Hey Boracay, thanks for the link.
The two boats we're keen on arrive in several weeks. One is a Kendall, and the other a Westsail 32. Our
budget is $65k for the boat itself, so that's why we're looking at cruisers from the 70's. Both of these have their own lists of "to-do's", but seem in decent enough shape for off-shore passages. They're both cruising around PNG/Solomons. The Kendall 32 has sailed from
Fiji.
The Westsail/Kendall seems like a good choice for our "live aboard,
head offshore soon" plan. Everything is compromises of course, especially with boats and budgets.
If you have any suggestions for local boats in that
price range, I'd love to hear them. I know North American designs a lot better than Aussie/NZ ones.