Recommendations - Yet another blue water boat question

[john61ct]

Stick to your guns OP, if you have sound reasons for whatever criteria.

The enemy is too many choices, anything rational that eliminates dozens or even hundreds od prospects helps to narrow down the search,

makes coming to a decision easier

[Scubaseas]

Familiar with the site. I don't think there is anything post 1985 there?

Tayana will build you anything new but not for $150K. Why is 25 years a wall? Lots of great older boats out there. Cape Dory stopped the 36 in 1990 but you can get Robinhood 36s from 92 to 2006.

[Jaqun]

I am a freedom owner and unfortunately I am finding the 40’s harder to find.

[Sailorbob8599]

Originally Posted by kev_rm

Am starting a search for a new boat. These are my criteria, in order of importance:

1) Less than 25 years old
2) Less than $150K (+/- 30% depending on condition)
3) 33-42ft length
4) Reasonable resale value
5) Minimal Wood above deck
6) Extremely robust construction suitable for long passages & sea-kindly
7) Mid-range performance upwind (<180 PHRF?)
8) Running rigging suitable for shorthanded/solo
9) Tankage 50+gals fuel, 80+gals h20
10) Volvo = 10K discount on price range for repower (sorry..)

Don't care about:
- how many it sleeps/stateroom/head count
- what it looks like
- where it is

Re: 4) . . . Define "reasonable"

[Finisterre]

Obtain (online) and read "Sailing a Serious Ocean" by John Kretschmer. He lists the proven Water boats">blue water boats, why they are selected, and price range of each.

[barnakiel]

Just type your data into yw website and watch what is popping up?


In the end, you may be limited to 'what there is' no? Or do you want to go to say Ozdralia to fetch the dream boat.(?)


Think about it. Search your local (geographically) market for WHAT THERE IS. Then get the thing that fits your above list best.


My other remark is always think marina life vs. extended sailing. These are two extreme modalities and boats do tend to cater for a niche rather than be one size fit all (needs).


Cheers,
b.

[Joelko]

Island Packet. I had a similar list and bought an IP380 with which I sailed to the Caribbean and back from Sag Harbor over six years. A bit poky on the wind, but fast and comfortable when it picks up and seaworthy in stormiest conditions. Absolutely terrific cruising boat.

[Charles S]

Subscribe to Morgan’s Cloud website for $15 US.
“Attainable Adventure Cruising”
There is a long and excellent discussion of this problem
https://www.morganscloud.com/2019/05/18/wow-buying-an-offshore-sailboat-is-really-hard

That’s a good place to start! There is no need to duplicate an amazing discussion. The rest of the site has the best marne discussions of seamanship, gear, weather and all nautical problems. The commenting letters are from people sailing all around the world.
Best wishes
Charles
Charles L Starke MD FACP
s/v Dawnpiper

[hlk]

Your criteria is very similar to mine when I was boat shopping. I found one that met 80% of mine and added the rest. The boat, Sea Turtle is currently for sale and can be viewed on Yacht World. This is a boat that will take you around the world. Check it out and see what you think.

https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/201...nced%20listing

[marcus02]

I spent a year, an exhaustive year, doing this and there's really only one choice; Tayana Vancouver 42, make sure it's still a cutter. You'll have some cash left over to make it yours and they will hold their resale value forever. Have the surveyor conform the chainplates. Don't worry about the age, it doesn't really matter after 10 years anyway. There, I just saved you a year's work.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by grantmc

Sea-kindly on ocean passages implies full keel but that wont usually give good upwind performance. But then I wonder who ever does all these long upwind passages anyway. Why make it so hard for yourself?

What is hard on yourself is doing any upwind sailing in quite a number of the vessels recommend on this thread.

Long upwind passages are generally avoided by good planning, but 2-4 days of upwind is not uncommon, since many supposed downwind trips get surprising weather situations.

So the ability to sail upwind is a requirement to be considered. Upwind capability does not mean poor sea kindly. And in general, good sailing performance enhances the enjoyment of sailing and adds the ability to sail off a lee shore. It also makes superfluous those rows of yellow jerry jugs carried on deck by most full keeled cruising boats.

So get a good sailing boat, PHRF ratings (for a given length) are a reasonable indication of that, and enjoy sailing it.

One requirement which is hard to quantify, is the ease of sailing the vessel, based on rigging and deck layout. My wife and I are exhausted after a day sail on some highly rated cruising boats; every line is hard to pull, every winch hard to reach and undersized, too much friction in sheets with multiple blocks, even the furlers seem harder for sail handling than our own boat which has none. So much work in fact that we begin to understand why the owners regularly avoid sailing, over and above the fact that the boats don't really sail that well either, they just are not that much fun.

And my advice to the OP is do some sailing on other people's boats, as much as possible (weekly, for a year, and some passages) then decide what kind of boat you like. It's better to form your own opinion than be swayed by the highly opinionated comments of others.

[Americanrancher]

Originally Posted by Arthurwg

Any Pacific Seacraft.

Here Here!

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by marcus02

there's really only one choice

you funny

[sailingharry]

Originally Posted by MJH

I think using PHRF ratings for selecting an offshore boat is going to eliminate a number of boats that might suit your dream, it is ill-suited to your purpose. When I started my offshore boat search I looked into using PHRF ratings and did away with it because this measure is for boats on the racing circuit which most offshore capable boats don't participate in...your use is otherwise.


I endorse an objective search using boat specifications. You would be better served using SA/DISP, DISP/LWL, COMFOFT, CAPSIZE RISK, and VHULL ratios to narrow your search to a handful of possibilities.
~ ~ _/) ~ ~ MJH

I race a lot in PHRF. I also cruise, and am looking to upgrade my Sabre 34 for longer distance sailing after retirement. A PHRF rating is a "one number" indicator of performance. yes, sailors will argue about ratings until the beer keg is empty. But, a boat with a PHRF of 100 will beat one with 140 every day of the week. it would take a very experienced sailor to digest SA/D, LWL/B, keel shape, sail aspect ratio, weight aloft, etc to decide that a Westsail is a dog. But having the PHRF tells you that in seconds. I keep a PDF of PHRF numbers on my computer, and look at them all the time.


Now, there is more to a boat than performance. Much more! OP is simply saying that he wants a decent sailing boat as part of his mix of criteria. My old Sabre 34 is around 180 -- and our target for the next boat is under 100. And we want a Pullman berth and aft cockpit. And a round bottom and 30 inch lifelines. Lots of criteria -- including a boat that is fun to sail.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by kev_rm

Great post and good advice grantmc - I do want to address the below - Yes, I understand full keel boats are best down wind, and passage making is going to be downwind. But if I think about the amount of time spent passagemaking vs. the amount of time gunkholing even on a circumnavigation, I think upwind performance actually matters a lot.

So were are you thinking of going with this yacht? and are you blue water ready?

Pete