Sailboat guidance from the crowd:

[Sbauhan]

So, I'm looking for a good quality sailboat with some specific features and am hoping the "crowd" could help me filter the seemingly endless options:
-Length- 45 -49 with a preference toward the smaller.
-Height- ICW friendly (under 65)
-Cutter
-6 berths not including the Solon (2 bunks would be great)
-Rack and pinion steering
-skeg hung rudder
-keel stepped preferred
-bow thruster
-sugar scoop transom or something similar to scuba off of
-seaworthy- crossing gulf stream and Caribbean cruising based out of Florida or Carolinas.
-used boat

As an example, the Oyster 45 seems to fit the bill (save the rack and pinion requirement)...but I'm curious what other comparables are out there. Truly appreciate the guidance in advance as I feel like I'm chasing a unicorn! There's got to be a number of similar designs out there!

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Sbauhan.
That's quite a specific wish list.

[Dark Horse]

You left out how much you want to spend that's pretty important.



Curious as to why the rack and pinion steering. Cable steering works just fine and in my opinion is much simpler with less to go wrong.

[Sbauhan]

Would like to keep it under $350k. My preference is for rack and pinion as I feel it is comparatively more reliable over time. That said I don't want to get caught up on that requirement; cable steering is fine for this discussion. Thanks in advance!

[barnakiel]

Google and YW are your friends.


Have you tried there perhaps?


barnakiel

[Sbauhan]

Yes, quite a lot; just trying to see if I'm overlooking some good candidates.

[KC375]

Originally Posted by Sbauhan

So, I'm looking for a good quality sailboat with some specific features and am hoping the "crowd" could help me filter the seemingly endless options:
-Length- 45 -49 with a preference toward the smaller.
-Height- ICW friendly (under 65)
-Cutter
-6 berths not including the Solon (2 bunks would be great)
-Rack and pinion steering
-skeg hung rudder
-keel stepped preferred
-bow thruster
-sugar scoop transom or something similar to scuba off of
-seaworthy- crossing gulf stream and Caribbean cruising based out of Florida or Carolinas.
-used boat

As an example, the Oyster 45 seems to fit the bill (save the rack and pinion requirement)...but I'm curious what other comparables are out there. Truly appreciate the guidance in advance as I feel like I'm chasing a unicorn! There's got to be a number of similar designs out there!

Your budget should allow plenty of choice, so you might want to provide more priorities/preferences.
You mention complex system, cruiser oriented Monohull (Oyster) have you tried / considered multihulls?
Primary use? (presumably cruising not racing)
Typical trip duration?
Any depth constraints (lifting keel/centerboard offers some extra options in Florida and Bahamas)?
Fast vs comfortable?
Athletic vs. machine assisted (power winches etc.)
Single/shorthand vs full compliment?
Lux vs simple easy to maintain?
Marina or docking constraints (beam/draft)?
Aesthetics – classic vs expedition vs cutting edge?
My “generic” thought would be to fully spec out your usage requirements and then look for a boat that has just finished that mission or better yet prepped for that mission but changing life circumstances pre-empted departure (illness, divorce, financial reversal, death, **** happens – especially to demographic who have accumulated the time and money to get ready to leave).

[Don C L]

Sugar scoop and skeg hung rudder combo seems rare to me... have to think about it. I have an acquaintance who I often see in local anchorages who has a Catalina 42 with a sugar scoop and he loves it. I am pretty sure it has a spade rudder though. I am curious about the rack and pinion requirement too. For strength and reliability? I can see that. There are certainly good cable set-ups but I'd want to have one easy to see and get access to. I met someone who had sailed down the coast here a while back who discovered after arriving he was down to the last few threads of the cable because it was out of alignment with the quadrant.
The venerable Peterson 44 popped to mind, (just one of my favorites) but no sugar scoop there.

[nhschneider]

Our Contest 48 ticks a lot of your boxes but doesn’t have a sugar scoop transom. Instead of rack-and-pinion steering, ours has the Whitlock Mamba system that uses a torque tube and drag link - personally, I think it’s the most bulletproof system made. After our recently-completed circumnavigation, our steering wheel has less than 3° of ‘play’.

Nor was our boat equipped with a bow thruster which I would like to have. I’m tired of being the source of entertainment as we approach berths and fuel docks!

Fair winds and calm seas.

[Sbauhan]

Thanks for the responses; this is very much appreciated!

I've also read a bit about the Mamba system being great and appreciate "nhsneider" for confirming that! Your mention of the Contest 48 is exactly what I am hoping to gain from this discussion. That boat ticks an many of the boxes and is not one that I was aware of prior to you mentioning it! Sio I'll be researching that one.

To "Don C L"...interesting comment; I never suspected that sugar scoop and skeg hung rudders would be an unusual combo but maybe you're right; I'll keep that in mind as I continue the search.

And to "KC35": to answer some of those questions I'd say this will be a relatively easy to maintain cruising mono, speed would be great but I'm not racing. Typical trip would be no longer than a month and would be shorthanded. I'm open to the lifting keel/centerboard concept but am innately resistant to it; I'm not too concerned about draft or beam.

[Fore and Aft]

You can always ad a bow thruster if you find the perfect boat. Same with the sugar scoop, I have added a few sugar scoops to cat transoms and monohulls it’s really not that hard and any good boatyard could do it for you.
Hell if you are that rigid on all those requirements a boatyard could certainly modify a yacht to suit you.
Cheers

[Sojourner]

Originally Posted by Don C L

Sugar scoop and skeg hung rudder combo seems rare to me... have to think about it.

Amel. Our 53' supermaramu has both a massive and protected skeg hung rudder and a sugar scoop. Pretty sure the older and smaller Amels do as well. That said, with a budget of 350k, you could get a sweet SM with plenty left over.