Hey Folks, could I get an opinion??

[Bill Burgette]

I'd mentioned in an earlier post that I was fixin' to retire. (I've gotta insert a few Kentucky words in here so's y'all will know I'm really from here.) Well, my work has slowed down, I'm old enough for retirement, Apple stock did me a great big favor a few years ago and I think I found a boat I'd like to look at. (Never end a sentence.......etc).

Some boats just catch your eye and some catch your pocketbooks. This one caught both. It's within 20K of what I was planning on spending and I reckon I could whip up vittles of beans and taters for a while to make up the difference. Are there many disadvantages to owning this boat that you all would know about. Here's the link:
http://www.yachtworld.com/core/listing/pl_boat_detail.jsp?&units=Feet&id=1946400〈=en&slim =broker&&hosturl=tritonyachts&&ywo=tritonyachts&

The one problem that I see is that you would not know if your a commin-or-a-goin". Both ends look the same if you drink a little rum. I personally think she's just about a pretty as the come. I'd just like to get verification that she's not a prom queen who won't put out.

Any of you all's various experience would go a long way toward makin" up my mind. Thanks in advance Sailors.
----Bill----

[TaoJones]

Bill, I read your post all the way through (even though reading colloquial speech rendered into written language makes my head hurt), and though your link is messed up, I gather that you've fallen in love with a Hans Christian 33. Nothing wrong with that - they're beautiful vessels.

Be prepared for a lot of time-consuming maintenance to keep her looking her best. Or, if you hire others to perform those tasks, be prepared to write a lot of checks.

I can think of two knowledgeable people whom you might try to contact:

1 - rebel heart is a member here, so you could PM him to pick his brain about Hans Christians. He and his wife liveaboard a 36' HC, IIRC.

2 - James Baldwin, whose website is Atom Voyages | Voyaging Around the World on the Sailboat Atom with James and Mei lives in Brunswick, GA. He used to be a production manager at the Hans Christian yard in Taiwan and he probably knows those vessels better than just about anyone you're likely to talk to. He's a brilliant guy.

Good luck with your retirement plans, and if you get the HC33, congratulations!

Oh yeah, your line about the prom queen who won't put out brought a smile to my face.

TaoJones

[Bill Burgette]

Lets try that link one more time:
1983 Hans Christian HC-33 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Colloquialisms give you an insight into the mental capacity of the other guy. If you head hurts you've just got to consume more rum. Surely I'll find one hillbilly out on the ocean and I'd hate to lose my native tongue. He may think I'm from Boston or Baton Rouge. Nah....probably not. Does this little boat seem to have all it needs to go sailing? Everyone asks but will she be a bluewater boat? Thanks Sailor men and ladies.
Thanks again guys.

[theonecalledtom]

Not just stunning looking but extremely capable too! Thats a go anywhere boat.

I have HC38s either side of me, one has been as far south as NZ and as far north as Alaska. no reason the 33 couldn't do that too.

[Bill Burgette]

Is there any advantage to the boat being the same shape on the bow and stern. It kinda looks like a high class rat dropping. "Pointed on both ends. Thanks --Bill--

[SilentOption]

Wow!

Somebody loved that boat!

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by Bill Burgette

Is there any advantage to the boat being the same shape on the bow and stern. It kinda looks like a high class rat dropping. "Pointed on both ends. Thanks --Bill--

Seriously, Bill, stop that. <g>

Actually, your rat turd allusion is more on point than you may know. Double-enders are most unlikely to ever get pooped! That big, fat stern just rises like an elevator as following seas overtake the vessel.

TaoJones

[theonecalledtom]

That boat looks to be in excellent condition but you should be able to pick an HC33 up a bit cheaper:

1984 Hans Christian Cutter Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

[roverhi]

The Alajuela is a serious cruising boat that are extremely well built. If you like this type of boaat, this is the best one out there and price is nearly identical to the HC and a much bigger boat. 1975 Alajuela Mark II Cutter Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Aloha
Peter O.
Pearson 35

[SkiprJohn]

I agree with Peter. I sailed on a similar boat, an Ingrid, this summer and they are like a freight train on rails in all kinds of weather.
Kind regards,
JohnL

[Celestialsailor]

I was on that Ingrid too. We were in big seas and big wind. I never felt like we were in trouble.

[NealS]

This is my wife's listing and I saw this boat on Sunday when she went up to take some addtional pictures. Lady Anne is a real eye catcher. She looks better up close and personal than in her photos, like a one in a hundred rare find that has been well taken care of. We have owned two double enders (Pacific Seacrafts) and they have both been the most sea-kindly boats we have ever sailed. I have never heard anyone that has ever owned a double ender to be disappointed of this type.

[Blue Stocking]

Hey Bill,
Although a born and raised Bermudian, where I was raised to speak the Queen's English, I do race cars out of Atlanta. So I do speak "ridge-runner".
That really looks like a nice boat.
If you intend to be more of a casual cruiser, and not a circum-navigator, I would be more concerned about the lack of afterdeck area for working the bar-b-que, line-handling, and loss of lazarette space which a live-aboard requires. While I am sure some members of this forum have experienced the terror of being "pooped", I haven't. I have sailed in some pretty big seas on a Hanna Tahiti, Hans Christian 43, and a canoe sterned Scottish cutter of 1930 vintage. All Double-enders. I was always concerned that the wave crest was going to fall on us, in which case the difference in deck space for water impact made little difference. IMHO of course

[Pblais]

All boats are never equal so comparing boats isn't an easy job. When looking at older boats the condition is not everything it really is the only thing. 1980's boats all have one common problem - pushing 30 years old. Much of the original gear has problems even if maintained. Not all the problems are serious deal breakers but they all add up to serious money.

Our last boat was a 1989 and the current one is 1991. Both were purchased in very good shape but both took about $15,000 to get back to the condition they needed to be in. It still left a lot of little things that while not expensive were all time consuming. This speaks nothing to the regular stuff you would do to a brand new boat. Original sails, running rigging, standing rigging and upholstery all usually need to be replaced pretty much always. If the boat is much older include the entrie electrical system too. So if the boat does not have significant number of these items already replaced then you can expect to do it soon after purchase.

The parts that all look great still need regular work and the stuff you can't see are the things that cost the big money.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Bill Burgette

Is there any advantage to the boat being the same shape on the bow and stern. It kinda looks like a high class rat dropping. "Pointed on both ends. Thanks --Bill--

G'day Bill,

I'm afraid that I can't agree with the folks who feel that a double ender is less likely to be pooped than other stern treatments. Double enders are likely to have less reserve bouancy in the aft sections than conventional designs, and hence are slower to rise to steep following seas. This doesn't mean that they are not suitable forblue water passages, though... heaps of them have done heaps of miles.

The other thing is that you shouldn't extrapolate performance from, say a HC 38 to a HC 33. They may look similar,but behavior at sea can be really different. There are even greater differences between HC's and IngridsI would certainly recommend having a look at a yacht design book (Skene's, for instance) if you would like a less opionated bit of advice.

Lastly, the esthetics of boats are important too. If the Baltic double ender style makes your heart go pitter-pat, you'll probably love your HC whether or not it is the very best sea-going design in the world.

Good luck with your search!

Jim and Ann s/v Insatiable II lying Gladstone Qld Oz