There have been a number of
boats in the 33'-35' range that have
sold for prices south of $20K. A Vanguard 33 in decent condition with things like
Monitor Windvane,
roller furling, good
canvas including
dodger and
diesel for $3,000. It had been abandoned for more than a year on a
mooring and looked like crap but has cleaned up quite nicely. It's taken the buyer a few months to get it in shape but looks like he is almost ready to sail off. Ebay has had a few
boats recently that have
sold cheap and one was given away on this site. With prices like that, you can afford to put quite a bit of
money into the boat and still not be under
water if you get her shined up.
You need to set down and calculate the cost of
equipment that you'll need for the boat to have a good idea what a boat would be worth. I've sailed many happy miles with a vane doing the
steering so that would be #1 on my list. Minimal
electronics would be a Knotmeter/Log,
Depth Sounder,
Epirb, Small
GPS Plotter or suitable Tablet Computer for
navigation, a backup
GPS or two and an inexpensive HF/SSB receiver like a Sony SF7600.
Roller Furling is a must for these old bones with a decent suit of
sails, triple reef main, 135 RF
Genoa, Heavy Working sail, a
Storm Jib, and a light air sail for reaching/downwind sailing.
Windlass, all chain
rode and solid
anchor like a Manson though have had good luck with
CQR and Danforth Pattern Anchors. At your age, an
electric windlass might not be a bad idea. Our backs aren't getting any younger. A good
dinghy. I like to row so have an
Avon Red Crest
inflatable and an 8' sailing dink. Good
canvas including a strong
dodger, awning for the
mast back while at
anchor and/or a
bimini for sailing where the sun usually shines. A simple auto pilot to handle the boat under
power would be nice but at the end of the list of must haves for me.
Through judicial
shopping, religiously watching Ebay and Craig's List for used, you can get good deals on almost all the above if you are patient. Add up the costs of the above and figure that into what your cruising boat will cost you. With the exception of a good anchor and working sails, you can pick up a lot of the above stuff as it becomes available along the way. Personally, wouldn't go anywhere without my
Wind Vane Self Steering, though.
Things you don't need are
refrigeration. Lived for many years without it and quality
beer actually tastes better at
bilge temperature. If you have a well insulated ice box, block ice can last for many days if you must drink Lite water/beer. Sat Phone/SSB are nice if you are the gabby type but schedules and nets can be a hassle if you aren't in the mood.
Radar is nice but costly and eats tons of juice. With a GPS,
depth sounder and patience, you can go anywhere a
radar will get you.
Wheel steering, Tillers are simple, strong, not prone to failure and
work way better with a Pendulum Servo
Self Steering Vane. Hot rod planing dink with a big
engine so you can annoy everybody in the anchorage.
If you are on a limited
budget, go with the smallest solid boat with the best
equipment that you can find. Even a 30' boat is large enough for a solo sailor. The larger the boat, the more things cost and the harder they are to handle in close quarters. A 30' boat is easy to fend off a
dock, a 37' boat's momentum may just go through the
dock. The roughest
weather I've ever experienced, 30-40k winds, steep 10' seas, hard on the
wind with no dodger was in a 26'/6,000# boat. Wouldn't have been comfortable in any boat but easily lived with it. For most cruising, you'll be picking your
weather and sailing with favorable prevailing conditions. Those that don't are largely nuts and get to write the scary stories. Good luck on whatever you end up doing.
Going on 60 years messing around in sailboats.
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