Best quality coastal cruiser

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Azul

I think if the OP was interested in two heads he probably wants to at least have standing head room. A Corsair F-27 is a great fun boat, but very expensive and hard to find- most people would find it a chore just to spend a weekend aboard. James Baldwin had one for a while and he wrote about the experience (even his diminutive wife didn't like the cabin height) on Voyages of the Atom. An F-31 is outside the OP's stated budget.

Nor'Sea 27's often come with a trailer. Trailering was part of the design equation.

BTW, Baldwin bought a Triton when he was 18 (in Michigan no less) with little money in his pocket and no experience and proceeded to sail it around the world. Twice. No Laser for him.

Don't get a Corsair of any type for cruising. They are tiny and light weight.

Funny thing about Baldwin is that he seems to be staying with the old full keel boats maybe because he has seen the construction of the newer models.

I'm not sure why folks think it's so cool to not know much about sailing when going into sailing but to each his own.

It just seems to make good sense to me to know how to sail when buy a sail ... boat.

I'm thinking the answer is here on CF. Just check the threads on Construction, Maintenance , Refit. See the post counts and you will get your answer on what many "cruising sailors" want

The only thing that's better than the Construction, Maintenance, and refit to these folks is telling someone else how they did it!

Whatever, to each his own but I still think for some reason that knowing how to sail a boat when you want to be a sailor is a good thing.

I was drifting out one day prerace on my Nacra F-17 sitting on one of the hulls forward drinking a beer, feet in the water. The wind was offshore at 18 knots plus. I had the jib loose and luffing, the main cleated center, rudders and boards up. All is good with the world. (my boat is like a windvane in this setup)

Fixit guy decides today is the day he will launch his beautiful wooden Shark Catamaran. He raises sail and turns the boat to sail off shore but the wind is 18 knots plus..................it wasn't a pretty site.

I felt bad for him, and watched the next thing that caught my interest while still being blow out until I decided it was time to lower and lockdown the rudders and boards and go race

Boating experience seems to help also. I bought my first boat, motor, and trailer for $300.00 on the seaside when I was 16 and attempted to trailer it to the bayside but one of the trailer hubs disintegrated on the way. Lesson 1.

[Greenhand]

Just. Because. Someone. Wants. To. Do. It. Differently. Than. You. Did. Does. Not. Mean. They. Cannot. Learn. To. Sail. Well.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Greenhand

Just. Because. Someone. Wants. To. Do. It. Differently. Than. You. Did. Does. Not. Mean. They. Cannot. Learn. To. Sail. Well.

But. It. Seemed. That. They. Were. Saying. That. Knowing. How. To. Sail. First . Was. A. Bad. Thing.


Trust. Me. Knowing. How. To. Sail. One. Of. These. In. This. Wind. Helps:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pehYM0RfyyU

Then there's simply fun stuff on a Hobie 16 which is tough as nails. They used to sail them 1000 miles up the East Coast USA in the Atlantic Ocean from Florida to Va Beach

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39YCsV1o49o

[Greenhand]

Originally Posted by thomm225

But. It. Seemed. That. They. Were. Saying. That. Knowing. How. To. Sail. First . Was. A. Bad. Thing.

Nobody said anything of the sort. Some said it is not necessary to learn to sail first, but that one can learn on one's own boat. Others said it is crazy to buy without being an expert sailor. No one said it was crazy to learn to sail without buying a boat first.

[FamilyVan]

I don't think any one said not to learn how to sail before buying a sailboat. I said it wasn't absolutely necessary to learn to dinghy sail before buying a cruising boat. Remember, the OP did take a 6 week course, you can learn a fair amount in 6 weeks.

I have no intention of down playing the value of dinghy sailing. This week end coming our wives are away, so I made a proposal to my brother, let's leave the cruising boats (we both own one) at home and take the dinghy out camp sailing. He is all over the plan.

That's two grown men in an 8' dinghy, who own cruising boats, going out camp cruising in wind forecast to blow NE 20 knots and air temperatures dropping to 9 celcius. I would say that makes me a pretty dedicated dinghy sailor.

