Project: Sailboat

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by Morten84

...We are two regular guys from Norway...
We have both decided to take at least a year off from work...
decided to get a head start on our time in the Caribbean by buying a boat in the US, and make the boat seaworthy over there...
-Our budget for the boat is +/- 20.000 US $

-38-45 feet...
-Steel hull with a long keel...
-Preferably a boat with a pilothouse, however not a must.//
-Boat should be located on the East Coast. as far south as possible.

You really need to do some more thinking about this.

It would be foolish indeed to confine your search to only the southern east coast.

A pilothouse in the Caribbean? What are you thinking?

A large steel hull with a long keel in the Caribbean? How about an older multi-hull with no keel?

Your budget is OK, if you're clever and determined. I'd look for a boat with some particular value-shattering problem that you can either fix correctly, patch quickly or overlook.

Your 1 year off shouldn't be spent working on a boat.

[Morten84]

Terra Nova::: We plan to take the boat back to europe after sailing the caribbean, thats the reason we want a boat with a long keel and a steel hull. And in our part of the world a pilothouse is very comfortable because of the terrible weather. Wont be much needed in the caribbean though :-)

[Kevin84]

Originally Posted by Morten84

Terra Nova::: We plan to take the boat back to europe after sailing the caribbean, thats the reason we want a boat with a long keel and a steel hull. And in our part of the world a pilothouse is very comfortable because of the terrible weather. Wont be much needed in the caribbean though :-)

Instead of buying a boat suitable for Northern Europe and making do with it in the Caribbean for a year (and most likely being miserable in a very hot steal pilot house) why not buy a smallish 30-33' BeneHuntAlina for under 10k, sell it for around what you pd for it at the end of your year then buy your Northern Europe boat once you're back in Northern Europe? Horses for courses and all that.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Jim Cate]

This should be obvious, but adding the need for the boat to be competent enough for a trans Atlantic passage really ups the ante from one suitable for Caribbean cruising. Those two tasks have rather differing parameters, especially on a restricted budget.

You might want to reconsider the game plan, for the odds of success as stated are slim... not impossible, but slim!

Good luck anyway, 'cause it will be an adventure no matter which way you decide to go.

Jim

[boatman61]

Item 120 For Sale. "Mithrandir" - 37' Samson C-Crest Ketch. Launched 1978. Canadian registered vessel. Built in Victoria, B.C. Canada. Professionally plastered. Lee sails - mizzen, mizzen staysail, mainsail, jibs (2), genoa, spinnaker, storm sail, storm tri-sail. Aluminium masts and all stainless rigging. Barient self-tailing winches. 240 feet of 7/16 inch chain. CQR and Danforth anchors. VHS radio. Recording depth sounder. Volvo MD2B engine. Hydrovane self-steering. Wind generator. Two 20 gallon fuel tanks. Two stainless steel baffled water tanks (approximately 100 gallons total). Dickinson diesel stove and oven. Interior - mahogany bulkheads and trim, red cedar cabin ceiling, teak and maple flooring. Sailed from Victoria, B.C. to England 1982-1983. Great blue water sail boat and/or live aboard. Located in Victoria, B.C. Canada. Needs work to cabin cockpit and toe rail. Owner must sell due to illness. Asking $14,000 CDN. Please contact s_m_rowe@hotmail.com

[boatman61]

Item 103 For Sale Samson 38ft cutter, 44-feet LOA. Brightwork and interior in teak. Manual windlass, CQR 45-lb anchor, 150 feet chain, 25 feet chain, 25 feet chain, large Danforth anchor, Ritchie compass, speedometer, multi-bank electronic battery charger, full galley with ceramic tile and teak, SS sink, foot pump, galley ventilation, custom cabinetry, solid inlaid wood flooring throughout, full head with toilet and SS sink, hatch, main salon sleeps 3, with folding table, cabinets, shore power electrical outlets throughout sailboat, electric bilge pump, 2 Whale Gusher manual bilge pumps, dry bilge, professionally faired inside and out, looks like a fibreglass boat, 6 portholes and 2 hatches, expansive cockpit lazarettes for stowage, safety gear, flares, fire extinguishers, etc. Also charts for the Pacific Coast. Gray Marine diesel not running, new injectors, new injector pump, new alternator, starter, needs compression test. new VHF radio, stereo, Garmin GPS, Battery level indicator, 4 sails in good condition, spinnaker pole, 2 steel diesel tanks, spreader lights, current registration, etc.
Lying in Marina Del Rey, California (Los Angeles). $29,000USD. Contact Gordon or Joy on
Florida cell: 321-225-2014 gordoncruise@hotmail.com

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by Morten84

Thank you guys. BTW we plan to sail the boat home to Europe at the end of our trip. Does anyone here know anything about the Bruce Roberts boats?

Yes. Bruce Roberts is a boat designer. Designs boats and sells the plans. Some of the designs are very good, some not as good.

Keep in mind that Roberts only designs boats and does not build them so the quality of the finished product depends on the builder. Some are home built disasters, some are first class. I think some small boat building companies have used Bruce Roberts designs so there are some professional made boats out there as well.

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by Morten84

Terra Nova::: We plan to take the boat back to europe after sailing the caribbean, thats the reason we want a boat with a long keel and a steel hull. And in our part of the world a pilothouse is very comfortable because of the terrible weather. Wont be much needed in the caribbean though :-)

OK.

Pilothouse versions should be much more common in your part of the world than the southern part of our eastern coast. So I would again encourage you to reexamine your thinking on this. Surely there must be attractive project boats already close to you.

On many/most sailboats there are ways to build on a hard dodger for the purpose of pilothouse. One of mine has circumnavigated. But you'd be smart to keep the projects to a minimum, and to build your boat near home. That way you are not in a position where $ is rapidly going out while nothing is coming in.

Unless you see some incredible opportunities, here, that I certainly don't see, either build your boat while you're still working, or save up enough to buy a nearly 100%-ready-for-sea vessel. Avoid serious projects. Everything costs twice as much as you'd think, and takes three times as long.