Advice on buying a first boat needed

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david100952

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After a brief intiation many years ago in Canada I have wished for a small yacht and now have moved to Devon sold a car and started shopping. I have a small budget (2-3k) and want something around 22'. I dont mind doing a lot of TLC but dont want to compromise on safety. Am I mad or do I stand a chance of fulfilling my dream
 
I bought a 19' Caprice 4 on Ebay in remakably good fettle v. cheap, if you watch your step, you stand every chance, or maybe I was just plain lucky.
 
Hello

I really dont think you are mad. With 2-3k and desire for a small yacht you are not being unrealistic.

One well proven boat is a corribee - Ellen Macarthur and Katie Miller have gone round Britain in these boats. These are on the market in quite large numbers and sell in this price range. The numbers for sail allow you to look for ones with newer sails, more electrics, nicer interior etc.

You are in the right place for asking advice and I'm sure people will advise you about a number of boats in this price bracket.

Good luck, and happy sailing

Rich
 
Hello Dave. 2 or 3 K will buy you a solid boat with a damn good reputation but which is a 19 footer. 4 good berths, a fair sized galley area, and even space for a heads or a chemical toilet. Bilge keels so you can take to the ground, a good following with an extremely helpful, friendly and active Owners Association. I have owned 2 of these in a total of 10 years, been out in a Force 6 without even being worried about it. My wife and I even lived on this boat for 3 months. Cheap to run, cheap to berth and Osmosis, well what's Osmosis.

Yep, I am a bit biased but I love the Seawych. Here's the link to their website, complete with a nice gallery of pics (even some of mine in there). http://www.seawych.org/

Come on SWOA's (Vic) back me up /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Hi! I've been asked this kind of question by clients many times, so here goes:

1. Make friends with someone with plenty of experience of boats in the range 18-22ft, and persuade him/her to look over any boat you are interested in.
2. The priority items to take care over, and if necessary spend on, are:
a) Rudder, its fittings and tiller,
b) Mast, chain-plates, stem fitting and the standing rigging,
c) Anchor and cable.
3. Don't be seduced by the domestic arrangements or fancy instruments: you will only need a decent depth-sounder and, later perhaps, a reliable GPS: easy enough to fit.
4. Learn to SAIL, especially in confined spaces, so you are not reliant on an engine!

Others may well come up with more/different advice, but the decisions are yours!
Do keep us posted on the Forum.
I wish you Good Luck! but it is no substitute for good judgement!
 
When you do buy, assume you have thrown the money away - and found the boat! This way you will not feel it owes you anything and what you do get out will be a bonus!

Treat it as a learning experience, because it WILL be! You will learn what fun it is AND what heartache it can be! Keep expectations fairly low and the chances are you will be pleasantly surprised.

Sad thing is that if it all goes belly up you will probably want to spend more to see if a bigger/ better boat would solve the problem! Doh! Welcome to the sailing fraternity - just remember it is usually infectious and often incurable.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I have a small budget (2-3k) and want something around 22'.

[/ QUOTE ]

Very sensible!

You may like to leave yourself a budget for essentials, as once you have used the boat three or four times there will be some.

We picked up a Galion 22 (highly recommend as a first boat btw) for less than a grand and are in the process of speding some time and money on her; we hope to have her 100% useable and comfortable before spending 2k.

Feel free to post details of potential boats on here as you find likely ones, we all like to spend someone else's money. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Forumites local to a boat of interest will probably give one a look over for you, if it is too far flung for you.

Good luck.
 
It might be a good idea to check out where you're going to keep the boat, then make sure your choice is suitable. For example you may find you can only get a drying mooring, so you'd need a bilge or lift keel boat. If you can get an all-tide mooring then your choice is wider.
 
Hi, and welcome David, can I just advice you to make sure you get a survey done on any boat you intend to purchase, and use a surveyer of your choice, not the sellers choice.
I bought my present, and first boat last Feb, without a survey, as the funds were stretched to the limit, the boat was in the water which would have meant more expense getting it lifted out for survey, so bought without.
Sailed her all summer with some miner ailments to be sorted over this winter, but sadly this winter is giong to be taken up sorting the wobbly keel (noticed on lift out in oct) and strengthening up the weak hull structure to stop this keel from wobbeling among numerous other major jobs, inc over £200 for a new prop, which might have been noticed if I had to get a survey done.
So be advised. Dont end up with a bloody broken heart like me.
Good luck.
 
