Buying First Yacht

[Jono]

Hello,

Over the next few months I am intending to buy my first Yacht.

I got into sailing racing Mirror dinghies in Brighton. I'll be keeping my yacht on a swinging mooring in Poole and am looking to do mainly week-end sailing.

I'm looking for something fast and responsive but also comfortable enough for 2 - 3 people for a few days.

Budget: Up to around £25000

Boats I've looked at include:

Etap 26
Jeanneau Fantasia
GK24
Jeanneau 24.2
Dufour 2800/1800
Etap 28i

The GK24 is the least expensive and perhaps the fastest - but maybe not the most comfortable! The Etap 28i is the most expensive - I understand it's quite a fast boast and has ample accomodation.

Most grateful for anyone who can chip in any ideas for this novice to be yachtsman!

Thanks.

Jono

 

[Twister_Ken]

Get a proper boat!

You should be able to afford a good Twister for that money. Fun to sail around the bay, but it'll get you to the Caribbean too.

 

[rogerroger]

I don't know all the boats you list but most seem too old / small / slow for your budget & requirements - apart from the Etap 28 they seem more realistic had you stated a £15,000 budget.

Etap 26 is lift keel - good for creek crawling but the keel box is very intrusive. Unsinkable but speed seems a higher priority than safety for you.

Fantasia - good accommodation but don't know how she sails

GK24 - no standing headroom even for a shortie like me (5' 6")

Dufour - great cruising boat - don't think they're all that fast though.

Obviously many will disagree as they hate Beneteau - but you'd get a very nice First for that sort of money - my First 27 has sufficed for cross Channel trips and a 27 day cruise around the West Country. Even with knackered sails that are being replaced she can get up to 7.5 knots with a good F4 on the beam.

Roger Holden
www.first-magnitude.co.uk

 

[billmacfarlane]

Jono , you can already see the pitfalls in asking such a question with people quite rightly singing the praises of their own boat . If you plan to sail from Poole , which has miles of shallow water , a shoal draft boat might suit your requirements. One that fulfils your criteria of performance , accommodation and budget is the Super Seal or the later development of it , the Parker 275. The Super Seal is great fun to sail and I've a mate who's cruised all round Europe in one. She'll also float in a morning dew. Another one you might look at is the Beneteau First 285 with lifting keel and twin rudders. Nice performer and accommodation likewise the First 29 , again with the same keel/rudder configuration. As Roger said Beneteau are not universally liked in this country but I've never found much wrong with them. A good surveyor will highlight any major problems with any of these boats. Good luck.

 

[JeremyF]

Im not going to make specific model recommendations, instead put forward some ideas on a buying strategy.

Of your budget, keep £3k-£5k back for kitting out and upgrading to your spec.
Get a reasonably long list of potential candidates; it will give you more buyer power.
Move now before the spring market picks up, and make some offers substantially below the asking price on boats that have been on the market since the autumn

 

[Guest]

I too am considering buying in SA, I was also considering sailing it back to the Middle East via Madagascar, Seychelles, Maldives, Indian coast and so on. I am looking for a 40ft Cat.

 

[Jeremy_W]

Fantasia

I used to race one round the cans and the performance is OK. Then skip gave up racing and cruised short-handed Liverpool - Brittany.

 

[EdEssery]

An MG C27 is also in the same price range. They are fast and available with a fin keel or lifting keel.

Whatever you choose, keep a good slug of money back 'cos within days you'll have three lists...
1. Things to do to get the boat fully operational as it stands (hopefully this will be short)
2. Things to do to get the boat how it needs to be for the way you intend to use it
3. The WIBNI list

Good luck

Ed

PS WIBNI=Wouldn't It Be Nice If

 

[Guest]

A quick request for clarification. Does your £25k budget cover just the boat, or do you need that cash to stretch to all those little things like moorings, insurance, getting it up to spec etc. as well?

If the former, don't forget the latter!

From someone in the same position, frantically doing sums...

 

[Jono]

Well 25K was for the boat - but I'd rather not spend it all!
What sort of boat ru looking to get?

Jono

 

[Jono]

Do you think a First 27 would be faster than an Etap 28i?

What's the acommodation like on the First 27?

Thanks

Jono

 

[Guest]

Something that's so old I should know better, but any excuse to talk about her...

50-year-old wooden Broads yacht, built at Herbert Woods (leading Norfolk boatyard) 24ft, yes, I know it, mad as a hatstand...

But I'm in love, already... It's like being a teenager again. But instead of muttering darkly about 'precautions', they now mention surveyors, engine spares and the ongoing maintenance costs of wooden boats.

Still, at least I won't be hunting around for blisters below the waterline...

 

[stevebirch2002]

Hi _ Congratulations on joining the boat owning crowd! I am obviously biased but the Albin vega 27 is a fantastic boat. Long keel, robust (over 20 circumnaviagted the world), well built, easy to maintain, fantastic owners club and website (www.albinvega.com), and well within your price budget (£9k - £14K). There are three Vegas in Poole, one up the Wareham river. Truly a yacht that increases in value each year, and will never let you down.

Steve Birch Vega "Southern Comfort" - Fawley, Southampton

Albin Vega "Southern Comfort" V1703