Get a Michigan or Florida sailboat

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by CaptRican

I am looking at a 38 Irwing in Florida, 1969 Irwing?

any takes on that one?

There are plenty of Irwins, but no Irwings. If it's a 1969 boat there's little to infer by the manufacturer, but everything important lies in how it was cared for and refit for the past 47 years.

[CaptRican]

Originally Posted by Lizzy Belle

Two thoughts:

a) please don't post every single boat you like on the internet - google and search the forums
b) see previous answers & info here and all your other topics.
c) when ignoring a & b, at least post the link ... (this is part of b )

I do exactly that, and i do get a lot of info. But what good is the forum if i can not asks my silly, duh! questions? I even paid extra so they would put up with my stupidity! (Jack speaking here with Pepsi)!

I am not the brightest pea in the pod so i listened to my grandmother "when you are not the brightest pea in the pod, you surround yourself with smart peas from other pods"? and "asks a lot of question and be oblivious as to how stupid you look and sound"?

Sorry Lizzy, just trying to get it down to a science....

1969 Irwin 1969 Centerboard Sloop Rare Aftcockpit Model sailboat for sale in Florida

What do you think?

I spoke to Herb, i think he is willing to go lower than the price listed in the add.

Understand that i am not committed to any sailboat, i am just feeling the field...so what do you think? Anybody else?

Thanks

[CaptRican]

Originally Posted by Hudson Force

There are plenty of Irwins, but no Irwings. If it's a 1969 boat there's little to infer by the manufacturer, but everything important lies in how it was cared for and refit for the past 47 years.

I talked to the owner who is in Canada, has not been in the boat for two years...so go figured. It does need some TLC, i am not committed, i am just prodding around and learning.

I will get to Florida soon enough! and check everything out...

Thanks for your advice!

[wayne.b]

Originally Posted by CaptRican

Budget-$10 to $15
Sailboat-Pearson 323 or similar
skill level-will take classes in the spring
Plan- Sail out of Lake Michigan into the eastern seaboard head south to Florida then on to Puerto Rico a year later and sail the Caribbean basin.

Let's hear it!
thanks!

===

You probably know this already but taking a boat south from Lake Michigan is not a trivial cruise. Your skills and the boat's readiness will be tested in many different ways. My personal recommendation would be to buy a Great Lakes boat in the spring, shake it down over the summer while you are still close to home, do some local cruising, endure one more northern winter and then think about heading south a year later. It will take a while to acquire the skills and degree of boat readiness that is required. Some things just can't be learned from a book or sailing school, and any boat you buy is going to need some preparation, maintenance and upgrades.

That is potentially one advantage to buying in Florida. The boat will already be where you want to end up, and you can live on the boat as long as it takes to get everything ship shape. Meanwhile you'll be able to do some local cruising in a 12 month sailing season and enjoy moderate liveaboard weather.

[CaptRican]

Originally Posted by wayne.b

===

You probably know this already but taking a boat south from Lake Michigan is not a trivial cruise. Your skills and the boat's readiness will be tested in many different ways. My personal recommendation would be to buy a Great Lakes boat in the spring, shake it down over the summer while you are still close to home, do some local cruising, endure one more northern winter and then think about heading south a year later. It will take a while to acquire the skills and degree of boat readiness that is required. Some things just can't be learned from a book or sailing school, and any boat you buy is going to need some preparation, maintenance and upgrades.

That is potentially one advantage to buying in Florida. The boat will already be where you want to end up, and you can live on the boat as long as it takes to get everything ship shape. Meanwhile you'll be able to do some local cruising in a 12 month sailing season and enjoy moderate liveaboard weather.

After being here and reading all the great advice i have decided that it would be a bad idea to sail out of Lake Michigan with the limited experience that iam going to acquired in one summer here.

So the plan has changed and i am going to Florida to and get going from there.

Thank for your advice!

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by CaptRican

.......................

What do you think?

..............................

I think that it might be a boat to consider, - or maybe not. If I were in your position I would make a criteria list that contains about ten essentials such as bottom configuration, hull material, draft and vertical clearances, engine, cabin layout, rigging, electrical system-wiring, tankage, head and galley, cost,....

Search online with boatlisings, Craigslist, yachtworld, Boat trader. etc. and line up about twenty boats that meet your criteria; arrange them in a travel route for your inspection and numerically rate each of the criteria from one to ten. It would be great to have a knowlegable friend with you. Design a plan to make an objective search. Then make an offer for "number one".

Don't just float about with the dream,- have an objective numerical evaluation! Take the time for enough schooling to know what you want. Take just the underwater configuration: encapsulated keel, fin, shoal draft, keel bolts, cut-away forefoot, skeg hung rudder, centerboard, winged keel, struts, performance....? Do you know enough to know what you want?

What do you want your boat to do? How do you plan to use the boat? Where do you expect to cruise? What are your comfort needs?

Maybe it's not time to be evaluating specific vessels? Maybe it's not the time to say, "What do you think of this 1969 Irwin."

[Lizzy Belle]

Originally Posted by CaptRican

1969 Irwin 1969 Centerboard Sloop Rare Aftcockpit Model sailboat for sale in Florida

What do you think?

I still think you're trying to buy too much boat and maxing out your budget so you won't have the money for all the upgrades etc.

But people have been telling you that over and over, and I feel like I'm just repeating myself - raining on your parade.
You should buy whatever boat YOU want, not whatever other people advice.
Your life, your choices, your boat.

