pearson 424

[salty_dog_68]

i am interested in a pearson 424 for liveaboard and offshore cruising in the gulf of mex, carribean, and central america. any thoughts on this boat???thanks

[capt lar]

i have sailed lots of pearsons over the years. they are decent boats. i looked at and like the pearson 424. it has some nice interior layout options. while this could lead to the endless debate, i also like their ketch rig because i think is is easier for two to handle. boat condition is all important. i have seen them beat with wet decks and in excellent condition with no apparent problems.

you said offshore - gulf of mex, carribean, and central america. i could do gulf and caribe without being "offshore". pearson built a good chevrolet, but they were not built to be offshore boats.

you could either pay for the ability to go offshore - double the money - or understand that you are limiting your waters due to personal comfort level and available funds (this is the option i would suggest) or go anyway and accept the added risk. there are plenty of pearsons out there doing it.

capt. lar

[exposure]

I suspect Jack Tyler (a 424 owner) will chime in here as soon as he stops by hte board. But, until he does, here is a link to his web site...

http://www.svsarah.com/Whoosh/Whoosh%20Main%20Page.htm

[Euro Cruiser]

SD, we have been cruising a 424 for 5 years now and I think Cap'n Lar's summary was on target. After seeing most of the Caribbean, the ketch rig was the reason the two of us felt comfortable about doing an Atlantic Crossing: low profile sail plan, smaller sails but with the ability to ratchet up sail area using an asym and mizzen staysail if needed.

The boat's layout is perhaps its best feature; functional at sea and very accommodating at anchor or dock as a liveaboard, with lots of hatches for the Caribbean. It's least satisfying attributes are the wide sheeting angle coupled with relatively shallow keel and ketch rig; together they make it difficult to sail efficiently to weather because you have to keep the boat on her feet to maintain pointing ability, which reduces sail area and therefore speed.

The 424 is basically a wooden boat inside a fiberglass shell; no liners, everything accessible. It's laminate sked and design say it isn't a go-anywhere boat altho' we've come to view it as a safe, appropriate choice for in-season, lower-latitude ocean sailing. I know of two 424's that have Circled and a number of hulls which have crossed the Atlantic many times.

If you want more info you could start with www.pearson424.org/info.html and there's also a 422 owners' site that you might find fairly helpful given the similarity in systems. Feel free to let me know if you zero in on any specific questons you think an owner can answer.

Jack
jack_patricia at yahoo.com

[capt lar]

jack - i understand have to fly less sail to keep the boat flat to point higher so you compromise speed, but specifically what do you mean by "wide sheeting angle" as a negative. thanks

capt. lar

[Euro Cruiser]

Lar, a 424 is beamy (13') and the genoa tracks are thru-bolted to the caprail. This limits the sheeting angle of the foresail and so the windward ability of the boat.

Jack

[capt lar]

yep - i wondered - no inner track. you must have considered adding short track, or locating spot where a single snatch block could be set when needed ? with all the "real" sailing you are doing, it can't be much of an issue, just less than ideal in some situations. several big strong danish women on the windward rail could also help keep the boat flat, if you are near those waters.
capt. lar

[Euro Cruiser]

Denmark is one of those places where the women are anything but hefty and ballast worthy. The Dutch, Swedish, Norweign and Danish folks are typically tall, slim, handsome and healthy. They've got a few things figured out...

Short seastory: we were sailing across the channel between Denmark & Sweden to Helsingborg, covered in 3 layers of fleece in early summer, and we noticed a small Danish sailboat was busily powering towards us on an intersecting course. They had seen our U.S. flag and we're just curious. They drew up alongside and we shouted greetings to one another. I marveled at their appearance: she had nothing but a bikini on (he had a long-sleeved T-shirt) and had been sunbathing in the cockpit behind the dodger. (Sure, it was sunny...but it couldn't have been more than 55F). I shouted something about us being very impressed with her, only having a bikini while we had many clothes, at which point she stood up on one of the cockpit seats, took a bodybuilder's pose with fists up and biceps flexed, and shouted back: "Yes, but we are VIKINGS!"

We all had a good chuckle over that incident, but there's much truth in her statement. The national identity of many N European cultures includes being pretty tough and adventure-prone. Shoot, in The Netherlands where everyone is pretty thrifty, the Docs and Dentists that do minor surgeries and teeth repair do NOT include anethesia as part of their normal treatment; it is at an additional cost and the patient is asked if they want it. (Good friends who are British but live/work in Amsterdam warned us about this). The normal Dutch logic is something like "the pain is momentary, but I lose the geld forever." I kid you not, these folks ARE Vikings.

Jack