help needed on trailer sailor boat

[IGNITION]

i'm thinking of buying my first trailer sailor.its got 2 berth
length-13' 4"
beam-5' 4"
draft-1' 1"
bilge keel

would a boat of this spec be ok to use on the sea (inshore) within reasonable sea conditions ie normal pretty calm and not to rough.

any help would be great

thanks











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[qbot2]

Hi, your question is a good one !
do you have a make or model? a picture?
how much sailing experience have you had?
it may be worth you contacting the Trail Sail Ass. (http://homepages.rya-online.net/trail-sail/contacts.html) or looking at the small sailboats website (http://www.smallsailboats.co.uk), for more info.
have you considered a survey of the boat or taking along an experienced sailor?
Good luck,
Oz

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[paulrossall]

Depends upon a number of factors, including how stable the boat is. It is not very long, or wide, and if it has a heavy superstructure then might not be very stable. What sort/make of boat is it? Does it have an outboard? If going to sea you need adequate safety equipment. Where do you intend to sail it? How experienced are you. Give us some more information and we can be more constructive. See the Skipper 17 post. That is an ideal first boat and is capable of coastal passages in reasonable conditions, but again adequate safety equipment should be carried.IMHO. Paul

<hr width=100% size=1>" there is nothing-absolutely nothing-half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats".

 

[IGNITION]

paul ive sent you pm
let me know if you get it please
thanks

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[paulrossall]

Have replied to your PM but SWMBO brought me a cup of tea whilst I was pressing buttons so I might have sent it more than once.

<hr width=100% size=1>" there is nothing-absolutely nothing-half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats".

 

[William_H]

It sounds like you have bought the boat already. OK start sailing it in sheltered waters and in good conditions. It seems to me any boat providing it is self righting and has self drasining cockpit and can be sealed at the hatch will survive any conditions. That doesn't mean the crew can and there is no doubt small boat means lots of movement in a seaway and is very unpleasant. This is especially important if you take out partner or friend. They become very unhappy long before it becomes really unsafe and it is not worth puting them off sailing. Expand your horizons slowly and the limitations of the boat the skipper and crew will become obvious with experience. Good luck will

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[chriscallender]

The benefit of something this size is that it should be really easy to launch and recover by yourself - I had a bigger trailer sailer as my first boat but ended up not using it much or at all in "trailer sailer mode" because it was just more effort than I was prepared to put in to get it afloat - a couple of hours of hard work on top of the days sailing - when I could keep it on a drying mooring for a few hundred pounds a year.

But something that small could easily be launched by 1 person (I managed to launch/recover alone with 22 feet but I would not describe it as "easy"!) and could be taken anywhere there is a slipway available - so if you wanted to sail on a particular day then it would almost always be possible to tow it to somewhere safe & sheltered - even an inland lake if the sea was too rough.

But to answer the question in reasonable conditions & with a good forecast and basic safety gear (flares, handheld VHF, lifejackets, anchor etc) it would be perfectly OK for the sea too. There are plenty of places that you could sail to with this kind of boat that would be out of the question in a bigger boat, because of the small draft. Don't know what area you are based in?

If you do sail in the sea find out first about any tidal streams, there are lots of places around the coast whre the current could be so strong that you would be going backwards if you got the timing wrong, especially in a shorter boat which is usually slower.

When buying, remember also to look carefully at the condition of the trailer (often reduced to a rusting wreck on older boats and not safe to tow) and any outboard motor that comes with it - although the engine is less of an issue because 2nd hand small outboards can be picked up quite cheaply.

Otherwise go for it - but be prepared to get hooked and spend all your time and $$$ on boats in the future!

Chris

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