My boat's too big... I hear it all the time.

[Kenomac]

Two people on an Oyster 70 wouldn't be a problem, if I could afford it I'd make the switch. Including the davits, the boat is closer to 80ft.

The big issue of course is the weight of the sails when comes time to remove and fold them at the end of the season.

[barnakiel]

I think too big is at times heard from people who cannot afford.

We own a 27' boat and I sail boats about 70'. I can see the challenges of big boats like you may need crew etcetera but too big is not in my book. Just question of systems, crew and foremost the budget.

BTW I would not mix IMOCA guys and boats into the same discussion: I know some and these are different people and different boats. Nothing directly comparable to a trawler or a 60' Oyster.

Cheers,
b.

[NevisDog]

Originally Posted by Kenomac

Two people on an Oyster 70 wouldn't be a problem...

I'm enjoying learning from this thread, maybe some day we'll upsize from our tinyhouse, maybe not. I can certainly see the advantages of 40' when it comes to engine maintenance time afloat (like now!), perhaps even 45, but I have no idea what I would do with 50, letalone 70 feet - what's the advantage?
- speed? Cruisers aren't normally in a hurry.
- comfort? Heavy displacement provides plenty.
- safety? There are far more important things than size.
- ??? just curious.

[Simi 60]

^^^^^^
Walk around engine room
Walk around king size bed
Full size galley
Full size household fridge/freezers
Full size bathroom
Huge load carrying ability

The wife had no problems buying the boat for us when those boxes got ticked.

[Exile]

Originally Posted by NevisDog

I'm enjoying learning from this thread, maybe some day we'll upsize from our tinyhouse, maybe not. I can certainly see the advantages of 40' when it comes to engine maintenance time afloat (like now!), perhaps even 45, but I have no idea what I would do with 50, letalone 70 feet - what's the advantage?
- speed? Yes. But more money for the add'l fuel & maint. for a larger engine, and also larger sails.
- comfort? Yes. All things being equal more comfortable in a seaway, and more space below for all those add'l spare parts & tools you'll need for your larger, more comfortable boat.
- safety? Maybe, but as you say . . . There are far more important things than size.
- ??? just curious.

Always good to be curious, and kinda fun checking out what other people have & why. But it sounds like you're pretty comfortable with what you have right now. 33' is not exactly insubstantial, and it sounds like it might be heavier displacement too. I'm actually surprised more people haven't weighed in on the virtues of smaller, simpler boats.

[Simi 60]

Regardless of size you'll still need spares.

A 40ft yacht still has the same components in an engine as a big boat (filters, water pump, strainer, starting batts etc)
It has the same plumbing as a big boat ( taps, pumps, toilets, holding and water tank)
It has batteries, inverter, genset, solar like a big boat.
It'll have bilge pumps

All things are pretty much the same just bigger.

[NevisDog]

Originally Posted by Simi 60

Walk around engine room
Walk around king size bed
Full size galley
Full size household fridge/freezers
Full size bathroom
Huge load carrying ability...

But all the above can be achieved in 55', so... why then upsize to 70'? I see many advantages (and some big disadvantages) going from 35 to 40', similarly from 40 to 45' - but 55 to 70?

[leftbrainstuff]

Jealousy perhaps?

[atoll]

Originally Posted by Exile

Always good to be curious, and kinda fun checking out what other people have & why. But it sounds like you're pretty comfortable with what you have right now. 33' is not exactly insubstantial, and it sounds like it might be heavier displacement too. I'm actually surprised more people haven't weighed in on the virtues of smaller, simpler boats.

i deliver all sorts of boats, many on coastal tidal passages and across the biscay where the waves are short, steep and often breaking.

i find when estimating the boats sea keeping ability,and forecasting weather windows for the delivery, there is a direct correlation between the boats length in feet to windspeed in knots experinced/to be experinced as to the boats ability to cope with the sea state in tidal waters.

