New bee needs advice

[IwanaBrich]

I need some advice. I'd like to get into sailing and as such I need to buy a boat. I need one that can be trailered, since slips and mooring spaces are impossible to get. I'd like a boat about 20' (give or take) that has a cabin large enough for a couple seats and head. I'm not the most seasoned sailor as I've only sailed small sailboats, like sunfish. My goal is buy a cheap boat and learn to sail it and then move up to newer, better, larger boat.

Someone locally is selling a Clipper marine for $1.00 that was flooded with rain water. I'm real handy with tools and fixing about actually sounds like fun. I've read that Clipper Marines aren't the best. I was also thinking about getting an Oday Mariner....thoughts??

Does anyone have any recommendations?

[captainpauly]

The clipper sounds like a bargain, even if you use it for a planter. The best boat to buy is the one you can sail TODAY!

[Pblais]

The best boat to buy is the one you can sail TODAY!

All boats take work. You don't need to bite off the worst boat and spend too much time fixing it. That is unless it becomes a hobby you enjoy all on it's own. You should be able to find trailerable boats in the newspaper and close to home (or the water you like to sail). If you want something you can spend time on the Macgregor 26 (aka Mac 26) seems to be the most trailerable boat you can be comfortable on. My wife and I sailed a J22 and Capri 22 boat. These are keel boats and behave more like the bigger boats do. I would check out the boat that can fit the trailer hitch for your vehicle. All the boats you might look at can be had for far less than the cost of a large truck. You don'r want a new truck too.

I would look at a wide variety and then see what is available close to home.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by IwanaBrich

Someone locally is selling a Clipper marine for $1.00

You get what you pay for... but in your case you could be ripped off. How much will the trash tip charge you to dispose of it?

Thats what you could be payting out.


Mark

[IwanaBrich]

MarkJ.....I agree with you 100%. The boat may be beyond repair and I'd be stuck taking it to the dump. Any idea what someone would charge to haul it away? Maybe if I offered to haul it away for a fee I could mitigate the risk.

From what I've read Clipper Marines were not known for their quality. They were at best cheap boats. I'm not really afraid of the actual hull/cabin repairs. I've repaired hulls in the past, done glass work and I'm a good carpenter. However, there are a lot of parts on the boat that I can't repair, like the Sales or maybe the swing keel. Does anyone know what new sales would cost?

The owner claimed "all the rigging is all there, sails are also but could use an upgrade as could the halyards. They are not torn but are well worn..." What does that mean??? He also said that the cockpit drain needs to be replaced, that is the reason the cabin was damaged. Instead of draining rain water to ground it went to the cabin.

The bottom line is.....I don't want to invest more money that the boast is worth and I'm afraid that it isn't worth the cost of new sails.

[USMCOrdO]

I am in a similar situation, but not quite ready to buy. I have been looking and found craigslist to have the best and easiest source. I have seen a few trailered sailboats between 20-26 feet. The prices vary but have seen some for $500 up to $5000. They are all older and need some work, but say they are sailable.

Good luck.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by IwanaBrich

The owner claimed "all the rigging is all there, sails are also but could use an upgrade as could the halyards. They are not torn but are well worn..." What does that mean??? .

It means you are up for $5k to $10K right there... all the sails and running rigging...

I would be very careful. For $10k you might get a much better boat...

[Badsanta]

There are boats at dock and on the hard that have been sitting for years at most marina's. Go drive a few, talk to people there. Not everything that is for sale has a sign on it. Some body there knows the owner. They want to sell, but may not want to go through the trouble. Be nice, dont rag his boat to make it look cheaper, if it is to much just say its out of your price range. The last marina I was at gave 5 away for the asking, some were junk. A few were sailing in a month or so. None were advertised. So go look and ask away. You may find one for the storage fee and that can be negotiated. You dont want to spend years working on something. It will take 10 times longer than your estimates and cost 10 times what you thought or more. Storage cost, everything is $$ so the better the boat the less to do, but there is always something else. Best of luck

[nautical62]

I mostly gutted one boat and redid the interior. I enjoyed it kind of....

If a boat needs a lot of work, I'd prefer the interior is clearly worthless to having an owner who still puts value on it when you know full well you are going to rip it out anyway.

Look carefully for any structural damage that may have been caused by the weight of water in the boat.