Hi david
welcome to the forum lots of good sound advice to be found here, but as you may see people do enthuse about there own classes,
try to make a list of your requirements / wants, prioratise them, decide were you would like to sail and moor the boat. this will dictate your choice of keel arangement do you want the accomodation or the performance, look at owners association web sites particularly the members forums find out if there are generic faults or problems for which there will be questions and answers.
there are several boats that fall into your price range but allow for later expenses.
personally i opted and purchased a pandora active owners association and good performance fair one for 2,1/2 k but not over generous in accomodation
pandora.jpg

good luck Doggy Dave /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Hi and welcome both to the forum and the ecstatic heartbreaks of your first boat.

I had a Halcyon 23 for a long time and loved her to bits. She was a great first boat. if I pranged (when!) I didn't feel like I'd just made a hole in enormous costs, but could afford to do things to improve her.

I won't deny that not being able to stand up below gets a bit tired. But I personally would rather have a good sailing boat and kneel to do the cooking, than something which goes sideways but I can straighten my back vertically. And in your budget, that's pretty much an either/or.

Really only sold her to get the liveaboard boat, and she's still going strong, now in her 34th year.

Best of luck with the hunt
 
[ QUOTE ]
Come on SWOA's (Vic) back me up

[/ QUOTE ] Yep I will back you up on that. I built mine in 1977/8 and first launched it on the spring bank holiday wekend in 1978. I have still got it although I have been fortunate enough to have had a good friend with a bigger (31 ft) boat for the more serious offshore stuff.

Several Seawych owners have reguarly crossed the Channel and one in particular sailed some fairly lengthy coastal passages including a round Britain trip before sailing out to the Med, via the coastal route and back again the following year partly via the French canals.

I would have to admit that although very seaworthy the Seawych does not sail as well as say the Corribee but it is unsurpassed, in my opinion, as far as the living accomodation is concerned.

Because they were nearly all home built from kits the standard of fitting out does vary.

There is at least one in Paynes boat yard, Prinsted near Emsworth for sale at the moment.
 
what gives you the impression that i am less than happy with my pandora. great sailing performance if not roomy had some great expedittions on her and early enugh to beat the competition into the shower block or to the bar. dont mind the cozy rather than cramped interior. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
There was an excellent article about 3 - 4 years ago (about the time I was looking, which is why I remember) in Yachting Monthly, Sailing Today or Practical Boat Owner about buying a cruiser for £2000 - 3000 and gave the pros and cons of a number of the more likely choices, you would probably find it useful if you could locate it. Good luck anyway.
 
[ QUOTE ]
There was an excellent article about 3 - 4 years ago

[/ QUOTE ] Thanks for reminding me. The Sailing Today review of the Seawych is on the website in "Specifications" on the Wych gallery and Specifications tab.

The url of the article is http://www.seawych.org/Sailing_today.htm but I'm not sure if it'll work as a link.

Also one for sale at a very low price in the "for sale" section.
 
The ultimate success of your buying a boat deepends on so many factors only a portion of which is dependant on the actual boat.
Questions like where will you keep it?
Will it be a drying mooring or available all tides.
Will you need a dinghy to get to the mooring or will you pay for jetty access?
Will you sail often with short sails or just long voyages?
Will you have to drive far to get to the boat and if so will you want to sleep on board for 1 or 2 nights?
Will your spouse and children enjoy the boat?

These questions will dictate how often you use the boat. A cheaper boat (smaller) then is less concern if neglected but then a bigger more expensive boat will be more comfortable and more enticing for spouse and family.

Perhaps the best way is as you propose a smaller boat to see if you like it. ie it suits your lifestyle. There is nothing so sad as someone who says they are too "busy" to use their boat.
I don't think standing headroom is nearly as important as you might imagine however I do think your boat should be fibreglass. They are almost indestructable compared to wood.

I have had my own boat for 25 years. The f/g hull has given no trouble. It is small at 21 ft but fast so I have slipped into the racing routine which at least gets me to sail each week. However I don't get the urge to sleep on board and havn't done so for some years but I dream about doing so some more. Perhaps a bigger boat would have led me to different boating style but I am not that fond of rough seas.
Good luck I hope your dream becomes a good reality olewill
 
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