33ft Charles Green Design. Santa Barbara.

Armydave

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Hi
Can anyone help! Please. I am looking at a Santa Barbara 33 ft Ketch keel hull this week. I believe the designer is Charles Green.
Does anyone have any knowledge or experience of owning one these. I'm interested to know if it would be a viable long voyage cruiser.
Any information on these boats would be appreciated.
 

Bajansailor

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Welcome to the Forum Dave.
Is this the boat that you looked at?


Or this one?
Santa Barbara 33 Ketch For Sale, 10.06m, 1991

Pretty much any 33' sailing yacht can be a viable long voyage cruiser, if she is in good condition, and is well equipped.

The Santa Barbara appears to be fairly obscure (I had never heard of her until I saw your post) - what are the features about her that appeals to you?
Be aware that the more obscure a boat is, generally the more difficult it is to sell on come the time when you want to sell her.

What are your plans re a long voyage - eg around the coast of Britain, to the Med, to the Canaries and across the Atlantic.....?

And what is your budget?
Remember to always include a reserve for any re-fit work that needs doing, and things that need fixing (these are occupational hazards with all boats generally!). :)

Finally, you might get a better response if you re-post this thread in the Practical Boat Owner group, rather than the Classic Boats.
 

Tranona

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Charles Green was a prolific designer of ply boats for home building in the immediate post war period, 1950s to 1970s which was the heyday of home building. He lived in Bungay in Suffolk. His range of boats covered small dinghies up to from memory a 50'. Many sets of plans and kits were sold, with the larger ones often built abroad by ex pats using local labour and then planning to sail home. This kind of market died a death when low price GRP boats arrived in the 1970s. Would guess many plans lay unused and part built boats rotting away in back yards.

I know a bit about this because I bought a kit in 1971 for a 14' sailing boat with a cuddy. I actually completed it and brought it with us to Poole when we moved in 1978. Sailed it a couple of times but it was a bit horrid, and in the meantime I had already built a 19' GRP Seawych from a kit which was a far better proposition. Sold the Green boat around 1979 for peanuts.

Back to the Santa Barbara. I remember this design in the catalogue and dreaming (no doubt like many others) of sailing off into the sunset in one! This looks like one of the dreams that actual went the whole hog to near reality. Suspect that the 1991 date was preceded by many years of actually building it as I think Charles gave up the business around 1980. Is it any good? well it does have a sheathed hull and lots of good kit consistent with what was considered the thing to have for long term cruising in the 1970s. However, by today's standards, or even the standards of 40 years ago it will likely be slow and ponderous. It has got everything against for sailing performance - tubby hull, bilge keels, small low aspect ketch rig and I guess will tip the scales at 6 tons plus. On the plus side it does have a lot of gear and looks reasonably comfortable and well equipped.

I guess it all comes down to price and what your expectations are. If it is anywhere near the price in the second link forget it. For that money you can get an infinitely better boat such as a Moody 33 or Westerly 33, or indeed many other more modern, better performing GRP 30-34' boats. If it is sub £10k it is a lot of boat for the money BUT you will need to be very careful about checking out its construction and materials used. I owned a much better professionally built 26' ply boat from a better designer for nearly 40 years. Sold it recently in sailaway condition with new teak deck, new diesel engine, excellent sails etc for £4k and was delighted I got that.
 
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