Not so dedicated that I think you must learn to sail in a dinghy before buying a cruising boat. Many, especially older less nimble, or overweight people are not going to enjoy or be very proficient in an 8 or 12 foot boats, and a great many more just won't enjoy it, its not the sport they are interested in.
I really can't fault any body for not wanting to freeze their tail off swimming around a turtled dinghy in September when they could be chilling on a nice big stable boat with a fridge and stove. As an adult you really have to be a certain type of sailor to enjoy dinghy sailing.

Its not for everyone.

Sent from my XP7700 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[alansmith]

Azul and Thomm, I am 5'9" and never had any trouble standing in the F27 or the F31. There are plenty of the F27and F31's on the west coast. All the ones I know of for the F27 are within OP budget. The F31 are not hard to find either...but of course some are a just a little over budget...


The OP desire for S. Calif sailing are perfect for this type of craft. Mostly light air sailing. I lived there, raced their, and dove all of the islands off shore except the naval bombing range. Yes it is a light craft. Yes they are small. But they are great sailing vessels for coastal work. They have stoves, toilets, and can get two private sleeping areas if you get the aft cabin versus the long cockpit. Due to speed and trailerability you have no limits with your cruising area...If you have two weeks off you can live in California and Sail the San Juans for 10 days and get it all back home. Try that with your mono hull. I am not anti mono hull at all. But to be dismissive of a fine coastal sailor with more than adequate accomodations for short periods of time is an unfair statement at best. I have lived on board my F31 for a month at a time and it was heavenly. While other boats are motoring in 5 knots of breeze I am skimming along at wind speed...and faster than wind speed if reaching.
You can not beat the cost of a F series trimaran for upkeep as far as I am concerned. I am only saying this...OP should try the boat out and see if it is his weapon of choice. For me it is the perfect tool to fix my needs. I never said it would be a great boat to sail to Tahiti in. For that I want a Chris White Atlantic cat or a large trimaran. You can leave all that rolly downwind stuff for the real men here. I am into speed and comfort while under sail...and Range of new sailing areas to explore.

[slowpoker]

Hello Sjenner;
You asked for a suggestion, here is one:
Morgan Out Island 36. Has 2 cabins, 2 heads, a diesel engine, is well built and you get a lot for your money. Older, well built and sails pretty well with shoal draft. Is as center cockpit, the reason for a separate cabin and separate second head for friends as you wanted. Buy an electric winch gizmo that looks like an offset power drill and fits any winch on any other boat you get. Sail the Morgan for a while, not bad, but keep your eyes open for your next boat by sailing others. You could buy one of these for under $30k, use it and if you get tired of it, resell it for about the same price. Have your fun, be safe, and maybe you will like another vessel later on. Keep the electric winch gizmo for any other boat you get later. Slowpoker.

[tomdidit]

I skipped the middle of this thread because it seemed to be a question without a good answer. 30-35, two heads,2 cabins, and non manual winches?

Go for a Catalina 34, two cabins, one head, and create your own electric winches. Buy a 2004 or newer and get inner spring mattresses as well. You should be comfortable at least!

[Azul]

Originally Posted by thomm225

Don't get a Corsair of any type for cruising. They are tiny and light weight.

Funny thing about Baldwin is that he seems to be staying with the old full keel boats maybe because he has seen the construction of the newer models.

I'm not sure why folks think it's so cool to not know much about sailing when going into sailing but to each his own.

It just seems to make good sense to me to know how to sail when buy a sail ... boat.

I'm thinking the answer is here on CF. Just check the threads on Construction, Maintenance , Refit. See the post counts and you will get your answer on what many "cruising sailors" want

The only thing that's better than the Construction, Maintenance, and refit to these folks is telling someone else how they did it!

Whatever, to each his own but I still think for some reason that knowing how to sail a boat when you want to be a sailor is a good thing.

I was drifting out one day prerace on my Nacra F-17 sitting on one of the hulls forward drinking a beer, feet in the water. The wind was offshore at 18 knots plus. I had the jib loose and luffing, the main cleated center, rudders and boards up. All is good with the world. (my boat is like a windvane in this setup)

Fixit guy decides today is the day he will launch his beautiful wooden Shark Catamaran. He raises sail and turns the boat to sail off shore but the wind is 18 knots plus..................it wasn't a pretty site.