Have at it

[laika]

I like Hudson Force's advice.

All the talk about this kind of boat or that, here or there, is pretty academic. There are good examples of boats and bad examples of boats everywhere. The real question is knowing what you want, and if that represents a wide enough swath of boats to be choosy about it.

[Lizzy Belle]

Hudson Force's advise is spot on, as is laika's.

It's also nothing the OP hasn't been told over and over before in all his other topics and posts.
We just keep going around and around, typing pretty much the same advise over and over.

Obviously it's up to each and every person to make their own choices, and rightfully so.
But if you're going to ignore most -if not all- of the advise anyway ... you might as well stop asking for it, is kinda what I'm thinking.
I'm not trying to offend - nor telling you to stop posting - just stating what's going through my mind.

You haven't sailed for even 5 minutes yet, so you have no clue what boats you like.
Once you actually start sailing and look at boats, you'll learn what works for you.
Then you'll be able to work out what kind of boat you want.

Once you know that, you can start your search.

[Blue Crab]

These folks are straight shooters, Cap. You are setting yourself up for the loss of your stash and a broken heart/back with a) thoughts of rehabbing a larger boat with not nearly enough money, and b) not knowing what you want in the first place. Even tho LizzyB is a girl, this line is dead-on: Tho with a lot of work, you'll end up with a lovely 40' boat that has cost about as much as a 60' .

The sail from Florida to PR and the Caribbe is called the "Thorny Path."It's against the prevailing wind and for real sailors. It's been done by noobs but I doubt they've had much fun. At that, the Thorny Path is plain and simple compared to your earlier thought about traveling the St Lawrence Seaway! That's next to the North Pole, man.

All up, perhaps a plane ride to San Juan, then a rental car to check out available boats in that area makes more sense. There are anecdotal stories of incredible deals available in that region because the owners have flown home, are not coming back, and just want out from under.

O for a life on the rolling sea!

[bgallinger]

When I went looking for a boat, I wanted a fresh water boat to reduce the corrosion issue. I found a pristine 7 year old boat in Ohio with just 100 hours on the engine. When it came time to move her south, there was one kicker of a costly surprise. All the bottom paint had to be removed as VC10 is no good at all in salt water. All in, I think it cost about $4000 to have the old bottom paint removed and new put on.

[hamburking]

This boat looks pretty good to me, and is a short ICW ride north of Florida:

No Reserve Watkins 36 Bluewater Sailboat Offshore Equipped Diesel Autopilot | eBay

[sparrowhawk1]

Seems to me there's better deals up north. when you have to pay winter storage and can only use six months of the year it makes the seller more "reasonable". In Florida if it's in a marina it can still be used as a cottage and it seems like at least half the boats are on the hook costing the owner nothing. very little motivation to sell quickly.

[Tetepare]

There is a lot of great observation here.

I'm in the market for a new boat. My 25 YO boat, which I've had for 21 years has no corrosion anywhere- it's fresh water. All original standing rigging in excellent condition.

Looking at boats, even up here in the Great Lakes, I can tell if it's spent any time in salt water. Several friends take their boats to FL for the winter, and all of them complain when they return north because of the amount of restoration required to remove (some of) the corrosion.

There are pros and cons of freshwater boats, as pointed out. The best condition boats are those that are well cared for and stored indoors. Those that have leaks get more damaged during the long winter freeze/ thaw cycle. Delamination and significant cracking is common in decks and rudders (I have to drill holes in my rudder every fall to drain it).

Having been looking seriously for a year now, I can tell you that FL and southern owners ask more $$ for their boats than those in the Great Lakes. Don't know if they're actually getting more though.

One thing too- the buying season (based on price) is very cyclic. Top dollar is in late Spring when the boat is in the water and the weather makes sailors think about buying. This is also typically when the current owner is less inclined to sell- he's already paid for dockage, he's already rigged it, and he's looking forward to the best three months of the year. If he sells now he has no boat, and nothing to do all summer.

Low dollar is just before the owner has to pay for winter storage. They can effectively drop the price equal to the thousands it's going to cost to haul and store the boat, and come out equal. If the owner sells now he can walk away and not have to do any winter prep work or sit and think for six months about why he has the damned boat, and it also gives him six months to find a new one.

[Lizzy Belle]

Originally Posted by Blue Crab

Even tho LizzyB is a girl, this line is dead-on: Tho with a lot of work, you'll end up with a lovely 40' boat that has cost about as much as a 60'

I don't see a "that made me LOL for real" smiley so Ima go with

Originally Posted by Blue Crab

The sail from Florida to PR and the Caribbe is called the "Thorny Path."

I think the problem is that when you have 0 sailing experience, "against the prevailing wind" might not mean much. After all, that's what the engine is for, right?

Reminds me of a guy I met a couple of years ago, planning a solo 'round the world trip before he ever set foot on a sailboat. He was even more enthusiastic (not to say "manic") then the OP.
Very long story short: he sold everything, bought a boat (not a bad one either) and left. He barely made it through the Gulf of Biscay and got on a plane back to the Netherlands as soon as he set foot on Spanish soil.

Boat finally sold for about half her value, leaving him close to bankruptcy. Bye, bye dreams, bye bye everything. All that for a few days of sailing -- and it could all have been prevented if only he'd taken a little more time ...