Thoughts on a Erikson 27 1975

[dofthesea]

I'm tired of waiting around for a nice full keel pocket cruiser. I'm in the Bay Area so the kind of boats I like don't come around very ofter. I really want to get a boat for the rest of the summer this year. What does everyone think of the Erikson 27' 1975. Has tiller and OB. Its's a fin keel which wouldn't be my first choice but as a fun day sailor and maybe some overnights in the bay it could be a decent boat. Any thought? I plan on redoing the standing and running rigging and a bottom job immediately. Boat price is somewhere in the $2k-1k range as far as purchasing.

[Stu Jackson]

You should try here:


https://ericsonyachts.org/ie/


They're the experts on those boats.

[S/V Illusion]

That was our first boat. The 11HP 5411 was underpowered so I imagine one with an outboard would be worse. We could do only 2-3 knots motoring upwind. Other than that, it was a great boat for the price.

[Time2Go]

My first boat was an Ericson 27, 1977
Great boat, mine had the Atomic 4 engine
I think you are going to be underpowered with the outboard.
Cheers
Neil

[SV__Grace]

My first keelboat was a 70's era Ericson 25. Loved that boat. Well made, fun to sail. Outboard was in a well.

What's your problem with a fin keel?

[wmac]

I crewed on an Erikson 27 on several 80 mile races here on Lake Ontario. Well built boat, solid, sails ok, but the short LWL makes the boat hobby-horse in the short steep waves we get here on Lake Ontario. If you have a cast iron stomach then the boat would be ok, if not find something else.

[Apollo366]

Fun boat & priced right, are you sure you need new rigging?
Get a rigging shop to inspect & advise.

Get a Tiller Master & go sailing, I met a couple of cruisers in Mex that had 27 footers, they were very happy with the boats.

I think full keels are very old fashioned and much over rated, most of the current cruisers have fin keels.

[Rmccormi]

Before I acquired my C&C Landfall 38, I sailed the bay for years in a full keel Bristol 28. The Bristol was stout and sea kindly but was slow. Although I have not personally sailed an Erikson, I expect it would out preform the Bristol. Regarding the outboard, given the age of the vessel, it may be a blessing since outboards are fairly reliable with a little TLC. The outboard won’t be much help propelling the vessel if the sea state is choppy but would suffice in flat seas and/or motoring to your slip, The good news is the bay is typically always has wind, just make you are able to reef effectively.

[Don C L]

The Cal 3-27 is lighter and will be more spirited (faster), but the Ericsons have a good rep and being a bit heavier will likely feel less tossed around. I have a friend who had one in Santa Barbara and he loved it. He actually lived on it for a time right off UCSB and rowed his Redcrest in to school from the anchorage! No keel bolts as I recall. A longshaft 9.9 outboard on a long throw mount (Check "Catalina Direct" for those) will move it along fine. For the Bay I'd probably pick the Cal, for around here, more open ocean conditions, the Ericson.

[nightowle]

I started with a 1975 O'Day 27. Tiller steering. Very similar boat. I had tons of fun with it and sailed lots of overnights and even a several week cruise to the Gulf Islands off Vancouver Island. It originally had the Atomic 4 but I wound up switching it for a 9.9 HP long shaft outboard which performed just fine. If you are getting a fairly decent boat with halfway decent sails at that price - go for it! As a friend said jokingly (or not) when I got my 27, "use it, abuse it, then take her out and sink it!"

[Jim Cate]

Well, since I sailed for 7 years in SF Bay and environs (and lots of other venues too) in my Catalina 22, I would have to say that any of those 27 footers, in even mediocre condition will do just fine, give you lots of fun, earn you some useful experience and cost bugger all. What's not to like? I would have thought it sheer luxury to have such a boat!

And if the rig isn't visibly falling apart, I'd let it be. Your proposed usage never puts you in dire straits... rescue if needed is close by, and the consequences of even a full dismasting are not terribly severe in a 2K$ boat.

SF Bay, if taken at its worst can be knarly. But it is pretty easy to avoid such conditions, and if caught out, the trip home is usually downwind. If you avoid frontal passages and obvious storms, and stay out of the slot on hot (inland) summer arvos you will be quite all right in whichever 27 footer you choose to buy.

Have fun... I sure did!

Jim