Most Alberg owners love thier boats and with good reason they are great boats. But Catalina makes a great boat too. The answer to this is sail what you like to sail. Make sure you are comfortable, and feel safe.

Row boats have made it across the Atlantic ocean and so have some 20'ers so it comes down to seamanship, preperation, and making good weather choices. I would venture to say at this time and date, just as many fin keels have crossed the Atlantic as Full Keels. So lets put that topic to rest, and to get back on topic.

Yes Alberg 30 is a great sea worthy boat for the money.

Cheers

Todd

[wannabesailor]

Originally Posted by waverider

"Someone mentioned a Catalina. I would not trade an Alberg for a fleet of Catalinas(one exception the 38' S&S, but that's a different expense level"

Most Alberg owners love thier boats and with good reason they are great boats. But Catalina makes a great boat too. The answer to this is sail what you like to sail. Make sure you are comfortable, and feel safe.

Row boats have made it across the Atlantic ocean and so have some 20'ers so it comes down to seamanship, preperation, and making good weather choices. I would venture to say at this time and date, just as many fin keels have crossed the Atlantic as Full Keels. So lets put that topic to rest, and to get back on topic.

Yes Alberg 30 is a great sea worthy boat for the money.

Cheers

Todd

hi todd, I am looking at a 1983 Alberg 29 which is currently for sale in my area.
It looks to be in immaculate shape with lots of teak and updated everything
this would be my first boat and it has had only 2 owners. one from new until 1.5 years ago and the current owner who has had it for 1.5 years

asking price is 35,000

any thoughts?

Thanks

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by wannabesailor

... asking price is 35,000
any thoughts?
Thanks

Asking price indicates a VERY proud owner.

The Alberg 30's usually sell for well under $25,000
(between $18,000 to $23,000 Cdn.)