[IwanaBrich]

This is great advice and I really appreciate it. I think I'm going to pass on the flooded Clipper Marine. I really like the idea of visiting a few marinas, asking questions and see what happens.

My goal is to buy sailboat that my wife and I can play with, learn on and most importantly relax on. I used to love sailing smaller boats like Laser, Sunfish, etc but I haven't done it in a while and now I have more time. I ultimately would like a much larger (30'-40') sailboat, but before I do, I need to hone my sailing skills a tad . Most importantly, I need to insure that my wife shares my sailing enthusiasm, before I invest a lot of money.

Do you folks have any suggestions on a good trailer-able sailboat around 20' (give or take)?

[Curmudgeon]

For 10K or less you can get a used Sonar (23 ft) plus a trailer, both in good condition. Easy and fun to sail, perfect learning boat. I bet that 50% of the folks here have sailed a Sonar at one time or another. The cubby cabin may be a little small, but it does have two bunks and space for a porta potty.

[watson1990]

I am gonna go out on a limb here..prolly make a few people mad at the same time.I believe that "Pblais " is wrong,but only for one reason. "The MACGREGOR "
Now this is just my opinion and I have only been seriously sailing boats for 10 years.Had a 20' day sailer [a 20' paceship ]fore that but I am certified and comfortable with 45'-55' boats. the beneteau 473 can be single handed quite easily as everything leads aft .EVERYTHING ..dufour 43s a wonderful boat but i have heard that they are feeling the financialsqueeze.
It has always been my opinion the Macgegor sailboats are rubbish. I know that I just made many people mad... they are correct to feel that way. I say that because i feel that the macgregor is trying to be too many things at once and accomplishes neither very well.....That boat is perfect for some people ,,,my opinion is that it is perfect for some ,but only for a year or two...then they can't wait to move on to a better boat.a well built sailboat ,,, a boat that can point up close and high.
.
I will admit that a little bit of my opinion is based on ego,,,at least a little bit of it...i normally go to the B.V.I.s for a couple of weeks each winter and charter a boat..a few that i have taken are a dufour 43 for 2-3 weeks ,,a Beneteau 473 for a few and a jeaneau 45 c.c. J-boat 12, next is a hylas 54 cc. Also sailed a few Hinckley 46 & 59's as well as a hinckley picnic boat a number of times
I am also in the market to buy something in the 47-54 foot range...Looking at the Vagabond 47 but i don't want to feel as if I am dragging a
refrigerator under my boat. i LOVE the smiley boats but some of them can't get out of their own way !! maybe a force 50 or something along those lines ,,,I think i am stuck on C.C. so as to have a huge aft stateroom...just my opinion!
So,,,,the Macgregor: some will tells you stories about how good they are..I won't.. some will yell at me for making this post .I apologize:
with a little more time and effort spent in looking about ,I think that for the same money ,,,certainly no more, you can find a fine sailboat for that will sail quite fine and serve you well. I just don't think that you will stay happy with a macgregor for very long and then when you go to sell, you will be sucking pond water . Just one mans opinion ....your mileage may vary
Watson and I apologise in advance to whoever has their feelings hurt ..that was not what i wanted to do .
NOW !! please keep in mind that i just contradicted our moderator...not something that you do without reflection. He prolly has many thousands of
miles under his keel more than i do..I am not saying that he is wrong to suggest the macgregor as a good boat..but he is wrong...sorry
Watson

[Pblais]

I say that because i feel that the macgregor is trying to be too many things at once and accomplishes neither very well.....

I think they do the one thing very well they tried to do the hardest. They wanted to hit the right price.

[watson1990]

Hi Paul,
I came back to this post in order to edit my comments from late last night/early morning.
I will say that I think that I should have said that,for the money spent,it could be better invested in a different boat.I have never sailed a Macgregor. I haven't even looked at one in over 10 years .Things may have changed but in the 90's they were not a very well built boat. They remind me of the coleman canoe.You know the type with the aluminum tubes running along the gunnels and keel to reinforce the plastic;;Keeps the canoe from folding up which is something a canoe should never do . The Macgregor that I remember was built so that you could put a 40 -60 horse power outboard on the tail so that you could water ski with your sailboat. The words "macgregor " and bluewater" should never appear in the same paragraph from her on and forever after !
Watson

[Bash]

Originally Posted by watson1990

I have never sailed a Macgregor. I haven't even looked at one in over 10 years .

sheesh.