What is a good bluewater/ocean sailboat?

[caequinox]

Hi,
New member, that obvious?
Looking for an all around good boat for the baja /hawaii run.
Hull: pre 1973 fiberglass, steel, or?
Motor and drive?
Cat or 3 sail?
Electric: solar, hydrovane, wind, or lightweight diesel gen (3kw)
Really need a tank (Columbia 45) that will sail over 10 knots and handle.
I will sacrifice some comfort for performance.
I am 49yo in shape, intermediate sailing experience and advanced motoring skills.
Oh, 35' plus for all my junk.
Thanks for the ideas!

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by caequinox

Hi,
New member, that obvious?
Looking for an all around good boat for the baja /hawaii run.
Hull: pre 1973 fiberglass, steel, or?
Motor and drive?
Cat or 3 sail?
Electric: solar, hydrovane, wind, or lightweight diesel gen (3kw)
Really need a tank (Columbia 45) that will sail over 10 knots and handle.
I will sacrifice some comfort for performance.
I am 49yo in shape, intermediate sailing experience and advanced motoring skills.
Oh, 35' plus for all my junk.
Thanks for the ideas!

You need a " tank" , but sacrifices comfort for performance , yet sails over 10 knots and " handles "

Good luck with that and the 1973 fibreglass
Sheesh !!

Dave

[MarkJ]

Pre 1973 very very very very few race boats could do 10 knots.

And none would still be alive today.... (except a few off the Whitsundays in Australia but they are all 70 to 90 feet!)

[Ocean Girl]

Hmmm, tank that goes over ten.. Well a big boat with lots of waterline. Some of the old offshore trimarans can be fast and pretty darn strong( though I couldn't on a quick search find one for sale)

Here are a couple to get you started happy hunting

1991 Atlantic ATLANTIC 55 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

1981 Cheoy Lee Wittholtz Cutter Sloop Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

[caequinox]

Thanks Markj and Ocean Girl!
I said tank because I am not an advanced wind sailer.
I have heard bad things about light "glass" or ill designed fero cement hulls.

[Adelie]

How many people as regular crew? Any kids?
Clarify intermediate sailing experience.
What's your budget to buy and outfit the boat? (living and cruising costs extra.)
Where are you?
Are you looking to cruise extensively or is this a single 1-2yr trip then home?
Any really strong preferences to start with? (full/fin keel, mono/multi, spade/skeg/attached rudder, sloop/cutter/mizzen rigged)

Explain what you mean by go 10kt. I've gone 10kt in a Flying Scot. Almost anything can go 10kt. If you want to average 10kt the bank roll for this adventure will need to approach $1M.

[caequinox]

Thanks Adelie,
2 adults, maybe 1 child.
40' that can go 10 knots on sail.
Read/sailing classes, San Francisco Bay/inland.
Looking at refit, mechanically inclined=$80,000.
Mono, spade/fin, or?
Never sailed a cat or multi hull.
Looking for stability.
I read about Schucker's but they were mentioned at only 5 knots at 10mphrefit winds.
A motorsailer hybred or sloop?
Thanks

[Mimsy]

40 footer, pre 1973 that sails 10 knots and is a tank?
I want a unicorn that poops rainbows and stars too.

Instead of looking for something that does not exist. try changing your criteria to something that is well built and can sail WELL instead of getting hung up on speed. If you are looking for speed, sailing is the last mode of transportation I would choose.

If you start looking for a boat that is easy to balance, points well you will probably be more successful. Or if you must have speed, give up the idea of something heavily built and buy a cat.

[caequinox]

Thanks Mimsy,
Refined search: sails well and stable in ocean cruising.
Thanks

[SailOnEverAfter]

I can tell you that my Schucker is built like a tank but mine is a one of a kind built by them. It also like 6-7 and hit 10 but NO WAY AVERAGE 10. I love my boat but it's far from the new high performance stuff out there. I have solar, wind gen, water maker, 5.5 gen, holds 250 gals of fresh, 200 gals fuel, 6 person life raft, bla bla bla. It is a fantastic cruiser and VERY spacious. When I was looking for my boat (2-years worth of looking) the one thing that everyone agrees on is that unless you have a HUGE BUDGET, you will have to compromise on some things.

[gjordan]

The best boat for cruising is the one you can afford to buy, afford to outfit, and still have money left over to cruise for however long you want to stay out cruising. The integrity of the rig, the rudder and the thru hulls is critical, but most of the rest of choosing is up for huge, nonsensical debate on this forum. Your mention of 10knots shows that you need to do a lot more reading. Even most cruising multihulls dont average that speed. Sure, someone can show an exception, but the average cruising multihull only does slightly faster passages than similar sized monohulls. That doesnt mean that there is anything wrong with multihulls, just that in cruising mode they are not the rocket ships that designers and salesmen make them out to be._____You are near SF Bay, so you have no end of chances to take lessons, rent, charter various boats. Take the mate out for a few weekends on a smaller boat, and she will love it when you try a larger boat. Dont charter the plush 45 footer, to impress the mate and then show her the 36 foot fixer upper that you want to buy. Another point, is to remember that an outfit/refit will take twice as much time as you plan, and 3 times as much money. Welcome to boating._____Good Luck with it all. ______Grant.

[boatman61]

Up to 35ft you'll be happy with 100nm/24hr average... up to 42ft 120nm and up to 50ft 150nm/day averages...
You'll soon learn not to factor hull speeds in your cruising/voyaging schedule

[gjordan]

Boatmans averages are realistic. There are exceptions to everything but averages are real. With a 21 foot waterline, Contesasa 26 I have done everything from an 18 mile day to a 140 mile day. But the average was the reality of the boat and the sailor.______Grant.

[SailOnEverAfter]

Originally Posted by gjordan

The best boat for cruising is the one you can afford to buy, afford to outfit, and still have money left over to cruise for however long you want to stay out cruising. The integrity of the rig, the rudder and the thru hulls is critical, but most of the rest of choosing is up for huge, nonsensical debate on this forum. Your mention of 10knots shows that you need to do a lot more reading. Even most cruising multihulls dont average that speed. Sure, someone can show an exception, but the average cruising multihull only does slightly faster passages than similar sized monohulls. That doesnt mean that there is anything wrong with multihulls, just that in cruising mode they are not the rocket ships that designers and salesmen make them out to be._____You are near SF Bay, so you have no end of chances to take lessons, rent, charter various boats. Take the mate out for a few weekends on a smaller boat, and she will love it when you try a larger boat. Dont charter the plush 45 footer, to impress the mate and then show her the 36 foot fixer upper that you want to buy. Another point, is to remember that an outfit/refit will take twice as much time as you plan, and 3 times as much money. Welcome to boating._____Good Luck with it all. ______Grant.

VERY well said! I bought my boat with what I had saved and stayed within my budget. THEN I spent another 10K getting her ready and that was with almost all my labor! The labor is the killer at generally 100.00 an hour so if your not handy keep saving!

I work from my boat while cruising and if I have to stay somewhere while waiting on getting more $ then so be it!

I'm happier now living on a 44' boat than I eve was in a huge house with huge payments! My stress level has dropped and I think I reduced my risk of stress related medical crap by at least half.