C&C 29 - good cruiser?

[GRH]

Have my eye on a C&C 29. I know these boats are relatively fast and do well in races. Just wanted to ask the folks on the forum with C&C experience… can the C&C 29 make for a solid cruiser (as well as racer)?

Looks like a comfortable cabin layout. I would think that it would be suitable for a week-long cruise. Would appreciate any feedback from you all. Thanks!

[Renegde_Sailor]

The C&C's have an ok reputation, they sold lots them for sure, keep in mind they are a mass produced boat, and they are not built like a heavy cruiser as their purpose was weekend club racing with a minor bit of cruising, not open ocean bashing it out.



She is a fin keel, so she will not be fun (if not outright terrifying and prone to rolling) in big seas.

If you have lots of protected waters around where you can anchor out and do your thing, she will be a good boat to learn on and begin your journey and can teach you many great lessons and by the virtue of her smaller size will be much more forgiving than a larger boat.

I would still strongly recommend getting an experienced sailor to look at her with you, and to teach you how to run her at a minimum, before buying a boat a survey is always a good idea but not everyone does them because of the obvious cost.

[GordMay]

Maggie & I happily cruised a 1983 C&C29 [the smaller 'New' one].
She spent 8 years cruising Lake Superior [3 week cruises], before heading South; whereupon we lived aboard [full time], and cruised, for 9 years.
Previously, we cruised Superior, on an even smaller Mirage 26 [3 weeks at a time].

She'll do fine, for a week-long cruise.

[Opie91]

We have a C&C34 and it works for us. Not doing any significant cruising on it though just New England area.

They are great/fast boats on the right day but there is not much fun to be had when the seas pick up or your are pushing into it.

Also stock boats do not carry much water or fuel and storage is limited. Weekend or a couple weeks, fine. Long term there are much better choices.

[Mike OReilly]

My experience with a C&C29 wasn't great, from my cruising perspective. I'm used to big(er), lumbery boats that track well, and have large internal storage and tankage. On both regards, I found the C&C 29 lacking.

I spent about a week, sailing on my friend's C&C29 from north Lake Superior down to the North Channel (Lake Huron). I found the boat very skittish and sensitive on the helm. That's great for racing and tight manoeuvring, but I found hand-steering to be quite exhausting. I couldn't take my eyes off the prize for more than a few seconds, or the boat was off course. Self-steering takes care of that, but I really found it overly-sensitive on the helm.

The boat itself is also rather small for a 29-footer. I've been on 26-footers with the same, or more, tankage and storage.

Just my take. Gord has more extensive experience, so listen to him. But I think there are other, better, boats of this size if you're looking for a cruiser.

[Jimbo2010]

I had a 27, it was great boat out in the ocean in some 2m seas

[Jim Cate]

She is a fin keel, so she will not be fun (if not outright terrifying and prone to rolling) in big seas.

I really dislike categorical statements like the above. There are doubtless some fin keeled yachts that fulfil the description, but after logging >150,000 miles cruising, ALL in fin keeled yachts (from 30 to 46 feet) I find the blanket dismissal simply wrong.

No experience with the subject C&C29, but my Yankee 30 (in which we did lots of California coastal cruising plus a r/t to Hawaii) was a joy to sail, inshore and offshore and most definitely was a fin-keeled design (by S&S).

Jim

[Bowdrie]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

No experience with the subject C&C29, but my Yankee 30 (in which we did lots of California coastal cruising plus a r/t to Hawaii) was a joy to sail, inshore and offshore and most definitely was a fin-keeled design (by S&S).

Your Yankee 30 is/was a much better ocean cruiser than a C&C 29.
Just looking at the underwater profile on the Yankee shows a relatively deep hull, (actually not all that diff from a smaller S&S Swan).
By comparison the C&C is more like a canoe with a fin.
The C&C would make a fun/fast/easy to use weekend and vacation boat in more protected waters, but no doubt about it, the Yankee is better at sea.

[boatpoker]

Depends on what kind of cruising you mean ...
Single handed, double handed, is the water, waste fuel tankage big enough, refrigeration and enough storage for food ?

No biggie for weekends in the Great Lakes but long distance cruising may be a challenge.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

...
The boat itself is also rather small for a 29-footer. I've been on 26-footers with the same, or more, tankage and storage ...
... But I think there are other, better, boats of this size if you're looking for a cruiser.

I don't disagree.
Nonetheless, the OP is only proposing 7 day cruises - almost anything would suffice.

[GRH]

Thank you all very much for your helpful replies. To be honest, I think your responses have talked me out of the C&C 29. Going to look into other boats that will be more manageable in rough conditions.

[Coquina]

Some of this is a little silly, of course fin-keel boats can sail offshore in big waves, I have done it myself more than a few times.
Specific to the C&C 29, that specific boat was not intended as an offshore passage maker nor an extended cruiser. The C&C 30, despite being only a foot longer, is much better suited to those tasks and the prices for them are reasonable. The 30 MK I is actually the most stable boat C&C ever made and I know of one that has done extensive offshore trips including transatlantic. If either long cruises or any offshore work were of interest, I would advise looking at the 30.

[Solafide]

I do appreciate the post. I am preparing a sailing trip of my lifetime. I am hoping to move aboard this spring, then complete the work needed. maybe work for the marina part time as I am a master auto and marine tech. I work in the new car dealership. history of independent marina service department repair tech. I want to leave lake champlain, traverse the champlain to erie loc system and then through the great lakes and then to Illinois river to mississippi river to new orleans by nov 1 st. then take my time and just work as I go. saildrive and honda 4 stroke ob back up. so I am planning still. I think you inspired me. thanks. I was going as soon as this year or next.