I felt bad for him, and watched the next thing that caught my interest while still being blow out until I decided it was time to lower and lockdown the rudders and boards and go race

Boating experience seems to help also. I bought my first boat, motor, and trailer for $300.00 on the seaside when I was 16 and attempted to trailer it to the bayside but one of the trailer hubs disintegrated on the way. Lesson 1.

Snark much?

"Fixit Guy" on Hobie 20 July 19, 2015, very relaxing. Sailboat racers... I just don't understand the chest beating elitist attitude of some people. Sailing is an acquired skill but not exactly rocket science.

[goat]

Spend the next five years dinghy sailing, or sailing a keel boat? Tough call (not really) I know what I'd do, but who cares? It's up to the OP.

He just wants info on a boat. Nobody has asked whether the OP has any physical reasons for needing two heads and electric winches; Colitis or some other bowel problem that has him using the second head more than normal, leaving one for guests. Physical disability that makes using a winch handle hard to do. I'm guessing it's just a list of wants without trying different boats, but I'm just guessing.

OP; Keep asking questions and filter through the B.S. your answer will come.

goat

[alansmith]

Jenner, guess what dude? I found an F31 for you in San Diego for 69K. Here is the link...

1996 Corsair 31 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Now listen to me closely young grasshopper....get your arse on that boat and tell the seller you will buy it if you like it. Tell him you never tried a trimaran but you want to know if it is the boat for you. You will be making a big mistake if you don't try these boats. Not saying it is the correct boat for you. But in my opinion it is the perfect tool for what you need. Range of cruising, can trailer it with even modest trucks or suv, pull it to anywhere you can drive to, low cost of maintenance, not sitting in the brine solution gathering scum, barnacles, weeds, and corrosion problems, stores easily in the marina parking lots or in an rv park for cheap, fast and you will not believe how easy they are to sail...my word is gold to me..

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by alansmith

Jenner, guess what dude? I found an F31 for you in San Diego for 69K. Here is the link...

1996 Corsair 31 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Now listen to me closely young grasshopper....get your arse on that boat and tell the seller you will buy it if you like it. Tell him you never tried a trimaran but you want to know if it is the boat for you. You will be making a big mistake if you don't try these boats. Not saying it is the correct boat for you. But in my opinion it is the perfect tool for what you need. Range of cruising, can trailer it with even modest trucks or suv, pull it to anywhere you can drive to, low cost of maintenance, not sitting in the brine solution gathering scum, barnacles, weeds, and corrosion problems, stores easily in the marina parking lots or in an rv park for cheap, fast and you will not believe how easy they are to sail...my word is gold to me..

That is one of my dream boats. But I don't mind a small skinny boat and I happen to like a porta-potty. (But the price! In MY skinny boat I am going about 1/3 as fast for about 1/10 the price and I can trailer it up to the San Juans if I borrow my brother's diesel pickup truck.) But the OP does want to take some friends and have a little more of the creature comforts. Can't fault him too much for that!

[thomm225]

How about a Wauquiez Gladiateur 33 if you can find one. Go Coastal or go Offshore. You know what I'm sayin' . . . ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBHmEo-ESGE

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by alansmith

Azul and Thomm, I am 5'9" and never had any trouble standing in the F27 or the F31. There are plenty of the F27and F31's on the west coast. All the ones I know of for the F27 are within OP budget. The F31 are not hard to find either...but of course some are a just a little over budget...

I raced for 50 miles along side an F-25C. I was on a Nacra 6.0 which means the boat is fast.

What if you flip the thing and are way offshore. I'm certain you would have to get your tools out and bring in the outer hulls to right one of those F Tri's other wise they are awesome in light air medium seas...........

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Azul

Snark much?

"Fixit Guy" on Hobie 20 July 19, 2015, very relaxing. Sailboat racers... I just don't understand the chest beating elitist attitude of some people. Sailing is an acquired skill but not exactly rocket science.

No chest beating. Common sense.

Sailors should, know sailing. It's seems to go hand in hand.

The other stuff is also interesting. I pulled my anchor and chain out on deck Sunday so I could give it a careful inspection since it has saved my ASS quite a few times.

Some of us cruiser wannabee excatamaran racers don't always pick the best anchorages............but we can sail off one if we don't get blown ashore during the night!!