ie a 25 ft yacht starts getting out of its comfort zone after 25 knots,30 ft in 30knots,40 ft in 40 knots etc

crossing the atlantic via the northern route,and up the red sea in a 60 ft yacht and experincing 50+ knot winds was uncomfortable but never felt the boat was out of its comfort zone ,nor in a cyclone that formed on top of us in the indian ocean.

i'm not saying small boats cannot survive the conditions,just that their is a correlation between size and motion of the vessel which has a direct effect on the crew being shaken,slammed and trying to function inside the vessel at sea in the given conditions.

obviously,as any sailor will know,open ocean conditions are not the same as tidal or wind over current conditions that i have based this observation on after 100k miles of blue and brown water voyages.

[Hasbeen]

A friend of mine recently loaned his 24Ft yacht to his son, daughter in law, & their 3 kids under 8, for a 3 month cruise of Southern Queensland waters. The boat is so small they had to make a cover to keep the water out of the dingy as it had to be towed.


I suggested this was cruelty to his son, but he reckons they had fun. I have not had his son confirm this.


I had a picture of my oldest daughter at 8 months holding herself up by the wheel of the 40 footer. She had covered 1500 nautical miles before her first birthday. That was enough for me. There after my cruising was limited to a few days. Babies & boats just don't mix for me.

[TJ D]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

I think too big is at times heard from people who cannot afford.

We own a 27' boat and I sail boats about 70'. I can see the challenges of big boats like you may need crew etcetera but too big is not in my book. Just question of systems, crew and foremost the budget.

BTW I would not mix IMOCA guys and boats into the same discussion: I know some and these are different people and different boats. Nothing directly comparable to a trawler or a 60' Oyster.

Cheers,
b.

Thanks, Barn. I was the one who mentioned the IMOCA guys. I hope that nobody thinks that I was comparing us to Alex Thompson! But, the point was that if these excellent sailors can singlehandedly get safely around the planet, and at extreme speeds- well, a skilled couple surely isn't out of their depth on a much more moderate 55 footer.

Rocket Science shares a lot of DNA with the IMOCA boats, incidentally. Carbon/nomex, water ballast, etc.

We're pretty much on the opposite end of the spectrum from an Oyster (she weighs 1/2 of what a Swan of the same length weighs, for example). That was sort of how that came about.

But, it's a good point. Nobody is in the same league as the RTW solo folks.

[Group9]

When we left on our first cruise in 2010, we sold our 32 foot sailboat and bought a 42 footer, thinking we would be better off with the bigger boat and more room. Halfway through the cruise, we both realized we would have been fine, and in many ways better off, if we had just taken our 32 foot boat instead. The only thing I really didn't like on the 32 footer was the claustrophobic head.

[David M]

Originally Posted by Exile

Or maybe how well it's rigged for only one person, since I imagine the passages required for such a trip would mean one on watch & the other below sleeping.

They have roller furling. Shortening sail only takes one person.

[daletournier]

Originally Posted by Exile

Both good suggestions. I've actually probably tried both but not knowingly! Option 1 may be tough in a crosswind or current, but then that could actually help, depending. I'll experiment a little more in open water with option 2. I think you may be right since I don't recall it being a big issue when backing out of a slip in reverse idle. It could actually be a combo of both options that does the trick. Thanks!

My boat also has alot of port prop walk. I'm not overly experienced getting into marinas in this boat, but I've found option 2 works. I have to knock her in to neutral while backing out once I have some way on or I just can't steer her due to the prop walk. Max prop.

[TJ D]

Originally Posted by daletournier

My boat also has alot of port prop walk. I'm not overly experienced getting into marinas in this boat, but I've found option 2 works. I have to knock her in to neutral while backing out once I have some way on or I just can't steer her due to the prop walk. Max prop.

That's interesting. I replaced a conventional 3 blade with a max prop on a previous boat, and found that the prop walk was diminshed.