Pearson 40 for first boat? Thoughts?

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by Ixium

Well yeah, the magic of seeing the first number a 4 makes them impossible to learn on.

Luckily I just squeaked in after buying my boat this year with 0 experience at all. It’s 39ft… but that isn’t including the bow pulpit… or the 2ft swim platform on the back…

I agree. The first boat I got after only classes and 3 months of weekend solo experience was a 39'. I sailed that for 2 years and then got a 41'. Almost crapped my pants in fear.

[Cloroxbottle]

The issue is that the displacement of a Pearson 40 is 22,800 vs that of a Pearson 30 at 13,500.

Correcting typo - Pearson 35 at 13,500.

[letsgetsailing3]

Starting with a smaller boat will likely make you a better sailor.


That said, starting with a larger boat may give you the ability to stick with that size for longer.


No matter what, it all works out fine in the end.

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by letsgetsailing3

Starting with a smaller boat will likely make you a better sailor.

People write that a lot, but I see no reason to believe it.

[psk125]

Starting with a smaller boat can be less costly, since the mistakes you make are less expensive to repair. Good and bad sailors come in all sizes of boats.

[Bowdrie]

Originally Posted by letsgetsailing3

Starting with a smaller boat will likely make you a better sailor.

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

People write that a lot, but I see no reason to believe it.

It's not an "All this or all that" issue.
But it cannot be denied that those who start as kids in a Sabot and work their way up into keel boats learn the finesse of sailing.
If someone can't sail a Cal 20 around a harbor on all points of sail in smooth water they're not going to magically become a competent sailor because they bought a 40 footer.

[Kettlewell]

There is no reason you can't start with a 40-footer, and many on this forum have done so, but it takes the right person with the right mindset to make it work. All the forums, YouTube videos, and even (gasp!) books help, but won't provide you with that seat-of-the-pants feel for things that you develop sailing small, engineless or weak-engined boats, in and out of everywhere. The big boat will have a reasonably reliable engine, making things much easier until it breaks down and you have to sail into a harbor or marina at night short handed. That's where the seat-of-the-pants skills come in. Same for when the GPS is on the fritz, or maybe you're just not sure about your approach even though the chartplotter says you are good to go. On the small boat you will develop the feel for when the waves suddenly feel a little different, indicating you may be too close to the rocks in the fog. On the small boat you had to reef early and more often, so you know how to do it. You know what a boat feels like when it is over-canvassed. You probably already had your hand caught in the jib sheet, but with a tenth of the load of the big boat so you know to be really careful about that. Lots of little stuff you learn on little boats adds up to make it much easier to transition to bigger boats with better skills.

[Knotical]

If the OP has decided to buy this 40-footer I wish him all the best - fair winds.

If the OP is asking whether to go with a 40-footer as a first boat vs something smaller I say go with something smaller - everything is big on a 40-footer - learning to sail, motor, dock; maintenance, repairs, expenses, insurance, and associated costs if you f*** it up.

FYI, the difference in size between 36' and 40' may just be 4' but in reality, a 40-footer appears a lot larger.

[vicpr25]

I decided to get a survey for the boat because, for me, a Pearson 40 for 13k was too good of a deal to be true, well.. after the survey...

I'm now an owner of a Pearson 40.

Haha, survey came up with no delimitation or rotten core! (that he could find) And the hull was solid. Some areas of the deck had high moisture content, but nothing mayor that would be a dealbreaker.

[Knotical]

Congratulations, and fair winds.

[Jennie147]

I’m 70 and still solo my P362. That some call it a tank is a huge compliment. Kudos for getting a K/CB

[Cloroxbottle]

Originally Posted by vicpr25

I decided to get a survey for the boat because, for me, a Pearson 40 for 13k was too good of a deal to be true, well.. after the survey...

I'm now an owner of a Pearson 40.

Haha, survey came up with no delimitation or rotten core! (that he could find) And the hull was solid. Some areas of the deck had high moisture content, but nothing mayor that would be a dealbreaker.

Good luck with the refit.



There's a saying in car circles: "There's nothing as expensive as a cheap Mercedes." I suspect that this saying could be adopted by Jaguar drivers, boat owners, and aircraft owners without much argument.

[GrowleyMonster]

Anything over 35' or so for a first boat is stacking the deck against you, though of course it is not impossible to begin with a bigger boat. A bigger boat is MUCH nicer for liveaboard in a slip, though. I lived for several years on a 27' boat and now I am married with a nearly 45' boat but I live on the hard. I almost yearn to move aboard but the admiral won't hear of it. That big tank would be very nice for living in. But sailing is another thing. Big sails for one person, and the admiral doesn't have good sailing aptitude even though she is literally a genius. On a reach where no adjustments are needed for miles and miles, she sails like a locomotive. When it is time to wear or tack, Gurfffphf! Lots of work! Reefing can be a real bear, too, if not done well ahead of time. In fact when I take her out I usually start with one reef in the main. Everything costs WAAAAAAAY more with a bigger boat. It is not a linear relationship. As length increases, costs curve ever more upward. Twice as big doesn't mean sails cost twice as much. It means sails cost about 6x as much. And so on. While undocking is usually no biggie, returning to the slip singlehanded takes a great deal of careful planning and anticipating what the boat will tend to do, and still sometimes you just get caught with your pants down due to not having enough bodies to fend off or muscle her in or alongside. It shouldn't be any harder but in fact, sometimes it is.

At least you have some experience sailing, even if none owning a boat. I'm not saying don't do this, only that you are really getting into something. The leaky overhead is going to be a major repair. You need to address the standing rigging. You can have crevice corrosion and never know it until your shrouds let go. It is usually the lower ends where they are locked or swaged into the terminal fittings that are the problem area. It may be possible to chop off a few inches and re-terminate, possibly with a bit of chain or longer turnbuckles. New wires all around can be pricey, especially if you move up a size. At 40 feet you might want to go all chain on the anchor. That's not cheap either. Windlass and winches cost more. Haulouts cost way more. As boat length doubles, bottom paint requirement quadruples. The rewards of a bigger boat are many, but so are the many ways we pay for these rewards. Good luck, if you decide to see this through. Honestly, for a first boat even with sailing experience, I would be looking more at the 30' to 34' range. Good size for a couple, still very manageable for a solo skipper/owner. But hey, your call and there will be times when you are glad of the bigger boat.

[DaveKurtz]

My first boat was an Amel Super Maramu. 53 ft. ketch. I had sailing experience. My insurance company had some questions, but in the end they insured me. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

[David Johnson]

My first sailboat was a Pearson 10m. Owned it for 40 years and loved it. Now we have a Nauticat 44 cutter ketch--sort of a full-keel trawler that happens to have sails.
A rule of thumb that has served me well in sorting out costs, forces and complexity is that the variance can be calculated (and categorically not "linearly") by comparing two boats by squaring the overall length in feet and adding the displacement in pounds. For my two boats the numbers are (35 x 35) + 14,000 for the Pearson and (52 x 52) + 39,000 for the Nauticat.
That doesn't mean don't buy the Pearson 40. Just realize what you are taking on.
Good sailing!